- Sensation is first response of the brain

- Perception is the second response; interpreting the brain signals

- Processing
- Bottom up processing - processing of current stimuli influences what is perceived
(data driven)
- Top down processing - background knowledge, learning and expectations that
we have influence what is perceived (theory-, knowledge-, context-driven)
- What we see is usually combo
- Inverse projection problem: for any 2d image that is projected onto the retina, there are
many 3-d image possibilities
- What is the real object that produces the stimulation at the retina?
- The visual system makes a variety of unconscious inferences (Helmoltz)
- The visual system uses cues for object relations that usually work
- Heuristic
- Simple reasoning strategy
- Perpetual heuristic: strategy in perceptual information processing that helps to
determine the objective situation that produced the sensations
- Gestalt Approach
- Response to structuralism
- Claimed that perception was bottom up
- Cannot explain illusory contours; apparent motion
- What principles govern the grouping of components of a perceptual stimulus into
an object?
- Gestalt principles sometimes called heuristics
- Gestalt principle of similarity
- Similar things grouped together
- Similarity in lightness, shape, etc
- Gestalt principle of good continuation
- Connected points result in smoothly curving lines
- Points are seen as they belong together
- Pragnanz
- Stimulus pattern seen so that the resulting structure is as simple
as possible (olympic rings)
- Figure-ground segregation
- Determining what part of enviro is the figure so it ‘stands out’ from
background
- Smallness: smaller areas tend to be perceived as figure
- Elements in lower part tend to be seen as figure
- Vertical and horizontal more likely to be seen
- Figure-ground problem: separation of object from background
- Proximity
- things that are near to each other are grouped
- Meaningfulness
 - things are more likely to form groups if the groups appear
meaningful or similar
- Common fate
- Things that are moving in the same direction, same speed appear
to be grouped together