Quiz 5: Sensation and Perception

Sensation is to stimulus detection as perception is to sense-making.

The scientific area of psychophysics is concerned with the determination of absolute thresholds and difference thresholds.

The smallest difference between two stimuli that people can perceive 50% of the time is called the absolute threshold.

Research on the impact of subliminal stimuli has shown that they have a stronger effect on behaviour than they do on attitudes.

The decreasing sensitivity of sensory receptors to a constant stimulus is called sensory adaptation.

With ageing, the eyeball typically becomes longer over time, contributing to the development of hyperopia.

There are significantly more rods than cones located in the fovea.

Under conditions of low illumination, cones are most sensitive to light in the green-yellow part of the colour spectrum.

The Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory of colour vision is based on the laws of additive colour mixture and argues that each of the three types of cones is most sensitive to one wavelength of light.

The opponent-process theory of colour combines the dual-process and trichromatic theories of colour.

When various pieces of visual information related to a stimulus object are processed simultaneously it is referred to as parallel processing.

The frequency of a sound corresponds to our perception of the loudness of the sound.

The tiny bones in the middle ear serve to transfer incoming sound waves from the cochlea to the basilar membrane.

Sound localization is made possible by how the nervous system processes the time and intensity differences of sounds arriving at the two ears.

Research has suggested that endorphins play a significant role in the phenomenon of menstrual synchrony.

The four tactile sensations that people are sensitive to are pressure, warmth, pain, and cold.

The two complementary processes involved in attention are focusing on certain stimuli and filtering out other information.

The Gestalt law of proximity states that elements that are near one another are likely to be perceived as part of the same configuration.

Perception has been likened to the process of creating a theory, and perceptual sets are the representations or images that we make use of to test our perceptual theories.

The fact that a door appears to have the same shape whether we look at it from the side or front-on is an example of what is called a perceptual constancy.

The perceptual constancy that allows us to recognize a person from several different angles is called size constancy.

Motion parallax and relative size are examples of binocular depth cues.

Convergence refers to the perception that parallel lines angle toward one another as they recede into the distance.

Research has found that people in all cultures studied so far utilize monocular depth cues to the same extent and in the same ways.

Muir and Mitchell's studies of kittens raised in an environment with restricted visual stimulation showed that the early environment had permanently altered the kittens' visual abilities.

The most accurate order of the stages in sensory processing and perception of information is from A)reception to analysis to translation to recognition B)reception to transduction to matching to interpretation C)reception to reconstruction to analysis to recognition D)reception to comparison to reconstruction to interpretation

Occasionally, people who have been blind since birth will have their vision restored. Afterwards, they are able to notice light and various colours but they often have continual difficulty making sense of this new sensory information. Examples like these best demonstrate the difference between A)sensation and perception B)sensation and transduction C)perception and organizing sensory input D)rods and cones

One night on a family camping trip, Samantha was lying awake in her tent when all of a sudden, she saw a bright flash of light, so bright in fact, that it light up the entire inside of the tent. Then there was a loud rumble that seemed to shake the ground she was sleeping on. The light and the rumble are sensed by Samantha, and she __________ the phenomena as a thunderstorm. A)identifies B)senses C)perceives D)knows

The two kinds of sensory capabilities studied in psychophysics are A)the absolute limits of sensitivity to stimuli and sensitivity to changes in stimuli B)the functions of the rods and cones C)the ability to organize stimuli and the ability to make sense of stimuli D)the ability to produce neurotransmitters and the ability to produce hormones

The lowest intensity at which a stimulus can be detected 50 percent of the time is the A)absolute threshold B)decision criterion C)difference threshold D)subliminal stimulus

A researcher is conducting a study with owls at the zoo to determine how sensitive they are to various sounds and what is the smallest sound that they can detect. The work of this researcher is most consistent with the goals of which scientific area? A)Neuropsychology B)Psychotherapy C)Psychophysics D)Psychoneuroimmunology

Dr. Haller is conducting an experiment related to vision. He places his subjects in a dark room and after they have acclimated, he presents them with visual stimuli of varying strengths and attempts to determine the minimal amount of light that people can detect. Dr. Haller is specifically trying to determine a(n) A)difference threshold B)absolute threshold C)minimum threshold D)maximum threshold

Terry enjoys riding his bike long distances. While riding along busy city streets, Terry must be aware of the vehicles that approach him and then pass him. With experience, Terry is now able to sense an approaching car 90% of the time. This sensitivity means Terry has a(n) ___________ threshold for vehicle detection. A)low B)high C)absolute D)ultimate

The term "decision criterion" refers to A)the difference between an absolute and a difference threshold used to determine if a stimulus is present B)how certain a person must feel that a stimulus is present before saying that it is present C)the particular signal detection criteria a researcher used to determine an absolute threshold D)the particular signal detection criteria a researcher used to determine a difference threshold

How certain a person needs to feel before saying that a particular stimulus is present is referred to as the: A)choice threshold B)transduction C)decision criterion D)difference threshold

Bob is a participant in a signal detection study. On the last clinical trial, Bob said that he saw a stimulus and in fact there was no stimulus present. Bob's answer would be classified as a A)hit B)miss C)false alarm D)correct rejection

Susan is participating in a signal detection study on hearing. Susan just said that she was able to hear a sound and in fact, a sound actually was presented to her. Susan's response would be an example of a A)correct rejection B)stimuli threshold C)miss D)hit

Which of the following was mentioned as an example of a participant characteristic that influences the decision criterion? A)The rewards associated with correct decisions B)The person's tendency to say "yes" C)The costs associated with incorrect decisions D)When the absolute threshold is changed from 50 percent correct identification to 75 percent correct

Which of the following was mentioned as an example of a situational characteristic that influences decision criterion? A)The person's tendency to say "yes" B)The costs associated with uncertainty C)The costs associated with an incorrect decision D)The person's tendency to say "no"

A participant in a signal detection study has the tendency to be bolder in her decisions regarding the presence of a target stimulus. As a result, she has more hits, but also has more false alarms. This example demonstrates how ____________ can affect ___________. A)situational characteristics; participant characteristics B)situational characteristics; decision criterion C)participant characteristics; situational characteristics D)participant characteristics; decision criterion

A researcher is designing a signal detection experiment. She decides to tell a participant that she will lose a dollar for every miss she has, but she will not receive any reward for hits. In this instance, the researcher's manipulation of situational factors, such as the cost for a miss, will likely have an impact on the participant's _________. A)stimulus response B)decision criterion C)characteristics D)stimulus detection

Alexis is participating in a perception experiment where she will be paid $10 for every letter she sees flashed briefly on a computer screen. If Alexis says there is a letter but there is not, she is not penalized - she just does not receive $10 for those responses. Given this situation, Alexis will do well financially to use a ______ decision criterion. A)bold; this will prevent making false alarms B)bold; she'll commit more false alarms but also increase her "hits" C)conservative; she'll commit more false alarms but also increase her "hits" D)conservative; this will prevent making false alarms

When a stimulus is so small that the sensory receptors can detect it, yet there is no conscious awareness of the stimulus, it is called a A)threshold stimulus B)minimum stimulus C)subliminal stimulus D)preconscious stimulus

Regarding the impact of subliminal messages on attitudes and behaviour, research has found that subliminal messages have A)no impact on attitudes and behaviours B)an equal impact on attitudes and behaviours C)a stronger impact on behaviours than on attitudes D)a stronger impact on attitudes than on behaviours

Which of the following is most accurate regarding research on the effectiveness that subliminal stimuli on attitudes and behaviour? A)Subliminal stimuli are powerful and valid methods of changing attitudes and behaviour. B)As far as consumer behaviour is concerned, persuasive stimuli above the absolute threshold are far more likely to be influential than subliminal stimuli. C)Subliminal stimuli have no effect on desired behaviours. D)Subliminal stimuli can influence behaviour but not attitudes.

Jane participates in an experiment where she is asked to look at nine different pictures of the same person. Unbeknownst to her, immediately before each picture is presented an unpleasant picture is briefly flashed so quickly that she is unaware of it. After viewing all nine photos of the person, she is asked some questions related to her attitude towards the person. How is Jane is likely to respond given the research findings from studies on subliminal perception? A)Jane's attitude towards the person is unlikely to be influenced by the presence of the subliminally presented unpleasant pictures. B)Jane's attitude towards the person is unlikely to be influenced by the presence of the subliminally presented unpleasant pictures, but if she were to meet the individual she would unconsciously behave more negatively towards the person. C)Jane would only express a more negative attitude towards the person if she was consciously aware of at least one of the briefly flashed unpleasant pictures. D)Jane is likely to express a more negative attitude towards the person compared to participants in a control group that were not exposed to the unpleasant pictures.

