Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards;
Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card;
H to show hint;
A reads text to speech;
92 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
Sensation |
- process by which we receive, transform, and process stimuli from the outside world to create sensory experiences of vision, touch, hearing, taste, smell, and so on |
|
Sensory Receptors |
- specialized cells that detect sensory stimuli (light, sound, odors) and convert them into neural impulses (vision, hearing, smell) |
|
Psychophysics |
- the study of the relationship between features of physical stimuli, such as the intensity of light and sound, and the sensation we experience in response to these stimuli |
|
Absolute Threshold |
- the smallest amount of a given stimulus a person can sense |
|
Difference Threshold |
- the minimal difference in the magnitude of energy needed for people to detect a differenceyuy between 2 stimuli |
|
Weber's Law |
- the principle that the amount of change in a stimulus needed to detect a difference is given by a constant ration or fraction, called a constant, of the original stimulus |
|
Signal-Detection Theory |
- the belief that the detection of a stimulus depends on factors involving the intensity of the stimulus, the level of background stimulation, and the biological and psychological characteristics of the perceiver |
|
Sensory Adaption |
- the process by which sensory receptors adapt to constant stimuli by becoming less sensitive to them |
|
Cornea |
- transparent covering on the eyes surface through which light enters |
|
Iris |
- the pigmented circular muscle in the eye that regulates the size of the pupil to adjust to changes in the level of illumination |
|
Pupil |
- the black opening inside the iris that allows light to enter the eye - the brighter the light, the smaller the iris |
|
Lens |
- the structure in the eye that focuses light rays on the retina |
|
Accommodation |
- the process by which the lens changes its shape to focus images more clearly on the retina |
|
Retina |
- the light-sensitive layer of the inner surface of the eye that contains photoreceptor cells - convert light energy into neural signals the brain uses to create visual sensations |
|
Rods |
- photoreceptors that are sensitive only to the intensity of light (light and dark) |
|
Cones |
- photoreceptors that are sensitive to color |
|
Bipolar Cells |
- a layer of interconnecting cells in the eye that connect photoreceptors to ganglion cells |
|
Ganglion Cells |
- nerve cells in the back of the eye that transmit neural impulses in response to light stimulation, the axons of which make the optic nerve |
|
Optic Nerve |
- the nerve that carries neural impulses generated by light stimulation from the eye to the brain |
|
Blind Spot |
- the area in the retina where the optic nerve leaves the eye and that contains no photoreceptor cells |
|
Fovea |
- the area near the center of the retina that contains only cones and that is the center of focus for clearest vision |
|
Feature Detectors |
- specialized neurons in the visual cortex that respond only to particular features of visual stimuli, such as horizontal or vertical lines |
|
Trichomatic Theory |
- a theory of color vision that posits that the ability to see different colors depends on the relative activity of 3 types of color receptors in the eye: red, green, and blue-violet |
|
Afterimage |
- the visual image of a stimulus that remains after the stimulus is removed - what you see if you gaze at a visual stimulus for a while and then look at a neutral surface, like a white sheet of paper |
|
Opponent-Process Theory |
- a theory of color vision that hold that the experience of color results from opposing processes involving 2 sets of color receptors (red-green & blue-yellow), and that another set of opposing receptors (black-white) is responsible for detecting differences in brightness |
|
Trichromats |
- people with normal color vision who can discern all the colors of the visual spectrum |
|
Monochromats |
- people who have no color vision and can only see in black and white |
|
Dichromats |
- people who can see some colors but not others (colorblindness) - most common kind of colorblindness is red-green |
|
Audition |
- the sense of hearing |
|
Pitch |
- the highness or lowness of a sound that corresponds to the frequency of the sound wave |
|
Eardrum |
- sheet of connective tissue separating the outer ear from the middle ear that vibrates in response to auditory stimuli and transmits sound waves to the middle ear |
|
Ossicles |
- 3 tiny bones in the middle ear (the hammer, anvil, & stirrup) that vibrate in response to vibrations of the eardrum |
|
Path of sound and Ossicles |
- the hammer (malleus), which is connected to the eardrum, strikes the anvil (incus), which in turn strikes the stirrup (stapes) causing it to vibrate |
|
Oval Window |
- the membrane covered opening that separates the middle ear from the inner ear |
|
Cochlea |
- the snail-shaped organ in the inner ear that contains sensory receptors for hearing - vibrations of the oval window cause waves of motion in fluid within the cochlea |
|
Basilar Membrane |
- the membrane in the cochlea that is attached to the organ of Corti - vibrates when the fluid in the cochlea moves |
|
Organ of Corti |
- a gelatinous structure in the cochlea containing the hair cells that serve as auditory receptors |
|
Hair cells |
- the auditory receptors that transform vibrations caused by sound waves into neural impulses that are then transmitted to the brain via the auditory nerve |
|
Auditory Nerve |
- the nerve that carries neural impulses from the ear to the brain, which gives rise to the experience of hearing |
|
Place Theory |
- the belief that pitch depends on the place along the basilar membrane that vibrates the most in response to a particular auditory stimulus - neurons line up along the basilar membrane, standing ready to respond by producing sounds of different pitch when they are "struck" |
|
Frequency Theory |
- the belief that pitch depends on the frequency of vibration of the basilar membrane and the volley of neural impulses transmitted to the brain via the auditory nerve - a sound wave with a frequency of 200 cycles/sec would cause the basilar membrane to vibrate at that rate and generate 200 neural responses the the brain/sec |
|
Volley Principle |
- principle that relates the experience of pitch to the alternating firing of groups of neurons along the basilar membrane |
|
Conduction Deafness |
