sensation

senses collect info from environment and convert it to signals that travel through the brain

perception

the process by which the brain organizes and interprets sensory input

tranduction

transforms stimulus energy into electrochemical energy of neural impulses for all the senses except for smell

bottom- up processing

taking sensory information and assembling it until an object is formed in minds

top- down processing

processing and perceiving new information you encounter with things you already know

psychophysics

studies how physical energy affects our psychological experiences

sensory adaptaion

the diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation

absolute threshhold

the smallest level of stimulus that can be detected at least half of the time

signal detection theory

predicts that the intensity of stimuli and state of the person affects whether or not they are able to detect the stimuli

subliminal sensation

stimuli that are under your absolute threshold for conscious awareness

difference threshold

minimum difference person can detect between 2 stimuli half the time

webers law

2 stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage to be perceived different

selective attention

when we focus on one particular stimuli in our environment and ignore the rest

inattentional blindness

when our focus is directed at one stimulus, leaving us blind to other stimuli

change blindness

when a stimulus undergoes a change without being noticed by its observer due to visual interruptions

pupil

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

iris

a colored muscle that dilates or constricts in response to light intensity or inner emotions

lens

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

retina

light- sensitive inner surface of the eye which contains the receptor rods and cones and neurons

rods

receptor cells in the retina responsible for detecting light in general

cones

receptor cells that are responsible for color vision and visual adaptation to changes in light

fovea

the retinas central area of focus, where most cones are clustered around

optic nerve

the nerve that carries visual information to the brain

blind spot

the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye and there are no receptors

bipolar cells

the main interneurons, providing the main pathway between the photoreceptors of the eye to ganglion cells

ganglion cells

retinal cells that are responsible for carrying the visual stimuli to the brain

feature detectors

neurons located in the visual cortex that respond to specific features of stimulus

parallel processing

the ability of the brain to process things such as color, motion, shape, etc. simultaneously

young- helmholtz trichromatic theory

theory that your retina contains 3 types of receptor cells that can process three colors (green, blue, and red)

opponent- process theory

theory that opposing retinal processes (red- green, yellow- blue, and white- black) enable color vision

wavelenegth

distance of wave of light from peak to peak, which determines the color of the wave

hue

dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of the light

amplitude

height of each peak in a wavelength, which determines the brightness of the light

afterimage

continuation of visual sensation even after the stimulus is removed

#1

cornea

#2

pupil

#3

lens

#4

iris

#5

retina

#6

fovea

#7

optic nerve

#8

blind spot

gestalt

organized whole; we tend to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes

figure- ground

organization of visual field into objects that stand out from their surroundings

grouping

perceptual tendency to organise stimuli into coherent groups

depth pereception

ability to see objects in 3-D, which allows us to judge depth

visual cliff

laboratory device for testing depth perception in babies and young animals

binocular cues

depth cues that depend on the use of both eyes

retinal disparity

binocular cue for perceiving depth (greater disparity means closer object)

monocular cues

depth cues such as interposition and linear perspective, not dependent on use of both eyes

phi phonomenon

illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and odd in quick succession

perceptual constancy

perceiving objects as unchanging even as illumination and retinal images change

color constancy

perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color even if changing illumination alters the wavelength reflected by object

perceptual adaptation

ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field

audition

biological process by which our ears process sound waves

amplitude

how loud sound is, measured on a scale of decibels (dB)

frequency

number of wavelengths in a sound wave every second

pitch

wavelength of sound wave (high or low) determined by the frequency of the wave

outer ear

portion of ear that can be seen with inspection (pinna, ear canal, and ear drum)

pinna

visible part of ear that directs sound waves into the ear canal

ear canal

canal that guides sound waves down it to the eardrum

ear drum

also known as the tympanic membrane, which vibrates when the sound waves hit it

middle ear

chamber between the eardrum and the cochlea containing the hammer, anvil and stirrup

ossicles

the hammer, anvil, and stirrup are known as ossicles, they are responsible for transferring the vibrations from the eardrum to the cochlea

inner ear

innermost part of the ear (cochlea, semicircular canals, basilar membrane, and vestibular sacs)

cochlea

a fluid- filled tube responsible for triggering nerve impulses from sound waves

semicircular canals

fluid- filled tubes are responsible for helping you maintain your balance

basilar membrane

membrane of cochlea that moves due to the fluid, causing action potential

organ of corti

located in the basilar membrane and responsible for changing vibrations into neural impulses

vestibular sacs

sensory cells responsible for maintaining balance

sensorineural hearing loss

hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea receptor cells or auditory nerves

conduction hearing loss

hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea

cochlear implant

device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulation the auditory nerve

place theory

theory that links pitch we hear with the place that the cochlea is stimulated

frequency theory

theory that rate of nerve impulses traveling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of tone

perceptual set

set of mental tendencies to perceive one thing and not another

extra sensory perception (ESP)

controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input

parappsychology

study of paranormal phenomena (ex: ESP or psychokinesis)

gate- control theory

theory that spinal cord contains "gate" that blocks or sends pain signals

nociceptor

sensory receptor for painful stimuli, which act as predictors of harm

kinesthesia

system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts

vestibular sense

sense of body movement and position including the sense of balance

sensory interaction

principle that one sense may influence another (ex: smell and taste)

embodied cognition

influence of bodily sensations, gestures, etc. on cognitive preferences/ judgements