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181 Cards in this Set

  • Front
  • Back
A geometric concept stating that points on the retina of each eye where the monocular retinal images of a single object are formed are at the same distance from the fovea in each eye. The two foveas are also corresponding points.
Corresponding Retinal Points
The location of objects whose images fall on geometrically corresponding points in the two retinas. If life were simple, this circle would be the horopter, but life is not simple.
Vieth-Muller Circle
The location of objects whose images lie on corresponding points. The surface of zero disparity.
Horopter
Double vision. If visible in both eyes, stimuli falling outside of Panum's fusional area will appear diplopic.
Diplopia
The region of space, in front of and behind the horopter, within which binocular single vision is possible.
Panum's Fusional Area
The sign of disparity created by objects in front of the plane of fixation (the horopter). The term is used because images of objects located in front of the horopter apper to be displaced to the left in the right eye and to the right in the left eye.
Crossed Disparity
The sign of disparity created by objects behind the plane of fixation (the horopter). The term is used because images of objects located behind the horopter will appear to be displaced to the right in the right eye and to the left in the left eye.
Uncrossed Disparity
A device for presenting one image to one eye and another image to the other eye. ___ can be used to present dichoptic stimuli for stereopsis and binocular rivalry.
Stereoscope
The technique of converging (crossing) or diverging the eyes in order to view a stereogram without a stereoscope.
Free Fusion
An inability to make use of binocular disparity as a depth cue. This term is typically used to describe individuals with vision in both eyes. Someone who has lost one or both eyes is not typically given this diagnosis.
Stereoblindness
A stereogram made of a large number (often in the thousands) of randomly placed dots. ______ contain no monocular cues to depth. Stimuli visible stereoscopically in _______ are cyclopean stimuli.
Random Dot Stereogram (RDS)
Referring to stimuli that are defined by binocular disparity alone. Named after a monster in Homer's Odyssey.
Cyclopean
The problem of figuring out which bit of the image in the left eye should be matched with which bit in the right eye. The problem is particularly vexing when the images consist of thousands of similar features like dots in random dot stereograms.
Correspondence Problem (Binocular Vision)
In stereopsis, the observation that a feature in the world is represented exactly once in each retinal image. This constraint simplifies the correspondence problem.
Uniqueness Constraint
In stereopsis, the observation that, except at the edges of objects, neighboring points in the world lie at similar distances from the viewer. This is one of several constraints that have been proposed to help solve the correspondence problem.
Continuity Constraint
A difference in the actual retinal coordinates in the left and right eyes of the image of a feature in a visual scene.
Absolute Disparity
A difference in absolute disparities of two elements in a visual scene.
Relative Disparity
A statistical model based on Reverend Thomas Bayes' insight that prior knowledge could influence our estimates of the probability of a current event.
Bayesian Approach
A theoretical observer with complete access to the best available information and the ability to combine different sources of information in the optimal manner. It can be useful to compare human performance to that of an ___.
Ideal Observer
A competition between the two eyes for control of visual perception, which is evident when completely different stimuli are presented to the two eyes.
Binocular Rivalry
A measure of the smallest binocular disparity that can generate a sensation of depth.
Stereoacuity
Referring to the presentation of two stimuli, one to each eye. Different from binocular presentation, which could involve both eyes looking at a single stimulus.
Dichoptic
In the study of development, a period of time when the organism is particularly susceptible to developmental change. There are critical periods in the development of binocular vision, human language and so on.
Critical Period
A misalignment of the two eyes such that a single object in space is imaged on the fovea of one eye, and on a nonfoveal area of the other (turned) eye.
Strabismus
Strabismus in which one eye deviates inward.
Esotropia
Strabismus in which one eye deviates outward.
Exotropia
In vision, the inhibition of the unwanted image. Suppression occurs frequently in persons with strabismus.
Suppression
The illusion of motion of a stationary object that occurs after prolonged exposure to a moving object.
Motion Aftereffect (MAE)
The (illusory) impression of smooth motion resulting from the rapid alternation of objects that appear in different locations in rapid succession.
Apparent Motion
An opening that allows only a partial view of the object.
Aperture
The problem faced by the motion detection system of knowing which feature in frame 2 corresponds to a particular feature in frame 1.
Correspondence Problem (Motion)
The fact that when a moving object is viewed through an aperture (or a receptive field), the direction of motion of a local feature or part of the object may be ambiguous.
