Perception Basics
What is perception?
This term refers to using prior knowledge to interpret sensory information!
What is the primary visual cortex?
This part of the brain first processes visual information.
What is Gestalt psychology?
This approach emphasizes perceiving whole patterns rather than individual parts.
What is the template approach?
This early theory proposed matching stimuli to stored patterns.
What is bottom-up processing?
This type of processing begins with sensory input.
What is the distal stimulus?
The actual object in the environment is known as this type of stimulus
What is the occipital lobe?
This brain lobe contains the primary visual cortex.
What is the figure?
This is the part of an image that stands out with defined edges.
What is feature-analysis theory?
This theory recognizes objects based on individual features.
What is top-down processing?
This explains why scrambled words can still be read correctly.
What is the proximal stimulus?
The image formed on the retina.
What is iconic memory?
This memory system briefly holds visual information after a stimulus disappears.
What is the ground?
This refers to the background surrounding the figure.
What is recognition-by-components theory?
This theory explains object recognition using simple 3-D components.
What is the word superiority effect?
This effect shows that letters are recognized more accurately when they appear in real words rather than alone.
What is object recognition?
Object recognition allows us to identify stimuli as separate from this surrounding area so recognizing an object as separate from its background.
What are higher cortical areas beyond the primary visual cortex?
This explains why object recognition requires more than the retina alone.
What is an ambiguous figure-ground relationship?
This occurs when the figure and background reverse roles.
What are geons?
These simple 3-D shapes are the building blocks of object recognition.
What is the word-in-a-sentence effect?
This phenomenon demonstrates how sentence context helps identify ambiguous words (e.g., bears vs. beans).
What is reliance on shape and prior knowledge?
This explains why we can identify objects even when sensory input is incomplete.
What is sensory memory?
This allows the brain to preserve visual information long enough to identify objects.
What are illusory contours?
This describes perceiving edges that are not physically present.
What is the stability of geons across perspectives?
This is why recognition-by-components works despite changes in viewpoint.
What are smart mistakes?
These predictable perceptual errors occur when expectations override sensory input.