Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM


Top Flashcards (Certified)
All Flashcards

AP Psychology > Unit 4 > Flashcards

Unit 4 Flashcards

1
Q

Pupil

A

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

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Iris

A

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

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

Retina

A

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

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

Cornea

A

The eye’s clear, protective outer layer, covering the pupil and iris

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

Lens

A

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

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

Rods

A

Retinal receptors that detect black, white, and grey and are sensitive to movement, necessary for peripheral and twilight vision when cones don’t respond

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

Cones

A

Retinal receptors that are concentrated near the center of the body retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions, cones detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

Blind spot

A

The point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a “blind” spot because no receptor cells are located there

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

Young-Helmholtz trichromatic (three color theory)

A

The theory that the retina contains three different types of color receptors - one most sensitive to red, one to green, one to blue - which when stimulation in combination, can produce the perception of any color

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Opponent-process theory

A

The theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, blue-yellow, 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

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Psychophysics

A

The study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and own psychological experience of them

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

Perceptual set

A

A mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Accomodation

A

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

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

Optic nerve

A

The nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

Fovea

A

The central focal point in the retina around which the eye’s cones cluster

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

Feature detectors

A

Nerve cells in the brain’s visual cortex that respond to specific features of the same stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Parallel processing

A

Processing many aspects of a problem simultaneously, the brain’s natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

Gestalt

A

An organized whole. Gestalt psychologists emphasized our tendency to integrate piecing of information into meaningful wholes.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

Figure-ground

A

The organization of the visual field into objects (the figures) that stand out from their surroundings (the ground)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

Grouping

A

The perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Depth Perception

A

The ability to see objects in 3D although the images that strike the retina are 2D, allows us to judge distance

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

Visual Cliff

A

A lab device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

Binocular cue

A

A depth cue, such as retinal disparity, that depends on the use of two eyes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

Retinal disparity

A

A binocular cue for perceiving depth by comparing retinal images from the two eyes, the brain computes distance - the greater the disparity (difference) between the two images, the closer the object

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Monocular cue
A depth cue, such as interposition or linear perspective, available to either eye alone
26
Phi phenomenon
An illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession
27
Perceptual Constancy
Perceiving objects as unchanging (having consistent color, brightness, shape, and size) even as illumination and retinal images change
28
Color constancy
Perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the objects
29
Perceptual Adaptation
The ability to adjust to changed sensory input, including an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field
30
Audition
The sense or act of hearing
31
Transduction
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
32
Frequency
The number of complete wavelength that pass a point in a given time (per second)
33
Pitch
A tone’s experienced highness or lowness, depends on frequency
34
Middle ear
The chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing 3 tiny bones (hammer, anvil, & stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea’s oval window
35
Cochlea
A coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear, sound waves traveling through the cochlear fluid trigger nerve impulses
36
Inner ear
The innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semi circular canals, and vestibular sacs
37
Sensorineural hearing loss
Hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea’s receptor cells or to the auditory nerves, the most common form of hearing loss, also called nerve deafness
38
Embodied Cognition
The influence of bodily sensations, gestures, and other states on cognitive preferences and judgements
39
Conduction hearing loss
A less common form of hearing loss, caused by damage to the mechanical system that inducts sound waves to the cochlea
40
Cochlear implant
A device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve through electrodes threaded into the cochlea
41
Place theory
In hearing the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea’s membrane is stimulated
42
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 (AKA temporal theory)
43
Gate-control theory
The theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological “gate” that allows pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain. The “gate” is opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up small nerve fibers and is closed by the activity in larger fibers or by info coming from the brain
44
Olfaction
The sense of smell
45
Kinesthetic sense
Our movement sense - our system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts
46
Vestibular sense
Our sense of body movement and position that enables our sense of balance
47
Sensory interaction
The principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste
48
Sensation
The process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment
49
Sensory receptors
Sensory nerve endings that respond to stimuli
50
Perception
The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events
51
Bottom-up processing
Analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain’s integration of sensory information
52
Top-down processing
Information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations
53
Selective attention
The focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus
54
Inattentional blindness
Failing to see visible objects when our attention is directed elsewhere
55
Change blindness
Failing to notice changes in the environment, a form of inattentional blindness
56
Absolute threshold
The minimum stimulus energy needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time
57
Signal detection theory
A theory predicting how and when we detect the prescience of a faint stimulus (signal) amid background stimulation (noise) assumes there is no single absolute threshold and that detection depends partly on a person’s experience, expectations, motivation, and alertness
58
Subliminal
Below one is absolute threshold for conscious awareness
59
Difference threshold
The minimum difference between two stimulus required for detection 50% of the time. We experience the difference threshold as a just noticeable difference (jnd)
60
Priming
The activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one’s perception, memory, or response
61
Weber’s law
The principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage (rather than a constant amount)
62
Sensory adaptation
Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation.
63
Extrasensory perception (ESP)
The controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input; includes telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition
64
Parapsychology
The study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis
65
Wavelength
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 gamma rays to the long pulses of radio transmission.
66
Hue
The dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light; what we know as the color names blue & green and so forth
67
Intensity
The amount of energy in a light wave or sound wave, which influences what we perceive as brightness or loudness. Intensity is determined by the wave’s amplitude (height)
68
synethesia
brain circuits for 2+ senses become joined: stimulation of one sense triggers the experience of another (ex. hear music as colors)
69
pain circuit
nociceptors respond to potentially damaging stimuli by sending an impulse to the spinal cord, which passes the message to the brain, which interprets the signal as pain
70
nociceptors
sensory receptors that detect hurtful temps, pressure, or chemicals
71
volley-principle
by firing in rapid succession, neurons go back and forth for a higher frequency
72
auditory canal
the channel located in the outer ear that funnels sound waves from the pinnacle to the tympanic membrane
73
ear drum (tympanic membrane)
a thin layer of tissue that vibrates in response to sound waves
74
ossicles
transfer the sound wave vibrations from the tympanic membrane to the oval window of the cochlea
75
oval window
membrane-covered opening of the cochlea, vibrates when it receives the sound waves and causes the fluid inside the cochlea to move
76
transduction
changes energy (sound) to neural impulses. Occurs as the motion of the sound vibration against he oval window of the cochlea causes ripples in the basilar membrane, bending the hair cells lining its surface
77
Stroboscopic movement
the brain perceives apparent movement when a series of images that change slightly are presented in rapid succession

AP Psychology (15 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2025 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions