Chapter 3.3

Question 1

percept

Answer 1

a sensation AND the meaning behind it

Question 2

what pathway

Answer 2

a neural pathway from the visual cortex to the temporal lobe that aids in identifying objects

Question 3

where pathway

Answer 3

a neural pathway that projects visual information to the parietal lobe that aids in locating objects

Question 4

blindsight

Answer 4

the ability to locate objects despite damage to the visual system making it impossible to consciously see and identify objects

Question 5

feature detectors

Answer 5

cells in the cortex that specializes in extracting certain features of the stimulus

Question 6

binding problem

Answer 6

process used by the brain to combine the results of many sensory operations into a single percept…looking at the varying components of a person and recognizing those components equal a face

Question 7

top-down processing

Answer 7

perceptual analysis that starts in the brain, rather than being driven by stimulus; goals, past experiences, knowledge, expectations

Question 8

bottom-up processing

Answer 8

perceptual analysis that originates from the senses and goes to the brain for interpretation

Question 9

perceptual constancy

Answer 9

ability to recognize the same object as remaining constant under different conditions, like illumination, distance, or locale

Question 10

inattentional blindness

Answer 10

failure to notice changes in one’s visual field because of narrowed focus

Question 11

change blindness

Answer 11

perceptual failure to notice changes from what was noticed previously, requires comparing current scene to one stored in memory

Question 12

illusion

Answer 12

an occurrence in which your mind deceives you into interpreting a stimulus pattern incorrectly

Question 13

ambiguous figures

Answer 13

figures that can be interpreted in more than one way

Question 14

gestalt psychology

Answer 14

psychology based on the belief that perceptions are shaped from innate factors built in the brain

Question 15

figure

Answer 15

the part of a pattern that commands attention; figure that stands out

Question 16

ground

Answer 16

the background

Question 17

closure

Answer 17

the tendency to fill in gaps in figures that make incomplete figures complete

Question 18

laws of perceptual grouping

Answer 18

gestalt laws suggesting how our brains prefer to group stimulus elements together via similarity, proximity, or continuitiy

Question 19

law of proximity

Answer 19

gestalt law in which we group things together based on proximity

Question 20

law of similarity

Answer 20

gestalt law in which we group things together based on similarity

Question 21

law of continuity

Answer 21

gestalt principle that we prefer perceptions of connected and continuous figures

Question 22

law of common fate

Answer 22

gestalt principle that we tend to group things together based on common motion or destination

Question 23

law of Pragnanz

Answer 23

most general gestalt principle that states that the simplest organization, requiring the least effort, will become the figure

Question 24

learning-based inference

Answer 24

view that perception is primarily shaped by learning rather by things that are innate

Question 25

perceptual set

Answer 25

readiness to detect a particular stimulus in a given context, such as unfamiliar sound = threat

Question 26

binocular cues

Answer 26

information taken in by both eyes aids in depth perception

Question 27

monocular cues

Answer 27

information about depth that is taken in by only one eye

Question 28

subliminal perception

Answer 28

the process in which a stimulus that is below the awareness threshold can be sensed and interpreted outside of consciousness