Deck 3: Sensation and Perception

Question 1

When we describe someone's eyes as blue,technically we are referring to his or her blue ___________.

A)pupils
B)irises
C)corneas
D)scleras

Answer 1

irises

Question 2

Suppose Maria is painting while the sun is setting; once she notices that the room is getting darker,she decides to call it quits for the day.This example illustrates the role of __________.

A)threshold
B)a just noticeable difference
C)absolute threshold
D)bias

Answer 2

a just noticeable difference

Question 3

The difference threshold is defined as the degree of change in a stimulus level that is required in order for a person to detect a change ________ of the time.

A)25 percent
B)75 percent
C)50 percent
D)100 percent

Answer 3

50 percent

Question 4

Which is the best description of the vestibular senses?

A)They have to do with touch,pressure,temperature,and pain.
B)They have to do with the location of body parts in relation to the ground and to each other.
C)They have to do with movement and body position.
D)They have to do with your location as compared to the position of the sun.

Question 5

Which is the newest of the five basic tastes to be discovered?

A)bitter
B)sour
C)sweet
D)umami,or brothy

Question 6

The bone that is attached to the eardrum is called the _________; the bone that is connected to the oval window is called the ________.

A)anvil (incus); stirrup (stapes)
B)hammer (malleus); anvil (incus)
C)stirrup (stapes); hammer (malleus)
D)hammer (malleus); stirrup (stapes)

Question 7

The difference threshold is defined as the degree of change in a stimulus level that is required in order for a person to detect a change ________ of the time.

A)25 percent
B)75 percent
C)50 percent
D)100 percent

Question 8

The lowest level of stimulation that a person can consciously detect a stimulus 50 percent of the time it is presented is called the __________.

A)absolute threshold
B)range threshold
C)difference threshold
D)noticeable threshold

Question 9

The principle that the just noticeable difference of any given sense is a constant fraction or proportion of the stimulus being judged is called ___________.

A)the opponent-process principle
B)the doctrine of specific nerve energies
C)the phi phenomenon
D)Weber's law

Question 10

Cells that are triggered by light,vibrations,sounds,touch,or chemical substances are called ___________.

A)ganglion cells
B)bipolar cells
C)ossicles
D)sensory receptors

Question 11

The lowest stimulus intensity required for detection is the ________,and the smallest noticeable difference between a standard stimulus intensity and another stimulus value is the ________.

A)absolute threshold; difference threshold
B)base value; just noticeable difference (jnd)
C)response criterion; sensory constant
D)difference threshold; absolute threshold

Question 12

__________ occur when certain receptors located in the various sensory organs are activated,allowing various forms of outside stimuli to become neural signals in the brain.

A)Perceptions
B)Emotions
C)Cognitions
D)Sensations

Question 13

Ernest Weber provided a formulation that is used to determine the ____________.

A)largest detectable stimulus
B)smallest detectable stimulus
C)largest detectable difference between two stimuli
D)smallest detectable difference between two stimuli

Question 14

The term just noticeable difference is synonymous with __________.

A)separation threshold
B)response threshold
C)difference threshold
D)absolute threshold

Question 15

Activation of the receptors by stimuli is called ___________.

A)perception
B)sensation
C)adaptation
D)habituation

Question 16

The smallest amount of a particular stimulus required to produce any sensation at all in the person to whom the stimulus is presented is the __________.

A)absolute threshold
B)minimum threshold
C)difference threshold
D)noticeable threshold

Question 17

The idea that the eye contains separate receptors for red,green,and blue is known as the ________ theory.

A)opponent-process
B)additive color mixing
C)trichromatic
D)reductive color mixing

Question 18

Suppose you look at a given figure and decide that,depending on how you look at it,it can be perceived as either an old woman or a young lady.Such a figure would be said to be ___________.

A)mixed
B)confused
C)reversible
D)inconsistent

Question 19

When Bill looks at his lamp alternately with his left eye and his right eye,the image seems to jump from one position to another.This phenomenon illustrates ______.

A)the Gestalt principle of similarity
B)binocular disparity
C)interposition
D)the Gestalt principle of proximity

Question 20

The process by which unchanging information from the senses of taste,touch,smell,and vision is "ignored" by the sensory receptor cells themselves is called _____________.

