Terms : Hide Images
| 108854500 | sensation | the process by which we detect physical energy from the environment and encode it as neural signals | |
| 108854501 | perception | the process by which we select, organize, and interpret, sensory information | |
| 108854502 | bottom-up processing | analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain's integration of sensory information. | |
| 108854503 | top-down processing | Information processing guided by higher-level mental processes | |
| 108854504 | psychophysics | The study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli and our psychological experience of them | |
| 108854505 | absolute threshold | The minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time | |
| 108854506 | signal detection theory | A theory predicting how and when we detect the presence of a faint stimulus amid background noise. Detection depends on experience, expectations, motivations, and alertness | |
| 108854507 | subliminal | Below one's absolute threshold for conscious awareness. | |
| 108854508 | difference threshold | The minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50% of the time | |
| 108854509 | Weber's law | The principle that, to be perceived as different, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage | |
| 108854510 | sensory adaptation | Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation | |
| 108854511 | transduction | Conversion of one form of energy into another. In sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies into neural impulses | |
| 108854512 | pupil | The adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters | |
| 108854513 | iris | A ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening | |
| 108854514 | lens | The transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina | |
| 108854515 | retina | The light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, containing the receptor rods and cones plus layers of neurons that begin the processing of visual information | |
| 108854516 | rods | Retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don't respond. (dim light) | |
| 108854517 | cones | Receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions; detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations | |
| 108854518 | optic nerve | The nerve that carries neural impulses from the eyes to the brain. Comprised of the axons of retinal ganglion cells. | |
| 108854519 | blind spot | The point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a "blind" spot because no receptor cells are located there | |
| 108854520 | fovea | The central focal point in the retina, around which the eye's cones cluster. images focused on it are the clearest | |
| 108854521 | feature detectors | Nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement. They are the basis of visual information processing | |
| 108854522 | trichromatic theory | The theory that the retina contains three different color receptors (red, green, blue) which when stimulated in combination can produce the perception of any color | |
| 108854523 | opponent process theory | The theory that opposing retinal processes enable color vision | |
| 108854524 | pitch | A tone's highness or lowness; depends on frequency | |
| 108854525 | frequency | The number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time | |
| 108854526 | middle ear | The chamber between the eardrum and the cochlea containing three tiny bones that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea's oval window | |
| 108854527 | inner ear | The innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs. Plays a large part in controlling balance and audition. | |
| 108854528 | cochlea | A coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear through which sound waves trigger nerve impulses | |
| 108854529 | place theory | In hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea's membrane is stimulated | |
| 108854530 | 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 its pitch | |
| 108854531 | conduction hearing loss | Hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea | |
| 108854532 | sensorineural hearing loss | Hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptor cells or to the auditory nerves. This is caused by aging, disease or loud noise | |
| 108854533 | cochlear implant | An electronic device that converts sounds into electrical signals that stimulate the auditory nerve. | |
| 108854534 | gate-control theory | The theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological "gate" that blocks 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 activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain | |
| 108854535 | sensory interaction | The principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste | |
| 108854536 | kinesthesis | The system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts | |
| 108854537 | vestibular sense | The sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance | |
| 108866528 | cornea | the transparent layer forming the front of the eye. | |
| 108866529 | bipolar cells | rods and cones activate these cells first | |
| 108866530 | ganglion cells | bipolar cells activate these | |
| 108866531 | afterimages | an impression of a vivid sensation (esp. a visual image) retained after the stimulus has ceased. | |
| 108866532 | color blindness | unable to distinguish certain colors, or any colors at all | |
| 108866533 | amplitude | the maximum extent of a vibration or oscillation | |
| 108866534 | decibel | a unit used to measure the intensity of a sound or the power level of an electrical signal by comparing it with a given level on a logarithmic scale. | |
| 108866535 | ear canal | leads from the outer ear to its inner mechanics | |
| 108866536 | eardrum | a membrane of the middle ear that vibrates in response to sound waves; the tympanic membrane. | |
| 108866537 | oval window | a membrane-covered opening which leads from the middle ear to the vestibule of the inner ear | |
| 108866538 | basilar membrane | a membrane in the cochlea that bears the organ of Corti. | |
| 108866539 | hair cells | the sensory receptors of both the auditory system and the vestibular system | |
| 108866540 | pain | physical suffering or discomfort caused by illness or injury; people perceive it differently | |
| 108866541 | four basic taste sensations | Bitter, sweet, sour, salty | |
| 108866542 | chemical sense | Can distinguish thousands of different odors and flavors. Identification begins at membrane receptors on sensory cells | |
| 108866543 | olfactory receptor cells | cells that detect smell located in the nose | |
| 109211468 | selective attention | The focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus out of all of those that we are capable of experiencing, as in the cocktail party effect | |
| 109211469 | gestalt | An organized whole - gestalt psychologists emphasize our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes | |
| 109211470 | figure-ground | The organization of the visual field into the figure, which stands out from its surroundings, and the surroundings, or background | |
| 109211471 | group | The perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups. gestalt psychologists identified various principals of it. | |
| 109211472 | proximity | we group nearby figures together. we see not six separate lines, but three sets of two lines | |
| 109211473 | similarity | we group together figures that are similar to each other. | |
| 109211474 | continuity | we perceive smooth, continuous patterns rather than discontinuous ones | |
| 109211475 | connectedness | when something is uniformed and linked, we perceive them as a single unit | |
| 109211476 | closure | we will fill in gaps to create a complete, whole object. | |
| 109211477 | depth perception | The ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance | |
| 109211478 | visual cliff | A laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals. In their experiments, Gibson and Walk found strong evidence that depth perception is at least part innate. | |
| 109211479 | binocular cues | Depth cues that depend on the use of two eyes | |
| 109211480 | retinal disparity | A binocular cue for perceiving depth; by comparing images from the two eyeballs, the brain computes distance - the greater the disparity between the two images, the closer the object | |
| 109211481 | convergence | A binocular cue for perceiving depth; the extent to which the eyes converge inward when looking at an object | |
| 109211482 | monocular cues | Distance cues available to either eye alone | |
| 109211483 | interposition | If one object partially blocks our view of another, we perceive it as closer. | |
| 109211484 | relative size | if we assume that two objects ore similar in size, we perceive the one that casts the smaller retinal image as farther away. | |
| 109211485 | texture gradient | a gradual change from a coarse, distinct texture to a fine, indistinct texture signals increasing distance. | |
| 109211486 | relative height | we perceive objects higher in our field of vision as farther away | |
| 109211487 | relative motion | as we move, objects that are actually stable may appear to move. | |
| 109211488 | linear perspective | parallel lines, such as railroad tracks, appear to converge with distance | |
| 109211489 | light and shadow | nearby objects reflect more light to our eyes. | |
| 109211490 | motion perspective | the ability to process a visual scene based on distance cues. | |
| 109211491 | phi phenomenon | An illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in succession | |
| 109211492 | perceptual constancy | Perceiving objects as unchanging even as illumination and retinal images change | |
| 109211493 | perceptual adaptation | In vision, the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or inverted visual field. (ex: when using distorted lenses) | |
| 109211494 | perceptual set | A mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another | |
| 109211495 | extrasensory perception | The controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input - said to include telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition | |
| 109211496 | parapsychologists | The study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis |
