Sensation and Perception (ch 5) Flashcards
sensation
detection of physical stimuli and transmission of that information to the brain
perception
brains further processing, organization, and interpretation of sensory information
transduction
process by which sensory stimuli are converted to neutral signal the brain can interpret
vision pathway
stimuli: light waves
receptors: cones and rods in retina
pathway: optic nerve
hearing
stimuli: sound waves
receptors: hair cells in cochlea
pathway: auditory nerve
taste
stimuli: fluid on tongue
receptors: cells in taste buds on tongue
pathways to brain: nerves
absolute threshold
minimum intensity of stimulation necessary to detect a sensation half the time
signal detection theory
a theory of percepetion based on the idea that the detection of a stimulus requires a judgement, not an all or nothing process
rods
retina cells that respond to low levels of light and result in black and white perception
cones
retinal cells that respond to higher levels of light and result in color perceptioin
fovea
center of the retina, where cones are densely packed
from eye to brain
- generation of electrical signals by the sensory receptors in the retina which contains photopigments that are split apart when exposed to light
- light is transduced by the rods and cones
- outputs converge on the retinal ganglion cells
- ganglion cells send their signals along their axons from inside the eye to thalamus and gathered into a bundle called the optic nerve
- information reaches the visual areas of the thalamus and then travels to the primary visual cortex
ventral stream
projects from the occipital lobe to the temporal love and appears to be specialized for the perception and recognition of objects
dorsal stream
projects from the occipital lobe to the parietal lobe and seems to be specialized for spatial perception, determining where an object is and relating it to other objects in the scene
trichromatic theory
color vision results from activity in three types of cones that are sensitive to wavelengths