question

Superman's eyes used ________, while his brain used ________.

answer

bottom-up processing; top-down processing

question

Sensation is to ________ as perception is to ________.

answer

detecting; recognizing

question

Given normal sensory ability, a person standing atop a mountain on a dark, clear night can see a candle flame atop a mountain 30 miles away. This is ___

answer

absolute threshold.

question

Which of the following is true?

answer

The absolute threshold for any stimulus varies somewhat.

question

Concerning the evidence for subliminal stimulation, which of the following is the best answer?

answer

All of the above are true.

question

If you can just notice the difference between 10- and 11-pound weights, which of the following weights could you differentiate from a 100-pound weight?

answer

110-pound weight

question

In shopping for a new stereo, you discover that you cannot differentiate between the sounds of models X and Y. The difference between X and Y is below your:

answer

difference threshold.

question

Weber's law states that:

answer

the jnd for any stimulus is a constant proportion.

question

When admiring the texture of a piece of fabric, Calvin usually runs his fingertips over the cloth's surface. He does this because:

answer

if the cloth were held motionless, sensory adaptation to feel would quickly occur

question

A decrease in sensory responsiveness accompanying an unchanging stimulus is called:

answer

sensory adaptation.

question

Which of the following is an example of sensory adaptation?

answer

finding the cold water of a swimming pool warmer after you have been in it for a while

question

The process by which sensory information is converted into neural energy is:

answer

transduction.

question

Wavelength is to ________ as ________ is to brightness.

answer

hue; intensity

question

One light may appear reddish and another greenish if they differ in:

answer

wavelength.

question

Nearsightedness is a condition in which the:

answer

eyeball is longer than normal

question

The size of the pupil is controlled by the:

answer

iris.

question

In comparing the human eye to a camera, the film would be analogous to the eye's:

answer

retina.

question

Which of the following is the correct order of the structures through which light passes after entering the eye?

answer

cornea, pupil, lens, retina

question

The process by which the lens changes its curvature is

answer

accommodation.

question

The transduction of light energy into nerve impulses takes place in the:

answer

retina.

question

One reason that your ability to detect fine visual details is greatest when scenes are focused on the fovea of your retina is that:

answer

many cones, which are clustered in the fovea, have individual bipolar cells to relay their information to the cortex.

question

Which of the following is not true of cones?

answer

each cone has its own bipolar cell

question

Assuming that the visual systems of humans and other mammals function similarly, you would expect that the retina of a nocturnal mammal (one active only at night) would contain

answer

mostly rods

question

As the football game continued into the night, LeVar noticed that he was having difficulty distinguishing the colors of the players' uniforms. This is because the ________, which enable color vision, have a ________ absolute threshold for brightness than the available light intensity.

answer

cones; higher

question

In order to maximize your sensitivity to fine visual detail you should:

answer

stare directly at the object

question

The receptor of the eye that functions best in dim light is the:

answer

rod.

question

Hubel and Wiesel discovered feature detectors in the visual:

answer

cortex.

question

The brain breaks vision into separate dimensions such as color, depth, movement, and form, and works on each aspect simultaneously. This is called:

answer

parallel processing.

question

Most color-deficient people will probably:

answer

lack functioning red- or green-sensitive cones

question

The Young-Helmholtz theory proposes that:

answer

there are three different types of color-sensitive cones.

question

According to the opponent-process theory:

answer

neurons involved in color vision are stimulated by one color's wavelength and inhibited by another's.

question

Which of the following is the most accurate description of how we process color?

answer

Color processing occurs in two stages: (1) a three-color system in the retina and (2) opponent-process cells en route to the visual cortex.

question

In the opponent-process theory, the three pairs of processes are:

answer

red-green, blue-yellow, black-white.

question

After staring at a very intense red stimulus for a few minutes, Carrie shifted her gaze to a beige wall and "saw" the color ________. Carrie's experience provides support for the ________ theory.

answer

green; opponent-process

question

I am a cell in the thalamus that is excited by red and inhibited by green. I am a(n):

answer

opponent-process cell

question

Which of the following explains why a rose appears equally red in bright and dim light?

