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PSYC 320: EXAM 1
Perceptual Process |
A sequence of steps leading from the environment to perception of a stimulus, recognition of the stimulus, and action with regard to the stimulus |
Transduction |
Transformation of environmental energy into electrical energy |
Principle of Transformation |
A principle of perception that stimuli and responses created by stimuli are transformed between the environmental stimulus and the environment |
Neural Processing |
Operations that transform electrical signals within a network of neurons or that transform the response of individual neurons |
Frontal Lobe |
Receives signals from all senses; involved in coordination of info received through 2 or more senses |
Occipital Lobe |
Primary receiving area for vision
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Temporal Lobe |
Primary receiving area for hearing.
Termination point for the ventral stream (what) for visual processing |
Parietal Lobe |
Primary receiving area for touch.
Termination point of the dorsal stream (where and how) for visual processing
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Principle of Representation |
Principle that states that everything a person perceives is based not on direct contact with the stimuli, but on representation of stimuli on receptors and in the NS |
Bottom-up processing |
Processing that is based on the information on the receptors; data-based processing |
Top-down processing |
Processing that starts with the analysis of high level information (knowledge); also called knowledge based processing. |
Rat-man demonstration |
Demonstrated top-down processing on perception |
Psychophysical Approach |
Analyzing perception by determining how a person's perception is related to stimuli in the environment. Relationship between environment and perception |
Physiological Approach |
Analyzing perception by determining how a person's perception is related to the physiological processes occurring within the person. Determining relationship between stimuli and physiological responding & between physiological responding and perception
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Absolute Threshold |
The minimal stimulus energy necessary for an observer to detect a stimulus
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Difference Threshold |
The minimal detectable difference between two stimuli |
Weber's Law |
A law stating that the ratio of the difference threshold (DL) to the value of the stimulus (S) is constant.
According to the relationship, doubling the value of a stimulus will cause a doubling of the difference threshold.
The ratio DL/S is called Weber's fraction |
Magnitude Estimation |
The psychophysical method in which the subject assigns numbers to a stimulus that are proportional to the subjective magnitude of the stimulus
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Response Compression |
The result when doubling the physical intensity of a stimulus less than doubles the subjective magnitude of the stimulus
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Response Expansion |
The result when doubling the physical intensity of a stimulus more than doubles the subjective magnitude of the stimulus |
Steven's Power Law |
A law concerning the relationship between the physical intensity of a stimulus and the perception of the subjective magnitude of the stimulus.
Law States that P=KS^n
P= magnitude
K=Constant
S=Stimulus intensity
n=exponent |
Electromagnetic Spectrum |
Continuum of electromagnetic energy that extends from very-short-wavelength gamma rays to long-wavelength radio waves.
Visible light is very narrow band in this spectrum |
Visible Light |
The band of EM energy that activates the visual system and that, therefore, can be perceived, 400nm-700nm |
Optic Nerve |
Bundle of fibers that carry impulses from the retina to the LGN and other structures. |
Retina |
A complex network of cells that covers the inside back of the eye. Composed of receptors, horizontal, bipolar, amacrine, and ganglion cells.
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Rod |
A cylinder shaped receptor in the retina that is responsible for vision at low levels of illumination
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Cones |
Cone-shaped receptors that are primarily responsible for vision in high levels of illumination and for color vision and detail vision |
Outer Segments |
Part of the rod and cone visual receptors that contain the light-sensitive visual pigment molecules
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Dark Adaptation |
Visual adaptation that occurs in the dark, during which the sensitivity to light increases. Increase in sensitivity is associated with the regeneration of the rod and cone visual pigments |
Fovea |
A small area in the human retina that contains only cone receptors . Is located in line of sight, so when looking at an object, center of its image falls on fovea.
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Peripheral Retina |
The area of retina outside of the fovea
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The Blind Spot |
The small area where the optic nerve leaves the back of the eye. Since there are no visual receptors, images falling onto this spot cant be seen |
Spectral Sensitivity Curve. |
Function relating a subject's sensitivity to light to the wavelength of light.
Rods and cones are maximally sensitive to 500-560nm |
Ganglion Cell |
A neuron in the retina that receives inputs from bipolar and amacrine cells. The axons of the ganglion cells are the nerve fibers in the optic nerve |
Bipolar Cells |
A retinal neuron that receives inputs from the visual receptors and sends signals to the ganglion cells |
Lateral Inhibition |
Inhibition that is transmitted laterally across a nerve circuit.
In the retina, lateral inhibition is transmitted by the horizontal and amacrine cells |
Hermann Grid |
A display that results in the illusion of dark areas at the intersection of two white corridors . |
Simultaneous Contrast |
The effect that occurs when surrounding one color with another changes the appearance of the surrounded color. Occurs for chromatic and achromatic stimuli |
Receptive Field |
A neuron's receptive field is the area on the receptor surface that, when stimulated, affects the firing of the neuron
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Center-Surround Organization |
Arrangement of a neuron's receptive fields in which one area is surrounded by another area. Stimulation of the center and surrounding areas cause opposite responses |
Lateral Geniculate Nucleus |
Nucleus in the thalamus that receives inputs from the optic nerve and communicates with the cortical receiving area for vision |
Visual Receiving area |
The area in the occipital lobe where signals from the retina and LGN first reach the cortex |
Simple Cortical Cell |
A neuron in the visual cortex that responds best to bars of a particular orientatin |
Complex Cell |
A neuron in the visual cortex that responds best to moving bars with a particular orientation
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End-stopped cell |
A cortical neuron that responds best to lines of a specific length that are moving in a particular direction |
Selective Adaptation |
A procedure in which a subject is selectively exposed to one stimulus, and then the effect of this exposure is assessed by testing with a wide range of stimuli. |
Neural Plasticity |
The capacity of the NS to change in response to experience |
Infertemporal Cortex |
An area of the brain outside of Area V1 (striate cortex), involved in object perception and facial recognition. |
Prosopagnosia |
A form of visual agnosia in which the person can't recognize faces
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Specificity Coding |
Type of neural code in which different perceptions are signaled by activity in specific neurons |
Grandmother Cell |
A hypothesized type of neuron that responds to a very specific stimulus (like your grandmother) |
Distributed Coding |
Type of neural code in which different perceptual qualities are signaled by the pattern of activity across many neurons.
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