SENSATION AND PERCEPTION
The process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive and represent stimulus energies from the environment
Sensation
Activating, often unconsciously, associations in our mind, setting us up to perceive, remember, or respond to objects or events in certain ways
Priming
Retinal receptors that detect black, white, and gray and that are sensitive to movement
Rods
Dimension of color that is determined by the wavelength of light
Hue
A depth cue, such as interpretation or linear perspective, available to either eye alone
Monocular Cue
Conversion of one form of energy into another
Transduction
The process of organizing and interpreting sensory information, enabling us to recognize meaningful objects and events
Perception
Retinal receptors that are concentrated near the center of the retina and that function in daylight or in well-lit conditions (detect fine detail and colors)
Cones
Distance from the peak of one light or sound wave to the peak of the next
Wavelength
Input below the absolute threshold for conscious awareness
Subliminal
Analysis that beings with the sensory receptors and works up to the brain's integration of sensory information
Bottom-Up Processing
Stimuli that are too weak to detect 50% of the time
Subliminal Stimuli
The nerve that carries neural impulses from the eye to the brain
Optic Nerve
Amount of energy in a light or sound wave (influences what we perceive as brightness or loudness)
Intensity
Nerve cells in the brain that respond to specific features of the stimulus, such as its shape, angle, or movement
Feature Detectors
Top-Down Processing
Minimum difference a person can detect between any two stimuli half the time (increases with stimulus size)
Difference Threshold
The central focal point in the retina, around which the eye's cones cluster
Fovea
The light-sensitive inner surface of the eye, which contains the receptor rods and cones (and neurons that begin the processing of visual information)
Retina
Varies depending on the strength of the signal and on our experiences, expectations, motivation, and alertness
Predicts how and when we will detect a faint stimulus (signal) amid background noise (noise)
Signal Detection Theory
For an average person to perceive a difference, two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum percentage (not a constant amount)
Weber's Law
The point at which the optic nerve leaves the eye (no receptor cells are located there)
Blind Spot
The process by which the eye's lens changes shape to focus near or far objects on the retina
Accommodation
A branch of psychology that studies the relationships between the physical energy we can detect and its effects on our psychological experiences
Psychophysics