Jennifer plays her music very loud while she studies. Upset by how loud the music is, her mother insists Jennifer turn the music down. After 10 minutes, Jennifer's mom asks her daughter once again to please turn down the volume of the music. Jennifer insists she already turned it down although her mother swears it is as loud as it always was. The fact that Jennifer hears the music as softer and her mother experiences the volume as unchanged indicates that, clearly, Jennifer and her mother have different ______. A)absolute thresholds B)signal detection C)difference thresholds D)tolerance levels

Weber's law states that the difference threshold is directly proportional to the ____________ of the stimulus with which a comparison is being made. A)magnitude B)absolute threshold C)signal detection D)tolerance level

A useful application of Weber fractions is that A)by looking at them, we can tell what the absolute threshold is B)they minimize the problems associated with false alarms C)they minimize the problems associated with misses D)they allow for sensitivity comparisons between the different sensory modalities

A limitation of Weber's law is that A)it doesn't hold true for moderate intensities of stimulation B)it doesn't hold true for extremely low or high intensities of stimulation C)it only applies to absolute thresholds but not to difference thresholds D)it doesn't allow for sensitivity comparisons between different sensory modalities

If the Weber fraction for tonal pitch is 1/333, then to be able to judge a comparison tone as higher in pitch than one at 3330 Hz it must be at least A)3333 Hz B)3340 Hz C)3360 Hz D)3666 Hz

As Jesse closes her eyes, Joe puts two tiny boxes in Jesse's hands. In her right hand, the box is empty, but the box in her left hand contains two small Hershey's kisses. Jesse has no problem picking the box in her left hand as the heavier of the two. However, Joe next takes two equal 2-pound bags of candy and adds the two small kisses to one of the bags. Then Joe puts a bag of candy in each of her hands and Jesse is unable to pick which one has the extra kisses. This inability to perceive the weight in the second situation can be explained by A)sensory adaptation B)Weber's law C)absolute threshold D)different tolerance levels

Sensory adaptation to a stimulus is said to occur when A)sensory neurons decrease their response to a constant stimulus B)the sensory stimulus becomes adaptive to survival C)sensory neurons no longer respond to the stimulus D)the sensory stimulus is no longer important to our well-being or survival

The diminishing sensitivity of a neuron to an unchanging stimulus is called A)bottom-up processing B)shadowing C)sensory adaptation D)neuron adjustment

You have just arrived at the library to study and just as you are starting to read your assignment, a group of students at a nearby table begin a loud conversation. At first, these extra sounds annoy you, but you return to your reading and pretty soon, you are no longer aware of them, even though the students are continuing to talk. This example is most similar to what is known as A)a difference threshold B)transduction C)a perceptual set D)sensory adaptation

Elizabeth is on a business trip. She is staying in a nice hotel in the heart of the big city. Unfortunately, Elizabeth is unable to fall asleep because her room is on a busy street and the traffic noise is constant. Eventually, Elizabeth's sensory neurons will respond to the constant traffic noise and __________. A)increase their activity, thereby diminishing her sensitivity to the noise B)increase their activity and therefore increase Elizabeth's sensory threshold C)decrease their activity, thereby diminishing her sensitivity to the noise D)decrease their activity and therefore increase Elizabeth's sensory threshold

You have just prepared a bath for yourself and as you are getting in, the water feels very hot, almost too hot. However, you continue to ease yourself into the tub and pretty soon, even though it has remained the same temperature, the water no longer feels so hot. The characteristic of sensory neurons that is responsible for this phenomenon is known as A)sensory adaptation B)the refractory period C)sensory threshold D)signal detection

Joey has no trouble seeing when he's reading books and working on his computer, but he has a fair amount of difficulty seeing things in the distance. Joey most likely suffers from A)farsightedness B)colour blindness C)myopia D)hyperopia

Kendra has no trouble seeing the chalk board in class, but she requires reading glasses when reading her textbooks. Kendra most likely suffers from A)nearsightedness B)colour blindness C)myopia D)hyperopia

Someone who suffers from hyperopia A)has good distance vision but has difficulty seeing things up close B)can see things well up close but has poor distance vision C)has colour blindness that affects only one of the colour systems D)has only black and white vision

Myopia is to hyperopia as A)focusing the visual image in front of the retina is to focusing the visual image too near the lens B)focusing the visual image in front of the retina is to focusing the visual image behind the retina C)focusing the visual image behind the retina is to focusing the visual image too far from the lens D)focusing the visual image behind the retina is to focusing the visual image in front of the retina

Ben's grandfather has not been able to read Ben a bedtime story for quite some time now. Grandpa says his eyes are just getting tired very early in the evening but Ben knows that his grandfather is unable to focus on reading because the lens in his eyes have become unable to focus the words directly onto the retina. His grandfather's lens are A)too thin, so the image is focused too far from the lens B)too thin, so the image is focused too near the lens C)too thick, so the image is focused too far from the lens D)too thick, so the image is focused too near the lens

Which of the following statements regarding rods and cones is true? A)There are 10 times as many cones in the eye as there are rods. B)There are twice as many rods in the eye as there are cones. C)There are 10 times as many rods in the eye as there are cones. D)There are 20 times as many rods in the eye as there are cones.

When attempting to locate a constellation in the night sky, Sally notices that she can see the stars better if she doesn't look directly at them. In doing this, the light from the star she wishes to see falls away from the fovea to the part of the retina that has a higher concentration of _________, which are better adapted to seeing at night. A)cones B)ganglion cells C)nerves D)rods

The owl and other nocturnal creatures need exceptional vision due to the low levels of light at night when they are hunting for food. Because their ability to survive depends on this keen sense of sight, their retinas contain _______. A)more cones than rods B)more rods than cones C)cones but no rods D)rods but no cones

Lisa is participating in a psychology experiment. She is seated in a dimly lit room and is told to look straight ahead at the blank screen. Lisa's task is to detect points of light as they appear on the screen, and Lisa will be paid $10 for every point of light she correctly detects. Several minutes into the experiment, Lisa is discouraged by how few light points she is seeing, so she changes her strategy and starts focusing off to the side of the screen rather than in the middle of the screen as she had been. Sure enough, by the end of the experiment, Lisa has enough money to buy the pizza for tonight's study group. Lisa's new strategy worked because A)the image then fell on the part of the retina more densely packed with cones B)the image then fell on the part of the retina more densely packed with rods C)the image then fell on the outside of the retina where the cones are denser D)the image then fell on the fovea where the dim light is more easily detected

Once a light stimulus has been detected by the rods or cones, it is passed first to bipolar cells, and then onto _________, whose axons form the optic nerve. A)optic cells B)ganglion cells C)corneal cells D)hair cells

Which of the following shows the correct route taken by a light stimulus traveling to the brain? A)Stimulus -> bipolar cell -> ganglion cell -> rod/cone -> brain B)Stimulus -> rod/cone -> ganglion cell -> bipolar cell -> brain C)Stimulus -> rod/cone -> bipolar cell -> ganglion cell -> brain D)Stimulus -> bipolar cell -> rod/cone -> ganglion cell -> brain

The process in which the qualities of a sensory stimulus are converted into nerve impulses is called A)sensory modification B)transduction C)conversion D)sensory adaptation

Rods and cones translate light into nerve impulses through the action of specific protein molecules called A)photopigments B)light transducers C)stroboscopic cells D)cornea cells

Except on the red end of the colour spectrum, research has determined that rods have much greater brightness sensitivity than ______. A)cones B)hair cells C)bipolar cells D)optic nerves

The Department of Transportation contacts you and asks what colour they should make their road signs so that they will be most visible at night. Given what you have learned in this class about the sensitivity of rods under conditions of low illumination, one colour that you would NOT want to pick is A)yellow B)blue C)green D)red

Perhaps the most dangerous time of day to drive a car is twilight. The low levels of light at this time of day hinder our ability to see other cars. In fact, from what we know about the capabilities of the rods and cones in low illumination, the safest colour of car to be driving would be A)red B)white C)yellow D)blue

Some towns are changing the colour of their fire engines from red to yellow-green. This is because this colour increases the dim-lighting visibility of the trucks to A)only the rods B)both the rods and cones C)the ganglion cells D)the bipolar cells

The process whereby brightness sensitivity progressively improves under conditions of low illumination is called ________________ adaptation. A)dark B)binocular C)stroboscopic D)colour

At a party last week, Ben played a game similar to a scavenger hunt. Each child was given a list of ten items to retrieve from the kitchen within three minutes. The twist was that the lights in the kitchen were turned off and the shades were drawn leaving the room in complete darkness. One by one, the children would emerge from the room having found only two or three of the items. Ben, who had just learned about dark adaptation in school, easily won the game by A)volunteering to go first and immediately jumping into the kitchen B)keeping his eyes closed while in the kitchen and relying on memory C)wearing a blindfold before and during the game to keep the other senses sharp D)letting his eyes adjust in a dark room until it was his turn to play the game

During the process of dark adaptation, the receptors' sensitivity gradually increases because A)the bipolar cells have been inhibited B)the photopigment molecules are regenerated C)the ganglion cells have been excited D)the fovea's refractory period is over

