Deck 3: Sensation and Perception

Question 1

Glen is an accomplished guitarist. He can play the guitar with his eyes closed. When he does this, he is quite aware of which frets his fingers are on. He does this with the aid of his vestibular sense. 

Answer 1

False

Question 2

Frequency and amplitude are dependent on each other. 

Answer 2

False

Question 3

Psychophysicist Ernst Weber discovered that the threshold for perceiving differences in the intensity of light is about 10 percent of their intensity. 

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Top-down processing involves the organization of the parts of a pattern to recognize, or form an image of, the pattern they compose. 

Question 5

The organ of Corti is a membrane that lies coiled within the cochlea. 

Question 6

Researchers historically agreed on four primary taste qualities: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. 

Question 7

The Hering-Helmholtz illusion is a visual illusion. 

Question 8

Genetic components do not contribute to an individual's sensitivity to basic tastes. 

Question 9

Odors trigger firing of receptor neurons in the olfactory membrane high in each nostril. 

Question 10

Sensory receptors embedded in the skin fire when the surface of the skin is touched. 

Question 11

The perceptual constancies trick the eye through visual illusions. 

Question 12

The rods and cones in the eye respond to light with chemical changes that create neural impulses that are picked up by the unipolar cells. 

Question 13

The iris is the muscle in the eye that controls the amount of light that passes through the cornea. 

Question 14

Humans can detect the odor of 1 one-millionth of a milligram of vanilla in a liter of air. 

Question 15

When the eyeball is too short, the images of nearby objects are focused in front of the retina, causing farsightedness. 

Question 16

The term parapsychological phenomena refers to the perception of objects or events through sensory organs. 

Question 17

Convergence causes feelings of tension in the eye muscles and provides a binocular cue for depth. 

Question 18

According to the law of similarity, we perceive different objects as belonging together. 

Question 19

Active touching means continuously moving your hand along the surface of an object so that you continue to receive sensory input from the object. 

Question 20

Cochlear implants contain microphones that sense sounds and electronic equipment that transmits sounds past damaged hair cells to stimulate the auditory nerve. 

Question 21

Which of the following statements is true of the signal-detection theory?  

A)The signal received from an unidentified source cannot be perceived without having prior knowledge about the source. 
B)A stimulus appears to be in constant flux due to the inability of human senses to perceive the full spectrum of any sensory input. 
C)The relationship between a physical stimulus and a sensory response is fully mechanical. 
D)The intensity of a signal is one factor that determines whether people will perceive sensory stimuli or a difference between signals.

Question 22

Which of the following is true of feature detectors?  

A)They are external stimuli that have a high pitch. 
B)They refer to neurons that fire in response to specific features of sensory stimuli. 
C)They refer to visible light that triggers visual sensations. 
D)They refer to hormones that are triggered in response to visual stimuli.

Question 23

__________is the type of sensory adaptation in which we become less sensitive to constant stimuli. 

A)Negative adaptation  
B)Light adaptation  
C)Dark adaptation  
D)Positive adaptation

Question 24

According to the law of__________, there is a tendency to perceive a series of points or lines as having unity. 

A)continuity  
B)proximity  
C)common fate  
D)similarity

Question 25

_____ is a monocular cue for depth based on the coming together of parallel lines as they recede into the distance. 

A)Motion parallax  
B)Texture gradient  
C)Perspective  
D)Constancy

Question 26

__________is the sense of equilibrium that informs us about our bodies' positions relative to gravity. 

A)Extrasensory perception  
B)The vestibular sense  
C)The olfactory sense  
D)Kinesthesis

Question 27

In the context of color blindness, which of the following statements is true?  

A)Dichromats are sensitive to black-white and either red-green or blue-yellow colors. 
B)Monochromats have normal color vision. 
C)Dichromats are sensitive to red-green, blue-yellow, and light-dark colors. 
D)Trichromats are partially colorblind.

Question 28

Which of the following statements is true of depth perception?  

A)The clearness of an object cannot suggest its distance. 
B)Shadows and highlights give information about an object's two-dimensional shape. 
C)Closer objects are perceived as having smoother textures than distant objects. 
D)Distant objects stimulate smaller areas on the retina than nearby ones.

Question 29

Which of the following statements is true of the absolute threshold?  

A)It is determined by exposing individuals to progressively stronger stimuli until the minimum stimuli the person can detect is found. 
B)It is used to represent the minimum difference in the magnitude of two stimuli required to tell them apart. 
C)It is used to measure the intensity of sensory input by using the sensory adaptation process. 
D)It is determined by measuring the rate at which a person becomes less sensitive to stimuli of low magnitude and more sensitive to stimuli that remain the same.

Question 30

__________is best described as the stimulation of sensory receptors and the transmission of sensory information to the central nervous system. 

A)Desensitization  
B)Reinforcement  
C)Sensation  
D)Sensory cessation

Question 31

The process of adjusting to conditions of lower lighting by increasing the sensitivity of rods and cones is known as _____. 

A)negative adaptation  
B)dark adaptation  
C)desensitization  
D)saturation

Question 32

The loudness of a sound is expressed in _____. 

A)hertz (Hz)  
B)decibels (dB)  
C)watts (W)  
D)volt (V)

Question 33

The__________conducts sensory input to the brain, where it is relayed to the visual area of the occipital lobe. 

A)optic nerve  
B)cornea  
C)lens  
D)sclera

Question 34

Which of the following best describes psychokinesis?  

A)It refers to the perception of objects that do not stimulate the known sensory organs. 
B)It refers to the direct transmission of thoughts or ideas from one person to another. 
C)It refers to the ability to mentally manipulate or move objects. 
D)It refers to the transfer of information through an irregular or unusual process.

Question 35

__________refers to the tendency to perceive a broken figure as being complete or whole. 

A)The principle of closure  
B)The law of common fate  
C)The principle of perceptual organization  
D)The law of continuity

Question 36

Which of the following is true of Weber's constant?  

A)Weber's constant for pitch is 1/444. 
B)Weber discovered that the threshold for perceiving differences in the intensity of light is about 8 percent. 
C)Weber's constant is not valid for noticing differences in lifted weight. 
D)Weber's constant for light is inaccurate when extremely bright or dull lights are compared.

Question 37

In the context of pain, which of the following statements is true?  

A)Pain is usually sharpest where nerve endings are densely packed. 
B)Headaches originate through nerve endings present in the brain. 
C)Pain does not reverberate throughout the nervous system. 
D)Modern research shows that acupuncture works by balancing the body's flow of energy.

Question 38

_____ is the tendency to perceive an object as being just as luminous even though lighting conditions change its intensity. 

A)Shape constancy  
B)Brightness constancy  
C)Color constancy  
D)Size constancy

Question 39

On a bright, sunny day, Manny leaves a dimly-lit movie theater and goes out into the street. The _____ in his eyes adjust to the sudden increase in light. 

A)ganglion cells  
B)fovea  
C)pupils  
D)optic nerves

Question 40

Which of the following is the function of the iris?  

A)Regulating the amount of light that enters the eye  
B)Conducting sensory input to the brain  
C)Transmitting perception of color to the brain  
D)Distinguishing between warm and cool colors

Question 41

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

A)Opponent-process theory  
B)Trichromatic theory  
C)Signal-detection theory  
D)Frequency theory

Question 42

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

A)conductive deafness  
B)sensorineural deafness  
C)tympanosclerosis  
D)perichondritis

Question 43

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

A)cornea  
B)iris  
C)sclera  
D)fovea

Question 44

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

A)Size consistency  
B)Color consistency  
C)Shape consistency  
D)Brightness consistency

Question 45

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

A)subliminal stimulation  
B)active touching  
C)light adaptation  
D)sensory adaptation

Question 46

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

A)The opponent-process theory  
B)The signal-detection theory  
C)The trichromatic theory  
D)The place theory

Question 47

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

A)conductive deafness  
B)sensorineural deafness  
C)selective deafness  
D)mixed deafness

Question 48

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

A)cerebrum  
B)medulla  
C)ganglions  
D)thalamus

Question 49

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

A)pitch detectors  
B)feature detectors  
C)sensory adaptors  
D)olfactory nerves

Question 50

Which of the following statements is true of hue?  

A)It can be used to treat color blindness. 
B)It is present above the visible spectrum of light. 
C)It is invariably the same as the saturation level of color. 
D)It is determined by the wavelength of visible light.

Question 51

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

A)monocular cues  
B)positive cues  
C)binocular cues  
D)negative cues

Question 52

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

A)The law of unity  
B)The law of similarity  
C)The law of continuity  
D)The law of common fate

Question 53

Within the eye, visual acuity is greatest at the__________. 

A)iris  
B)lens  
C)fovea  
D)blind spot

Question 54

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

A)Subliminal stimulation  
B)The absolute threshold  
C)Weber's constant  
D)Newton's constant

Question 55

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

A)complementary colors  
B)supplementary colors  
C)auxiliary colors  
D)secondary colors

Question 56

The__________adjusts or accommodates to an image by changing its thickness. 

A)cornea  
B)pupil  
C)iris  
D)lens

Question 57

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

A)we need to match the frequency of the sound waves with our neural impulses  
B)the frequency of our neural impulses should exceed that of the sound waves  
C)we need to match the wavelength of the sound waves with our neural impulses  
D)the frequency of our neural impulses should be lower than that of the sound waves

Question 58

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

A)The pitch of a sound roughly corresponds to the height, or amplitude, of sound waves. 
B)The greater the number of cycles per second (Hz), the higher the pitch of the sound. 
C)The frequency and amplitude of a sound are dependent on each other. 
D)The pitch of a sound is expressed in decibels (dB).

Question 59

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

A)Clearness  
B)Proximity  
C)Motion parallax  
D)Texture gradient

Question 60

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

A)motion parallax  
B)reverse motion  
C)size constancy  
D)shape constancy

Question 61

In the context of perceptual organization, which of the following statements is true?  