Aperture Problem
An area of the brain thought to be important in the perception of motion.
Middle Temporal Lobe (MT)
The transfer of an effect (such as adaptation) from one eye to the other.
Interocular Transfer
The motion of an object that is defined by changes in luminance.
First-Order Motion
An object that is delineated by changes in reflected light.
Luminance-Defined Object
The motion of an object that is defined by changes in contrast or texture, but not luminance.
Second-Order Motion
An object that is defined by changes in contrast or texture, but not by luminance.
Texture-Defined (Contrast-Defined) Object
The collection of light rays that interact with objects in the world in front of the viewer. Term coined by J. J. Gibson.
Optic Array
The changing angular positions of points in a perspective image that we experience as we move through the world.
Optic Flow
The point in the center of the horizon from which, when we are in motion (e.g. driving on the highway), all points in the perspective image seem to emanate. The focus of expansion is one aspect of optic flow.
Focus of Expansion
The pattern of movement of living beings (humans and animals).
Biological Motion
The time required for a moving object (such as a cricket ball) to hit a stationary object (such as a batsman's head. = distance/rate
Time to Collision (TTC)
Information in the optic flow that could signal TTC without the necessity of estimating either absolute distances or rates. The ratio of the retinal image size at any moment to the rate at which the image is expanded. TTC is proportional to ___.
Tau
A type of eye movement in which the eyes move smoothly to follow a moving object.
Smooth Pursuit
A structure in the midbrain that is important in initiating and guiding eye movements.
Superior Colliculus
A type of eye movement in which the two eyes move in opposite directions - for example, both eyes turn toward the nose (convergence) or away from the nose (divergence).
Vergence
A rapid movement of the eyes that changes fixation from one object or location to another.
Saccade
A movement of the eye that is automatic and involuntary.
Reflexive Eye Movement
The reduction of visual sensitivity that occurs when we make saccadic eye movements. ___ eliminates the smear from retinal image motion during an eye movement.
Saccadic Suppression
An area of the visual system that receives one copy of the order issued by the motor system when the eyes move (the other copy goes to the eye muscles). The ____ can compensate for the image changes caused by the eye movement.
Comparator
A rare neuropsychological disorder in which the affected individual has no perception of motion.
Akinetopsia
Any of the very large set of selective processes in the brain. To deal with the impossibility of handling all inputs at once, the nervous system has evolved mechanisms that are able to restrict processing to a subset of things, places, ideas, or moments in time.
Attention
The form of attention involved when processing is restricted to a subset of the possible stimuli.
Selective Attention
A measure of the time from the onset of a stimulus to a response.
Reaction Time (RT)
A stimulus that might indicate where (or what) a subsequent stimulus will be. Cues can be valid (correct information), invalid (incorrect), or neutral (uninformative).
Cue
The time between the onset of one stimulus and the onset of another.
Stimulus Onset Asynchronicity (SOA)
Looking for a target in a display containing distracting elements.
Visual Search
The goal of visual search.
Target
In visual search, any stimulus other than the target.
Distractor
The number of items in a visual display.
Set Size
Search for a target defined by a single attribute, such as salient color or orientation.
Feature Search
The vividness of a stimulus relative to its neighbors.
Salience
In visual attention, referring to the processing of multiple stimuli at the same time.
Parallel
A search from item to item, ending when a target is found.
Serial Self-Terminating Search
Search in which attention can be restricted to a subset of possible items on the basis of information about the target item's basic features (e.g. it's color).
Guided Search
Search for a target defined by the presence of two or more attributes (e.g. red, vertical target among red horizontal and blue vertical distractors).
Conjunction Search
The challenge of tying different attributes of visual stimuli (e.g. color, orientation, motion), which are handled by different brain circuits, to the appropriate object so that we perceive a unified object (e.g. red, vertical, moving right).
Binding Problem
The processing of a stimulus that occurs before selective attention is deployed to that stimulus.
Preattentive Stage
Anne Treisman's theory of visual attention, which holds that a limited set of basic features can be processed in parallel preattentively , but that other properties, including the correct binding of features to objects, require attention.
Feature Integration Theory
An erroneous combination of two features in a visual scene - for example, seeing a red X when the display contains red letters and Xs but no red Xs.
Illusory Conjunction
An experimental procedure in which stimuli appear in a stream at one location (typically the point of fixation) at a rapid rate (typically at about eight per second).
