AP Psychology Chapter 6 Vocab Flashcards

1748904631	sensation	the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment	0
1748904632	perception	the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events	1
1748904633	bottom-up processing	analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain's integration of sensor information	2
1748904634	top-down processing	information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations	3
1748904635	transduction	conversion of one form of energy into another; in sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sighs, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses our brain can interpret	4
1748904636	psychophysics	the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them	5
1748904637	absolute threshold	the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time	6
1748904638	signal detection theory	a theory predicting how and when we detect the presence 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	7
1748904639	subliminal	below one's absolute threshold for conscious awareness	8
1748904640	priming	the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response	9
1748904641	difference threshold	the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time; we experience this as a just noticeable difference(or jnd)	10
1748904642	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)	11
1748904643	sensory adaptation	diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation	12
1748904644	perceptual set	a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another	13
1748904645	wavelength	the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next; electromagnetic (term) vary from the short blips of cosmic rays to the long pulses of radio transmission	14
1748904646	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	15
1748904647	intensity	the amount of energy in a light or sound wave, which we perceive as brightness or loudness, as determined by the wave's amplitude	16
1748904648	pupil	the adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters	17
1748904649	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	18
1748904650	lens	the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina	19
1748904651	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	20
1748904652	accommodation	the process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina	21
1748904653	rods	retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don't respond	22
1748904654	cones	retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions; they detect find detail and give rise to color sensations	23
1748904655	optic nerve	the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain	24
1748904656	blind spot	the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, creating a (term) because no receptor cells are located there	25
1748904657	fovea	the central focal point in the retina, around which the eye's cones cluster	26
1748904658	feature detectors	nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement	27
1748904659	parallel processing	the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain's natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision; contrasts with the step-by-step(serial) processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving	28
1748904660	Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory	the theory that the retina contains three different color receptors- one most sensitive to red, one to green, one to blue- which, when stimulated in combination, can produce the perception of any color	29
1748904661	opponent-process theory	the theory that opposing retinal processes(red-green, yellow-blue, 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	30
1748904662	gestalt	an organized whole; (term) psychologists emphasized our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes	31
1748904663	figure-ground	the organization of the visual field into objects that stand out from their surroundings	32
1748904664	grouping	the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups	33
1748904665	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	34
1748904666	visual cliff	a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals	35
1748904667	binocular cues	depth cues, such as retinal disparity, that depend on the use of two eyes	36
1748904668	retinal disparity	a binocular cue for perceiving depth: by comparing images from the retinas in the two eyes, the brain computes distance- the greater the disparity(difference) between the two images, the closer the object	37
1748904669	monocular cues	depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone	38
1748904670	phi phenomenon	an illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession	39
1748904671	perceptual constancy	perceiving objects as unchanging(having consistent shapes, size, brightness, and color) even as illumination and retinal images change	40
1748904672	color constancy	perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object	41
1748904673	perceptual adaptation	in vision, the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field	42
1748904674	audition	the sense or act of hearing	43
1748904675	frequency	the number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given time(for example, per second)	44
1748904676	pitch	a tone's experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency	45
1748904677	middle ear	the chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones(hammer, anvil, and stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea's oval window	46
1748904678	cochlea	a coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear; sound waves traveling through the (term)'s fluid trigger nerve impulses	47
1748904679	inner ear	the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs	48
1748904680	sensorineural hearing loss	hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptor cells or to the auditory nerves; also called nerve deafness	49
1748904681	conduction hearing loss	hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea	50
1748904682	cochlear implant	a device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve through electrodes threaded into the cochlea	51
1748904683	place theory	in hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea's membrane is stimulated	52
1748904684	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	53
1748904685	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	54
1748904686	sensory interaction	the principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste	55
1748904687	embodied cognition	in psychological science, the influence of bodily sensations, gestures, and other states on cognitive preferences and judgments	56
1748904688	kinesthesis	the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts	57
1748904689	vestibular sense	the sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance	58
1748904690	extrasensory perception	the controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input; includes telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition	59
1748904691	parapsychology	the study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis	60