Though they did not control the initial stages of dark adaptation (e.g., the first 5 minutes), the second or later part of the darkness adaptation curve (e.g., after 5 minutes) is determined specifically by the functioning of the __________. A)bipolar cells B)amacrine cells C)rods D)ganglion cells

The Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory of colour vision assumes that A)there are three types of colour receptors in the retina, each of which is most sensitive to one of three wavelengths of light B)aspects of the dual-process theory and the opponent-process theory are combined to explain colour vision C)there are three types of colour receptors in the retina, each of which responds to two different wavelengths D)colour is determined by feature detectors in the visual cortex, each of which responds to two different wavelengths

The Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory was not supported by a phenomenon which occurs if a stimulus is viewed steadily and is then withdrawn. This phenomenon is known as A)an afterimage B)temporary colour blindness C)a subliminal stimulus D)a dual stimulus

In the visual system, negative colour afterimages demonstrate the operation of A)trichromatic processes B)opponent processes C)subtractive colour processes D)red-green and black-white processes

The presence of afterimages and the ability of some people with red-green colour blindness to perceive the colour yellow were not consistent with which theory of colour? A)Weber's law B)Hering's opponent-process theory C)Hubel-Wiesel feature detector theory D)Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory

While afterimages are not adequately explained by the trichromatic theory of colour, they can be readily explained by ____________ theory. A)red-green colour-blindness B)Hubel-Wiesel feature detector C)opponent-process D)dual-process

According to the opponent-process theory of colour, if you stare steadily at a black stimulus, when you close your eyes the afterimage will be A)black B)white C)red D)green

All of the following are cone sensitivity colour pairs predicted by the opponent-process theory of colour EXCEPT A)red-green B)yellow-blue C)blue-green D)black-white

To account for the colour transduction process, the dual-process theory of colour combines elements of the trichromatic theory and the ______________ theory. A)Young-Helmholtz B)opponent-process C)Hubel-Wiesel feature detector D)colour blindness

More recent research on colour transduction has indicated that the opponent-process theory of colour was inaccurate because opponent processes are actually determined NOT by the cones but by the A)rods B)ganglion cells C)bipolar cells D)occipital lobe

The current modern theory of colour sensation uses the trichromatic theory to explain the behaviour of the cones in colour vision while a modified version of another theory emphasizes the role of ganglion cells is used to explain the presence of afterimages and certain types of colour blindness. The theory that emphasizes the role of ganglion cells is called the ___________ theory. A)additive colour mixture B)colour blindness C)dual-process D)opponent-process

People with normal colour vision are referred to as A)trichromats B)dichromats C)monochromats D)not colour-blind

A person who only has a deficiency in the yellow-blue colour system would be called a A)colour blind B)monochromat C)dichromat D)trichromat

A person with a deficiency in only one of the colour systems, such as red-green, would be considered a dichromat, while someone who is colour-blind in two colour systems is labelled __________. A)colour blind B)monochromat C)trichromat D)not colour blind

Colour blindness is typically assessed by A)a biopsy where the missing photopigments are determined B)a visual examination of the retina by an ophthalmologist C)directly asking people what colours they can't see D)presenting people with pictures that contain coloured dots on them

Cells in the occipital lobe that fire selectively in response to specific visual characteristics are called A)feature detectors B)selective cells C)ganglion cells D)discriminating cells

The process in which visual information, such as colour, distance, and movement, is simultaneously analyzed is referred to as A)transduction B)adaptation C)hierarchical processing D)parallel processing

You are standing on a sidewalk and a bus drives past you with a billboard on the side. With seemingly no effort, your visual system is able to simultaneously process information about the words on the billboard, the colour and speed of the bus, and how far away from you the bus is. This simultaneous analyzing of information related to different visual characteristics is called A)parallel processing B)hierarchical processing C)transduction D)habituation

Which one of the following statements is false? A)Subliminal messages are effective on individuals with prosopagnosia. B)Subliminal messages in movie theatres increased pop and popcorn sales. C)Subliminal cues bias what is perceived at the conscious level. D)Subliminal cues alter attitudes toward a particular person.

A subliminal stimulus is best defined as being A)perceived consciously, just below the absolute threshold B)a marketing term rather than a perceptual phenomenon C)not perceived consciously and well below the absolute threshold D)not perceived consciously but just below the absolute threshold

Research has shown that subliminal presentations of aggressively toned words cause people to judge A)aggressive behaviours as more aggressive B)ambiguous behaviours as more aggressive C)neutral behaviours as more aggressive D)aggressive behaviours as more ambiguous

Individuals with prosopagnosia have difficulty with A)auditory perception B)facial recognition C)visual perception D)pain perception

The two physical characteristics of sound waves are A)amplitude and pitch B)frequency and pitch C)amplitude and frequency D)frequency and hertz

Janet likes to play her stereo very loud on Saturday nights. Her upstairs neighbour keeps complaining that the rock music is causing his apartment walls to shake. This complaint is valid, as the amplitude of the sound waves _______. A)influences the pressure of waves in the air B)distort her neighbour's sense of stability C)are a chemical process and can be physically sensed D)depend on the type of music not the decibel level

The amplitude of a sound wave determines which sensory quality? A)Loudness B)Pitch C)Frequency D)Hertz

A measurement in cycles per second and that is translated into the auditory quality of pitch is called _____________. A)amplitude B)loudness C)decibels D)frequency

Frequency determines the pitch of a sound, while amplitude determines the _____________ of a sound. A)spectrum B)decibels C)loudness D)Hertz

The coiled, snail-like tube in the inner ear that is filled with fluid is called the A)cochlea B)cornea C)organ of Corti D)stirrup

The organ of Corti contains thousands of tiny hair-like cells and rests on top of the _____________, which runs for the length of the cochlea. A)oval window B)eardrum C)basilar membrane D)cochlear duct

When a nerve impulse is sent to the brain from the ear, that impulse originates from A)the eardrum B)the hair cells in the organ of Corti C)pressure at the oval window D)the basilar membrane

The three tiny bones located in the middle ear named the anvil, the hammer, and the stirrup serve what function? A)Amplify the sound waves B)Transform the sound waves into neural impulses C)Bend the hair cells D)Protect the inner ear from foreign objects

The theory that postulates that nerve impulses triggered by a given auditory stimulus should match the pitch of that stimulus is the _____________ theory of pitch perception. A)opponent-process B)trichromatic C)place D)frequency

The place theory of pitch perception states that pitch is determined by A)neurons that fire at the same frequency as the incoming stimulus B)neurons that fire at the same amplitude as the incoming stimulus C)the specific point in the cochlea where the fluid wave peaks D)the way that the eardrum resonates in response to different frequencies

Which of the following statements regarding pitch perception is true? A)Frequency theory holds true for high frequencies, while place theory holds true for low frequencies B)Frequency theory holds true for low frequencies, while place theory holds true for high frequencies C)Frequency theory holds true for frequencies around 30 Hz, while place theory holds true for the remaining frequencies D)Place theory holds true for extreme high and low frequencies, while frequency theory holds true for mid-range frequencies

Information regarding the time differences and intensity differences of arriving sounds is most important in A)transducing the pitch of a sound B)transducing the amplitude of a sound C)sound localization D)pitch perception

The fact that we have two ears on our heads instead of just one is an important structural feature that is most related to our ability to A)perceive the amplitude of sounds B)describe the loudness of sounds C)perceive the pitch of sounds D)locate the source of sounds

Susan suffered from scarlet fever when she was three years old. The primary residual damage is lost hearing in her left ear. Susan has been able to compensate well, asking people to speak louder and always sitting in the front row in her school classrooms. Due to her impaired binaural system, she still has difficulty, however, with ________. A)sound localization B)detecting high amplitude sound waves C)perceiving the pitch of sounds D)stimuli feature detection

The ability of our nervous system to localize the source of various sounds is primarily determined by A)the cup shape of the ear B)the fact that we have an ear on each side of our head C)the way that eardrum is connected to the small bones in the inner ear D)the way that the organ of Corti is connected to the auditory nerve

While cleaning his right ear a little too vigorously, Steve accidentally punctured his eardrum and is unable to hear out of this ear. Steve's injury would be classified as an example of A)conduction deafness B)temporal lobe deafness C)nerve deafness D)localized deafness

Which of the following would be classified as an example of nerve deafness? A)A punctured eardrum B)A damaged hammer bone C)The loss of certain hair cells in the organ of Corti D)A stirrup that is partially disconnected from the oval window

Hearing aids may correct many forms of conduction deafness, but they do little to rectify problems caused by _________ deafness. A)permanent B)congenital C)mechanical D)nerve

The type of hearing loss that cannot be helped by a hearing aid is A)nerve deafness B)noise deafness C)mechanical deafness D)conduction deafness

