Print › AP Psychology Sensation & Perception

Adaptation: process by which our senses adjust to different levels of stimulation; in addition there are two types-light and dark; the sensitivity of rods and cones change accord how much light is available
Cones: visual receptor cells; located in retina; 8 million in each eye; works best in bright light; chiefly responsible for viewing color; greatest density in the fovea
Cornea: transparent protective coating over the front of the eye
Fovea: located on retina, directly behind lens; is a depressed spot; Center a visual field; images are sharpest here; contains mostly cones
Hammer, anvil, and stirrup: middle ear; free tiniest bones in the body; quivering of eardrum causes these bounds to hate in sequence and carry vibrations to the oval window
Hertz (Hz): unit that measures frequency a soundwaves or cycles per second
Iris: the color part of the eye; made of muscle that contracts/relaxes to control the size of the people allowing light to enter the eye
Lens: transparent part of the eye behind the iris; focuses light on the retina; change shape to focus on objects;-if object is closed, muscles attach to the land contract to make lens around,-if object is far away, the muscles pull to flatten the lens
Pitch: auditory experience corresponding to the frequency of sound vibrations, resulting in a higher or lower tone; humans respond to 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz
Place theory: one unto basic views of pitch discrimination; brain determines pitch by the place on the basilar membrane with the messages strongest; the highest frequency sounds cause the greatest vibrations at the stiff base of the basilar membrane
Pupil: small opening in the center of the iris; color part of the eye
Retina: the light-sensitive inner lining of the back of the eyeball; contains receptor cells
Rods: visual receptor cell; located in retina; 120 million in each eye; respond to varying degrees of light and dark; chiefly responsible for night vision and perception of brightness
Sensation: the raw data of experience; sensory stimulation; example are eyes only register light energy and ears only register wave energy
Timbre: the quality or texture of sound; caused by overtones
Weber's law: developed the 1930s by Ernst Weber; the principle that accounts for how one notices JND for any cents by noticing a fraction or proportion of a stimulus; change necessary for JND-hearing 0.3%, taste 20%, weight 2%
absolute threshold: minimal amount of energy required to produce any sensation; taste-1 g salt and 500 L of water, smell-one draw perfume in a three room apartment, touch-wing of the bee at 1 cm, hearing-pick of the watch 20 feet in a quiet room, vision-candle flame 30 miles on a clear night
additive color mixing: mixing light waves to create new hues privacy colors)
aerial perspective: binocular cue; just distance and death; distant objects appear hazy and blurred
afterimage: sensory experience that occurs after a visual experience has been removed; when eyes adjust to stimulation (or lack of) but they do not completely adjust/adapt
amplitude: the magnitude of the way; combined with frequency, it determines loudness; measured in decibels
auditory nerve: bundle of axons from the organ of Corti to the brain
autokinetic illusion: illusion of apparent movement; when a stationary object is perceived to move
basilar membrane: part of the inner ear; divides the cochlea lengthwise; stiff near the oval window but becomes flexible by the other end; as the fluid in the cochlea begins to move, the basilar membrane ripples in response
binaural cues: cues sound location that requires both ears
binocular cues: visual messages/cues that only require one eye
binoculars cues: visual messages/cues that require the use of two eyes
bipolar cells: specialize neuron located in the eye; as one dendrite and one axon; connects rods/cones to ganglion cells
blind spot: place on the retina out where the ganglion cells axons leads the eye; no receptors fantasy rods/cones) are located here
brightness: how bright or dark a color is; based on the strength of light entering your eyes
brightness constancy: tendency to see an object
cochlea: snail-shaped structure in the inner ear; contains fluid that vibrate; attach the oval window and basilar membrane
color constancy: tendency to perceive familiar objects as a color despite changes in sensory information; example-blue under fluorescent lights but not so blue and natural light--> it is still blue
colorblindness: inability to see certain color combinations: red-green or blue-yellow; 10% are male and 1% are female
convergence: binoculars cue; visual depth cue; muscles controlling eye movement as the eyes turned inward to view a nearby stimulus
dark adaptation: process by which rods and cones become more sensitive to light in lower levels of light; maximum sensitivity is achieved in 30 minutes; in dark, there is not enough energy to see colors, therefore only see black, white, gray
decibel (dB): unit of measurement; measures loudness
dichromats: people who only see two of the three primary colors; blind to read-green or blue-yellow; colorblind individuals
difference threshold: Just Noticeable Difference (JND); the smallest change in stimulation that you can detect 50% of the time; differs from one person to the other (and from moment to moment); tells us the flexibility of sensory systems
elevation: suggestion of depth because one object is appreciatively smaller; vestibular
feature detectors: specialized brain cells that respond to particular elements such as movement or lines; discovered by David Hubel and Torsten Weisel
figure/ground: a gestalt-like illusion; an illusion where a figure of merges from the background (ground) using perceptual cues
frequency: the number of cycles per second in a soundwaves; the primary determinant of page; expressed in hertz (Hz) unit
ganglion cells: neurons that connect the bipolar cells to the optic nerve; an interneuron; one million in each eye; summarizes and organizes data from rods/cones and sends it to the brain
gate control theory: theory of pain sensitivity; suggest that there is a "neurological gate" in spinal cord that controls transmission of pain impulses to the brain; individual differences vary the control of the gate
golgi tendon organs: works with kinesthetic senses; specialized nerve endings attached to tendon (attaches muscles and bones) and sense movement
hue: color, or aspects of colors; most people can name 150
kinesthetic senses: sense of muscle movement, posture, and strain on muscles/joints; provides information on speed and direction of movement; works with vestibular sense
light: electromagnetic energy; eyes are sensitive to this energy