Rapid Serial Visual Presentation (RSVP)
The difficulty in perceiving and responding to the second of two target stimuli amid a rapid stream of distracting stimuli if the observer has responded to the first target stimulus within 200 to 500 milliseconds before the second stimulus is presented.
Attentional Blink
A failure to detect the second occurrence of a letter, word or picture in a rapidly presented stream of stimuli when the second occurrence falls within 200 to 500 milliseconds of the first one.
Repetition Blindness
An area in the fusiform gyrus of human extrastriate cortex that responds preferentially to faces in fMRI studies.
Fusiform Face Area
A region of cortex in the temporal lobe of humans that appears to respond with particular strength to images of places (as opposed to isolated objects).
Parahippocampal Place Area
An effect of attention on the response of a neuron in which the neuron responding to an attended stimulus gives a bigger response.
Response Enhancement
An effect of attention on the response of a neuron in which the neuron responds more precisely. For example, a neuron that responds to lines with orientations from -20 degrees to +20 degrees might come to respond to +/-10 degree lines.
Sharper Tuning
A portion of the visual field with no vision or with abnormal vision, typically resulting in damage to the visual nervous system.
Visual-Field Defect
In each cerebral hemisphere, a lobe that lies toward the top of the brain between the frontal and occipital lobes.
Parietal Lobe
In visual attention, the inability to attend to or respond to stimuli in the contralesional visual field (typically, neglect of the left field after right parietal damage). Also neglect of half of the body or half of an object.
Neglect
The visual field on the opposite side of a brain lesion.
Contralesional Field
In visual attention, the inability to perceive a stimulus to one side of the point of fixation (e.g. to the right) in the presence of another stimulus, typically in a comparable position in the other visual field (e.g. on the left side).
Extinction
The visual field on the same side as a brain legion.
Ipsilateral Field
An inability to perceive more than one object at a time. ___ is a consequence of bilateral damage to the parietal lobes (Balint Syndrome).
Simultagnosia
The failure to notice a change between two scenes. If the change does not alter the gist, or meaning, of the scene, quite large changes can pass unnoticed.
Change Blindness
A shift of attention in the absence of corresponding movements of the eyes.
Covert Attentional Shift
A shift of attention accompanied by corresponding movements of the eyes.
Overt Attentional Shift
The description of the structure of a scene (e.g. enclosed, open, rough, smooth) without reference to the identity of specific objects in the scene.
Spatial Layout
The magnitude of displacement (increase or decrease) of a sound pressure wave or of a head movement (e.g. angular velocity, linear acceleration, tilt).
Amplitude
The amount of sound energy falling on a unit area (such as a square centimeter).
Intensity
For sound, the number of times per second that a pattern of pressure change repeats.
Frequency
A unit of measure for frequency. One ___ equals one cycle per second.
Hertz (Hz)
The psychological aspect of sound related to perceived intensity or magnitude.
Loudness
The psychological aspect of sound related mainly to the fundamental frequency.
Pitch
A unit of measure for the physical intensity of sound. ___ define the difference between two sounds as the ratio between two sound pressures.
Decibel (dB)
The waveform for which variation as a function of time is a sine function.
Sine Wave (or Pure Tone)
The time (or space) required for one cycle of a repeating waveform.
Period
The relative position of two or more sine waves. For sounds, the phase is the relative position in time.
Phase
A sound wave consisting of more than one sinusoidal component of different frequencies.
Complex Tone
A mathematical theorem by which any sound can be divided into a set of sine waves. Combining these sine waves will reproduce the original sound.
Fourier Analysis
A representation of the relative energy (intensity) present at each frequency.
Spectrum
The spectrum of a complex sound in which energy is at integer multiples of the fundamental frequency.
Harmonic Spectrum
The lowest-frequency component of a complex periodic sound.
Fundamental Frequency
The psychological sensation by which a listener can judge that two sounds with the same loudness and pitch are dissimilar. ___ quality is conveyed by harmonics and other high frequencies.
Timbre
The outer, funnel-like part of the ear.
Pinna
The canal that conducts sound vibrations from the pinna to the tympanic membrane.
Ear Canal
The eardrum; a thin sheet of skin at the end of the outer ear canal. The ___ vibrates in response to sound.
Tympanic Membrane
The external sound-gathering portion of the ear, consisting of the pinna and the ear canal.