Amanda's teenage son Brad plays his music very loud. Amanda now asks him to wear earphones but she can still hear the music when he has the earphones on. Brad should be concerned because A)he risks damaging his hammer bone B)he risks damaging the receptors in his inner ear C)the decibel level can prevent the cochlea from receiving sound waves D)he is at risk for conduction deafness

The Sonic guide device, which is used to provide new "eyes" to people with blindness, utilizes the sensory principles of A)light transduction B)sound localization C)monocular depth perception D)binocular depth perception

Cortical implants make use of the fact that phosphenes, which are discrete flashes of light that are perceived by both blind and sighted people, are perceived when the _____________ is electrically stimulated. A)optic nerve B)fovea C)retina D)visual cortex

The cochlear implant device overcomes nerve deafness by A)enabling previously inactive hair cells to send limited electrical signals B)bypassing damaged hair cells and stimulating the auditory nerve directly C)bypassing the auditory nerve and stimulating the auditory centre in the temporal lobe directly D)amplifying sound as it first enters the ear drum

The two senses that are associated and are referred to as the "common chemical sense" are A)kinesthesis and vision B)gustation and olfaction C)vision and hearing D)hearing and olfaction

Two senses whose receptors respond to chemical molecules rather than energy forms are A)olfaction and kinesthesis B)gustation and olfaction C)olfaction and smell D)kinesthesis and gustation

Which of our senses involves not only detection of chemicals, but also tactile and temperature receptors? A)Gustation B)Olfaction C)Kinesthesis D)Audition

Robert really enjoys a good meal. Unfortunately, through the years, Robert has also enjoyed chewing tobacco and now has cancer of the tongue. After surgery in which most of his tongue is removed, Robert worries that he has lost all ability to taste food. This is an unfounded worry on Robert's part as __________. A)his olfactory sense will compensate B)there are taste buds on the roof and back of the mouth C)he will still have the ability to taste sweetness D)his food will seem even more tasteful

The senses of gustation and olfaction are somewhat unique in that their receptors are sensitive to chemical molecules rather than to ________. A)nerve fibres B)sounds C)some form of energy D)light

The tendency of women who live together or are close friends to become more similar in their menstrual cycles is called A)menstrual synchrony B)menstrual harmony C)menstrual adaptation D)menstrual habituation

The chemical signals found in natural body scents that may influence behaviour in subtle ways are called A)endorphins B)opiates C)hormones D)pheromones

Which of the following statements regarding menstrual synchrony is true? A)Menstrual synchrony was higher for cohabitating lesbian women than for heterosexual women. B)Menstrual synchrony does not seem to occur for cohabitating lesbian women. C)Menstrual synchrony is higher in women who are not friends than in women who are friends. D)Menstrual synchrony has been observed cross-culturally in all women.

The tactile sensations that people are sensitive to are A)pressure, pain, warmth, and cold B)sweet, sour, salty, and bitter C)light, rods, and cones D)frequency, pitch, and loudness

The primary receptors for pain and temperature are specifically called A)tactile receptors B)free nerve endings C)association neurons D)gustatory receptors

Tactile information regarding sensations such as pressure, pain, and warmth are sent to and processed in the A)motor cortex B)frontal lobe C)somatosensory cortex D)occipital lobe

The phantom limb phenomenon is caused by A)irritated neurons that trick the brain into interpreting nerve impulses as real sensations B)depressive symptoms experienced by the amputee C)expectancy and placebo effects about what is supposed to happen when a limb is lost D)damage to the motor cortex

Tim placed his hand inside a cooler to grab a bottle of soda. He immediately felt that the bottle of soda was quite cold. Which type of sensory receptor provided this information? A)Hair cells B)Free nerve endings C)Vestibular sacs D)Ganglion cells

As you are reading this question, feature detectors in your visual system are analyzing the various stimulus components and recombining them into your perception of letters and words. This is an example of ___________ processing. A)figure-ground B)top-down C)parallel D)bottom-up

When sensory information is interpreted relative to pre-existing ideas, knowledge, and concepts then this type of processing occurs A)figure-ground B)top-down C)parallel D)bottom-up

Bottom-up processing occurs when individual stimulus units are taken by the nervous system and assembled into wholes. By contrast, when sensory stimuli are interpreted relative to pre-existing knowledge or expectations then __________ processing occurs. A)top-down B)parallel C)figure-ground D)holistic

Bottom-up processing is to top-down processing as A)interpretation of the whole is to existing knowledge B)previous experiences are to higher-order knowledge C)sensory information is to combination into a unified whole D)individual stimulus elements are to expectations

Sammy is a little boy who was born and raised in a large city. When his parents sent him to summer camp at the age of five, Sammy had never been in the country before or seen animals other than on TV. While driving through the countryside on the way to camp, Sammy saw an animal off in the distance. He noticed the four legs, the long tail, and long mane and decided it must be a horse. Sammy was primarily using _______. A)bottom-up processing B)top-down processing C)central processing D)individual processing

Brad is a 5-year old boy who loves horses. In fact, he has been taking riding lessons since he was able to walk. On a drive in the country one day, Brad saw an animal off in the distance and immediately decided it was an Appaloosa, a particular breed of horse. In this case, Brad was using __________. A)bottom-up processing B)top-down processing C)central processing D)individual processing

Alex loves baseball and especially his hometown team. He knows all the statistics for each player and can often accurately predict which pitch a pitcher will throw to a specific batter and which pitches a batter will tend to miss. Alex is using his knowledge of baseball and his past experiences to perceive new information at each game. Alex is relying on ________. A)bottom-up processing B)top-down processing C)analysis processing D)motivational processing

Two complementary processes that take place in attention are A)top-down and bottom-up processing B)perceiving and focusing C)focusing and filtering D)filtering and perceiving

Focusing on specific stimuli and filtering out others are complementary processes that are most central to A)trichromatic theory B)sensation C)signal detection theory D)attention

Which of the following would be an example of the influence of top-down processing? A)Your perceptual system 'filling in' the missing information from the part of the visual field hidden by the blind spot B)Seeing a normal Canadian flag after staring at a flag where the maple leaf and bars are green and the background is black for about a minute C)Not being able to identify the dotted figures in a test of colour-deficiency D)Gradually being more sensitive to light after being in the dark for a period of time

The experimental procedure where a participant is presented with two auditory messages (i.e., one in each ear) and then is asked to repeat one of the messages word for word is called A)top-down processing B)shadowing C)mirroring D)a split-attention study

Research on attention using the shadowing technique has revealed that A)when participants are given two messages and are asked to verbally repeat one, participants are largely unable to repeat either one of the messages B)while attending to a message presented in one ear, people can remember information presented to the other ear equally well C)people can completely attend to two or even three messages at the same time and then be able to repeat each one of the messages D)when participants are given two messages and are asked to verbally repeat one, most participants are able to repeat one message, but at the expense of remembering the other message

Research using the shadowing technique to study attention has led psychologists to conclude that A)people cannot attend to more than one thing at a time, but are able to rapidly shift attention between two stimuli B)people cannot attend to more than one thing at a time and are unable to rapidly shift attention between two stimuli C)with practice, people can perfectly attend to two messages simultaneously D)with practice, people can perfectly attend to three or more messages simultaneously

All of the following are environmental factors that affect attention EXCEPT A)intensity B)interest C)novelty D)contrast

One day you are driving home from school and you're rather hungry. As you drive along, it seems that you notice everything that has anything to do with food, such as restaurants, grocery stores, and billboards. This example best demonstrates the impact of _____________ on attention. A)personal factors B)environmental factors C)parallel processing D)bottom-up processing

A new commercial presents its product in a rather novel and intense way, making use of a lot of movement and special effects. If this ad were to capture your attention, it would best beviewed as an example of how ______________ can affect attention. A)personal motives B)sensory adaptation C)internal factors D)environmental factors

In a study discussed in the text, participants were presented with pictures of groups of people. In some of the pictures, people had the same emotion (either all angry or all happy) while in others there was one discrepant face in the group (either one angry face in a happy group or one happy face in an angry group). When participants were asked to determine whether there was a discrepant face in any of the photos, the researchers found that A)participants responded equally fast when presented with pictures containing a discrepant angry face or a discrepant happy face B)participants responded fastest to the angry face in the group of happy people C)participants responded fastest to the happy face in the group of angry people D)participants typically were unable to locate the discrepant happy face

Gestalt psychologists refer to our tendency to organize incoming stimuli into a central object with some kind of backdrop behind as A)bottom-up processing B)top-down processing C)figure-ground relations D)the law of figures

The Gestalt law that states that when parts of an array of stimuli are perceived as being alike, they will be perceived as belonging together is the Gestalt law of _______________. A)similarity B)proximity C)closure D)continuity

The Gestalt law that asserts that objects near one another are more likely to be perceived as belonging together is the Gestalt law of __________. A)continuity B)concurrence C)inclusion D)proximity

Our tendency to fill in an incomplete figure and perceive it as more complete than it actually is called the law of A)closure B)wholes C)completion D)continuity

The Gestalt law that holds that people link individual elements together in such a way that they forman uninterrupted line or pattern that makes sense is called the Gestalt law of ___________. A)proximity B)similarity C)continuity D)constancy

Sean and Sue were standing outside one night, looking at the stars and enjoying the beautiful evening. Sean notices that the moon is full and comments on the perfect circular shape to Sue. Sue, however, knows the full moon is not for two more nights and, when she looks closely, can see that a small sliver of the circle is missing. Sean continues to swear the moon is full because of the A)law of similarity B)law of closure C)law of proximity D)law of continuity

Abby Jane stands at the side of her newborn sister's crib and views her sister through the bars of the crib. Despite the interruption in her view caused by the slats of the crib, AbbyJane perceives her baby sister as a whole because of the A)law of similarity B)law of closure C)law of proximity D)law of continuity

The recognition of an incoming stimulus is presumably facilitated by the presence of a mental representation or image to which we compare a stimulus. This is called a ________. A)perceptual schema B)perceptual constancy C)sensory schema D)sensory template

While walking down the street, you think you see someone who from a distance looks like one of your best friends. You get ready to greet her but when she gets closer, you realize that she isn't the person you thought she was. In this example, your initial perceptual impression was most similar to A)sensory adaptation B)a theory C)a hypothesis D)bottom-up processing

It has been argued that each of our perceptions is similar to a hypothesis that is tested by comparing incoming stimuli to a pre-existing _____________. A)perceptual schema B)perceptual constancy C)perceptual set D)theory

A perceptual set is best defined as a A)mental representation or image B)readiness to perceive stimuli in a particular way C)perceptual law that governs how stimuli are organized D)tendency to organize incoming stimuli into a central foreground figure and a background

A promptness to perceive stimuli in a specific way is called A)sensory adaptation B)a perceptual set C)convergence D)a perceptual schema

While engaged in a battle during the war in the Persian Gulf, crewmen operating the radar systems on the Vincennes mistakenly interpreted a commercial airliner as a threatening military aircraft and shot it down, tragically killing all the passengers aboard. This incident was discussed as an example of A)stress-induced analgesia B)a perceptual schema C)a perceptual constancy D)a perceptual set

Fear and expectation were discussed as playing a significant causal role in the creation of A)sensory adaptation B)perceptual sets C)perceptual illusions D)convergence

Julie and Jason were on a blind date. Jason was very excited and expected the evening to go well. Julie agreed to go on the date only to help out her friend who was responsible for entertaining her cousin while he was in town. Julie expected that she would have a terrible time. Sure enough, the next day, Julie was telling her friend how boring the evening was; her friend was shocked to hear this as her cousin, Jason, had just spent the morning telling her how wonderful Julie was and how much they had in common. How could the friend rationalize that Julie and Jason had been on the same date last night? A)The couple's perceptions were influenced by their expectations. B)The couple's perceptions were influenced by their past experiences. C)Each person held different investments in the date. D)The attention that each on paid the other influenced their perceptions.

In 1950, psychologist Harold Kelly invited a guest lecturer to his class. Half of his students were led to believe that the guest lecturer was an inviting person, while the other half were told that he was unapproachable. When rating the guest lecturer afterwards, students tended to rate him in a way that was consistent with the expectations they had been given ahead of time. This example was presented to demonstrate how _____________ can affect _______________. A)perceptual schemas; perceptual sets B)perceptual schemas; bottom-up processing C)perceptual sets; social perceptions D)sensory adaptation; sensory habituation

Recognizing familiar stimuli under varying conditions and in different contexts is called ___________. A)perceptual constancies B)Gestalt laws of perceptual organization C)sensory adaptations D)perceptual continuities

Which of the following demonstrates the phenomenon of brightness constancy? A)A door looks the same whether it is viewed head-on or from the side. B)A train viewed at a distance and up close appears to be the same size. C)A house appears to have the same colour even though parts of it are in the shade. D)Objects that look similar will tend to be perceived as belonging together.

The tendency of our visual system to perceive an object as having the same dimensions and measurements, even though the image of the object on our retina may change with distance is called ________________. A)brightness constancy B)size constancy C)perceptual continuity D)perceptual similarity

Kevin is practicing his new saxophone when his Dad walks in the room and praises Kevin for the good job playing the song, "Three Blind Mice." Even though Kevin's version of the tune was unlike any other version he had ever heard, his Dad was able to recognize the familiar tune because of A)perceptual biases B)perceptual sets C)perceptual constancies D)perceptual schemas

The fact that the face of a friend looks the same whether you are viewing it up front or from the side is best accounted for by A)shape constancy B)brightness constancy C)proximity constancy D)perceptual habituation

Becky is very sad when it is time to say goodbye to her grandmother after visiting her. Her mother and father load the luggage into the car while Becky gives grandma one last hug and bids good-bye. As the family car drives away, Becky keeps waving to her grandmother until her grandmother has gotten so small that she can no longer see her. Suddenly, Becky bursts into tears, crying that her grandmother just got smaller and smaller until she disappeared and Becky is afraid she is dead! What Becky does not understand is that perception utilizes principles of A)proximity B)continuity C)size constancy D)shape constancy

The depth perception cues that require the use of only one eye are called A)singular vision cues B)stereo cues C)monocular cues D)binocular cues

When perceiving the distance of an object, Matt tends to rely on the relative size of the object, as well as the texture and clarity of the object. These cues are referred to as his ___________ cues. A)monocular B)binocular C)focal D)visual

All of the following are examples of monocular cues for depth perception EXCEPT A)light and shadow B)interposition C)linear perspective D)convergence

In attempting to decide which of two objects is farther away, you notice that one object has a finer grain than the other. You decide that the one with the finer grain is further away. What monocular depth cue are you making use of? A)Linear perspective B)Clarity C)Texture D)Relative size

If you know that two objects have the exact same physical dimensions and you notice that one of them is smaller, you perceive the smaller one as being farther away and you are using the monocular depth cue of _________ to make this decision. A)height in the horizontal plane B)relative size C)texture D)clarity

Lisa realizes that her mother is further away from her than the car, as the car cuts off the view of her mother. Which depth cue is Lisa using? A)Motion parallax B)Texture C)Interposition D)Relative size

As Jocelyn drives down the highway, in front of her she sees that the two sides of the highway appear to angle toward each other, giving a perception of depth. Which depth cue is being used? A)Relative size B)Convergence C)Linear perspective D)Interposition

The depth perception cues that require the use of both eyes are called _______________. A)monocular cues B)stationary cues C)binocular cues D)motion cues

As your eyes focus on an object that is close to you, muscles turn your eyes inward, producing feedback. This feedback produces the binocular depth cue called A)convergence B)perceptual constancy C)binocular disparity D)visual accommodation

The fact that each eye receives a slightly different visual stimulus is significant in the creation of the binocular depth cue called A)convergence B)differentiation C)binocular disparity D)visual inconstancies

Monocular depth cues are to binocular depth cues as A)relative size and disparity are to convergence and parallax B)texture and height in the horizontal plane are to interposition and disparity C)relative size and linear perspective are to convergence and clarity D)linear perspective and texture are to disparity and convergence

Stroboscopic movement refers to A)the movement of a visual image to an area outside of the fovea B)instances where a light appears to move between two adjacent flashing lights C)illusory movements that are due to binocular depth cues D)illusory movements that are due to perceptual constancies

The motion pictures and illusory movement of lights around a theatre marquee are best considered examples of A)perceptual constancies B)sensory adaptation C)stroboscopic movement D)perceptual sets

Interpreting visual illusions is evidence of the work that our perceptual processes are performing under normal conditions. Visual illusions can be viewed as examples of A)sensory habituation B)incorrect hypotheses C)binocular disparity D)incorrect theories

Ordinarily, we perceive the world accurately; however, visual illusions can be attributed to _______________. A)misfiring of neurotransmitters B)sensory adaptations C)binocular disparities D)perceptual constancies

Visual illusions are of particular interest to researchers studying perception because they A)provide valuable information on sensory adaptation B)provide information about key photopigments in the retina C)provide important information about how perceptual processes work under normal conditions D)represent instances in which the opponent-process theory of vision fails

Research on the impact of cultural factors on perception has found that A)cultural factors can influence visual illusions but not auditory illusions B)cultural factors can influence picture interpretations but not perceptual constancies or susceptibility to visual illusions C)cultural factors can influence perceptual constancies and picture interpretations but not susceptibility to visual illusions D)cultural factors can influence perceptual constancies, picture interpretations, and susceptibility to visual illusions

When shown a picture of a hunting scene, African people perceived the hunter as attempting to kill a baby elephant, while Westerners tended to perceive that the hunter was after another animal and thought that the baby elephant was actually an adult elephant off in the distance. These results were presented as an example of the lack of consistency across cultures of __________ depth cues. A)binocular B)convergent C)monocular D)linear

