Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM


Top Flashcards (Certified)
All Flashcards

Psych 230 exam 3 > Vision > Flashcards

Vision Flashcards

(59 cards)

Start Studying
1
Q

The _____ and ____ focus light

A

cornea, lens

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

Refraction

A

The bending of light

Done by the cornea

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

Ciliary muscles

A

Adjust the focus of the eye by changing the shape of the lens

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

Accommodation

A

The process of focusing the lens

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

Pupil

A

Controls how much light enters the eye

Dilates or shrinks to adjust for light

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

Extraocular muscles

A

Control eye movements

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

Retina

A

Where visual processing begins
Contains several cell types

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

Photoreceptor cells

A

Light goes all the way to the back here first
Rods and cones

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

Bipolar cells

A

Light goes out to the bipolar cells; assisted by the horizontal cells

Receive input rom photoreceptors and synapse on ganglion cells

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

Ganglion cells

A

Light goes out to the ganglion cells; assisted by the amacrine cells

Axons from these cells form the optic nerve and exit the eye

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

Horizontal cells

A

In the retina
Contact photoreceptors and bipolar cells

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

Inside-out processing

A

Light goes to the back of the eye first and makes its way out

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

Photopic system

A

The one that uses cones
Good for color vision
Good for visual acuity and sharpness

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

Downside of photopic system

A

Require more light to be activated

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

Scotopic system

A

Uses rods
Works in dim light
Low visual acuity

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

Three general characteristics of the visual system

A

Sensitivity
Integration
Adaptation

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

Sensitivity

A

Weak stimuli are amplified to produce physiological effects

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

Integration

A

Takes time to integrate the stimuli, which makes vision relatively slow but increases sensitivity

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

Adaptation

A

The visual system is capable of adapting to a wide range of light intensities

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

Quanta

A

Unit of measurement for electromagnetic radiation that the visual system responds to

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

Each quantum has a _________

A

wavelength

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

Photons

A

Quanta of light energy with visible wavelengths

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

The visual system can deal with a wide range of light intensities by…

A
  • adjusting pupil size
  • range fractionation
  • photoreceptor adaptation
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

Range fractionation

Study These Flashcards
A

Different intensities handled by different receptors

Low threshold are rods
High threshold are cones

25
Photoreceptor adaptation
Ability of individual photoreceptors to adjust sensitivity to prevailing level of illumination
26
Threshold for perception of color
Light intensity has to be above 10^-5 to activate cones to see color
27
Visual acuity
Measure of how much detail we see and is sharpest in the center of the visual field, where the fovea is located
28
Vision is sharpest at the fovea because...
- there is a high density of tightly-packed cones - this region receives direct light input that does not pass through other cells
29
Fovea
Indentation Light reaches the cones without having to pass through blood vessels and other layers of cells
30
Rods
Mostly present at the periphery (outside of fovea) to capture the light that comes in when we widen our pupil
31
Optic disc
Where blood vessels and the optic nerve leave the eye, resulting in no photoreceptors
32
Blind spot
Due to lack of photoreceptors in the optic disc
33
Why don't we see a hole in our vision?
Our eyes are constantly moving around and our brain fills in that picture for us
34
Rods are absent from the fovea
They are more numerous in the periphery and are more sensitive to dim light than cones are
35
Why does the pupil dilate under low illumination?
Helps to let in light to activate the rods
36
Saccades
Our eyes are constantly shifting a little bit to prevent adaptation of making the scene disappear
37
Lateral inhibition
A process where interconnected neurons inhibit their neighbors and produce contrast
38
Axons from retinal ganglion cells exit the eye and form the optic nerve; some cross at the _____________
optic chiasm
39
After passing the optic chiasm, the axons of the optic nerve are called the __________
optic tract
40
Left visual field...
hits the right side of both eyes Sent to the right visual cortex for processing
41
Right visual field...
hits the left side of each eye Sent back to the left visual cortex for processing
42
After optic tract...
Info goes to thalamus for processing Then goes to primary visual cortex
43
Nasal hemiretina
Portion of retina closest to the nose Projects its axons to contralateral side of the brain
44
Temporal hemiretina
Lateral portion of the retina Projects its axons to the ipsilateral side (same side) of the brain
45
Most axons in the optic tract synapse on cells in the _____________ of the thalamus
lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN)
46
Optic radiations
Made by axons of postsynaptic cells in the LGN Terminate in the primary visual cortex (also called the striate cortex and the occipital lobe)
47
Damage at the level of retina
Blindness No transduction of light energy
48
Damage at the cortex
Individual can see something but cannot identify what it is
49
Where your eyes converge
Best acuity (when you're looking forward) Acuity falls off toward the periphery of the visual field
50
Visual field
The whole area you can see without moving your head or eyes
51
Which animal below has a wider visual field? Why?
Visual field for rabbit is very wide since eyes are on sides of head
52
Which animal has better visual acuity? What makes it so?
Owl, because there is more overlap between vision of both eyes
53
Evolutionarily, why might this be the case for the rabbit?
He can identify that something is coming and quickly get out of the way
54
Trichromatic hypothesis of color perception
Three types of cones Each cone has a different type of opsin, or photopigment, that respond to the different part of the spectrum
55
Trichromatic theory-- cone sensitivity
Short: peak sensitivity at 420 nm Medium: 530 nm Long: 560 nm
56
57
Color blindness
Due to absence of cones sensitive to medium-wavelength light (M cones) Mostly in men (women can be carriers)
57
Amblyopia
Reduced visual acuity; one eye is stronger
57
Myopia
Nearsightedness; occurs if the eyeball is too long Image hits in the middle of the eyeball instead of the fovea Glasses help correct so that the image hits the back of the eye

Psych 230 exam 3 (6 decks)

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