Unit 4: Module 17-19 Flashcards
Mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not the other
Perceptual Set
Controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input, includes telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition
Extrasensory Perception (ESP)
Study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis
Parapsychology
Distance from one peak of one light or sound to the next. Distance determines hue, height determines intensity.
Wavelength
Dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light, what we know as the color names
Hue
Amount of energy in light wave or sound wave, which influences what we perceive as brightness or loudness. Determined by waves amplitude, or height
Intensity
Eye’s clear protective outer layer, covering pupil and iris
Cornea
Adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters
Pupil
Ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening
Iris
Transparent structure behind pupil that changes shape and helps form retina
Lens
Light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information
Retina
Process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina
Accommodation
Retinal receptors that detect black, white, gray, and are sensitive to movement, necessary for peripheral and twilight vision when cones don’t respond
Rods
Retinal receptors that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in the daylight or well-lit conditions. Detect fine detail and give the use to color sensations
Cones
Nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain
Optic nerve
Point at which optic nerve leaves the eye, no receptors located there
Blind spot
Central focal point in the retina, around which the eye’s cones cluster
Fovea
Retina contains 3 different types of color receptors - one most sensitive to red, one to blue, and one to green, which then stimulate the combination, can produce the perception of any color
Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory
Theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, blue-yellow, white-black) enable color vision. Some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red, and vice-versa
Opponent-process theory
Nerve cells in the brain’s visual cortex that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement
Feature detectors
Processing many aspects of a problem simultaneously, the brains natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision
Parallel processing
An organized whole, emphasize tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes
Gestalt
Organization of the visual field into objects (figures) the stand out from their surroundings (ground)
Figure-ground
Perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into groups
Grouping
Ability to see objects in 3 dimensions, although images that strike them are 2d, allows us to judge distance
Depth perception
Lab device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals
Visual cliff
Depth cue, such as retinal disparity, that depends on the use of two eyes
Binocular cues
Binocular cue for perceiving depth, by comparing retinal images from two eyes, the brain computes distance, the greater disparity (difference) between two images the closer the object
Retinal disparity
Depth cue such as interposition or linear perspective, available to the eye alone
Monocular cues
An illusion of movement created where two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession
Phi phenomenon
Perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent color, brightness, shape, size) even as illumination and retinal images change
Perceptual constancy
Perceiving familiar objects as having consistent colors, even if changing illumination alters wavelength reflected by the object
Color constancy
Ability to adjust to changed sensory input, including an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field
Perceptual adaptability