- usually caused by damage to the middle ear - there is a loss of conduction of sound vibrations through the ear |
|
Nerve Deafness |
- associated with nerve damage - usually involving damage to the hair cells of the inner ear or to the auditory nerve itself |
|
Olfaction |
- the sense of smell |
|
Olfactory Nerve |
- the nerve that carries impulses from olfactory receptors in the nose to the brain |
|
Olfactory Bulb |
- the area in the front of the brain above the nostrils that recieves sensory input from olfactory receptors in the nose |
|
Pheromones |
- chemical substances that are emitted by many species - play important roles in many behaviors, like attracting mates, marking territory, establishing dominance, behaving aggressively, gathering food, and bonding with young |
|
Taste Cells |
- nerve cells that are sensitive to tastes |
|
Taste Buds |
- pores or openings on the tongue containing taste cells |
|
Skin Senses |
- the senses of touch, pressure, warmth, cold, and pain that involve stimulation of sensory receptors in the skin |
|
Gate-Control Theory of Pain |
- the belief that a neural gate in the spinal cord opens to allow pain messages to reach the brain and closes to shut them out |
|
Acupuncture |
- ancient Chinese practice of inserting and rotating thin needles in various parts of the body in order to release natural healing energy |
|
Kinesthesia |
- the sense that keeps us informed about movement of the parts of the body and their position in relation to each other - allows you to ride bike without looking at legs or type without looking at the keyboard |
|
Vestibular Sense |
- the sense that keeps us informed about balance and the position of our body in space - allows you to know whether you are moving fast/slow and changes in the position of your head |
|
Semicircular Canals |
- 3 curved tube-like canals in the inner ear that are involved in sensing changes in the direction and movement of the head |
|
Vestibular Sacs |
- organs in the inner ear that connect semicircular canals |
|
Perception |
- the process by which the brain interprets sensory information, turning it into meaningful representations of the external world |
|
Selective Attention |
- the process by which we attend to meaningful stimuli and filter out irrelevant or extraneous stimuli |
|
Perceptual Set |
- the tendency for perceptions to be influenced by expectations or preconceptions |
|
Bottom-Up Processing |
- the brain assembles specific features of shapes, such as angles and lines, to form patterns that we can compare with stored images we have seen before |
|
Top-Down Processing |
- involves perceiving patterns as meaningful wholes-- such as recognizing faces of people we know without needing to piece together their component parts |
|
Laws of Perceptional Organization |
- the principles identified by Gestalt psychologists that describe the ways in which the brain groups bits of sensory stimulation into meaningful wholes or patterns |
|
Proximity |
- the principle that objects that are near each other will be perceived as belonging to a common set |
|
Similarity |
- principle that objects that are similar will be perceived as belonging to the same group |
|
Continuity |
- principle that a series of stimuli will be perceived as representing a unified form |
|
Closure |
- the perceptual principle that people tend to piece together disconnected bits of information to perceive whole forms |
|
Perceptual Constancy |
- the tendency to perceive the size, shape, color, and brightness of an object as remaining the same even when the image it casts on the retina changes |
|
Connectedness |
- the principle that objects positioned together or moving together will be perceived as belonging to the same group |
|
Shape Constancy |
- the tendency to perceive an object as having the same size despite changes in the images it casts on the retina as the viewing distance changes |
|
Color Constancy |
- the tendency to perceive an object as having the same color despite changes in lighting conditions |
|
Brightness Constancy |
- the tendency to perceive objects as retaining their brightness even when they are viewed in dim light |
|
Binocular Cues |
- cues for depth that involve both eyes, such as retinal disparity and convergence |
|
Retinal Disparity |
- a binocular cue for distance based on the slight differences in the visual impressions formed in both eyes - the closer the object, the greater the retinal disparity |
|
Convergence |
- binocular cue for distance based on the degree of tension required to focus 2 eyes on the same object |
|
Monocular Cues |
- cues for depth that can be perceived by each eye alone, such as relative size and interposition |
|
Relative Size |
- When 2 objects are believed to be the same size, the one that appears larger is perceived to be closer |
|
Interposition |
- when objects block or otherwise obscure our view of other objects, we perceive obscured objects to be further away |
|
Relative Clarity |
- smog, dust, smoke, and water droplets in the atmosphere create a haze that makes distant objects appear blurrier than nearer objects |
|
Texture Gradient |
- the relative coarseness or smoothness of an object is used as a cue for distance - closer objects appear to have a coarser or more detailed texture than more distant objects |
|
Linear Perspective |
- the perception of parallel lines converging as they recede into the distance |
|
Shadowing |
- patterns of light and dark create the appearance of 3D objects or curving surfaces - can make an object appear to be concave or convex |
|
Visual Illusions |
- misperceptions of visual stimuli |
|
Stroboscopic Movement |
- a type of apparent movement based on the rapid succession of still images, as in motion pictures |
|
Carpentered-World Hypothesis |
- an attempt to explain the Muller-Lyer illusion in terms of the cultural experience of living in a carpentered, right-angled world like our own |
|
Subliminal Perception |
- perception of stimuli that are presented below the threshold of conscious awareness - can affect attitudes and behavior |
|
Extrasensory Perception (ESP) |
- perception that occurs without benefit of the known senses |
|
Parapsychology |
- the study of paranormal phenomena |
|
Telepathy |
- communication of thought from one mind to another that occurs without using the known senses |
|
Clairvoyance |
- the ability to perceive objects and events without using the known senses |
|
Precognition |
- the ability to foretell the future |
|
Psychokinesis |
- the ability to move objects by mental effort alone |