~ Sensation and Perception ~ Basic Principles of Sensation and Perception
• Sensation is the process by which our sense receptors and nervous system receive information from our environment.
• Perception is the process by which our brain organizes and interprets sensory information. ◦ How we understand all our sensation experiences.
~ How does it all work?
• 1. Receive sensory stimulation.
• 2. Transform stimulation into neural impulses. ◦ Transduction
• 3. Deliver the neural information to the brain
• There is a minimum intensity required to provide a sensation. ◦ Absolute threshold ◦ Go to book ◦ A person can taste one gram of salt in 500 liters of water. ‣ One gram of salt is 4 teaspoons ‣
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◦ One drop of perfume, in a three room apartment.
• Anything below absolute threshold is considered subliminal.
• Absolute threshold can vary because our senses are subject to adaption.
• Sensory adaptation ◦ Reduced sensitivity in response to constant stimulation. ◦ It allows us to be in tune with our environment without becoming overloaded.
• There are a few things that can influence our perceptions. ◦ Expectations can influence our perceptions. ‣ Can give us a perceptual set. • Mental predisposition to receive one thing and not another. ◦ Context can be another influence in our perceptions. ◦ Optical illusions ‣ Demonstrate the way in which sensory cues can create perceptions that may or may not correspond with what is in the real world.
~ Vision
• Vision is the most important sense to humans. ◦ 70% of our sense receptors are in our eyes. ‣ We see with our brains not our eyes. ‣ Light has to be turned into neural energy. ‣ Light enters our eyes through the cornea. • Transparent protective coating of the eye. ‣ Light then passes through the pupil. • The small opening in the center of the iris. ‣ Iris is the color of the eye. • It is a
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◦ Rods ‣ Responsible for night vision, and our perception of brightness. ◦ Cones ‣ Responsible for color vision. ‣ Work best in good light. ◦ Fovea ‣ Area of the retina that is in the center of our visual field. ‣ Blindspot is the point where light leaves the retina. • Happening at the optic nerve.
• Like vision, color is also determined by our brains, ◦ Most people have normal color vision- can see all of the colors. ‣ A trichromatic ◦ Some people are dichromats that are color blind. ◦ Monochromats do not see any color.
• There are two main theories that attempt to explain how humans see color. ◦ Trichromatic theory ‣ Hermann Von Hellmholtz • The three primary color of light can be combined to make any color. ◦ Red, green, blue ◦ Opponent process theory ‣ Ewald Hering • People have three pairs of color receptors that work in opposition with each other. ◦ Yellow-blue ◦ Red-green ◦ Black-white
~ Hearing
• Hearing I also known as audition. ◦ Unseen air molecules move over across space, those molecules create pressure against our ear drums that are sound waves. ◦ In order for us to hear they need to move through the three sections of our