A)According to the law of continuity, elements seen moving together are perceived as belonging together. 
B)According to the law of proximity, we perceive similar objects as belonging together. 
C)Bottom-up processing is the use of contextual information or knowledge of a pattern to organize parts of the pattern at a given point in time. 
D)When figure-ground relationships are ambiguous, or capable of being interpreted in various ways, our perceptions tend to be unstable and shift back and forth.

Question 62

In which of the following conditions do receptors for warmth fire?  

A)When skin temperature increases  
B)When body temperature decreases  
C)When nociceptors in the skin are depressed  
D)When phantom limb pain is aroused

Question 63

Visual stimuli can be flashed too briefly, below our absolute threshold for conscious perception, to enable us to process them. This is an example of__________. 

A)subliminal stimulation  
B)the difference threshold  
C)light adaptation  
D)dark adaptation

Question 64

The perception of objects or events through means other than the recognized sensory organs is termed__________. 

A)subliminal perception  
B)psychokinesis  
C)kinesthesis  
D)extrasensory perception

Question 65

_____ refers to the perception of objects that do not stimulate the known sensory organs. 

A)The vestibular sense  
B)Clairvoyance  
C)The kinesthetic sense  
D)Psychokinesis

Question 66

Pain results when neurons called__________in the skin are stimulated. 

A)cerebellum stellate cells  
B)ganglions  
C)nociceptors  
D)unipolar neurons

Question 67

In the context of the eye, changes in thickness of the lens permit:  

A)a clear image of an object to be projected onto the retina. 
B)the pupil to automatically adjust to the amount of light present. 
C)the fovea to stimulate the blind spot to negate visual stimulation. 
D)an object to intensify the wavelength of its hue for better perception.

Question 68

Which of the following fractions is known as Weber's constant for light?  

A)1/60th  
B)1/53rd  
C)1/333rd  
D)1/10th

Question 69

Which of the following is a function of the middle ear?  

A)To stimulate the basilar membrane  
B)To decrease the pressure of the air that is expelled from the body  
C)To funnel sound waves to the eardrum  
D)To increase the pressure of the air entering the ear

Question 70

_____ is the process by which we organize or make sense of the sensory impressions caused by the light that strikes our eyes. 

A)Visual perception  
B)Subliminal stimulation  
C)Subliminal perception  
D)Auditory stimulation

Question 71

Which of the following senses is dominant in human beings?  

A)Hearing  
B)Smell  
C)Vision  
D)Touch

Question 72

Amy accidentally hit her elbow against the edge of a wall. Amy's mother rushed to her and rubbed the affected elbow. Amy's pain subsided. Which theory would best explain this incident?  

A)The signal-detection theory  
B)The place theory  
C)The gate theory  
D)The opponent-process theory

Question 73

__________usually stems from damage to the structures of the inner ear, most often the loss of hair cells. People with this condition tend to be more sensitive to some pitches than others. 

A)Sensorineural deafness  
B)Selective hearing  
C)Conductive deafness  
D)Discriminatory perception

Question 74

According to the law of__________, there is a perceptual tendency to group together objects that are near one another. 

A)similarity  
B)proximity  
C)common fate  
D)continuity

Question 75

In the context of auditory perception, which of the following statements is true?  

A)The frequency theory holds that the pitch of a sound is sensed according to the place along the basilar membrane that vibrates in response to it. 
B)The place theory notes that for us to perceive lower pitches, we need to match the frequency of the sound waves with our neural impulses. 
C)Neurons that carry auditory signals cannot fire more than 100 times per second due to the uneven lengths of the axons. 
D)The frequency theory appears to account only for pitch perception between 20 and a few hundred cycles per second.

Question 76

The__________states that in response to sound waves of frequencies between a few hundred and 4,000 cycles per second, groups of neurons take turns firing to transmit sensory information about pitches. 

A)frequency theory  
B)closure principle  
C)volley principle  
D)place theory

Question 77

The term__________is derived from the ancient Greek words for "motion" and "perception". 

A)kinesthesis  
B)psychokinesis  
C)clairvoyance  
D)telepathy

Question 78

Nearsightedness can result when the eyeball is elongated such that the images of:  

A)nearby objects are focused behind the retina. 
B)distant objects are focused in front of the retina. 
C)nearby objects are magnified to twice their original size. 
D)distant objects are shrunk to less than their original size.

Question 79

The _____ is a thin membrane inside the ear that vibrates in response to sound waves. 

A)auditory nerve  
B)eardrum  
C)cochlea  
D)organ of Corti

Question 80

Amy and George were practicing a song for a cultural program. Their music teacher insisted that Amy sing the verses in a high pitch. Which of the following could be a reason for the music teacher's decision to select Amy for the high pitch sounds and not George?  

A)A woman's vocal cords are usually shorter and vibrate at a greater frequency. 
B)The pitch of a man's voice is usually too high to resonate. 
C)A man's vocal cords are shorter and therefore vibrate at a lower frequency. 
D)The pitch of women's voices is usually lower than that of men's voices.