One study found that when presented with a picture, North American and European participants perceived an object as being a window behind a woman, while East Africans interpreted the same object as a box or basket on top of the woman's head. This study was presented as an example of A)the effect of cultural experiences on picture perception B)the effect of biology on sensation C)the effect of culture on the Gestalt law of continuity D)a cultural conflict between shape constancy and size constancy

The Muller-Lyer illusion occurs when a line appears longer when the V-shaped lines at its ends radiate outward. Cross cultural research on this illusion has found that A)the effect of the illusion is essentially the same in all cultures studied so far B)people who live in Western cultures with square shapes and many corners are less affected by the illusion C)people who live in non-Western cultures are less affected by the illusion D)people who live in non-Western cultures are more affected by the illusion

Developmental periods when certain kinds of experiences must occur if perceptual abilities are to develop are called A)essential periods B)critical periods C)necessary periods D)required periods

In order for perceptual abilities to develop, critical periods are times when ___________________. A)specific experiences must occur B)specific sensory receptors must grow C)specific motor receptors must grow D)specific neurotransmitters must be present

Kittens raised in environments where they were only exposed to vertical stimuli (i.e., vertical stripes) had visual receptor cells that would only fire in response to vertical stimuli. Stimuli with other orientations evoked no response. This research was discussed as a demonstration of the importance of A)vertical adaptation B)monocular depth cues C)critical periods D)visual illusions

Muir and Mitchell's visual pattern discrimination tests on kittens raised in an environment devoid of certain visual stimuli demonstrated that A)kittens raised in the deprived environment were able to discriminate test patterns as well as kittens raised in a normal environment B)kittens raised in the deprived environment had a specific pattern of feature detectors in their brains C)the "critical period" in the kittens' perceptual development was not as critical as previous researchers had thought it to be D)while the sensation abilities of the kittens raised in the deprived environment were affected, their perceptual abilities were not

When vision is restored to adults who have been blind for their entire lives, they typically never fully adjust to the visual world. Examples like these demonstrate the ________. A)importance of environmental influences on development B)lack of flexibility of the nervous system C)flexibility of the nervous system D)importance of critical periods

The jnd value for weights is approximately 1/50. If you can lift a weight of 500 grams, a comparison weight must weigh at least _________ gram(s) more in order for you to be able to judge it as heavier. A)1/50  500 B)50  500 C)1 D)1/50  50 E)50  500

You are blindfolded and asked to taste a cup of coffee to determine if it contains cream. Eight times out of 10 you correctly identified the presence of cream, but twice you said that cream was present when there was none there. According to signal detection theory, your correct responses are called ___________ and your incorrect responses are called __________. A)hits; misses B)hits; correct rejections C)correct rejections; hits D)hits; false alarms E)positives; false negatives

If your eye were too long front to back, such that a focused image falls in front of your retina and you see a blurry image, you are said to have _____________. A)alcohol myopia B)hyperopia C)myopia D)glaucoma E)retinal dysplasia

The Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory states that we can see colour because the human eye has ____ different types of light detecting cells that _________________. A)3; are tuned to blue/yellow, red/green, and black white light B)3; are tuned to red, yellow, and blue light C)3; are tuned to red, green, and blue light D)4; are tuned to red, yellow, blue, and white light E)none of these answers explain the Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory

Today's best understanding of how colour vision works is based on which theory? A)Young-Helmholtz Trichromatic Theory B)Dual-Process Theory C)Hering'sOpponent-Process Theory D)Additive Colour Theory E)Subtractive Colour Theory

Alexis wasborn with a rare hereditary condition such that in her retina she has no rod photoreceptors, but only cone photoreceptors. Given the anatomy of her retina, which of the following is true regarding her vision? A)She has no colour vision. B)She has difficulties seeing in bright light. C)She is colour-blind for the red-green colour pair. D)She has poor visual acuity in the central fovea area. E)She has very poor vision in low light conditions.

If you have normal colour vision, you are referred to as a ___________, whereas if you are red/green or yellow/blue colour-blind, you are referred to as a ___________. A)monochromat; dichromat B)dichromat; monochromat C)monochromat; trichromat D)dichromat; trichromat E)trichromat; dichromat

The human auditory system is capable of localizing sound direction using differences of _____________ between the two ears. A)intensity B)timing C)frequency D)both intensity and timing are correct E)pitch

If you had deafness due to damage to your cochlea, you would have which kind of deafness? A)Nerve deafness B)Conductor's deafness C)Conduction deafness D)Cochlear deafness E)Ossicular deafness

_______________ lets us know where our body segments are in relation to one another (e.g., is my elbow straight or bent?), whereas _______________ tells us how our whole body is oriented in relation to the world (e.g., which way is down or which way am I rotating?). A)Kinesthesis; vestibular sense B)Vestibular sense; kinesthesis C)Vestibular; proprioception D)Proprioception; kinesthesis E)Vestibular; equilibrium

Consider the following image: We are likely to interpret this as three sets of two lines each rather than six separate lines due to the Gestalt law of ____________. A)proximity B)closure C)continuity D)figure-ground E)context

According to the Gestalt principle of ___________, we have a tendency to perceive objects that are near one another as belonging together. A)the law of similarity B)the law of proximity C)the law of closure D)the law of continuity E)figure-ground

In the process of trying to recognize a stimulus, we compare the current stimuli against mental representations known as A)sensory icons B)perceptual Vincennes C)perceptual ideas D)perceptual schemas E)sensory comparative

Let's say that you run a deprivation experiment in which kittens were raised from birth in an environment containing only horizontal stripes. Based on the research by Blakemore and Cooper (1970), how will this affect cells in their visual cortex? A)No effect at all-the cells will still respond to lines at all orientations. B)The cells will now only respond to vertical lines. C)The cells will respond mostly to vertical lines and partially to horizontal lines. D)The cells will respond to only horizontal lines. E)The cells will respond mostly to horizontal lines, but still quite a lot to vertical lines.

Which of the following is NOT considered a monocular cue for depth? A)Linear perspective B)Interposition C)Clarity D)Motion parallax E)Convergence

Hold your hand a few feet away from your face. Now alternate between looking at your hand with only your right eye and then only with your left eye. You will notice that each eye has a slightly different view of your hand and the scene behind it. Special detection cells in your brain tuned to ______________ allow your brain to extract depth information from the visual scene, thus informing where your hand is in relation to the stuff behind it. A)convergence B)binocular disparity C)stroboscopic movement D)the phi phenomenon E)motion parallax

You are going on a blind date because a friend convinced you that this person was perfect for you. Your friend tells you that your date is good looking, funny and a really good listener. From what you have read in the text, your perception of your date will probably be influenced by A)your perceptual sets B)the law of continuity C)the law of attraction D)Gestalt principles E)perceptual constancies

If you are extremely sensitive to stimuli in a particular sensory system, we would expect A)a lower than normal absolute threshold for that system B)a higher than normal absolute threshold for that system C)a higher than normal difference threshold for that system D)a lower than normal decision criterion for that system E)a modality system differential

The Weber Fraction for loudness is 1/20. So let's say I get you to listen to some music played at 100 decibels. In order for you to tell that a second piece of music was louder, I would need to play it at A)120 decibels. B)200 decibels. C)80 decibels. D)105 decibels. E)cannot tell from this information.

Which of the following cells is NOT found in the retina? A)rods B)cones C)hair cells D)horizontal cells E)ganglion cells

Consider the following image: _________. We are likely to perceive this as a single line with a break in it. Why? A)We cannot perceive two separate lines at once. B)Bottom-up processing generates a link between the lines. C)The Gestalt Law of closure would suggest a single line. D)The spatial frequency is too high. E)Binocular disparity generates two connect images.

If your lens in the eye did not thicken enough, such that a focused image falls behind your retina and you see a blurry image, you are said to have _____________. A)alcohol myopia B)hyperopia C)myopia D)glaucoma E)retinal dysplasia

Imagine a species that was born with only 2 cones in the retina sensitive to colour-one in the red range and one in the blue range. We would predict that colour vision in this species would be most similar to a A)monochromat B)dichromat C)tricolour-blind person D)trichromat E)single process system

At the level of the visual receptors in the retina, which theory seems to explain colour vision the best? A)Trichromatic theory B)Opponent-process theory C)Top-down processing theory D)Independent processing theory E)Retinal dysplasia theory

The frequency theory of pitch makes good sense, but it has a major problem. What is this problem? A)Cells in the organ of Corti do not vibrate. B)Frequencies do not penetrate to the cochlea. C)The basilar membrane can only respond to sounds above 50 db. D)Sensory neurons in the inner ear cannot fire faster than 1000 cycles per second. E)Pitch is not really related to frequency.