Outer Ear
The air-filled chamber containing the middle bones, or ossicles. The ___ conveys and amplifies vibration from the tympanic membrane to the oval window.
Middle Ear
Three tiny bones of the middle ear: malleus, incus and stapes.
Ossicles
One of the ossicles; receives vibration from the tympanic membrane and is attached to the incus.
Malleus
The middle ossicle; connects to the malleus and the stapes.
Incus
One of the ossicles; connected to the incus on one end, the stapes presses against the oval window of the cochlea on the other end.
Stapes
The flexible opening to the cochlea through which the stapes transmits the vibration to the fluid inside.
Oval Window
The hollow cavity in the temporal bone of the skull, and the structures within this cavity: the cochlea and vestibular canals.
Inner Ear
The muscle attached to the malleus; tensing the sensor tympani decreases vibration.
Tensor Tympani
The muscle attached to the stapes; tensing the ___ decreases vibration.
Stapedius
A reflex that protects the ear from intense sounds, via contraction of the stapedius and tensor tympani muscles.
Acoustic Reflex
A spiral structure of the inner ear containing the organ of Corti.
Cochlea
One of the three fluid-filled passages in the cochlea; extends from the round window at the base of the cochlea to the helicotrema at the apex.
Tympanic Canal / Scala Tympani
One of the three fluid-filled passages in the cochlea; extends form the oval window at the base of the cochlea to the helicotrema at the apex.
Vestibular Canal / Scala Vestibuli
One of the three fluid-filled passages in the cochlea; sandwiched between the tympanic and vestibular canals and contains the cochlear partition.
Middle Canal / Scala Media
The opening that connects the tympanic and vestibular canals at the apex of the cochlea.
Helicotrema
A thin sheath of tissue separating the vestibular and middle canals in the cochlea.
Reissner's Membrane
A plate of fibers that forms the base of the cochlear partition and separates the middle and tympanic canals in the cochlea.
Basilar Membrane
The combined basilar membrane, tectorial membrane, and organ of Corti, which are together responsible for the transduction of sound waves into neural signals.
Cochlear Partition
A soft area of tissue at the base of the tympanic canal that releases excess pressure remaining from extremely intense sounds.
Round Window
The structure on the basilar membrane of the cochlea that is composed of hair cells and dendrites of auditory nerve fibers.
Organ of Corti
Cells that support the stereocilia that transduce mechanical movement in the cochlea and vestibular labyrinth into neural activity sent to the brain stem; some ___ also receive inputs from the brain.
Hair Cells
A collection of neurons that convey information from the hair cells in the cochlea to (afferent) and from (efferent) the brain stem. This collection also includes neurons for the vestibular system.
Auditory Nerve Fibers
Hairlike extensions on the tips of hair cells in the cochlea that initiate the release of neurotransmitters when they are flexed.
Stereocilia
A gelatinous structure, attached on one end, that extends into the middle canal of the ear, floating above inner hair cells and touching outer hair cells.
Tectorial Membrane
A tiny filament that stretches from the tip of the stereocilium to the side of its neighbor.
Tip Link
Tuning of different parts of the cochlea to different frequencies, in which information about the particular frequency of an incoming sound wave is coded by the place along the cochlear partition that has the greatest mechanical displacement.
Place Code
A neuron that carries sensory information to the central nervous system.
Afferent Fiber
A neuron that carries information form the central nervous system to the periphery.
Efferent Fiber
A map plotting the thresholds of a neuron or fiber in response to sine waves with varying frequencies at the lowest intensity that will give rise to a response.
Threshold Tuning Curve
The frequency to which a particular auditory nerve fiber is more sensitive.
Characteristic Frequency (CF)
A decrease in the firing rate of one auditory nerve fiber due to one tone, when a second tone is presented at the same time.
Two-tone Suppression
A map plotting the firing rate of an auditory nerve fiber against varying frequencies at varying intensities.
Isointensity Curve
The point at which a nerve fiber is firing as rapidly as possible and further stimulation is incapable of increasing the firing rate.
Rate Saturation
A map plotting the firing rate of an auditory nerve fiber in response to a sound of constant frequency at increasing intensity.
Rate-Intensity Function
Auditory nerve fibers with low rates (less than 10 per second) of spontaneous firing; ___ require relatively intense sound before firing at higher rates.
Low-Spontaneous Fibers
Auditory nerve fibers with high rates (more than 30 per second) of spontaneous firing; ___increase their firing rate in response to relatively low levels of sound.
