RIVERA, CAROL Sensation and Perception

Lecture Notes 5

Prof. Erick Fabella

Sensation is the entire process of receiving information about the world through the mechanisms of the five senses. Perception is the process by which the brain interprets and organizes these sensations into meaningful patterns. What is the absolute minimum amount of energy necessary for a sensation to occur? Sense: Vision Stimulus: Electromagnetic waves Receptor Cells: Rods & cones Absolute Threshold: Candle flame seen 48 kilometers away Sense: Hearing Stimulus: Sound waves Receptor Cells: Organ of Corti Absolute Threshold: Tick of a watch under quiet conditions 20 feet away Sense: Taste Stimulus: Food Receptor Cells: Taste buds Absolute Threshold: 1 teaspoon of sugar in 2 gallons of water Sense: Smell Stimulus: Scent Receptor Cells: Olfactory cells Absolute Threshold: 1 drop of perfume diffused in a 3-room apartment Sense: Touch Stimulus: Pain, pressure, warmth, coldness Receptor Cells: Nerve endings Absolute Threshold: A bees wing falling on your cheek from 1 centimeter height

General characteristics of sense receptors: 1. Before any sensory receptor can be triggered, a minimum of sense receptor stimulation is required. 1. Sensitivity of sense receptors also involves a certain amount of difference among stimuli before one stimulus can be distinguished from another.

1. Ability to adjust to a particular stimulus (sensory adaptation). I. Visual Sense The Electromagnetic Spectrum Longest wavelength Lowest frequency Radio The Eye 1. Sclera (outer coat). A tough opaque layer of connective tissue to protect the eyes inner structures. In the front, it becomes the cornea, which is thin and transparent receiving light rays that will pass through the pupil. 1. Chloroids (middle pigmented layer). In front of the eye, it forms the iris. Its pigment is responsible for the color of the eye. The iris is arrangement of muscles and expands to change the size of the pupil depending upon the amount or intensity of illumination called light or dark adaptation. 1. Retina (inner layer). The retina contains 115 million rods and 6.5 million cones evenly distributed in the eye. An area of the retina called the fovea contains only cones. Rods. They are called rods because of their cylindrical shape. These function under low illumination and are sensitive to white, gray and black colors. Cones. These are conical in shape. The cones function in bright light. They are sensitive to both black and white as well as color and fine details. Note: The rods are insensitive to red light. Submarines, airplane cockpits use red light so that people can move quickly into the dark without having t adapt. How light is processed Light strikes the cornea. Light is gathered through the pupil. The crystalline lens behind the pupil focuses the rays on the retina. Once the receptors have been activated, the neural message is transmitted to the ganglion cells that form the optic nerve and is carried finally to the occipital lobe. Visual Acuity This is the sharpness of vision which can be measured in terms of the smallest object that can be seen at a standard distance or the greatest distance at which a standardized object can be seen. 20/20 vision: at 20 feet, you can distinguish what an average person can distinguish at 20 feet. 20/40 vision: at 20 feet you can distinguish what the average person can see at 40 feet. Microwave Infrared Visible light Ultraviolet X-ray Shortest wavelength Highest frequency Gamma

Accommodation of the Len This is the process in which the lens become thinner to bring faraway objects into focus and thickens to focus on nearby objects. Defects of Vision Presbyopia. This is a special form of far-sightedness that occurs with advancing of age. The lens hardens so that it fails in accommodation. A presbyopic person cannot focus clearly on near objects and must wear glasses to do so. Hyperopia. This is also called farsightedness caused by a shortened eyeball making it hard for the lens to bulge enough to focus on near objects. The distance from the lens to the retina is too long making the image focus behind the retina. A farsighted person is able to see far objects clearly but not near ones. Myopia. This is called near-sightedness. If the eyeball is elongated, the distance from the lens to the retina is too short making the image focus in front of the retina. The lens is unable to thin out enough to focus on far objects. Astigmatism. This is a structural irregularity in the shape of the cornea, which bends incoming light in irregular ways distorting the image on the retina. Color blindness. This can be caused by an inherited lack of one of the three types of cones, abnormally functioning cones or by deficiencies in the nerves that relay messages to the brain. Total color blindness (monochromatic) causes all colors to be in different shades of black and white. Partial color blindness, is caused by lost vision for one or two of the three fundamental colors (red, green or blue). Tunnel vision. This is a condition caused by a concentric narrowing of the field of vision so that a person seems to be looking through a tunnel or pipe. Diplopia. Also called double vision, this is caused by a muscular imbalance between the two eyeballs, which permits light to fall on non-corresponding retinas causing two images to form in the brain. Scotoma. This is a temporary or permanent blind spot resulting from excessive use of tobacco or alcohol or from over exposure from light.