Module Outline |
Module 6: Sensation |
Module 6 discusses the senses of sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch. It
begins by explaining the differences between sensation and perception and the
limits, or thresholds, of sensation. How humans use their senses to adapt is
detailed next. |
The sense of sight has profound effects on our behavior. This module lists the
structures and functions of the parts of the eye. The theories on color vision
are mentioned. |
Like vision, hearing and the parts of the ear are explained. Sound
localization—how we know where a sound is coming from—is also discussed. |
Lastly, the other senses—taste, smell, and touch—are covered, as well as the
kinesthetic and vestibular senses. |
Introduction |
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Sensation |
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Bottom-up processing |
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Perception |
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Top-down processing |
Basic Principles: Thresholds, Signal Detection, Sensory Adaptation, and Selective Attention |
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Threshold |
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Absolute threshold |
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Difference threshold |
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Just noticeable difference |
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Signal detection theory |
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Sensory adaptation |
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Selective attention |
The Visual System |
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Electromagnetic energy |
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Wavelength |
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Hue |
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Amplitude |
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Cornea |
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Iris |
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Pupil |
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Lens |
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Nearsightedness |
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Farsightedness |
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Retina |
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Receptor cells |
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Rods |
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Cones |
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Fovea |
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Bipolar cells |
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Ganglion cells |
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Optic nerve |
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Blind spot |
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Trichromatic (three color) theory |
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Subtractive process |
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Additive process |
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Color deficient (color blindness) |
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Opponent process theory |
Hearing |
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Pitch |
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Hertz (Hz) |
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Loudness |
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Decibels (dB) |
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Auditory canal |
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Eardrum |
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Tympanic membrane |
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Ossicles |
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Hammer |
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Anvil |
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Stirrup |
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Cochlea |
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Oval window |
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Hair cells |
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Auditory nerve |
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Sound localization |
Other Senses |
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Taste |
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Sweet, sour, bitter, salty |
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Umami |
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Supertasters |
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Nontasters |
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Smell |
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Olfactory cells |
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Touch |
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Pain, warmth, cold, pressure |
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Gate control theory of pain |
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Kinesthetic sense |
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Vestibular sense |