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| the process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from out environment |
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| the process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events |
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| analysis that begins with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain's integration of sensory information |
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| information processing guided by higher-level mental processes, as when we construct perceptions drawing on our experience and expectations |
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| the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular stimulus |
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| failing to see visible objects when our attention is elsewhere |
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| failing to notice changes in the environment |
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| the study of relationships between the physical characteristics of stimuli, such as their intensity and our psychological experience of them |
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| the minimum stimulation needed to detect a particular stimulus |
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| 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 that detection depends partly on a person's experience, expectations, motivation, and alertness |
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| below one's absolute threshold for conscious awareness |
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| the activation, often unconsciously, of certain associations, thus predisposing one's perception, memory, or response |
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| interrupts the brain's processing before conscious perception |
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| the minimum difference between two stimuli required for detection 50 percent of the time. We experience the difference threshold as a just noticeable difference |
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| the principle that, to be perceived as difference, two stimuli must differ by a constant percentage |
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| diminished sensitivity as a consequence of constant stimulation |
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| conversion of one form of energy into another. In sensation, the transforming of stimulus energies, such as sights, sound, and smells, into neural impulses our brains can interpret |
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| the distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next. Electromagnetic wavelengths vary from the short blips of cosmic rays to the long pulses of radio transmission |
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| the dimension of color that is determine by the wavelength of light |
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| the amount of energy in a light of sound wave, which we perceive as brightness or loudness, as determined by the wave's amplitude |
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| the adjustable opening in the center of the eye through which light enters |
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| ring of muscle tissue that forms the colored portion of the eye around the pupil and controls the size of the pupil opening |
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| the transparent structure behind the pupil that changes shape to help focus images on the retina |
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| 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 |
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| he process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina |
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| retinal receptors that detect alck, white, and gray; necessary for peripheral and twilight vision, when cones don't respond |
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| retinal receptor cells that are concentrated near the center of he retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions. The cones detect fine detail and give rise to color sensations |
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| he nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain |
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| the point at which the optic nerve leaves he eye, creating a "blind" spot because no receptor cells are located there |
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| the central focal point in the retinal, around which the eye's cones cluster |
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| nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as shape, angle, or movement |
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| teams of cells that respond to complex problems |
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| the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brains natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision. Contrast with the step-by-step processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving |
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| Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory |
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| 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 |
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| opponent processing theory |
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| the theory that opposing retinal processes (red-green, yellow-blue, white-black) enable color vision. For example, some cells are stimulated by green and inhibited by red; others are stimulated by red and inhibited by green |
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| the sense or act of hearing |
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| the number of complete wavelengths that pass a point in a given tie |
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| a tone's experience highness or lowness; depends on frequence |
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| the chamber between the eardrum and cochlea containing three tiny bones (hammer anvil, and stirrup) that concentrate the vibrations of the eardrum on the cochlea's oval window |
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| a coiled, bony, fluid-filled tube in the inner ear through which sound waves trigger nerve impulses |
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| the innermost part of the ear, containing the cochlea, semicircular canals, and the vestibular sacs |
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| channels the sounds waves through the auditory canal |
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| a tight membrane that vibrates with the waves |
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| movement of these triggers impulses in the adjacent nerve cells |
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| formed by the axons of hair cells |
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| section of the temporal lobe responsible for hearing |
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| sounds we like; harder to hear sounds are amplified more than loud sounds |
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| in hearing, the theory that links the pitch we hear with the place where the cochlea's membrane is stimulated |
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| 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 |
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| neural cells alternate firing |
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| rapid succession of neural cells can achieve (this) above 1000 waves per second |
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| hearing loss caused by damage to the mechanical system that conducts sound waves to the cochlea |
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| sensorineural hearing loss |
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| hearing loss caused by damage to the cochlea's receptor cells or to the auditory nerves; also called nerve deafness |
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| a device for converting sounds into electrical signals and stimulating the auditory nerve through electrodes threaded into the cochlea |
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| semicircular canals and vestibular sacs |
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| contains fluids that moves wen your head rotates or tilts. This movement stimulates hair like receptors, which send messages to the cerebellum at the back of the brain, thus enabling you to sense your body position and to maintain your balance |
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| the system for sensing the position and movement of individual body parts |
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| the sense of body movement and position, including sense of balance |
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| the theory that the spinal cord contains a neurological "gate" that blocks pain signals or allows them to pass on to the brain. The "gate" is opened by the activity of pain signals traveling up small nerve fibers and is closed by activity in larger fibers or by information coming from the brain |
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| sensory receptors that detect hurtful temperatures, pressure, or chemicals |
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| meaty taste; indicates proteins to grow and repair tissue |
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| indicates sodium essential to physiological processes |
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| indicates potentially toxic acid |
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| indicates potential poisions |
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| the principle that one sense may influence another, as when the smell of food influences its taste |
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| seeing the mouth move to form one word while hearing another word causes us to perceive a third word |
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| an organized whole, Gestalt psychologists emphasize our tendency to integrate pieces of information into meaningful wholes |
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| the organization of the visual field into objects that stand out from their surroundings |
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| the perceptual tendency to organize stimuli into coherent groups |
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| grouping nearby figures together |
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| grouping similar figures together |
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| grouping smooth, continuous patterns rather than discontinuous ones |
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| grouping objects that are uniform and linked |
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| filling in the gaps to create a complete, whole object |
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| the ability to see objects in three dimensions although the images that strike the retina are two-dimensional; allows us to judge distance |
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| a laboratory device for testing depth perception in infants and young animals |
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| depth cues, such as retinal disparity, that depend on the use of two eyes |
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| binocular cue for perceiving depth: By comparing images from he retinas in the two eyes, the brain computes distance--the greater the disparity between the two images, the closer the objects |
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| depth cues, such as interposition and linear perspective, available to either eye alone |
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| horizontal-vertical illusion |
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| our perceiving vertical dimensions as longer than identical horizontal dimensions |
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| we perceive objects high in our field of vision as farther away |
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| if we assume two objects are similar in size, most people perceive the one that casts the smaller retinal image as farther away |
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| if one object partially blocks our view of another, we perceive that one as closer |
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| parallel lines appear to converge with distance |
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| perception that nearby objects reflect more light; shading produces a sense of depth consistent with our assumption that light comes from above |
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| objects behind fixation point appear to move with you, and objects in front of your fixation point appear to move backwards |
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| an illusion of movement created when two or more adjacent lights blink on and off in quick succession |
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| perceiving objects as unchanging even as illumination and retinal images change |
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| brain will perceive continuous movement in a rapid series of slightly varying images |
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| we perceive the form of familiar objects as constant even while our retinal images of it changes |
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| we perceive an object as having constant lightness even while its illumination varies |
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| perceiving familiar objects as having consistent color, even if changing illumination alters the wavelengths reflected by the objects |
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| in vision, the ability to adjust to an artificially displaced or even inverted visual field |
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| a mental predisposition to perceive one thing and not another |
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| the controversial claim that perception can occur apart from sensory input; includes telepathy, clairvoyance, and precognition |
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| the study of paranormal phenomena, including ESP and psychokinesis |
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| mind-to-mind communication |
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| perceiving remote events as they are happening |
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| mind over matter (using mind to move objects) |
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