In observing fluid travelling on the cochlea, you note that there is a wave peak close to the oval window. According to von Bekesy and place theory, this should be interpreted as A)a low frequency sound B)a high frequency sound C)a low amplitude sound D)a high amplitude sound E)no sound at all-the peak needs to be at the other end of the cochlea

Jonas has just broken his arm. His best friend tells him to focus on good positive feelings rather than the pain. This seems to work. Which of the following may help to explain this effect? A)Trichromatic theory B)Phantomlimb effect C)Gate control theory D)Kinesthetic feedback E)The release of pheromones

If you were born without cochlear nerves, we still might be able to restore some of your hearing. Which of the following procedures would we have to examine? A)A hearing aid B)A cochlear implant C)A tactile tongue stimulator D)An implant directly to the cochlear nucleus E)A basilar membrane transplant

If you were an artist who painted pictures on a canvas, you would probably consider using all of these to create the illusion of depth EXCEPT A)linear perspective B)relative size C)light and shadow D)convergence E)interposition

Which of the following is FALSE with respect to the Muller-Lyer illusion? A)The lines are actually the same length B)The line with the V-shaped lines radiating outward appears longer C)The line with the V-shaped lines radiating inward appears shorter D)People in all cultures experience the illusion E)The illusion is related to monocular depth cues

Let's say that you can just distinguish between 100 grams of Swiss cheese (the initial test stimulus) and 105 grams. According to Weber's law, how much cheese would you need to notice a difference if we changed the test stimulus to 300 grams? A)315 grams B)305 grams C)285 grams D)330 grams E)Both "315 grams" and "305 grams" are correct.

Let's say that you are in a signal detection experiment. If I wanted you to have the lowest possible detection threshold, I should A)increase the rewards for hits and the costs for misses B)increase the rewards for correct rejections and increase the costs for hits C)tell you to only focus on false alarms D)increase costs for both hits and misses E)offer no costs or rewards for any answer

Let's say that you can just distinguish between 100 grams of Swiss cheese (the initial test stimulus) and 105 grams. According to Weber's law, how much cheese would you need to notice a difference if we changed the test stimulus to 300 grams? A)305 grams B)330 grams C)285 grams D)105 grams E)295 grams

You are recording the electrical activity in a feature detector. Where are you recording from? A)Retinal ganglion cell B)Visual cortex C)Auditory cortex D)Retinal bipolar cell E)Primary motor cortex

If you were recording the electrical activity from cells in the visual cortex, you would most likely be monitoring A)ganglion cells B)horizontal cells C)bipolar cells D)feature detectors E)dual process cells

In order for your visual system to process all the parameters of a visual image it is necessary to use A)extra ganglion cells B)an opponent process approach C)place processing D)sequential analysis E)parallel processing

Recognition of a visual target requires that the neural information ultimately reaches the A)visual cortex B)ganglion cells C)retina D)visual association area E)frontal lobe

In order to use the depth cue of convergence, it is necessary to have A)two eyes B)a figure-ground reversal C)vanishing lines D)very bright light E)an image falling on the fovea

Bloodhounds are very good at tracking a person by smell. The Weber fractions (for smell) for five types of dogs are: Targus: 1/20 Bloomer: 1/10 Fugi: 1/15 Cambridge:½ Otis: 1/8 Which of these dogs has the best sense of smell? A)Bloomer B)Fugi C)Cambridge D)Targus E)Otis

Bloodhounds are very good at tracking a person by smell. The Weber fractions (for smell) for five types of dogs are: Targus: 1/20 Bloomer: 1/10 Fugi: 1/15 Cambridge: ½ Otis: 1/8 Which of these dogs has the worst sense of smell? A)Bloomer B)Fugi C)Otis D)Targus E)Cambridge

If you wanted to achieve maximum visual acuity for a given target, you should A)decrease the amount of light available B)stare directly at the target C)look at the target with your peripheral vision D)change the colour of the target to red E)bleach the retina

A very faint light source is best detected by using ______, but we maximize our ability to see fine detail by using ______. A)the cones; the rods B)the fovea; opponent-processing cells C)the rods; cones in the fovea D)dark adaptation; ganglion cells E)unipolar cells; bipolar cells

All of these are found in the retina EXCEPT A)rods B)cones C)ganglion cells D)feature detectors E)bipolar cells

Kathy is a monochromat. You would expect her to be able to see A)black and white plus red and green B)black and white plus yellow and blue C)black and white only D)red, green, yellow, and blue but not black and white E)all possible colour combinations

Kathy is a dichromat. What do we know for sure about her colour vision? A)She can only see black and white. B)She can see black and white plus some colour. C)Her ability to see black and white is missing. D)She can detect both red-green and blue-yellow combinations. E)She has no cones at all in her retina.

Juan can see black and white plus some colour. Juan is A)a dichromat B)a monochromat C)a trichromat D)lacking dual process cells E)blue-yellow colour blind

A researcher has just found support for the trichromatic theory of colour vision in a new species of cats. What might you expect to find in this cat's visual system? A)Many rods in the fovea. B)A large number of feature detectors in the visual cortex. C)Pupils that are vertical. D)A large number of cones in the periphery. E)Three types of cones in the retina.

A researcher wants to find support for the opponent process theory of colour vision by recording the activity in visual cells. Which of the following cells should she be recording from? A)Cones B)Rods C)Bipolar D)Ganglion E)Horizontal

A researcher wants to find support for the trichromatic theory of colour vision by recording the activity in visual cells. Which of the following cells should he be recording from? A)Cones B)Rods C)Bipolar D)Ganglion E)Horizontal

The trichromatic theory of colour vision seems reasonable, but it has trouble explaining _____, which be best explained by ______. A)the perception of the colour red; place theory B)colour afterimages; opponent process theory C)dark adaptation; rods and cones D)monochromats; parallel processing E)feature detection; the existence of blue cones

Dr. Richards is trying to explain why we are able to see colour afterimages. She should probably explain this by referring to A)opponent process theory B)trichromatic theory C)parallel processing D)some of the Gestalt laws E)feature detection

Promise Technology has just introduced a new hearing aid. Which of the following disorders should most likely be helped by this invention? A)Nerve deafness B)Frequency deafness C)Lack of pure pitch D)Conduction deafness E)Auditory attenuation

You've noticed that a friend of yours has a hearing problem. Her doctor said that she might be able to improve her hearing by using a hearing aid. Most likely, your friend's problem involves A)the olfactory bulb B)the hair cells C)the basilar membrane D)nerve deafness E)conduction deafness

You are observing sound waves being produced on the cochlea and notice that an abrupt wave peaks close to the oval window. According to von Bekesy and the place theory of auditory perception, you interpret this event as a A)low frequency sound B)high frequency sound C)high intensity sound D)low intensity sound E)sound around 100 cycles per second

Let's say that you have a painful ache in your hand. If you rub your hand, the pain will be diminished and may disappear for a while. Most likely, this reflects the operation of A)olfactory synchrony B)place theory C)somatic localization D)opponent-process theory E)gate control theory

Sarah fell and banged her arm on the sidewalk. She rubbed the area that was hurt and to her surprise, found the pain actually decreased. How can we explain this? A)Gate control theory B)Vestibular response C)Activation of pheromones D)Opponent process theory E)The pressure relief effect

Joie de Vivre is a new perfume from Chanel that claims to be a sexual attractant based on naturally occurring human chemicals. If this is accurate, then the perfume most likely contains A)neurotransmitters B)endorphins C)pheromones D)photopigments E)attentional cues

Let's say that you are viewing a picture of the Mona Lisa. According to the research discussed in the text, what should happen as you shift your gaze from her hands to her mouth? A)She will appear to smile because the mouth area is detected by the fovea. B)She will appear to smile because the mouth area is detected by the peripheral retina. C)She will stop smiling because the mouth area is detected by the fovea. D)She will stop smiling because the mouth area is detected by the peripheral retina. E)The smile will be inverted because of an opponent process.

Consider the following image: +. Using ______ processing, we are likely to see this as a horizontal and vertical line intersecting. But using _____ processing, we are likely to perceive this as the mathematical symbol for addition. A)bottom-up; top-down B)top-down; bottom-up C)figure-ground; Gestalt law D)automatic; controlled E)convergence; divergence

Professor Jordan is conduction an experiment using a technique called shadowing. Most likely, Professor Jordan is studying A)figure-ground relations B)bottom-up processing C)top-down processing D)selective attention E)visual illusions

When we watch a motion picture, we perceive it as continuous even though it is really being shown at 24 frames per second. This is because of the Gestalt principle of A)similarity of features B)proximity C)closure D)stroboscopic movement E)continuity

A new robot has been designed that uses the cue of convergence to see in depth. What do we know about the robot's visual system? A)It makes use of stroboscopic movement. B)It makes use of linear perspective. C)Constancy scaling has been turned off. D)Enhancements are due to feature detection. E)It has at least two camera "eyes."