A)transformation
B)sensory adaptation
C)transmutation
D)transduction

Question 21

Laverne goes to a movie theater to watch her favorite movie.About halfway through the movie she becomes aware of an overpowering hunger for popcorn.What she does not realize is that throughout the first part of the movie,a message saying "Eat Popcorn!" was repeatedly flashed on the screen at a speed too fast for her to be consciously aware of it.If her desire for popcorn is due to that message,she is responding to ____________.

A)selective perception
B)subliminal perception
C)cognitive restructuring
D)stroboscopic perception

Question 22

We can see a candle flame at 30 miles on a clear,dark night,and we can hear the tick of a watch 20 feet away in a quiet room.These two facts are examples of ____________.

A)just noticeable difference
B)difference threshold
C)adaptation
D)absolute thresholds

Question 23

Light is said to have a dual nature,meaning it can be thought of in two different ways.These two ways are _____________.

A)particles and photons
B)waves and frequencies
C)particles and waves
D)dark light,daylight

Question 24

Which pairing of name and property of light is correct?

A)Helmholtz; particle nature (photon)
B)Holstein; wave nature
C)Newton; wave nature
D)Einstein; wave packet (photon)

Question 25

One problem with Vicary's study of subliminal perception is that _______________.

A)it demonstrated the validity of the concept of subliminal perception
B)it did not prove that people actually bought more colas and popcorn for several months after seeing the movie
C)it showed that subliminal stimuli had only very small effects on consumer patterns
D)it never happened

Question 26

Microsaccades are _____________.

A)tiny vibrations of the eye that prevent images from fading
B)the tiny bones in the ear that transmit sound waves to the cochlea
C)the photoreceptors in the eye responsible for night vision
D)pain receptors in the limbs

Question 27

When you first put your hat on,you can feel it quite easily.But after a while,you forget that you are wearing a hat at all-the sensation is gone.What happens?

A)sensory fatigue
B)subliminal perception
C)habituation
D)perceptual defense

Question 28

Because of what you have learned about sensory adaptation,you might think that if you stared at a picture for a long period of time,the image you see would eventually fade.This would be the case if not for the tiny vibrations of your eye called _____________.

A)glissades
B)microsaccades
C)habituation movements
D)light wave responses

Question 29

Our eyes don't adapt completely to a repeated visual stimulus because __________.

A)eye movements called microsaccades cause the stimulus image to vibrate slightly on the retina
B)the optic chiasm enables fibers to carry messages to all parts of the brain
C)ganglion cells fire continuously
D)visual acuity is greatest in the fovea

Question 30

The term photon refers to _____________.

A)a tiny packet of light waves.
B)a torpedo used by the USS Enterprise
C)the smallest unit of sound
D)the property of light that gives us the perception of color

Question 31

The process by which unchanging information from the senses of taste,touch,smell,and vision is "ignored" by the sensory receptor cells themselves is called _____________.

A)transformation
B)sensory adaptation
C)transmutation
D)transduction

Question 32

In the process known as____________,sensory receptors become less sensitive to repeated presentations of the same stimulus.

A)sensation
B)sensory fatigue
C)sensory adaptation
D)discrimination

Question 33

The absolute threshold for human vision is a candle flame seen from _________ on a dark,clear night.

A)1 mile
B)15 miles
C)7)5 miles
D)30 miles

Question 34

The lowest intensity of a particular stimulus that enables the average person to detect that stimulus 50 percent of the time it is presented is called the ___________.

A)absolute threshold
B)difference threshold
C)just noticeable difference
D)psychophysical threshold

Question 35

The aspect of color that corresponds to names such as red,green,and blue is ___________.

A)brightness
B)saturation
C)hue
D)fine detail

Question 36

Some people believe that ________ are messages that can be sent to consumers,prompting them to buy a product without their being aware of receiving such messages.

A)selective perceptions
B)subliminal stimuli
C)inductive perceptions
D)below threshold perceptions

Question 37

When Ann went to her doctor,he gave her a hearing test.During the test,the doctor presented tones to Ann through earphones.The tones started at a low intensity and then became louder.The doctor asked Ann to raise her hand whenever she started to hear a sound.The doctor was testing Ann's __________.

