Modules 18-24 Flashcards

Question

Color constancy and lightness constancy

Answer 1

The brain adjusts our perception of color to keep colors constant under different lighting conditions In the real world, that simplifies perception (objects don't appear to change color just because lighting changes) But we can exploit that to create optical illusions by manipulating images to imply different lighting conditions Top-down process influences perception: we have expectations about what colors things should be

Answer 2

In the image, the top-middle square is made using the same color as the side-middle square. But the side-middle square is implied to be in shadow, so we perceive it as a brighter color (because in the real world, it actually would need to be a brighter color in order for It to reflect the same amount of light as the top-middle square even when in shadow).

Answer 3

We perceive the B square as lighter than the A square because: It is implied to be in shadow, so in the real world it would have to be lighter to reflect the same amount of light as the A square It’s light compared to surrounding squares, whereas the A square is dark compared to surrounding squares. We are familiar with checkerboard patterns, so we expect the squares to alternate between light and dark.

Answer 4

Sound waves are mechanical waves (they need a medium such as air to travel through) Oscillation between compression (bunching together) and rarefaction (spreading apart) of molecules Basically vibration Sound waves are longitudinal, meaning the oscillation is in the same dimension (in this case the left–right dimension) that the wave is traveling. But sound waves are typically diagrammed like this, with the vertical dimension representing the amount of compression/rarefaction The air molecules aren’t actually traveling from left to right. What’s traveling is the energy. Although the regions where the air molecules are compressed are continuously moving from left to right, the Individual air molecules themselves are vibrating back and forth (watch the red ones) When we diagram a wave like this the horizontal dimension can be thought of either distance or time (because a wave takes a certain amount of time to travel a certain distance through space) Sound waves don't actually travel in single straight line Emanate from sound source in all directions

Answer 5

Intensity of energy (overall amplitude determines the loudness of sound) Great amplitude = loud sounds Small amplitude = soft sounds

Answer 6

Length in space of each cycle of the wave (determines the pitch of sound)

Answer 7

How fast the wave cycles Frequency is measured in Hertz (hz) meaning cycles per second Humans can hear from 20 hz to 20 kHz but gradually lose sensitivity to high frequencies with age so adults can't typically hear above 16-18 kHz and older adults can't hear anywhere near that high Long wavelength = lower frequency = low-pitched sounds Shorter wavelength = higher frequency = high-pitched sounds

Answer 8

Most sounds are complex not simple sine waves without single consistent frequency We can think of those complex sounds as made up of multiple component sine waves with different frequencies, amplitudes, and phases (starting positions in the cycle), added together

Answer 9

When you turn up the bass or turn down the treble on your stereo, you aren't making the pitch of the sound lower, but your bringing out more of the lower frequency components within the sound

Answer 10

Frequencies of the component sine waves are multiples of a single frequency (e.g. 100, 200, 300, 400, and 500 hz are all multiples of 100 hz), the lowest frequency is what typically determines the pitch that we perceive

Answer 11

Multiples of the component sine waves of a single frequency

Answer 12

Like a cup to catch sound

Answer 13

Sound waves enter the ear canal and vibrate the tympanic membrane (ear drum)

Answer 14

Tiny bones that vibrations of tympanic membrane vibrate and that connects the tympanic membrane to the cochlea

Answer 15

Sound waves travel through fluid in the cochlea Different frequencies stimulate different parts of the cochlea more than others

Answer 16

Sound receptors in the cochlea transduce that energy into neural impulses transmitted to the brain through the auditory nerve

Answer 17

Part of the vestibular system that aren't directly involved in hearing

Answer 18

If sound is coming from the left, it is louder in the left ear

Answer 19

If the sound is coming from the left, it hits the left ear earlier

Answer 20

Learn to infer high/low, front/back information based on certain frequencies being more emphasized or de-emphasized due to angle at which wave hits pinna Visual context clues also help

Answer 21

Sense of smell Detects odorants Different olfactory receptors in nose detect different chemicals Most odors that we smell are actually patterns of stimulation of multiple different receptors Unlike most other types of sensory informaiton, isn't routed through the thalamus before reaching cerebral cortex

