AP Psychology Sensation & Perception

convergence

binoculars cue; visual depth cue; muscles controlling eye movement as the eyes turned inward to view a nearby stimulus

light

electromagnetic energy; eyes are sensitive to this energy

monaural cues

cues sound location that requires just one ear

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

soundwaves

changes in air pressure caused when the molecules of air or fluid collide with one another and move apart again

hue

color, or aspects of colors; most people can name 150

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

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

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

light adaptation

process by which rods and cones become less sensitive to light in increased levels of light; takes approximately 1 minute to adjust

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

kinesthetic senses

sense of muscle movement, posture, and strain on muscles/joints; provides information on speed and direction of movement; works with vestibular sense

elevation

suggestion of depth because one object is appreciatively smaller; vestibular

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

Sensation

the raw data of experience; sensory stimulation; example are eyes only register light energy and ears only register wave energy

decibel (dB)

unit of measurement; measures loudness

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

stereoscopic vision

combination of two retinal images to give a 3-D perceptual experience

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

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

binaural cues

cues sound location that requires both ears

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

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

frequency

the number of cycles per second in a soundwaves; the primary determinant of page; expressed in hertz (Hz) unit

golgi tendon organs

works with kinesthetic senses; specialized nerve endings attached to tendon (attaches muscles and bones) and sense movement

stretch receptors

works with kinesthetic senses; specialized nerve endings that are attached to muscle fibers that sense of muscle stretches and contractions

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

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

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

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

semicircular canals

three circular-like canals attached to the cochlea their relays messages about speed and direction of body rotation (vestibular sense)

overtones

tones that result from soundwaves that are multiples of the basic town; primary determinant of timbre; created by musical instruments

Cornea

transparent protective coating over the front of the eye

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

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

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

bipolar cells

specialize neuron located in the eye; as one dendrite and one axon; connects rods/cones to ganglion cells

Timbre

the quality or texture of sound; caused by overtones

vestibular sacs

two sacks in the inner ear by the semicircular canals that since gravitation forward, backward, and vertical movement

placebo effect

pain relief that occurs when a person believes that a pill or procedure will reduce pain; most likely caused by endorphin release

brightness constancy

tendency to see an object

olfactory epithelium

patch of tissue in nasal cavity that contains receptor cells

wavelengths

physical energy

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

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

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%

brightness

how bright or dark a color is; based on the strength of light entering your eyes

saturation

how rich or vivid a color is, deep/saturated

additive color mixing

mixing light waves to create new hues privacy colors)

Pupil

small opening in the center of the iris; color part of the eye

size constancy

the perception of an object as the same size regardless of the distance from which it is viewed; example someone height

figure/ground

a gestalt-like illusion; an illusion where a figure of merges from the background (ground) using perceptual cues

texture gradient

binocular cue; judges distance and depth in the objects in the foreground are large and clear but distant objects are smooth and less textured

linear perspective

binocular cue; used to cue distance in depth by allowing two parallel lines to come together at a horizon

perceptual illusion

illusion due to misleading cues in stimuli; inaccurate or impossible perceptions

autokinetic illusion

illusion of apparent movement; when a stationary object is perceived to move

shadowing

illusion that gives depth to spherical objects to give it a three-dimensional quality

trichromats

individuals with normal color vision

feature detectors

specialized brain cells that respond to particular elements such as movement or lines; discovered by David Hubel and Torsten Weisel

Retina

the light-sensitive inner lining of the back of the eyeball; contains receptor cells

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

Hertz (Hz)

unit that measures frequency a soundwaves or cycles per second

monocular cues

visual messages/cues that only require one eye

binoculars cues

visual messages/cues that require the use of two eyes

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

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

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

aerial perspective

binocular cue; distance and depth; distant objects appear hazy and blurred

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

retinal disparity

binocular distance cue; based on the overlay of two retinal fields when both eyes focus on one object

sound

brains interpretation to changes in air pressure purposely soundwaves) as it passes through the ear

optic nerve

bundle of axons from ganglion cells that carries no messages from the eye to the brain

auditory nerve

bundle of axons from the organ of Corti to the brain

phi phenomenon

illusion of apparent movement; caused by flashing lights in the sequence; example-neon lights

stroboscopic motion

illusion of apparent movement; result from flashing a series of still pictures in rapid succession; example-motion picture

colorblindness

inability to see certain color combinations: red-green or blue-yellow; 10% are male and 1% are female

monochromats

individuals who see no color at all; respond only to shades of light and dark; very rare

round window

located just below the oval window; equalize pressure in the inner ear

Fovea

located on retina, directly behind lens; is a depressed spot; Center a visual field; images are sharpest here; contains mostly cones

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

subtractive color mixing

mixing of pigments to create hues; depending on the pigment, light may be absorbed or reflected

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

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

physical illusion

optical phenomenon; illusion produced by reflection of light into hot air; example-mirage

dichromats

people who only see two of the three primary colors; blind to read-green or blue-yellow; colorblind individuals

blind spot

place on the retina out where the ganglion cells axons leads the eye; no receptors fantasy rods/cones) are located here

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

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

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

papillae

small bulbs on tongue that contain taste buds; the eye and replace every seven days

cochlea

snail-shaped structure in the inner ear; contains fluid that vibrate; attach the oval window and basilar membrane

shape constancy

tendency to see an object as the same shape no matter the angle it is viewed from; example-closed door collusion

perceptual constancy

tendency to see/perceive objects as stable and unchanging; example-a white house is still white no matter the elimination or angle

visual acuity

the ability to distinguish fine details; acuity-Greek word for sharp

amplitude

the magnitude of the way; combined with frequency, it determines loudness; measured in decibels