| A | B |
|---|
| psychophysics | study of the relationship between sensory experience and stimuli |
| difference threshold | smallest change in a physical stimulus that can be detected between 2 stimuli |
| absolute threshold | weakest amount of a stimulus that a person can detect |
| stimulus | any aspect of, or change in the environment that an organism responds to |
| sensation | occurs when a stimulus activates a receptor |
| perception | the organization of sensory information into meaningful experiences |
| JND (just noticeable difference) | the smallest increase or decrease in the intensity of a stimulus that a person can detect |
| Weber's law | the larger or stronger a stimulus, the larger the change required for an observer to notice a change |
| lens | flexible, transparent structure in the eye that changes its shape to focus light on the retina |
| auditory nerve | carries impulses from the inner ear to the brain, resulting in the sensation of sound |
| olfactory nerve | carries smell impulses from the nose to the brain |
| retina | innermost coating of the back of the eye, containing the light-sensitive receptor cells |
| binocular fusion | process of combining the images received from the two eyes into a single image |
| subliminal messages | brief auditory or visual messages that are presented below the absolute threshold |
| motion parallax | apparent movement of stationary objects relative to one another that occurs when the observer changes position |
| illusions | perceptions that misrepresent physical stimuli |
| Gestalt | experience that comes from organizing bits and pieces of information into meaningful wholes |
| constancy | tendency to perceive certain objects in the same way regardless of changing angle, distance, or lighting |
| convergence | the process by which oyour eyes turn inward to look at nearby objects |
| telepathy | the type of ESP that involves reading someone else's mind or transferring one's thoughts |
| kinesthesis | sense of movement and body position |
| ESP | gaining information by means other than ordinary senses |
| signal-detection theory | studies people's tendencies to make correct judgements in detecting the presence of stimuli |
| illusions | perceptions that misrepresent physical stimuli |
| optic nerve | carries impulses from the retina to the brain |
| vestibular system | regulates the body's sense of balance |