You and a friend are looking at clouds. Your friend thinks that one cloud looks exactly like a dog. You look at it and agree. Your perception is due to _______, which works by _______. A)contrast effects; depth perception B)a figure-ground reversal; opponent processing C)similarity comparison; bottom-up processing D)bottom-up processing; feature analysis E)a perceptual schema; top-down processing

The fact that we perceive a door to be a rectangle at any angle and that we perceive an airplane as relatively the same size no matter how far away it is, reflects the operation of A)perceptual sets B)the Gestalt laws C)bottom up processing D)perceptual; constancies E)attentiional mechanisms

An Iranian airliner was shoot down by the Iranian military in January of 2020. Rather than an deliberate act, this may have been the result of A)the Gestalt laws B)a perceptual set C)bottom up processing D)attentional mechanisms E)monocular cues

Let's say that you run a deprivation experiment in which kittens were raised from birth in an environment containing only stripes at a 45 degree angle. Based on the research by Blakemore and Cooper (1970), how will this affect cells in their visual cortex? A)No effect at all-the cells will respond to lines at all angles. B)The cells will only respond to lines at a 45 degree angle. C)The cells will only respond to vertical lines. D)The cells will only respond to horizontal lines. E)The cells will respond to both horizontal and vertical lines.

If you had myopia, the visual image would fall in front of the A)ganglion cells B)rods C)cones D)bipolar cells E)hair cells

If the visual image falls too far in front of the retina A)it would be processed by the ganglion cells alone B)you have myopia C)you have hyperopia D)you will see nothing at all E)the lens did not thicken enough

if the visual image falls too far behind the retina A)it would be processed by ganglion cells alone B)you have myopia C)you have hyperopia D)you will see nothing at all E)you are nearsighted

Trend Technology has just introduced a new piece of subliminal software designed to give you a motivational boost. According to the text, if this product works at all, it is probably because A)of pure luck B)it actually influences your unconscious C)it biases what we perceive on a conscious level D)of overstated claims by the manufacturer E)a demand characteristic

If you were to look at a very faint light source, it would be best to use the ______ so that the light falls on the _________. A)peripheral retina; cones B)fovea; rods C)fovea; cones D)peripheral retina; rods E)blind spot; optic nerve

If you wanted to see as much detail as possible, it would be best to use the ______ so that the light falls on the _________. A)peripheral retina; cones B)fovea; rods C)fovea; cones D)peripheral retina; rods E)blind spot; optic nerve

Rods are superior to cones in low light situations because A)many rods are connected to a single bipolar cell, but cones tend to have one-to-one connections B)the photopigment in rods is far more sensitive than in cones C)rods are concentrated in the fovea which has superior acuity D)the horizontal cells inhibit the rods less than the cones E)rods are bigger than cones

Cones are superior to rods for capturing fine detail because A)the photo pigment in cones breaks down faster B)many cones are connected to a single bipolar cell in the fovea, but rods have one-to-one connections C)many rods are connected to a single bipolar cell, but cones tend to have one-to-one connections in the fovea D)the horizontal cells inhibit the rods more than the cones E)there are many more cones in the retina than rods

As you are driving through the city, you are talking to a friend on the phone. You suddenly realize that you haven't seen anything in your visual field for that past minute. Most likely, this is caused by A)low light conditions B)inattentional blindness C)a perceptual set D)shadowing E)figure-ground distortion

Many people think that they can multitask, but research on _______ suggests that we can only fully attend to one thing at a time. A)subliminal stimuli B)figure-ground illusions C)shadowing D)feature detectors E)perceptual schemas

Of the following, which one is NOT found in the human auditory system? A)Cochlea B)Basilar membrane C)Organ of Corti D)Olfactory bulb E)Hammer

Jason was born with two bones fused together: the hammer and the anvil. Jason would suffer from A)conduction deafness B)nerve deafness C)myopia D)von Beckey's syndrome E)localization deafness

The Weber fraction for a human's ability to taste salt is 1/3. So, if you decide that there's not enough salt on your French fries, how much would you have to add to notice a difference? A)1/3 of a gram B)about 300% C)about 3% D)about 3 grams E)about 33%

The Weber fraction for a hawk's ability to see differences in brightness is about 1/100. About how much would the light have to change in order for a hawk to notice a brightness difference? A)10 percent B)100 percent C)1 percent D)1/100 of a percent E)100 lumens

Juan was playing some music on his stereo at 50 decibles (db). Julie asked him to turn it up, so he did and asked her when she noticed it was louder. She reported that it was louder at 60 db. According to Weber's Law, where would Julie have noticed a difference in loudness if Juan had been playing the stereo at 100 db? A)110 db B)115 db C)120 db D)125 db E)Anything above 100 db

If your eyeball was too short (front to back), such that a focused image falls behind your retina and you see a blurry image, you are said to have _____________. A)myopia B)retinal dysplasia C)hyperopia D)glaucoma E)duteriopia

If your eyeball was too long (front to back), such that a focused image falls in front of your retina and you see a blurry image, you are said to have _____________. A)myopia B)Retinal dysplasia C)hyperopia D)glaucoma E)duteriopia

Let's say that you are testing an individual's ability to discriminate tones. When the test stimulus is set at 200 Hz, the person reports a JND at 210 Hz. If I change the test frequency, the value of a JND becomes 50 Hz. What is the new test frequency? A)1000 Hz B)400 Hz C)250 Hz D)270 Hz E)100 Hz

Look at the following word: CAT. As you examine the middle letter, you notice that it contains two straight, almost vertical lines, angled at the top and a shorter horizontal line joining them. You conclude that this is the first letter of the alphabet "A." What perceptual process have you used to arrive at this decision? A)Lateral inhibition B)Top-down processing C)Perceptual set D)Bottom-up processing E)Subliminal processing

You are examining the sensory systems of a new species and notice a lot of free nerve endings. Most likely, you are looking at the A)visual system B)auditory system C)tactile system D)taste system E)sense of smell

You are examining the sensory systems of a new species and notice a lot of hair cells. You suspect that you are looking at the A)visual system B)auditory system C)tactile system D)Proprioceptive system E)sense of smell

Which of the following is not involved in the perception of pain? A)Endorphins B)Glial cells C)Cytokines D)The immune system E)Semicircular canals

Which of the following parts of the ear are not really involved in hearing? A)Cochlea B)Ossicles C)Basilar membrane D)Semicircular canals E)Tympanic membrane

Describe the five stages that constitute the process of sensory processing and perception of information.

How do psychologists differentiate between sensation and perception?

What two kinds of sensory capabilities are studied by psychophysics researchers?

What is the absolute threshold, and how is it technically defined and measured?

Why do signal detection theorists view stimulus detection as a decision? What are the four possible outcomes of such a decision?

What kinds of personal and situational factors influence signal detection decision criteria?

According to research results, what effects do subliminal stimuli have on consumer behaviour, attitudes, and self-improvement outcomes?

What is the technical definition of a difference threshold? How does Weber's law help us compare jnd sensitivities in the various senses?

What accounts for sensory adaptation? Of what survival value is adaptation?

How does the lens affect visual acuity and how does its dysfunction cause the visual problems of myopia and hyperopia?

How are the rods and cones distributed in the retina, and how do they contribute to brightness perception, colour vision, and visual acuity?

By what route do rods and cones send neural messages to the brain?

What is transduction and how does this process occur in the photoreceptors of the eye?

How is brightness sensitivity in rods and cones affected by the colour spectrum?

What is the physiological basis for dark adaptation? What are the two components of the dark adaptation curve?

Describe the Young-Helmholtz trichromatic theory of colour vision. What kinds of evidence support this theory, and what two phenomena challenge it?

Describe the opponent-process theory. What evidence supports it?

How does the dual-process theory of colour vision combine the trichromatic and opponent-process theories?

What are the two major types of colour blindness? How are they tested?

What kinds of feature detectors exist in the visual system? What is meant by parallel processing of sensory information?

What are the two physical characteristics of sound waves, and which auditory qualities do these characteristics produce?

Describe how the middle and inner ear structures are involved in the auditory transduction process.

Describe the frequency and place theories of pitch perception. In what sense are both theories correct?

How does the structure of the auditory system permit humans to localize sounds? What sensory information is used by the brain in localization?

What are Canadian statistics on hearing loss and recommendations on hearing protection?

What are the two varieties of deafness, and how do they differ in their physical bases and in possible treatment?

Describe the sensory principles that are applied to create sensory prosthetics for visually and hearing-impaired people.

Describe the stimuli and the receptors involved in gustation and olfaction. Why do researchers sometimes refer to a "common chemical sense"?

What is menstrual synchrony, and what evidence is there that pheromones are involved?

What four tactile sensations are humans sensitive to? How are these sensations localized and how are phantom limb sensations produced?

Differentiate between bottom-up and top-down processing of sensory information.

What two complementary processes occur in attention? What are their adaptive benefits?