Question 1

__________is the view that the perception of sensory stimuli involves the interaction of physical, biological, and psychological factors.

Accepted Answer

Signal-detection theory takes into account the physical, biological, and psychological factors that influence the perception of sensory stimuli. It proposes that decision-making processes, such as expectations and attention, interact with sensory information to determine perception. Opponent-process theory and Trichromatic theory focus more on the physiological mechanisms of sensation and perception, while Frequency theory is specific to auditory perception.

Question 2

Exposure to very loud sounds can lead to damage of the auditory nerve or hair cells, resulting in__________.

Accepted Answer

Exposure to very loud sounds can lead to damage of the auditory nerve or hair cells, resulting in sensorineural deafness. Conductive deafness is caused by problems in the outer or middle ear, such as a blockage in the ear canal or damage to the eardrum. Tympanosclerosis is a condition where there is a buildup of calcium on the eardrum, which can lead to hearing loss. Perichondritis is an infection of the cartilage of the outer ear, which can cause pain and swelling.

Question 3

The cones are most densely packed in a small spot at the center of the retina called the__________.

Accepted Answer

The fovea is a small pit in the center of the macula of the retina where the cones are most densely packed, allowing for sharp vision and color perception. The cornea, iris, and sclera are all outer parts of the eye and do not contain cones.

Question 4

_____ is the tendency to perceive an object as being the same hue even though lighting conditions change its appearance.

Accepted Answer

Color consistency refers to the ability of the human eye and brain to perceive a consistent color for an object under various lighting conditions. This is the reason why we can still recognize a red apple as red even under different lighting conditions like sunlight, fluorescent light, or candlelight.

Question 5

Lisa is a fabric specialist. Recently, she was invited to an exhibition of Persian silks. Being an expert on fabrics, Lisa continuously moved her hand along the surfaces of different pieces of fabric to get the feel of them. This action is referred to as _____.

Accepted Answer

Active touching refers to the deliberate physical exploration of an object or surface in order to gather sensory information. This is what Lisa is doing when she moves her hand along the fabrics at the exhibition. Subliminal stimulation involves receiving sensory input below the level of conscious awareness. Light adaptation refers to the process by which the eyes adjust to changes in light levels, while sensory adaptation refers to the process by which the senses become less sensitive to a constant level of stimulation over time.

Question 6

Which of the following theories proposed that there are three types of color receptors, but they are not sensitive only to red, green, and blue?

Accepted Answer

The opponent-process theory suggests that color perception is controlled by the activity of two opponent systems: a blue-yellow mechanism and a red-green mechanism. This theory complements the trichromatic theory, which posits that the eye detects colors through the response rates of three types of cones, but does not suggest these cones are sensitive only to red, green, and blue. The opponent-process theory explains phenomena the trichromatic theory cannot, such as the existence of afterimages and the fact that certain color combinations (like red-green) are never seen together in the same location.

Question 7

In _____, people tend to be more responsive to some pitches than others.

Accepted Answer

Sensorineural deafness affects the inner ear or the pathway from the inner ear to the brain, leading to difficulties in hearing certain frequencies more than others, making individuals more responsive to some pitches.

Question 8

The pain message is relayed from the spinal cord to the__________and then projected to the cerebral cortex, making us aware of the location and intensity of the damage.

Accepted Answer

The thalamus is responsible for relaying sensory information, including pain messages, to the cerebral cortex for interpretation.

Question 9

While looking at a painting in an art gallery, many of Jinan's brain cells fire in response to lines presented at various angles, while others fire in response to specific colors. These brain cells are termed _____.

Accepted Answer

Feature detectors are specialized neurons in the brain that respond to specific features of visual stimuli such as lines at certain angles or specific colors. Pitch detectors are responsible for perceiving sounds, sensory adaptors help to adjust to changes in sensory input, and olfactory nerves are responsible for detecting odors.

Question 10

Which of the following statements is true of hue?

Accepted Answer

Hue refers to the specific wavelength of visible light that a color is perceived as. It is not related to color blindness treatment or located above the visible spectrum. Saturation refers to the intensity or purity of a color and is not the same as hue.

Question 11

Stimuli suggestive of depth that involve simultaneous perception by both eyes are known as__________.

Accepted Answer

Binocular cues require the use of both eyes to perceive depth, such as convergence (the angle at which the eyes turn inwards to focus on a nearby object) and binocular disparity (the slight difference in the position of an object as seen by the left and right eyes). Monocular cues (A) require only one eye and include things like perspective and overlapping objects. Positive and negative cues (B and D) are not terms commonly used in psychology to describe depth perception.

Question 12

Jeff observed a quick succession of cars moving together on the road. His first thought was that they were all a part of a convoy of some sort. Which law of perceptual organization best explains Jeff's assumption?

Accepted Answer

The law of common fate states that objects that move together are perceived as a group or unit. Therefore, Jeff assuming that the cars are a part of a convoy is best explained by this law.

Question 13

Within the eye, visual acuity is greatest at the__________.

Accepted Answer

The fovea is the area of the retina that contains the highest concentration of cone cells, which are responsible for high visual acuity and colored vision.

Question 14

_____ is the fraction of the intensity by which a source of physical energy must be increased or decreased so that a difference in intensity will be perceived.

Accepted Answer

Weber's constant, also known as Weber-Fechner law, is the fraction of the intensity by which a source of physical energy must be increased or decreased so that a difference in intensity will be perceived.

Question 15

The colors across from one another on the color wheel are labeled__________.

Accepted Answer

Colors across from one another on the color wheel are called complementary colors. These colors provide the highest contrast and vibrancy when used together, making them a popular choice for color schemes in art and design. Supplementary colors are not a recognized term in color theory. Auxiliary colors refer to colors that are added to a color scheme to enhance or support the dominant colors. Secondary colors are created by mixing two primary colors together.

Question 16

The__________adjusts or accommodates to an image by changing its thickness.

Accepted Answer

The lens is responsible for adjusting or accommodating to an image by changing its thickness. The cornea provides the majority of the eye's focusing power and the pupil and iris control the amount of light that enters the eye.

Question 17

The frequency theory notes that for us to perceive lower pitches, _____.

Accepted Answer

The frequency theory suggests that the rate of neural impulses traveling up the auditory nerve matches the frequency of a tone, which allows us to perceive lower pitches. Therefore, we need to match the frequency of the sound waves with our neural impulses.

Question 18

In the context of sound, which of the following is true?

Accepted Answer

The pitch of a sound roughly corresponds to its frequency, which is measured in cycles per second or Hertz (Hz). The greater the number of cycles per second, the higher the pitch of the sound.

Question 19

Which of the following monocular cues is based on the perception that closer objects appear to have rougher surfaces?

Accepted Answer

Texture gradient refers to the fact that closer objects appear to have more detail and texture, while farther objects have less detail and appear smoother. This is because as objects get farther away, the details on their surfaces become compressed and harder to distinguish. Therefore, rougher surfaces are associated with closer objects, making texture gradient a monocular cue of depth perception.

Question 20

We learn to perceive objects that appear to move with us as being at greater distances due to the phenomenon of__________.

Accepted Answer

Motion parallax refers to the way distant objects appear to move slower in relation to nearby objects as our viewpoint changes. This helps us perceive relative distance and depth in a scene, and objects that appear to move with us (such as the view from a car window) will be perceived as being farther away than objects that appear to move past us quickly.

Quiz 3: Sensation and Perception