UNIT #3 Sensation And Perception Essential Q and V (P.1)

Question 1

Sensation

Answer 1

The process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment

Question 2

Perception

Answer 2

The process of organizing and interpreting sensory info, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events

Question 3

Absolute threshold

Answer 3

The minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimuli 50% of the time

Question 4

Difference threshold

Answer 4

The minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50% of the time. We experience the difference threshold as a just noticeable difference

Question 5

Retina

Answer 5

The light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, contains the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual info

Question 6

Rods

Answer 6

Retinal receptor that detect black, white and gray ; necessary for peripheral and twilight fusion when cones don’t respond

Question 7

Cones

Answer 7

Retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well lit conditions. The cones detect fine detail and give rise to colour sensations

Question 8

Fovea

Answer 8

The central focal point in the retina, around which the eyes’s cones cluster

Question 9

Optic Nerve

Answer 9

The nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain

Question 10

Blind spot

Answer 10

The point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a “blind spot” because no receptor cells are located there

Question 11

Middle ear

Answer 11

The chambers between the eardrum and cochlea containing three time bones (hammer, anvil and stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrums on the cochlea’s oval window

Question 12

Ear drum

Answer 12

The eardrum is a thin flap of skin that is stretched right like a drum and vibrates when the sound hits it. These vibrations move the tiny bones of the middle ear then to the inner ear and send messages

Question 13

Cochlea

Answer 13

A coiled, bony fluid-filled tube in the inner ear ; sound waves traveling through the cochlear fluid trigger nerve impulses

Question 14

Weber’s Law

Answer 14

The principle that to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage rather than a constant amount

Question 15

Bottom-Up processing

Answer 15

Analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory info

Question 16

Top-Down processing

Answer 16

Info processing guides by higher-level mental processes as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations

Question 17

Colour constancy

Answer 17

Perceiving familiar objects as having consistent colour, even if changing illumination alters wavelengths reflected by the object.

Question 18

Selective attention

Answer 18

The focusing of conscious awareness of a particular stimulus

Question 19

Inattentional blindness

Answer 19

Failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere

Question 20

Transduction

Answer 20

Conversion of one form of energy into another. In sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies such as sights, sounds, and smells into neural impulses our brain can interpret

Question 21

Psychophysics

Answer 21

The study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli such as their intensity and our psychological experience

Question 22

Signal detection theory

Answer 22

A theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus amid background stimulation. Assumes that there is no single absolute threshold and that detection depends partly on a personals experience, expectations, motivation and alertness

Question 23

Subliminal

Answer 23

Below ones absolute threshold for conscious awareness

Question 24

Priming

Answer 24

The activation, often unconsciously of certain associations thus predisposing one’s perception, memory or response

Question 25

Sensory adaptation

Answer 25

Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation

Question 26

Perceptual set

Answer 26

A mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

Question 27

Extrasensory perception (ESP)

Answer 27

The controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input ; includes telepathy, clairvoyance and precognition

Question 28

Parapsychology

Answer 28

The study of paranormal phenomena including ESP and psychokinesis

Question 29

Wave length

Answer 29

The distance from the peak or one light or sound wave to the peak or the next. Electromagnetic stimulation age lengths vary from the short blips of cosmic rays to the long pulses of radio transmissions

Question 30

Hue

Answer 30

The dimension of colour that is determined by the wavelength of light; what we know as the colour names blue green and so forth

Question 31

Intensity

Answer 31

The amount of energy in a light or sound wave which we perceive as brightness or loudness as determined by the wave’s amplitude

Question 32

Pupil

Answer 32

The adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters

Question 33

Iris

Answer 33

A ring of muscle tissue that forms the coloured portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening.

Question 34

Lens

Answer 34

The transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina

Question 35

Accommodation

Answer 35

The process by which the eye’s lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina

Question 36

Feature detectors

Answer 36

Nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus such as shape, angle or movement