week 3 sensation Flashcards
what are sensory receptors
specialized neurons that respond to specific types of stimuli
describe the simple process of sensation
- light
- chemical info sent to the eye
- creates an action potential
- transduction
absolute threshold
minimum amount of stimulus energy that must be present for the stimulus to be detected 50% of the time
when does a stimulus reach a psychological threshold
when it is strong enough to excite sensory receptors and send nerve impulses to the brain
what is the just noticeable difference/ difference threshold
how much difference in stimuli is required to detect a difference between them
what makes the difference threshold change
stimulus intensity
what does webers law suggest
the difference threshold is a constant fraction of the original stimulus
what is the bottom up process
perceptions are built from sensory input
what is the top down process
how we interpret sensations is influenced by knowledge and experiences
sensory adaption
we don’t perceive stimuli that remain constant over prolonged periods of time
inattention blindness
failure to notice something that is completely visible due to lack of attention
signal detection theory
ability to identify a stimulus when it is embedded in a distracting background
what did Stratton do
wore goggles that inverted the world but he adjusted well
what are the 4 stages of conversion in sensation
- accessory structures modify physical stimulus eg lens of eye
- transduction - physical energy detected by receptors and converted into neural energy
- sensory nerves send traduced neural energy to brain, first the thalamus (relay station) then different parts of cortex
- sensation is produced once message reaches brain
psychometrics
measuring senses and thresholds
noise
random excitation or inhibition of neurons that either increase or decrease sensed intensity of a physical stimulus
3 implications of noise
- repeated presentations of the same physical level of intensity don’t always produce the same internal sensation
- if a physical signal is doubled, doesn’t always double sensation
- absolute threshold
webers fraction relationship
difference threshold increases in proportion to the standard
webers law formula
change in intensity of stimulus/intensity of standard = C
what is general rule of webers law
as background intensity increases, difference threshold increases
amplitude
height of the wave measured from the highest point of the wave (peak) to the lowest point of the wave (trough)
wavelength
length of a wave from one peak to the next
frequency
number of waves that pass a given point in a given period - measured in Hz
how are the frequencies in shorter wavelengths
higher