Sensation and Perception

Question 1

Sensation

Answer 1

Conversion or transduction of physical, electromagnetic, auditory, and other information from the internal and external environment into electrical signals in the nervous system

Question 2

Perception

Answer 2

Processing of sensory information to make sense of its significance

Question 3

Sensory receptors

Answer 3

Nerves that respond to stimuli and trigger electrical signals

Question 4

Sensory ganglia

Answer 4

Collection of cell bodies outside the central nervous system associated with sensory neurons

Question 5

Projection areas

Answer 5

Sensory stimuli are transmitted to projection areas in the brain, which further analyze the sensory input

Question 6

Threshold

Answer 6

Minimum stimulus that causes change in signal transduction

Question 7

Absolute threshold

Answer 7

Minimum of stimulus energy that is needed to activate a sensory system

Question 8

Threshold of conscious perception

Answer 8

Minimum of stimulus energy that will create a signal large enough in size and long enough in duration to be brought into awareness

Question 9

Difference threshold / just-noticeable threshold

Answer 9

Minimum difference in magnitude between two stimuli before one can perceive this difference

Question 10

Weber’s Law

Answer 10

The just-noticeable difference for a stimulus is proportional to the magnitude of the stimulus and that this proportion is constant over most of the range of possible stimuli

Question 11

Signal detection theory

Answer 11

Effects of nonsensory factors, such as experiences, motives, and expectations, on perception of stimuli. Detection theory or signal detection theory is a means to measure the ability to differentiate between information-bearing patterns and random patterns that distract from the information

Question 12

Response bias

Answer 12

Bias is the extent to which one response is more probable than another. That is, a receiver may be more likely to respond that a stimulus is present or more likely to respond that a stimulus is not present. It can be hits, misses, false alarms, and correct negatives

Question 13

Adaptation

Answer 13

Decrease in response to a stimulus over time

Question 14

Eye

Answer 14

Organ specialized to detect light in form of photons

Question 15

Cornea

Answer 15

Gathers and filters incoming light

Question 16

Iris

Answer 16

Divides front of eye into anterior and posterior chambers. It has two muscles, the dilator and constrictor pupillae, which open and close the pupil.

Question 17

Lens

Answer 17

Refract incoming light to focus it on the retina and is held in place by suspensory ligaments connected to the ciliary muscles

Question 18

Aqueous humor

Answer 18

Produced by ciliary body and drains through canal of Schlemm

Question 19

Rods

Answer 19

Detect light and dark

Question 20

Cones

Answer 20

short-, medium-, long- , detect color

Question 21

Macula

Answer 21

In the retina and corresponds to central visual field. Mostly has cones

Question 22

Fovea

Answer 22

Center of macula and contains only cones

Question 23

Rods and cones synapse on __________ which synapse on _________.

Answer 23

1. Bipolar cells

2. Ganglion cells

Question 24

Horizontal and amacrine cells

Answer 24

Integrate signals from ganglion cells and edge-sharpening

Question 25

What support bulk of eye?

Answer 25

Vitreous on the inside and sclera and choroid on the outside

Question 26

Visual pathway

Answer 26

Eye->optic nerves->optic chiasm->optic tracts->lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) of thalamus->visual radiations->visual cortex

Question 27

Optic chiasm

Answer 27

Contains fibers crossing from nasal side of the retina (temporal visual fields) of both eyes

Question 28

Visual radiations run through ___

Answer 28

Parietal and temporal lobes

Question 29

Where is visual cortex?

Answer 29

Occipital lobe

Question 30

Parallel processing

Answer 30

All senses are processed this way. This is the simultaneuous analysis and combination of information.

Question 31

Parvocellular cells

Answer 31

Detect shape with high spatial resolution and low temporal resolution

Question 32

Magnocellular cells

Answer 32

Detect motion with low spatial resolution and high temporal resolution

Question 33

Divisions of ear

Answer 33

Inner, outer,middle ear

Question 34

Outer ear

Answer 34

pinna (auricle), external auditory canal, tympanic membrane

Question 35

Middle ear

Answer 35

Ossicles ( malleus, incus, stapes). Stapes rest on oval window of cochlea and middle ear is connected to nose via eustachian tubes

Question 36

Inner ear

Answer 36

Has the bony labyrinth, within which is the membranous labyrinth.

Question 37

Bony labyrinth

Answer 37

Filled with perilymph

Question 38

Membranous labyrinth

Answer 38

Has endolymph. It has the cochela, utricle, and saccule, semicircular canals

Question 39

Cochlea

Answer 39

Detects sound

Question 40

Utricle and saccule

Answer 40

Detect linear acceleration

Question 41

Semicircular canals

Answer 41

Detect rotational acceleration

Question 42

Auditory pathway

Answer 42

Cochlea-> vestibulocochlear nerve and medial geniculate nucleas (MGN) of thalamus-->auditory cortex in temporal lobe

Question 43

Superior olive

Answer 43

Sound information goes here for sound localization

Question 44

Inferior colliculus

Answer 44

Sound information goes here for startle reflex

Question 45

Olfactory chemoreceptors or olfacotry nerves

Answer 45

Detect volatile or aerosolized chemicals in olfactory epithelium

Question 46

Olfactory pathway

Answer 46

Olfacotry nerves --> olfactory bulb and tract--> higher order brain areas

Question 47

PHEROMONES

Answer 47

Chemicals given off by animals that have an effect on social, foraging, and sexual behavior in other members of that species

Question 48

Taste

Answer 48

Detection of dissolved compounds by taste buds in papillae. It comes in five modalities such as sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami (savory).

Question 49

Somatosensation

Answer 49

Four touch modalities: pressure, vibration, pain, temperature

Question 50

Two-point threshold

Answer 50

Minimum distance necessary between two points of stimulation on the skin such that the points will be felt as two distinct stimuli

Question 51

Physiological zero

Answer 51

Normal temperature of the skin to which objects are compared to determine if they feel "cold" or "warm"

Question 52

Nociceptors

Answer 52

Responsible for pain perception

Question 53

Gate theory of pain

Answer 53

Pain sensation is reduced when other somatosensory signals are present

Question 54

Kinesthetic sense (proprioception)

Answer 54

Ability to tell where one's body is in 3D space

Question 55

Bottom up (data driven) processing

Answer 55

Recognition of objects by parallel processing and feature detection. It is slower but less prone to mistakes

Question 56

Top-down (conceptually driven) processing

Answer 56

Recognition of an object by memories and expectations, with little attention to detail. It is faster, but more prone to mistakes.

Question 57

Gestalt principles

Answer 57

Way the brain can infer missing parts of a picture when a picture is incomplete

Question 58

Law of proximity

Answer 58

Elements close to one another tend to be perceived as a unit

Question 59

Law of similarity

Answer 59

Objects that are similar appear to be grouped together

Question 60

Law of good continuation

Answer 60

Elements that follow the same pathway tend to be grouped together

Question 61

Subjective contours

Answer 61

Perception of nonexistent edges in figures, based on surrounding visual cues

Question 62

Law of closure

Answer 62

When a space is enclosed by a group of lines, it is perceived as a complete or closed line

Question 63

Law of praganz

Answer 63

Perceptual organization will always be as regular, simple, and symmetric as possible