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Ap Pysch > Unit 4 Vocab > Flashcards

Unit 4 Vocab Flashcards

1
Q

absolute threshold

A

the ability to de t stimuli. The minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time. (p. 156)

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2
Q

bottom-up processing

A

analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information. (p. 152)

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3
Q

change blindness

A

failing to notice changes in the environment. (p. 154)

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4
Q

difference threshold

A

The difference in intensity and change in perceiving stimuli

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5
Q

inattentional blindness

A

failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere. (p. 154)

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6
Q

perception

A

What our brain does with neural messages

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7
Q

priming

A

When exposure to certain stimuli influences our behaviors. This is unconscious

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8
Q

psychophysics

A

the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them. (p. 155)

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9
Q

selective attention

A

the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus. Our brain decides what to focus on

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10
Q

sensation

A

The raw data that hits sensory senses

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11
Q

sensory adaptation

A

We get used to ongoing stimulus. It becomes less notable.

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12
Q

signal detection theory

A

Helps us understand when someone can and can not detect stimuli

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13
Q

subliminal

A

below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness. (p. 157)

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14
Q

top-down processing

A

information processing guided by stimuli that we have already experienced and our expectations

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15
Q

transduction

A

Flipping energy from the outside world to neural energy

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16
Q

Weber’s law

A

The way we detect differences in stimuli is based on the original signal

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17
Q

extrasensory perception (ESP)

A

This is very controversial. It’s perception without sensation. Ex: telepathy
—No scientific evidence

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18
Q

parapsychology

A

the study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis. (p. 167)

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19
Q

perceptual set

A

a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another. (p. 163)
Expectations, contexts, and emotion influence perception.
—this is top-down

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20
Q

accommodation

A

The process of the lens focusing on far and near objects

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21
Q

blind spot

A

the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a “blind” spot because no receptor cells are located there. (p. 173)

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22
Q

cones

A

This is in the photoreceptors and has to do with color and acuity

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23
Q

feature detectors

A

nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement. (p. 175)

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24
Q

fovea

A

the central focal point in the retina, around which the eye’s cones cluster. (p. 173)

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25
hue
the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light; what we know as the color names blue, green, and so forth. (p. 172)
26
intensity
the amount of energy in a light or sound wave, which we perceive as brightness or loudness, as determined by the wave's amplitude. (p. 172)
27
iris
Pared with the pupil and it controls pupil size
28
lens
Focuses light rays on the retina
29
opponent-process theory
We see color in term of opposing colors —red v. Green, blue v yellow, black v white
30
optic nerve
the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain. (p. 173)
31
parallel processing
the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain's natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision.
32
pupil
the adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters. (p. 172)
33
retina
Converts energy light energy, transduction —there are three layers
34
rods
In photoreceptors, detects peripheral vision and low light
35
wavelength
the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next.
36
Young-Helmholtz trichromatic (three-color) theory
the theory that the retina contains three different color cones: red, green, and blue. Each are sensitive to different wavelenghts
37
binocular cues
depth cues, such as retinal disparity, that depend on the use of two eyes. (p. 184)
38
color constancy
perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object. (p. 187)
39
depth perception
the ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance. (p. 184)
40
figure-ground
the organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground). (p. 183)
41
gestalt
The whole is more meaningful thank the parts/pieces
42
grouping
the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups. (p. 183)
43
monocular cues
depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone. (p. 185)
44
perceptual adaptation
We can adapt our perception
45
perceptual constancy
perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent shapes, size, brightness, and color) even as illumination and retinal images change. (p. 186)
46
phi phenomenon
an illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession. (p. 185)
47
retinal disparity
When your brain takes information from both hemispheres and focuses them
48
visual cliff
a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals. (p. 184)
49
audition
the sense or act of hearing. (p. 194)
50
cochlea
Auditory transduction, tiny hair cells that respond to stimuli
51
cochlear implant
a device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve through electrodes threaded into the cochlea. (p. 198)
52
conduction hearing loss
hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea. (p. 197)
53
frequency theory
Length of wavelength determines pitch
54
frequency
the number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time (for example, per second). (p. 195)
55
inner ear
the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs. (p. 195)
56
middle ear
the chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, and stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea's oval window. (p. 195)
57
pitch
a tone's experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency. (p. 195)
58
place theory
Explains how we hear high pitches (basilar membrane)
59
sensorineural hearing loss
hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptor cells or to the auditory nerves. (Also called nerve deafness.) (p. 197)
60
embodied cognition
in psychological science, the influence of bodily sensations, gestures, and other states on cognitive preferences and judgments. (p. 211)
61
gate-control theory
Explains why we touch where we feel pain. This can reduce the perception of pain.
62
kinesthesia
[kin-ehs-THEE-see-a] the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts. (p. 209)
63
sensory interaction
the principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste. (p. 210)
64
vestibular sense
the sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance. (p. 209)

Ap Pysch (14 decks)

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