Introduction I - Philosophy, Psychology And Neuroscience

Question 1

What is sensation?

Answer 1

The awarenss of physical stimulus through the senses

Question 2

What is perception?

Answer 2

The ability to apprehend or become aware of something through senses

Question 3

What’s the difference between sensation and preception?

Answer 3

Sensation is recieving sensory data (colour, noise, smell) whereas perception is interpreting the sensory data (hearing a bark means it’s from a dog)

Question 4

What is indirect realism?

Answer 4

• When you do not perceive objects directly.
• When you experience sensations and perceptions based on assumptions (physics, CNS processing, sensory detectors) that we deem reliable

Question 5

What is the representational model of the mind?

Answer 5

• The outer world: physics, mass, energy, molecules
• The inner world: mental states sights, sounds

Question 6

What can indirect realism lead to?

Answer 6

• Skepticism where you doubt everything
• This is because senses can lie and nothing guarantees thats ensory data is correct

Question 7

What is an example used in skepticism?

Answer 7

Dreams - you sense and perceive things in dreams but they do not actually exist

Question 8

What is dualism?

Answer 8

• That the mind and body are 2 different entities
• There is mind stuff and physical stuff

Question 9

What is materialism?

Answer 9

The idea that everything that is real is from real matter - product of material prcesses

• The mind is part of materialism as it is made of neurones

Question 10

What is empiricism?

Answer 10

• The idea that all knowledge comes from sensory experience
• Also known as nativism

Question 11

What is nativism?

Answer 11

The idea that the way you organise experience is dependent on innate knowledge

Question 12

What are the 2 ways of perceptual processing?

Answer 12

Bottom up and Top down

Question 13

What is bottom up

Answer 13

Idea that processing comes strictly from sensory input

Question 14

What is top down

Answer 14

The idea that processing sensory input is influences by other cognitive factors like memory, expectation, attention and implicit knowledge

Question 15

What are the neural requirements for sensation and perception?

Answer 15

• Sensory Receptors
• Axonal projections
• Central pathways through CNS that lead to specific sensory areas of the cerebral cortex and onto higher association areas of the cortex

Question 16

What is sensation:

Answer 16

Sensation is the awareness of a physical stimulus through the senses = receiving

Question 17

What is perception:

Answer 17

Perception is the ability to apprehend or become aware of something through the senses = interpreting

Question 18

What is the psychological definition of perception:

Answer 18

The psychological definition of perception is that it brings our knowledge of the world to organize raw data of sensation

Question 19

Describe an issue with perception:

Answer 19

Indirect or naïve realism is an issue with perception = can’t perceive objects directly

Question 20

Describe radical skepticism:

Answer 20

Radical skepticism where they believe that knowledge is most likely impossible, which causes doubt to the veracity of belief therefore certainty is never justified

Question 21

Describe dualism:

Answer 21

Dualism also an issue = fundamental difference between mind stuff and physical stuff

Question 22

Describe materialism:

Answer 22

Materialism or physicalism = there is no other reality but a physical reality

Question 23

Describe empiricism

Answer 23

Empiricism also known as blank state where all knowledge comes from sensory experience, ordered by learning associations from sensory experiences = passive view of perception

Emphasizes role of empirical evidence in formation of ideas rather than innate ideas/traditions

Question 24

Describe nativism:

Answer 24

Nativism = the way we organize experience depends on innate knowledge and perceiver actively involved in perceiving sensory input

Question 25

List the neural requirements for sensation and perception:

Answer 25

Sensory receptors Axonal projections to CNS Central pathways to CNS Leading to specific sensory area of cerebral cortex and higher associations in cortex

Question 26

Describe perceptual processing in terms of bottom-up and top-down processing:

Answer 26

Bottom-up processing is sensation, in neural terms it is feeding forward as information comes from sensory input alone Whereas top-down processing is perception, in neural terms it is feeding back as the input processed is influenced by cognitive factors, memory, expectation, attention and implicit knowledge