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AP Psychology > Chapter Five > Flashcards

Chapter Five Flashcards

0
Q

Perception

A

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

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1
Q

Sensation

A

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

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2
Q

Bottom-Up Processing

A

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

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3
Q

Top-Down Processing

A

Information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations.

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4
Q

Prosopagnosia

A

Associated with losing a temporal lobe area essential to recognizing faces, this is a condition where you can see a face but can’t recognize it; you have complete sensation but incomplete perception.

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5
Q

Psychophysics

A

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

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6
Q

Absolute Threshold

A

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

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7
Q

Signal Detection Theory

A

A theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus (“signal”) amid background stimulation (“noise”). Assumes there is no single absolute threshold and that detect icon depends partly on a person’ experience, expectations, motivation, and level of fatigue.

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8
Q

Subliminal

A

Below one’s absolute threshold for conscious awareness

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9
Q

Priming

A

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

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10
Q

Difference Threshold (JND - Just Noticeable Difference)

A

The minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50% of the time

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11
Q

Weber’s Law

A

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

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12
Q

Sensory Adaption

A

Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation.
(ex: funky new smells go away after awhile)

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13
Q

Transduction

A

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

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14
Q

Wavelength

A

The distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next. Electromagnetic wavelengths vary from the short blips of cosmic rays to the long pulses of radio transmission.

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15
Q

Hue

A

The dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light; what we know as the color names blue, green, etc.

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16
Q

Intensity

A

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

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17
Q

Amplitude

A

Wave height

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18
Q

Cornea

A

Protects the eye and bends light to provide focus. Light enters the eye through the cornea.

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19
Q

Pupil

A

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

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20
Q

Iris

A

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

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21
Q

Lens

A

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

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22
Q

Accommodation

A

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

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23
Q

Retina

A

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

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24
Acuity
The sharpness of vision
25
Nearsightedness
A condition in which nearby objects are seen more clearly than distant objects because distant objects focus on the front of the retina
26
Farsightedness
A condition in which far away objects are seen more clearly than near objects because the image of near objects is focused behind the retina
27
Rods
Retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don't respond
28
Cones
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 color sensations.
29
Optic Nerve
The nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain
30
Blind Spot
The point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a "blind" spot because no receptor cells are located there
31
Fovea
The central focal point in the retina, around which the eye's cones cluster. (Contains no rods).
32
The are ___ million cones and ____ million rods in the human eye.
6 ; 120
33
Feature detectors
Nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, and movement
34
Parallel Processing
The processing of several aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain's natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision
35
Blindsight
A phenomenon whee, with the loss of part of the visual cortex, people experience blindness in part of their field of vision
36
Young-Helmholtz Trichromatic (3-Color) Theory
The theory that the retina contains three different color receptors- one most sensitive to red, one to green, one to blue- which when stimulated in combination can produce the perception of any color
37
Opponent Process Theory
The theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, yellow-blue, white-black) enable color vision. For example, some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red; others are stimulated by red and inhibited by green.
38
Color Constancy
Perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object
39
Audition
The sense or act of hearing
40
Frequency
The number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time (for example, per second)
41
Pitch
A tone's experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency
42
Decibel
The measuring unit for sound energy
43
Outer Ear
Channels sound waves through the auditory canal to the eardrum
44
Eardrum
A tight membrane that vibrates when in contact with sound waves; helps to amplify the sound waves as they lose strength traveling down the auditory canal
45
Middle Ear
The chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones (hammer, anvil, stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea's oval window
46
Cochlea
A coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear through which sound waves trigger nerve impulses
47
Oval Window
Outer membrane of the cochlea, attached to the stirrup, which vibrates and jostles the fluid in the cochlea
48
Basilar Membrane
Membrane within the cochlea; the vibration caused by the jostled fluid in the cochlea bends the hair cells lining its surface
49
Hair Cells
When bent by the jostled fluid in the cochlea and the ripples in the basilar membrane, the hair cell movement triggers a neural impulse in adjacent nerve fibers.
50
Inner Ear
The innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs
51
Place Theory
In hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea's membrane is stimulated
52
Frequency Theory
In hearing, the theory that the rate of nerve impulses traveling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of a tone, thus enabling us to sense it's pitch
53
Conduction Hearing Loss
Hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea
54
Sensorineural Hearing Loss (Nerve Deafness)
Hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptor cells or to the auditory nerves
55
Cochlear Implant
A device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve through electrodes threaded into the cochlea
56
What four skin senses make up our sense of touch?
Pressure, warmth, cold, and pain
57
Gate-Control Theory
The theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological "gate" that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain. The "gate" is opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up the small nerve fibers and is closed by the activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain.
58
Sensory Interaction
The principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste
59
Umami
Meaty, savory taste associated with MSG
60
What are the five taste sensations?
Sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami
61
McGurk Effect
Phenomenon where the ear hears one sound by the eyes see a mouth form a different sound, causing the brain to interpret a mixture of the two sounds.
62
Synaesthesia
Phenomenon where one sort of sensation (such as hearing sound) PRODUCES another (such as seeing color)
63
Olfaction
The sense of smell
64
How many receptor cells are at the top of each nasal cavity?
5 million
65
Anosmia
The inability to experience smell
66
Kinesthesis
The system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts
67
Vestibular Sense
The sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance

AP Psychology (18 decks)

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