Answer 22

small, airborne molecules that have odors and stimulate our olfactory receptors

Answer 23

Nasal cavity Olfactory nerves (with receptors on ends) Olfactory bulb Olfactory tract on underside of cerebral cortex carry action potentials directly to the primary olfactory cortex (tract is same thing as a verve except that the word tract is typically reserved for bundles of axons that are entirely contained in the central nervous system)

Answer 24

Clusters of taste receptors Mostly on tongue but also elsewhere in the mouth Different types of taste receptors respond to different types of molecules dissolved in saliva

Answer 25

Salty: sodium chloride (NaCl) and other salts Sour: acids (high concentration H+ ions) Bitter: various molecules including many poisons Sweet: simple carbohydrates

Answer 26

Umami/savory: monosodium glutamate (MSG) a salt present in some protein-rich fods Fat: fatty acids These additional tastes don't have entire taste buds dedicated to them but they do have receptors scattered around the tongue

Answer 27

All types of taste receptors are spread across the tongue uniformly Combination of gustatory (taste) information and olfactory (smell) information give things flavor Also influenced by tactile information from the mouth The flavor of chocolate or cinnamon is mostly produced by smell and not by taste per se

Answer 28

Located deep in cerebral cortex at junction between frontal, parietal, and temporal lobes Where primary gustatory processing is Sometimes considered a fifth lobe in itself

Answer 29

Process of acquiring new information or behaviors

Answer 30

Learning an association between two things (when event A happens, event B tends to happen)

Answer 31

Acquisition of information through observation (observational learning) or through experience

Answer 32

Dominated psychological science in first half of 20th century Focused on objective measurements Considered mind as an impenetrable black box where can only measure the inputs (stimulus) and outputs (response)

Answer 33

"Unconditioned Stimulus" (e.g. food) naturally produces "Unconditioned Response" (e.g. salivation) Neutral Stimulus (e.g. tone) does not naturally produce a response After repeatedly pairing the US with the NS, the NS becomes a "Conditioned Stimulus" that produces a "Conditioned Response" (e.g. salivation) on its own Pavlov's dog "Little Albert" experiment Instilled phobia in an infant through classical conditioning The phobia generalized somewhat to other furry objects (NS white rat, UCS loud noise, rat becomes CS)

Answer 34

Acquisition Extinction Spontaneous Recovery Generalization Discrimination

Answer 35

Forming the association

Answer 36

Classical: Losing the association after CS is repeatedly presented without the US thus turning the CS back into an NS Operant: losing the association after behavior repeatedly occurs without consequence

Answer 37

Classical: After extinction association comes back on its own (without reintroducing the pairing) when the CS is presented after a long time has gone by without it being presented Operant: after extinction, association comes back on its own (without reintroducing the pairing) when behavior occurs after a long time has gone by without the behavior occurring

Answer 38

Classical: Extension of association to stimuli that are similar to the CS (e.g. Little Albert associating fluffy white things in general with scary sound) Operant: Extension of association to similar behaviors

Answer 39

Classical: Distinguishing CS from similar stimuli that aren't associated with the US (e.g. dog learning only certain pitched tones and not others are associated with food) Operant: distinguishing conditioned behavior from similar behaviors that aren't associated with the consequence

Answer 40

Type of associative learning involving an association between behavior and consequence

Answer 41

Reinforcement (reward) increases the behavior Punishment reduces the behavior

Answer 42

Positive reinforcement: pleasureable stimulus Negative reinforcement: removal of unpleasant stimulus Don't confuse negative reinforcement with punishment Remember reinforcement is a reward. In this context, positive and negative simply refer to whether something is added or removed respectively.

