Chapter 6

Question 1

the detection of physical energy emitted or reflected by physical objects, it occurs when energy in the external environment or the body stimulates receptors in the sense organs

Answer 1

sensations

Question 2

the process by which the brain organizes and interprets sensory information

Answer 2

perception

Question 3

specialized cells that convert physical energy in the environment or the body to electrical energy that can be transmitted as nerve impulses to the brain

Answer 3

sense receptors

Question 4

the principle that different sensory modalities exist because signals received by the sense organs stimulate different nerve pathways leading to different areas of the brain

Answer 4

doctrine of specific nerve energies

Question 5

a condition in which stimulation of one sense also evokes another

Answer 5

synesthesia

Question 6

the smallest quantity of physical energy that an be reliably detected by an observer

Answer 6

absolute threshold

Question 7

the smallest difference in stimulation that can be reliably detected by an observer when two stimuli are compared, also called just noticeable difference

Answer 7

difference threshold

Question 8

a psychophysical theory that divides the detection of a sensory signal into a sensory process and a decision process

Answer 8

signal detection theory

Question 9

the reduction or disappearance of sensory responsiveness when stimulation is unchanging or repetitious

Answer 9

sensory adaption

Question 10

the focusing of attention on selected aspects of the environment and the blocking out of others

Answer 10

selective adaption

Question 11

failure to consciously perceive something you are looking at because you are not attending to it.

Answer 11

in attentional blindness

Question 12

the dimension of visual experience specified by color names and related to the wavelength of light

Answer 12

hue

Question 13

lightness or luminance, the dimension of visual experience related to the amount of light emitted from or reflected by an object

Answer 13

brightness

Question 14

vividness or purity of color, the dimension of visual experience related to the complexity of light waves

Answer 14

saturation

Question 15

neural tissue lining the back of the eye balls interior, which contains the receptors of vision

Answer 15

retina

Question 16

visual receptors that respond to dim light

Answer 16

rods

Question 17

visual receptors involved in color vision

Answer 17

cones

Question 18

a process by which visual receptors become maximally sensitive to dim light

Answer 18

dark adaption

Question 19

neurons in the retina of the eye that gathers information from receptor cells (by way of intermediate bipolar cells) their axons make up the optic nerve

Answer 19

ganglion cells

Question 20

cells in the visual cortex that are sensitive to specific features of the environment

Answer 20

feature detector cells

Question 21

a theory of color perception that proposes three mechanisms in the visual system, each sensitive to a certain range of wavelengths, their interactions is assumed to produce all the different experiences of hue

Answer 21

trichromatic theory

Question 22

a theory of color perception that assumes that the visual system treats pairs of colours as opposing or antagonistic

Answer 22

opponent process theory

Question 23

principles that describe the brains organization of sensory information into meaningful units and patterns

Answer 23

gestalt principles

Question 24

visual cues to depth or distance requiring two eyes

Answer 24

binocular cues

Question 25

the turning inward of the eyes, which occurs when they focus on nearby object

Answer 25

convergence

Question 26

the slight difference in lateral separation between two objects as seen by the left eye and right eye

Answer 26

retinal disparity

Question 27

visual cues to depth or distance that can be used by one eye alone

Answer 27

monocular cues

Question 28

the accurate perception of objects as stable or unchanged despite changes in the sensort patterns they produce

Answer 28

perceptual constancy

Question 29

the dimension of auditory experience to the intensity of s pressure wave

Answer 29

loudness

Question 30

the dimension of auditory experience related to the frequency of a pressure wave , the height or depth of a tone

Answer 30

pitch

Question 31

the distinguishing quality of a sound, the dimension of auditory experience to the complexity of the pressure wave

Answer 31

timbre

Question 32

a structure in the cochlea containing hair cells that serve as the receptors for hearing

Answer 32

organ of corti

Question 33

a snail shaped, fluid filled organ in the inner ear, containing the structure where the receptors for hearing are located

Answer 33

cochlea

Question 34

knoblike elevations on the tongue containing taste buds

Answer 34

papillae

Question 35

nest of taste receptor cells

Answer 35

taste buds

Question 36

the theory that the experience of pain depends in part on whether pain impulses get past a neurological "gate" in the spinal cord and thus reaches the brain

Answer 36

gate-control theory of pain

Question 37

the experience of pain in the missing limb or other body parts

Answer 37

phantom pain

Question 38

the sense of body positions and movement of body parts

Answer 38

kinesthesis

Question 39

the sense of balance

Answer 39

equilibrium

Question 40

sense organs in the inner ear that contribute to the equilibrium by responding to rotation of the head

Answer 40

semicircular canals

Question 41

a habitual way of perceiving, based on expectations

Answer 41

perceptual set

Question 42

a method used to measure unconscious cognitive processes in which a person is exposed to information and is later tested to see whether the information affects behaviour or performance on another task or in another situation

Answer 42

priming