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5.9: Key Terms

  • Page ID
    200342
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    absolute threshold
    minimum amount of stimulus energy that must be present for the stimulus to be detected 50% of the time
    afterimage
    continuation of a visual sensation after removal of the stimulus
    amplitude
    height of a wave
    basilar membrane
    thin strip of tissue within the cochlea that contains the hair cells which serve as the sensory receptors for the auditory system
    binaural cue
    two-eared cue to localize sound
    binocular cue
    cue that relies on the use of both eyes
    binocular disparity
    slightly different view of the world that each eye receives
    blind spot
    point where we cannot respond to visual information in that portion of the visual field
    bottom-up processing
    system in which perceptions are built from sensory input
    closure
    organizing our perceptions into complete objects rather than as a series of parts
    cochlea
    fluid-filled, snail-shaped structure that contains the sensory receptor cells of the auditory system
    cochlear implant
    electronic device that consists of a microphone, a speech processor, and an electrode array to directly stimulate the auditory nerve to transmit information to the brain
    conductive hearing loss
    failure in the vibration of the eardrum and/or movement of the ossicles
    cone
    specialized photoreceptor that works best in bright light conditions and detects color
    congenital deafness
    deafness from birth
    congenital insensitivity to pain (congenital analgesia)
    genetic disorder that results in the inability to experience pain
    cornea
    transparent covering over the eye
    deafness
    partial or complete inability to hear
    decibel (dB)
    logarithmic unit of sound intensity
    depth perception
    ability to perceive depth
    electromagnetic spectrum
    all the electromagnetic radiation that occurs in our environment
    figure-ground relationship
    segmenting our visual world into figure and ground
    fovea
    small indentation in the retina that contains cones
    frequency
    number of waves that pass a given point in a given time period
    Gestalt psychology
    field of psychology based on the idea that the whole is different from the sum of its parts
    good continuation
    (also, continuity) we are more likely to perceive continuous, smooth flowing lines rather than jagged, broken lines
    hair cell
    auditory receptor cell of the inner ear
    hertz (Hz)
    cycles per second; measure of frequency
    inattentional blindness
    failure to notice something that is completely visible because of a lack of attention
    incus
    middle ear ossicle; also known as the anvil
    inflammatory pain
    signal that some type of tissue damage has occurred
    interaural level difference
    sound coming from one side of the body is more intense at the closest ear because of the attenuation of the sound wave as it passes through the head
    interaural timing difference
    small difference in the time at which a given sound wave arrives at each ear
    iris
    colored portion of the eye
    just noticeable difference
    difference in stimuli required to detect a difference between the stimuli
    kinesthesia
    perception of the body’s movement through space
    lens
    curved, transparent structure that provides additional focus for light entering the eye
    linear perspective
    perceive depth in an image when two parallel lines seem to converge
    malleus
    middle ear ossicle; also known as the hammer
    Meissner’s corpuscle
    touch receptor that responds to pressure and lower frequency vibrations
    Ménière's disease
    results in a degeneration of inner ear structures that can lead to hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, and an increase in pressure within the inner ear
    Merkel’s disk
    touch receptor that responds to light touch
    monaural cue
    one-eared cue to localize sound
    monocular cue
    cue that requires only one eye
    neuropathic pain
    pain from damage to neurons of either the peripheral or central nervous system
    nociception
    sensory signal indicating potential harm and maybe pain
    olfactory bulb
    bulb-like structure at the tip of the frontal lobe, where the olfactory nerves begin
    olfactory receptor
    sensory cell for the olfactory system
    opponent-process theory of color perception
    color is coded in opponent pairs: black-white, yellow-blue, and red-green
    optic chiasm
    X-shaped structure that sits just below the brain’s ventral surface; represents the merging of the optic nerves from the two eyes and the separation of information from the two sides of the visual field to the opposite side of the brain
    optic nerve
    carries visual information from the retina to the brain
    Pacinian corpuscle
    touch receptor that detects transient pressure and higher frequency vibrations
    pattern perception
    ability to discriminate among different figures and shapes
    peak
    (also, crest) highest point of a wave
    perception
    way that sensory information is interpreted and consciously experienced
    perceptual hypothesis
    educated guess used to interpret sensory information
    pheromone
    chemical message sent by another individual
    photoreceptor
    light-detecting cell
    pinna
    visible part of the ear that protrudes from the head
    pitch
    perception of a sound’s frequency
    place theory of pitch perception
    different portions of the basilar membrane are sensitive to sounds of different frequencies
    principle of closure
    organize perceptions into complete objects rather than as a series of parts
    proprioception
    perception of body position
    proximity
    things that are close to one another tend to be grouped together
    pupil
    small opening in the eye through which light passes
    retina
    light-sensitive lining of the eye
    rod
    specialized photoreceptor that works well in low light conditions
    Ruffini corpuscle
    touch receptor that detects stretch
    sensation
    what happens when sensory information is detected by a sensory receptor
    sensorineural hearing loss
    failure to transmit neural signals from the cochlea to the brain
    sensory adaptation
    not perceiving stimuli that remain relatively constant over prolonged periods of time
    signal detection theory
    change in stimulus detection as a function of current mental state
    similarity
    things that are alike tend to be grouped together
    stapes
    middle ear ossicle; also known as the stirrup
    subliminal message
    message presented below the threshold of conscious awareness
    taste bud
    grouping of taste receptor cells with hair-like extensions that protrude into the central pore of the taste bud
    temporal theory of pitch perception
    sound’s frequency is coded by the activity level of a sensory neuron
    thermoception
    temperature perception
    timbre
    sound’s purity
    top-down processing
    interpretation of sensations is influenced by available knowledge, experiences, and thoughts
    transduction
    conversion from sensory stimulus energy to action potential
    trichromatic theory of color perception
    color vision is mediated by the activity across the three groups of cones
    trough
    lowest point of a wave
    tympanic membrane
    eardrum
    umami
    taste for monosodium glutamate
    vertigo
    spinning sensation
    vestibular sense
    contributes to our ability to maintain balance and body posture
    visible spectrum
    portion of the electromagnetic spectrum that we can see
    wavelength
    length of a wave from one peak to the next peak

    This page titled 5.9: Key Terms is shared under a CC BY 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by OpenStax.

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