Answer 43

Primary reinforcer: naturally rewarding (food) Conditioned reinforcer: not naturally rewarding but has learned association with reward (money)

Answer 44

Behavior reinforced every time

Answer 45

Behavior reinforced inconsistently (results in slower acquisition, but also resistance to extinction) Fixed ratio: behavior reinforced after a certain number of repetitions Variable ratio: behavior reinforced after inconsistent number of repetitions Fixed interval: behavior reinforced after certain amount of time Variable interval: behavior reinforced after inconsistent amount of time (fixed/variable=consistent/inconsistent ratio/interval=repetitions/time)

Answer 46

Behaviorist researcher known for his work on operant conditioning Operant chamber "Skinner box" Shaping: producing a precise desired behavior by only reinforcing increasingly close approximations of it

Answer 47

Addiction, phobias, and more generally, throughout our lives we form various expectations and preferences and habits through associations

Answer 48

Persistence of learned information/behavior over time

Answer 49

Generating the information from scratch (e.g. answering a short-answer or fill-in-the-black question)

Answer 50

Knowing it when you see it (e.g. answering a multiple choice question)

Answer 51

Not needing as much time to learn something the second time implies that the memory from the first time wasn't completely gone

Answer 52

The more times he practiced a list of nonsense syllables on Day 1, the faster he relearned it on Day 2

Answer 53

Considers mind as a computer Encoding --> storage --> retrieval

Answer 54

Stimulus creates a sensory memory (ether iconic "visual" memory or echoic "auditory" memory) attention to this memory turns it into a short-term memory which includes working memory and can be rehearsed to reinforce, it is then encoded into the long-term memory where it can be retrieved back to the short term memory. Some subliminal information can slip into the long-term memory from sensory memory, but most is discarded if we don't pay attention to it

Answer 55

Facts and experiences (can be described in words) Uses conscious/effortful processing

Answer 56

Skills and associations (can be demonstrated through behavior) Uses unconscious/automatic processing

Answer 57

Information can be sent to long term storage and also retrieved from long term storage (e.g. when we memorize a math formula we encode it to long term memory; then when we're doing a math problem we retrieve that formula from long term storage back into working memory where we can use it)

Answer 58

Does auditory tasks (e.g. memorizing a series of numbers)

Answer 59

Does tasks not covered by other components

Answer 60

Does visual/spatial tasks (e.g. deciding the best route from current position)

Answer 61

Controls flow of info, delegates tasks to the other components

Answer 62

One piece of evidence we have separate resources for phonological vs. visuospatial tasks: It's more difficult to do two phonological or two visuospatial tasks simultaneously than to do one phonological and one visuospatial task simultaneously (harder to memorize phone number while humming a tune than while drawing a picture) Conformation that we use phonological loops for memorizing series of digits: people whose native language uses more syllables for digits tend not to be able to memorize as many digits as people whose native language uses only one syllable for most digits

Answer 63

Chunking: easier to remember series of numbers in blocks/pairs than as whole series Deep processing: elaborate, come up with examples and scenarios Hierarchical organization: organize items into meaningful categories and subcategories instead of just having one big long list Spaced/distributed practice: practicing for 1 hr/day for 10 days better than studying for 10 straight hours Testing effect: use flash cards instead of just rereading or recopying notes Self-reference: connect concepts to yourself and things you're interested in

Answer 64

Information not stored in single, precise locations in brain but rather distributed across various regions

Answer 65

Much of the same brain activation that was present when experiencing something is reactivated when remembering that experience e.g. when we visualize something we remember seeing much of the pattern of neural firing is similar to when we were seeing it in the first place

Answer 66

Semantic memory: facts and general knowledge Episodic memory: experiences we can replay in our mind Both largely formed by (not stored in) hippocampus which is one of the last brain structures to mature explaining infantile amnesia

Answer 67

The cerebellum helps form and store implicit memories such as associations created by conditioning The basal ganglia are deep brain structures involved in movement; they help form implicit memories for procedures

Answer 68

Emotion tends to enhance encoding of memory (emotion suggests meaning and importance)

Answer 69

Vivid memories of intense, unexpected events But there can be illusory confidence (vividness doesn't necessarily indicate accuracy)

Answer 70

Items near the end of a list are easier to recall than items in the middle (still in short-term memory and little retroactive interference) Fades if there is a delay before testing

Answer 71

Items near the beginning of the list are easier to recall than items in the middle (little proactive interference)

Answer 72

Encoding information into a stable, long-term memory Especially occurs during sleep Long-term potentiation (LTP): repeated communication between neurons strengthens their synaptic connection Hebb's law: "cells that fire together wire together"

Answer 73

Tend to remember information better when we are in same mood/state/environment where we learned or studied it That's because of retrieval cues (elements associated with the memory that help retrieval)