A)auditory convergence
B)absolute threshold
C)refractory threshold
D)difference threshold

Question 38

The absolute threshold for human hearing is the tick of a watch from __________ under very quiet conditions.

A)20 feet
B)60 feet
C)40 feet
D)80 feet

Question 39

The wavelength of the light reaching your eyes determines,in part,what _________ you see.

A)brightness
B)saturation
C)hue
D)fine detail

Question 40

Jamie,a toddler,is making distinctions about various aspects of color in terms of whether a toy looks red,blue,and so on.In doing so,she is referring to the toy's _________.

A)amplitude
B)lightness
C)hue
D)reflection

Question 41

The shortest wavelengths that we can see are experienced as _________ colors.

A)red
B)blue
C)green
D)yellow

Question 42

What color would you report seeing if a researcher projects the longest wavelength in the visible spectrum onto a screen?

A)red
B)blue
C)yellow
D)violet

Question 43

What is the pupil of the eye?

A)It is the white part of the eye.
B)It is the colored part of the eye.
C)It is the location of the visual receptors.
D)It is the small opening in the center of the eye.

Question 44

The clear,transparent protective coating over the front part of the eye is the __________.

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

Question 45

When light waves enter the eye,they first pass through the _______________.

A)iris
B)lens
C)pupil
D)cornea

Question 46

Joachim and Maricella are going for a romantic walk in the park after an afternoon storm.Maricella looks up in the sky and sees a rainbow.She exclaims,"How beautiful!" Joachim,being something of a geek,might correctly say ___________

A)"You are just seeing the visible spectrum."
B)"That's because you are seeing all the wavelengths of light we can see from short to long."
C)"That's because different wavelengths lead to the perception of different colors."
D)All of these things would be true if Joachim said them.

Question 47

Bundles of axons from ganglion cells make up the __________.

A)fovea
B)optic nerve
C)optic schism
D)rods and cones

Question 48

The place in the retina where the axons of all the ganglion cells come together to leave the eye and where there are no rods and cones is called the ________.

A)fovea
B)blind spot
C)optic chiasm
D)optic nerve

Question 49

The pupil is the __________.

A)opening in the center of the iris
B)white of the eye
C)colored part of the eye
D)lining in the back of the eyeball

Question 50

Which component of the eye contains the visual receptors?

A)sclera
B)retina
C)cornea
D)posterior chamber

Question 51

The longest wavelengths we can see are experienced as __________ colors.

A)red
B)blue-violet
C)green
D)yellow

Question 52

It is difficult to distinguish between colors at night because __________.

A)we are seeing primarily with the cones
B)rods do not adapt to the dark
C)we are seeing primarily with the rods
D)we are used to seeing mostly with the fovea

Question 53

The visible spectrum refers to the ____________.

A)portion of the whole spectrum of light that is visible to the human eye
B)effect of intensity on how we see dark to grey to white
C)effect of the sound density on the perceptions of those with synesthesia
D)well-known fact that colors are less visible to some men's eyes

Question 54

When we describe someone's eyes as blue,technically we are referring to his or her blue ___________.

A)pupils
B)irises
C)corneas
D)scleras

Question 55

The change in the shape of the lens in order to focus on a visual image is known as ____________.

A)fixation
B)divergence
C)convergence
D)visual accommodation

Question 56

Erin has learned to create a "truly red" light by focusing on only one wavelength of the visible spectrum.She is most likely to be concerned with which property of light?

A)brightness
B)decibels
C)accommodation
D)saturation

Question 57

Light is focused on the retina by the __________.

A)pupil
B)ganglion cells
C)lens
D)iris

Question 58

The colored part of the eye that contains muscles to contract or expand the pupil is the ___________.

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

Question 59

The amount of light entering the eye is controlled by the ___________.

A)cornea
B)lens
C)iris
D)retina

Question 60

Why do you see a lemon as yellow?

A)The lemon absorbs yellow wavelengths in the yellow region of the spectrum.
B)The lemon might reflect only wavelengths in the yellow region of the spectrum.
C)The lemon absorbs red and blue wavelengths.
D)The lemon reflects all wavelengths of light other than yellow.

