Vision

Question 1

phototransduction

Answer 1

the transduction of light energy into neural signals

Question 2

retina

Answer 2

specialized sensory organ at the back of the eye that translates visual images into the language of APs

Question 3

photons

Answer 3

small particles of light

Question 4

wavelength

Answer 4

the distance between peaks and valleys of a photon’s ripples

Question 5

cornea

Answer 5

a transparent outer layer

Question 6

iris

Answer 6

colored part of the eye that controls how much light enters by adjusting pupil size

Question 7

lens

Answer 7

focuses light on the retina at the back of the eye

Question 8

ciliary muscles

Answer 8

distort the shape of the lens to focus objects at different viewing distances on the retina

Question 9

cones

Answer 9

photoreceptors responsible for daytime vision and color

Question 10

rods

Answer 10

photoreceptors are responsible for night and monochrome vision

Question 11

opsins

Answer 11

special light-sensitive proteins

Question 12

rhodopsin

Answer 12

opsin in rods

Question 13

cone opsin

Answer 13

opsin in cones

Question 14

retinal

Answer 14

a form of vitamin A that opsin molecules bind to

Question 15

dichromates

Answer 15

people who can only perceive two color hues instead of three

Question 16

tetrachromate

Answer 16

a female who can perceive more than the normal three color hues

Question 17

on-center bipolar cells

Answer 17

inhibited by glutamate so they depolarize when light hits the photoreceptor

Question 18

off-center bipolar cells

Answer 18

excited by glutamate so hyperpolarize when light hits the photoreceptor

Question 19

on-center ganglion cells

Answer 19

receive input from on-center bipolar cells so they depolarize when light hits the photoreceptor

Question 20

off-center ganglion cells

Answer 20

receive input from off-center bipolar cells so they hyperpolarize when light hits the photoreceptor

Question 21

on-center off-surround cells

Answer 21

preferred stimulus - light in the center

anti-preferred stimulus - annulus of light in the surround

Question 22

off-center on-surround cells

Answer 22

preferred stimulus - annulus of light in the surround

anti-preferred stimulus - light in the center

Question 23

receptive field

Answer 23

the region where a neuron is responsive to stimulation

Question 24

preferred stimulus

Answer 24

the stimulus that excites a neuron the most

Question 25

non-preferred stimulus

Answer 25

a stimulus that falls within a cell’s receptive field but only affects its firing rate a little bit

Question 26

anti-preferred stimulus

Answer 26

the stimulus that inhibits a neuron the most

Question 27

optic nerve

Answer 27

a bundle of axons of retinal ganglion cells that leaves the retina through the optic disk

Question 28

lateral geniculate nucleus

Answer 28

thalamic relay nucleus for vision
receives input from retinal ganglion cells via the optic tract
sends output to the primary visual cortex V1 via the optic radiation
composed of 6 layers
preferred stimulus - light in center or annulus in surround
projects mainly to layer 4 of V1