light adaptation: process by which rods and cones become less sensitive to light in increased levels of light; takes approximately 1 minute to adjust
linear perspective: binocular cue; used to cue distance in depth by allowing two parallel lines to come together at a horizon
monaural cues: cues sound location that requires just one ear
monochromats: individuals who see no color at all; respond only to shades of light and dark; very rare
motion parallex: binocular distance cubed; objects close to you seem to move in the direction opposite from the way in which your head is moving; objects far away seem to move in the same direction; example-when you're driving in the car
olfactory bulb: axons of olfactory epithelium connects to olfactory bulb, which is considered the smell center of the brain; olfactory bulb records messages and send them to the temporal lobe and brain core
olfactory epithelium: patch of tissue in nasal cavity that contains receptor cells
opponent-process theory: created by Edward Hering; alternative theory used to explain after images; suggest that the retina contains three pairs color receptors or cones-yellow-blue, red-green, black-white; pairs work in opposition
optic chiasm: located near the base of the brain; point where some the fibers in the optic nerve crossover to the other side of the brain
optic nerve: bundle of axons from ganglion cells that carries no messages from the eye to the brain
organ of Corti: part of the inner ear; structure on service and basilar membrane that connects thousands of tiny hair cells (receptor cells) for hearing; each hair is taught by fibers that push and pull the vibrations of the basilar membrane and brain pools the information
ossicles: the middle ear; contains the hammer, anvil, and stirrup which are the smallest three bones the body; when the eardrum quivers it causes the hammer, anvil, and stirrup to hit each other in sequence, then carry the vibrations to the inner ear; stirrup catch the oval window
oval window: membrane between the middle and inner ear; attach to stirrup of middle ear and cochlea of the inner ear; since vibrations to the cochlea
overtones: tones that result from soundwaves that are multiples of the basic town; primary determinant of timbre; created by musical instruments
papillae: small bulbs on tongue that contain taste buds; the eye and replace every seven days
perception: the mental process of sorting, identifying, and arranging raw sensory data into meaningful patterns; Ex. how we distinguish between music and crying, how we take light and form a tree
perceptual constancy: tendency to see/perceive objects as stable and unchanging; example-a white house is still white no matter the elimination or angle
perceptual illusion: illusion due to misleading cues in stimuli; inaccurate or impossible perceptions
pheromones: often considered a nonfunctional relic of human past; it animals, it provides information about another animals identity or status (i.e. stress); secreted by glands or in urine that has effects on other animals behavior; stimulates vomeronasal organ (VNO); colorless molecules
phi phenomenon: illusion of apparent movement; caused by flashing lights in the sequence; example-neon lights
physical illusion: optical phenomenon; illusion produced by reflection of light into hot air; example-mirage
placebo effect: pain relief that occurs when a person believes that a pill or procedure will reduce pain; most likely caused by endorphin release
retinal disparity: binocular distance cue; based on the overlay of two retinal fields when both eyes focus on one object
round window: located just below the oval window; equalize pressure in the inner ear
saturation: how rich or vivid a color is, deep/saturated
semicircular canals: three circular-like canals attached to the cochlea their relays messages about speed and direction of body rotation (vestibular sense)
shadowing: illusion that gives depth to spherical objects to give it a three-dimensional quality
shape constancy: tendency to see an object as the same shape no matter the angle it is viewed from; example-closed door collusion
size constancy: the perception of an object as the same size regardless of the distance from which it is viewed; example someone height
sound: brains interpretation to changes in air pressure purposely soundwaves) as it passes through the ear
soundwaves: changes in air pressure caused when the molecules of air or fluid collide with one another and move apart again
stereoscopic vision: combination of two retinal images to give a 3-D perceptual experience
stretch receptors: works with kinesthetic senses; specialized nerve endings that are attached to muscle fibers that sense of muscle stretches and contractions
stroboscopic motion: illusion of apparent movement; result from flashing a series of still pictures in rapid succession; example-motion picture
subtractive color mixing: mixing of pigments to create hues; depending on the pigment, light may be absorbed or reflected
superposition: an object appears closer because the images superimposed on the top of the other image; example-one card laying on top of another card
taste buds: receptor cells onsides, depth, and back of tongue; pairs with smell to determine flavors; recognizes for basic taste qualities: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter; adults have 10,000 but they decrease with age; research looking at umami<-- sensitivity to MSG and proteins
texture gradient: binocular cue; judges distance and death in the objects in the foreground are large and clear but distant objects are smooth and less textured
trichromatic theory: created by Hermann von Helmholtz; theory of color vision based on additive color mixing; suggest that the retina contains three types of color receptors, cones: red, green, blue
trichromats: individuals with normal color vision
vestibular sacs: two sacks in the inner ear by the semicircular canals that since gravitation forward, backward, and vertical movement
vestibular sense: sense of equilibrium-orientation and/or position in space; originates in inner ear-movement of fluid in the semicircular canals relays messages about speed and direction of body rotation
visual acuity: the ability to distinguish fine details; acuity-Greek word for sharp
volley principle: a modified or refined frequency theory; suggest that the auditory neurons fire in the sequence increasing to a rapid series of impulses; the complete pattern corresponds to the frequency of a soundwave
vomeronasal organ (VNO): located in the root of the nasal cavity; stimulated by pheromones; sends messages to a second olfactory bulb (and animals) that is designed to enter their mobile communication; activates hypothalamus and amygdala; dismissed as nonfunctional in humans
wavelengths: physical energy