High-Spontaneous Fibers
Auditory Nerve Fibers with medium rates (10-30 per second) of spontaneous firing; The characteristic of ___ fibers are intermediate between low- and high- spontaneous fibers.
Mid-Spontaneous Fibers
Firing of a single neuron at one distinct point in the period (cycle) of a sound wave at a given frequency. (The neuron need not fire on every cycle, but each firing will occur at the same point in the cycle).
Phase Locking
Tuning of different parts of the cochlea to different frequencies, in which information about the particular frequency of an incoming sound wave is coded by the timing of neural firing as it relates to the period of the sound.
Temporal Code
An idea stating that multiple neurons can provide a temporal code for frequency if each neuron fires at a distinct point in the period of a sound wave but does not fire on every period.
Volley Principle
The first brain stem nucleus at which afferent auditory nerve fibers synapse.
Cochlear Nucleus
An early brain stem region from the auditory pathway where inputs from btoh ears converge.
Superior Olive
A midbrain nucleus in the auditory pathway.
Inferior Colliculus
The part of the thalmus that relays auditory signals to the temporal to the temporal cortex and receives input from the auditory cortex.
Medial Geniculate Nucleus
An arrangement in which neurons that respond to different frequencies are organized anatomically in order of frequency.
Tonotopic Organization
The first area within the temporal lobes of the brain responsible for processing acoustic information.
Primary Auditory Cortex (A1)
A region of cortex, directly adjacent to the primary auditory cortex (A1), with inputs form A1, where neurons respond to more complex characteristics of sounds.
Belt Areas
A region of cortex, lateral and adjacent to the belt area, where neurons respond to more complex characteristics of sounds, as well as to input from other senses.
Parabelt Area
The study of psychological correlates of the physical dimensions of acoustics; a branch of psychophysics.
Psychoacoustics
The lowest sound pressure level that can be reliably detected at a given frequency.
Audibility Threshold
A graph plotting sound pressure level (dB SPL) against the frequency for which a listener perceives constant loudness.
Equal-Loudness Curve
The process by which a sound at a constant level is perceives as being louder when it is of greater duration. The term also applies to perceived brightness, which depends on the duration of light.
Temporal Integration
Using a second sound, frequently noise, to make the detection of another sound more difficult.
Masking
Noise consisting of all audible frequencies in equal amounts.
White Noise
The range of frequencies conveyed within the channel in the auditory system.
Critical Bandwidth
Hearing loss caused by problems with the bones of the middle ear.
Conductive Hearing Loss
Inflammation of the middle ear, commonly in children as a result of infection.
Otitis Media
Abnormal growth of the middle-ear bones that causes hearing loss.
Otosclerosis
Hearing loss due to defects in the cochlea or auditory nerve.
Sensorineural Hearing Loss
Producing adverse effects on organs or nerves involved in hearing or balance.
Ototoxic
The difference in time between a sound arriving at one ear versus the other.
Interaural Time Difference (ITD)
the angle of a sound source on the horizontal plane relative to a point in the center of the head between the ears. ___ is measured in degrees, with 0 degrees being straight ahead. The angle increases clockwise toward the right, with 180 degrees being directly behind.
Azimuth
The relay station in the brain stem where inputs from both ears contribute to detection of the interaural time difference.
Medial Superior Olive (MSO)
The difference in level (intensity) between a sound arriving at one ear versus the other.
Interaural Level Difference (ILD)
A relay station in the brain stem where inputs from both ears contribute to the detection of the interaural level difference.
Lateral Superior Olive (LSO)
A region of positions in space where all sounds produce the same time and level (intensity) differences (ITFs and ILDs).
Cone of Confusion
A function that describes how the pinna, ear, canal, head and torso change the intensity of sounds with different frequencies that arrive at each ear from different locations in space (azimuth and elevation).
Head-Related Transfer Function (HRTF)
A principle stating that as a distance from a source increases, intensity decreases faster such that decrease in intensity is the distance squared. This general law also applies to optics and other forms of energy.
Inverse-Square Law
The lowest-frequency component of a complex periodic sound.
Fundamental Frequency
The psychological sensation by which a listener can judge that two sounds with the same loudness and pitch are dissimilar. Timbre quality is conveyed by harmonics and other high frequencies.
Timbre
The part of a sound during which amplitude increases (onset).
Attack
The part of a sound during which amplitude decreases (offset).
Decay