psy101(2)
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jacklati427563 on May 28, 2011
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63 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Absolute threshold | the minimal amount of energy that can produce a sensation |
| Pitch | the highness or lowness of a sound, as determined by frequency of the sound waves |
| Difference threshold | the minimal difference in intensity required between two sources of energy so that they will be perceived as being different |
| Sensation | the stimulation of sensory receptors ans the transmission of sensory information to the central nervous system |
| Perception | the process by which sensations are organized into an inner representation of the world |
| Weber's constant | the fraction of the intensity by which a source of physical energy must be increased or decreased so that a difference in intensity will be perceived |
| Just noticeable difference (JND) | the minimal amount by which a source of energy must be increased or decreased so that a difference in intensity will be perceived |
| Signal-detection theory | the view that the perception of sensory stimuli involves the interaction of physical, biological, and psychological factors |
| Feature detectors | neurons in the sensory cortex that fire in response to specific features of sensory information such as lines as or edges of objects |
| Sensory adaption | the processes by which organisms become more sensitive to stimuli that are low in magnitude and less sensitive to stimuli that are constant or ongoing in magnitude |
| Sensitization | the type of sensory adaptation in which we become more sensitive to stimuli that are low in magnitude aka (positive adaptation) |
| Desensitization | the type of sensory adaptation in which we become less sensitive to constant stimuli aka (negative adaptation) |
| Hue | the color of light, as determined by its wavelength |
| Cornea | transparent tissue forming that outer surface of the eyeball |
| Pupil | the black-looking opening in the center of the iris, through which light enters the eye |
| Lens | a transparent body behind the iris that focuses an image on the retina |
| Retina | the area of the inner surface of the eye that contains rods and cones |
| Photoreceptors | cells that respond to light |
| Bipolar cells | neurons that conduct neural impulses from rods and cones to ganglion cells |
| Ganglion cells | neurons whose axons form the optic nerve |
| Optic nerve | the nerves that transmit sensory information from the eye to the brain |
| Rods | rod-shaped photoreceptors that are sensitive only to the intensity of light |
| Cones | cone-shaped photoreceptors that transmit sensations of color |
| Fovea | an area near the center of the retina that is dense with cones and where vision is consequently most acute |
| Blind spot | the area of the retina where axons from ganglion cells meet to form the optic nerve |
| Visual acuity | sharpness of vision |
| Presbyopia | a condition characterized by brittleness of the lens |
| Dark adaptation | the process of adjusting to conditions of lower lighting by increasing the sensitivity of rods and cones |
| Complementary | descriptive of colors of the spectrum that when combined produce white and nearly white light |
| Afterimage | the lingering visual impression made by a stimulus that has been removed |
| Trichromatic theory | the theory that color vision is made possible by three types of cones, some of which respond red light, some to green, and some to blue |
| Opponent-process theory | the theory that color vision is made possible by three types of cones, some of which respond to red or green light, some blue or yellow, and some to the intensity of light |
| Trichromat | a person with normal color vision |
| Monochromat | a person who is sensitive to black and white only and hence color-bind |
| Dichromat | a person who is sensitive to black-white and either red-green or blue-yellow and hence partially color-blind |
| Closure | the tendency to perceive a broken figure as being complete or whole |
| Proximity | Nearness the perceptual tendency to group together objects that are near one another |
| Similarity | the perceptual tendency to group together objects that are similar in appearance |
| Continuity | the tendency to perceive a series of points or lines as having unity |
| Common fate | the tendency to perceive elements that move together as belonging together |
| Top-downing processing | the use of contextual information or knowledge of a pattern in order to organize parts of the pattern |
| Bottom-up processing | the organization of the parts of a pattern to recognize, or form an image of, the pattern they compose |
| Illusion | sensations that give rise to misperceptions |
| Stroboscopic motion | a visual illusion in which the perception of motion is generated by series of stationary images that are presented in rapid succession |
| Monocular cues | stimuli suggestive of depth that can be perceived with only one eye |
| Perspective | a monocular cue for depth based on the convergence (coming together ) of parallel lines as they recede into the distance |
| Texture gradient | a monocular cue for depth based on the perception that closer objects appear to have rougher (more detailed) surfaces |
| Motion parallax | a monocular cue for depth based on the perception that nearby objects appear to move more rapidly in relation to our own motion |
| Binocular cues | stimuli suggestive of depth that involve simultaneous perception by both eyes |
| Retinal disparity | a binocular cue for depth based on the difference in the image cast by an object on the retinas of the eyes as the object moves closer or farther away |
| Convergence | a binocular cue for depth based on the inward movement of the eyes as they attempt to focus on an object that is drawing nearer |
| Size constancy | the tendency to perceived an object as being the same size even as the size of its retina image changes according to the object's distance |
| Color constancy | the tendency to perceive an object as being the same color even though lighting conditions change its appearance |
| Brightness constancy | the tendency to perceive an object as being just as bright even though lighting conditions change its intensity |
| Shape constancy | the tendency to perceive an object as being the same shape although the retinal image varies in shape as it rotates |
| Hertz (Hz) | a unit expressing the frequency of sound waves. one hertz equals one cycle per second |
| Decibel (dB) | a unit expressing the loudness of a sound |
| Cochlea | the inner ear; the bony tube that contains the basilar membrane and organ of Corti |
| Basilar membrane | a membrane that lies coiled within the cochlea |
| Organ of Corti | the receptor for hearing that lies on the basilar membrane in the cochlea |
| Auditory nerve | the axon bundle that transmits neural impulses from the organ of Corti to the brain |
| Place theory | the theory that the pitch of sound is determined by the section of basilar membrane that vibrates in response to the sound |
| Frequency theory | the theory that the pitch of a sound is reflected in the frequency of the neural impulses that are generated in response to the sound |
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