Question 61

Who actually found three types of cones in the retina?

A)Young and Helmholtz
B)Hering
C)Wald and Brown
D)Smith and Wesson

Question 62

Which of the following is true of rods?

A)They respond to color.
B)They are found mainly in the fovea.
C)They operate mainly in the daytime.
D)They are responsible for night vision.

Question 63

Each eye has about _________ million rods.

A)1
B)75
C)25
D)120

Question 64

Which of the following pairs is an example of opponent cells?

A)green/orange
B)red/pink
C)yellow/blue
D)black/brown

Question 65

Receptor cells in the retina responsible for night vision are __________.

A)bipolar cells
B)ganglion cells
C)rods
D)cones

Question 66

According to the opponent-process theory of color vision,the correct pairings of opposite colors are ___________.

A)red versus green and blue versus yellow
B)black versus gray and white versus colored
C)blue versus red and green versus yellow
D)blue versus green and red versus yellow

Question 67

The explanation of color vision that was proposed first by Young and later by Helmholtz is called the _________.

A)opponent-process theory
B)additive color mixing theory
C)trichromatic theory
D)reductive color mixing theory

Question 68

Receptor cells in the retina responsible for color vision and fine acuity are ___________.

A)bipolar cells
B)ganglion cells
C)rods
D)cones

Question 69

If an artist were to blend red,green,and blue lights together by focusing lights of those three colors on one common spot,the result would look __________.

A)like nonspectral colors
B)black
C)like white light
D)complimentary

Question 70

Why are cones in the fovea capable of sending detailed and precise visual information?

A)They connect to bipolar cells in a one-to-one fashion.
B)Compared to rods,their speed of transmission is faster.
C)Their cell bodies are highly responsive to neurotransmitters.
D)They connect directly to brain centers responsible for visual processing.

Question 71

The idea that the eye contains separate receptors for red,green,and blue is known as the ________ theory.

A)opponent-process
B)additive color mixing
C)trichromatic
D)reductive color mixing

Question 72

Which of the following phenomena is a function of the distribution of the rods and cones in the retina?

A)The moon looks much larger near the horizon than it looks when it is higher in the sky.
B)The light from distant stars moving rapidly away from us is shifted toward the red end of the spectrum.
C)Stars can be seen only with difficulty during the daytime.
D)A dim star viewed at night may disappear when you look directly at it but reappear when you look to one side of it.

Question 73

When you enter a darkened room (e.g.,a movie theatre)you will find it hard to see at first,but shortly afterward you will be able to see much better.This phenomenon is referred to as:

A)color adaptation.
B)cone adaptation.
C)dark adaptation.
D)light adaptation.

Question 74

Which of the following is true about cones?

A)They are responsible for black and white vision.
B)They are found mainly in the center of the eye.
C)They operate mainly at night.
D)They respond only to black and white.

Question 75

The trichromatic and opponent?process theories of color vision are not in conflict because each corresponds to _________.

A)a different portion of the spectrum
B)the opposite half of perceivable colors
C)one type of color blindness
D)a different stage of visual processing

Question 76

Helmholtz's explanation of color vision is called the __________.

A)opponent-process theory
B)additive color mixing theory
C)trichromatic theory
D)reductive color mixing theory

Question 77

If you stare for 30 seconds at a red object and then look at a blank sheet of white paper,you will see a greenish image of the object.This phenomenon BEST supports the ________ theory of color vision.

A)Grieco trichromatic
B)opponent-process
C)Helmholtz trichromatic
D)Hering's vibration

Question 78

If an artist were to blend red,green,and blue paints together,the result would look __________.

A)like nonspectral colors
B)black
C)like white light
D)complimentary

Question 79

The fovea is made up of __________.

A)all rods and no cones
B)mostly cones with some rods
C)mostly rods with some cones
D)all cones and no rods

Question 80

According to the opponent-process theory,if you stare at a red star for 60 seconds and then look at a plain sheet of white paper,you will see an afterimage of the star in which hue?

A)yellow
B)blue
C)green
D)red