| A | B |
|---|
| Visible spectrum | "The part or range of wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation that is visible to the human eye." |
| Transduction | "The conversion of sensory stimuli, such as sound waves, into a form that can be processed by the sense receptors." |
| Dark adaptation | "The changes that occur in the eye to permit vision when moving from light to darkness." |
| Light adaptation | "The changes that occur in the eye to permit vision when moving from darkness to light." |
| Blind spot | "An area or direction in which a person's vision is obscured." |
| Optic nerve | "the cranial nerve that carries the visual impulse out the back of the eye and into the brain for further processing." |
| trichromatic (Young-Helmholtz) theory | A theory of color vision in which three types of color receptors produce the three basic colors of red, green, or blue and any color can be created by combining the light waves of these 3 colors. This theory does not explain what happens in the ganglion cells or afterimage. |
| Opponent process theory | according to this theory the ganglion cells process color in opposing pairs of red or green, black or white, and blue or yellow; this theory explains a phenomena known as afterimages., |
| Pitch (frequency) | "The frequency of sound waves, which translates into the highness or lowness of a sound." |
| Loudness (amplitude) | "The height of the sound waves generated by an auditory stimulus" |
| Timbre (complexity) | "The quality of sound that is the result of the mixture of wavelengths in the sound" |
| Pitch (frequency) | "The frequency of sound waves, which translates into the highness or lowness of a sound." |
| Auditory canal | "Either of the passages in the outer ear from the auricle to the tympanic membrane." |
| Eardrum | "Another term for the tympanic membrane." |
| Tympanic | "Related to the eardrum (as in, tympanic membrane)." |
| Malleus (hammer) | "One of the three ossicles, or small bones in the middle ear." |
| Incus (anvil) | "one of the three ossicles, or the bones of the middle ear.)" |
| Stapes (stirrup) | "one of the three ossicles, or bones of the middle ear." |
| Ossicles | "the three small bones of the middle ear." |
| Window | "Membrane that separates the middle and inner ear." |
| Cochlea | "The snail-shaped, fluid-filled organ in the inner ear which contains the basilar membrane." |
| Basilar membrane | "The membrane that runs along the length of the cochlea in the inner ear. The vibration of the basilar membrane is what allows us to perceive differences in pitch, particularly with higher-pitched sounds." |
| Transduction | "The conversion of sensory stimuli, such as sound waves, into a form that can be processed by the sense receptors." |
| Auditory cortex | "The portion of the cerebral cortex that is responsible for processing auditory information. It is located in the temporal lobes of the cerebral cortex." |
| Place theory | "A theory of how the perception of the pitch of a sound depends upon the level or part of the basilar membrane of the cochlea which is set into vibration by the sound waves." |
| Frequency theory | "A theory that sound is hear when pulses travel up the auditory nerve, and carry the information about sound to the brain for processing; and that the rate of this pulse exactly matches the frequency of whatever tone is heard." |
| sensory receptors | sensory organs-eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and skin |
| absolute threshold | for sensation to occur a minimum amount of stimulation is necessary. |
| Absolute threshold for vision | a candle flame seen 30 miles away on a clear, dark night |
| absolute threshold for hearing | the tick of a watch under quiet conditions at 20 feet |
| absolute threshold for taste | 1 teaspoon of sugar in 2 gallons of water |
| absolute threshold for smell | 1 drop of perfume diffused into the entire volume of a 3-room apartment |
| absolute threshold for touch | the wing of a bee falling on your cheek from a distance of 1 centimeter |
| perception | the brain organizes the sensory information to make it meaningful |
| sensory adaptation | when a sensory receptor receives a stimulus that continues at the same intensity over a period of time, the sensory receptor's response is stronger at first and then usually becomes weaker, as the receptor adapts to the stimulus EX. a sound that is repetitive such as the ticking of a clock tends to eventually become background noise. |
| cornea | transparent, curved "window" light enters the eye here |
| photoreceptors | neurons that are sensitive to light |
| rods and cones | 2 types of photoreceptors |
| rods | photoreceptors in the retina that are especially sensitive to dim light but not color |
| visual cortex | part of the brain that interprets visual images |
| hue | or name of a color like "red"; corresponds to a particular wavelength |
| saturation | refers to purity, richness, or intensity of a color |
| brightness | corresponds to the amplitude or height of a light wave |
| afterimage | EX. stare at a green, black, and yellow flag, you will soon tire your neural response to these colors. If you then look at a white sheet of paper, you will see an afterimage composed of the opposing red, white and blue colors |
| colorblindness | a genetic disorder that prevents a person from distinguishing between certain colors. Usually caused by a deficiency in their cones. |
| most common form of color blindess | deficiencies in red-green |
