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*Sensation - the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from our environment.
*Perception - the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events.
*Bottom-Up Processing - analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain's integration of sensory information.
*Top-Down Processing - information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations.
Psychophysics - The study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity, and our psychological experience of them.
*Absolute Threshold - the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus 50 percent of the time.
*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 detection depends partly on a person's experience, expectations, motivation, and level of fatigue.
Subliminal - below one's absolute threshold for conscious awareness.
*Difference Threshold - the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time.
*Weber's Law - states that the difference threshold is directly proportional to the magnitude of the stimulus with which the comparison is being made.
*Sensory Adaptation - diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation.
*Transduction - conversion of one form of energy into another. In sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sounds, and smells, into neural impulses our brains can interpret.
Wavelength - the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next.
Hue - the dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light.
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.
*Pupil - the adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters.
*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.
*Lens - the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina.
*Accomodation - the process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina.
*Rods - retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don't respond.
*Cones - retinal 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.
*Optic Nerve - the nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain.
Blind Spot - the point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye, no receptor cells are located there.
*Fovea - the central focal point in the retina, around which the eye's cones cluster.
*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.
Acuity - the sharpness of vision.
Nearsightedness - a condition in which nearby objects are seen more clearly than distant objects because distant objects focus in front of the retina.
Farsightedness - a condition in which faraway objects are seen more clearly than near objects because the image of near objects is focused behind the retina.
Feature Detectors - nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement.
*Parallel Processing - the processing of several aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain's natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision.
*Young-Helmholtz 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.
*Opponent-Process Theory - the theory that opposing retinal processes enable color vision.
*Color Constancy - perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the object.
Audition - the sense of hearing.
Frequency - the number of waves that pass a given point in a specific time, usually one second.
Pitch - a tone's experienced highness or lowness; depends on frequency.
Middle Ear - the chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea's oval window.
Inner Ear - the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and vestibular sacs.
*Cochlea - a coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear through which sound waves trigger nerve impulses.
*Place Theory - in hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea's membrane is stimulated.
*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.
*Conduction Hearing Loss - hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea.
Nerve Deafness - hearing loss created by damage to the hair cells or the auditory nerve fibers in the inner ear.
*Gate Control Theory - theory that spinal cord contains neurological gate that blocks pains signals or allows them to pass. Opened by activity of pain going up small nerve fibers & is closed by act of large fibers or by info coming from brain.
Sensory Interaction - the principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste.
Kinesthesis - the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts.
Vestibular Sense - the sense of body movement and position, including the sense of balance.
*Sensorineural Hearing Loss - hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptor cells or to the auditory nerves; also called nerve deafness.
- I would like to say that the sensation chapter is a heck of a lot more important than the perception chapter. Just putting that out there.
- Make sure you focus on the eye and the ear. Know their parts!
- You would rather have CONDUCTION hearing loss rather than SENSORINEURAL hearing loss! Remember: Sensorineural is serious.