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55 Cards in this Set

  • Front
  • Back
Indirect Realism
we know the world through other things that connect us to the world
Molyneux's Premise
noticed that distance is not perceived by the eye, link between the environment and organisms. Images are two dimensional and require construction and reconstruction

Distance is not perceived by the eye
Proximal stimulus
the pattern reflected onto own retina (the image that we have access too)
Empiricism
how we know scientifically; done through experience, knowledge, and learning
Theory of Specific Nerve Energies
perception depends on nerve energies reaching the brain and the specific quality we experience depends on which nerves are stimulated
Theory of unconscious inference
cues and rules generate internalized knowledge, which is used later to make sense of perceptions
psychophysics
measurement of the relationship between energy and sensation; studies the properties of energy that are perceived
absolute threshold
minimum energy for something to be sensed or detected
Method of Limits
present stimulus in ascending to descending order, absolute threshold is determined by calculating the average of all crossover points
Weber's Law
Mindful processes can be studied in a scientific manner

Change in intensity over initial intensity is equal to Weber's constant
Magnitude estimation
intensity in order to be perceived, allows one to probe mental states
power law (aka Steven's power law)
P = k(I^n), perception of the subjective magnitude of stimulus

k = constant, P = perceived magnitude, I = intensity of stimulus, n = slope of the line in log-plots (power)
wavelength
distance between two peaks of wavelength, responsible for perception of color
amplitude
physical characteristic of a wavelength corresponding to intensity
lens
has varying optical power, changes shape to accommodate objects at different distances (has an autofocus)
photoreceptors
convert light into neural activity, located in retina
rods (5 items)
work in dim light, work in black and white, adapts slowly but better, situated across the periphery, more plentiful, many to one connections (more sensitive because of many to one connections)
cones (6 items)
acts fast but adapts less, work best in bright conditions, clarity (acuity), color, one to one connections, fewer in number
many to one mapping
pooling signals together allows for a greater sensitivity (greater excitation, signals neurons)
one to one mapping
allows for more detail to be provided for, keeps signals separate; need more light to fire
ganglion
neuron in the retina that receives inputs from bipolar and amacrine cells, axons of ganglion cells travel out the eye in the optic nerve; respond to electrical signals of the photoreceptors
receptive field
area on receptor surface that affects firing of neuron when stimulated
acuity
smallest high contrast detail perceived at a given distance
lateral inhibition
inhibition transmitted laterally across a nerve circuit, transmitted by horizontal and amacrine cells.

tries to stop the firing of adjacent ganglion cells (creates illusory consequences)
Mach's Bands
perception of a thin dark band on the dark side of a light-dark border and a thin light band on the light side of the border (illusion because there is no actual intensity change)
receptor
neuron sensitive to environmental energy that changes this energy into electrical signals in nervous system; receive differing energy amounts and have different firing rates
simple cells
neuron in visual cortex that responds best to bars of a particular orientation
complex cells
prefer movement of features in a particular direction; have larger receptive fields and interested in a variety of features (size, shape, movement, direction)
inhibition
condition that decreases the likelihood that nerve impulses will be generated
complementary color
if pure 1 + pure 2 + (other colors) is white, then pure 1 and pure 2 are considered to be complementary colors
metamers
different physical stimuli with identical mental effects (i.e. two lights that have different wavelength distributions but are perceptually identical)
blindspot
the small area where the optic nerve leaves the back of they eye; there are no visual receptors in this area; small images on blind spot cannot be seen.
brightness
dependent on the intensity of the wavelength (trichromatic theory)
brightness contrast
perception of color in one area is affected by surroundings (good for discriminating edges, also leads to lateral inhibition)
color blindness
a condition in which a person perceives no chromatic color; can be caused by absent or malfunctioning cone receptors or by cortical damage
color afterimages
when seeing a stimulus and it is removed, the resulting perception is the complementary color
visual cortex
part of the brain that corresponds to the right or the left visual field
dark adaptation
increased sensitivity to lack of light as one stays in the dark. Cones act for the first five minutes, rods adapt more but over a longer period of time.
difference threshold
smallest difference between stimuli that can be detected
excitation
response of nerve fiber in which the firing rate increases
fovea
located on the retina, only cones receptors are located there, where most images are formed
hue
perceived color, dependent on the wavelength of light(and which opponent pair is active)
identification acuity (?)
being able to distinguish between different stimuli
illusion
seeing something differently from the way it is
lightness contrast
black-white opponent cell activity
just noticeable difference
smallest amount of difference between intensity of stimuli that can be noticed
opponent pair
organization into pairs (blue-yellow and red-green complementary colors) that are antagonistic to one another
saturation
relative amount of whiteness in a chromatic color (the less whiteness a color contains, the more saturated it is)
sensitivity
ability to detect a stimulus without much stimulus intensity
single cell recording
psychophysical method using electrodes and presenting a stimuli on a specific part of the retina
spectral purity
one wavelength (as opposed to multiple wavelengths)
threshold
the point at which energy can be detected
transduction
transformation of environmental energy into electrical signals
associatioins
sensations that habitually occur together become linked together mentally
nativism
rules and knowledge are built into the system from birth