answer

color constancy

question

Frequency is to pitch as ________ is to

answer

amplitude; loudness

question

Which of the following correctly lists the order of structures through which sound travels after entering the ear?

answer

auditory canal, eardrum, middle ear, cochlea

question

Dr. Frankenstein has forgotten to give his monster an important part; as a result, the monster cannot transduce sound. Dr. Frankenstein omitted the:

answer

basilar membrane

question

The receptors for hearing are located in

answer

the inner ear

question

The inner ear contains receptors for:

answer

audition and the vestibular sense

question

The place theory of pitch perception cannot account for how we hear:

answer

low-pitched sounds.

question

Which of the following is the most accurate explanation of how we discriminate pitch?

answer

For very high frequencies, pitch is coded according to place of vibration on the basilar membrane; for lower pitches, the rate of neural activity in the auditory nerve matches the sound's frequency.

question

The frequency theory of hearing is better than place theory at explaining our sensation of

answer

the lowest pitches.

question

Seventy-five-year-old Claude has difficulty hearing high-pitched sounds. Most likely his hearing problem involves:

answer

the hair cells of his inner ear

question

The hearing losses that occur with age are especially pronounced for:

answer

high-pitched sounds

question

Nerve deafness is caused by:

answer

damage to the cochlea.

question

Of the four distinct skin senses, the only one that has definable receptors is:

answer

pressure

question

According to the gate-control theory, a way to alleviate chronic pain would be to stimulate the ________ nerve fibers that ________ the spinal gate.

answer

large; close

question

The phantom limb sensation indicates that:

answer

pain involves the brain's interpretation of neural activity

question

How does pain differ from other senses?

answer

all of the above are true.

question

While competing in the Olympic trials, marathoner Kirsten O'Brien suffered a stress fracture in her left leg. That she did not experience significant pain until the race was over is probably attributable to the fact that during the race

answer

the pain gate in her spinal cord was closed by information coming from her brain.

question

The receptors for taste are located in the:

answer

taste buds

question

Tamiko hates the bitter taste of her cough syrup. Which of the following would she find most helpful in minimizing the syrup's bad taste?

answer

holding her nose while taking the cough syrup

question

The principle that one sense may influence another is:

answer

sensory interaction

question

Elderly Mrs. Martinez finds that she must spice her food heavily or she cannot taste it. Unfortunately, her son often finds her cooking inedible because it is so spicy. What is the likely explanation for their taste differences?

answer

Being elderly, Mrs. Martinez probably has fewer taste buds than her son.

question

Which of the following is an example of sensory interaction?

answer

all of the above are examples

question

Which of the following is not one of the basic tastes?

answer

bland

question

Kinesthesis involves:

answer

information from the muscles, tendons, and joints.

question

What enables you to feel yourself wiggling your toes even with your eyes closed?

answer

sense of kinesthesis

question

The study of perception is primarily concerned with how we:

answer

interpret sensory stimuli

question

The illusion that the St. Louis Gateway arch appears taller than it is wide (even though its height and width are equal) is based on our sensitivity to which monocular depth cue?

answer

relative height

question

People asked to judge the distances of white disks under either clear or foggy conditions

answer

estimated the disks to be nearer when viewed under clear conditions

question

The historical movement associated with the statement "The whole may exceed the sum of its parts" is

answer

Gestalt psychology

question

Which of the following illustrates the principle of visual capture?

answer

When there is a conflict btw. visual info and that from another sense

question

Which of the following statements is consistent with the Gestalt theory of perception?

answer

The mind organizes sensations into meaningful perceptions

question

The term gestalt means

answer

whole

question

When the traffic light changed from red to green, the drivers on both sides of Leon's vehicle pulled quickly forward, giving Leon the disorienting feeling that his car was rolling backward. Which principle explains Leon's misperception?

answer

visual capture

question

________ processing refers to how the physical characteristics of stimuli influence their interpretation.

answer

Bottom-up

question

________ processing refers to how our knowledge and expectations influence perception.

answer

Top-down

question

Concluding her presentation on sensation and perception, Kelly notes that:

answer

sensation and perception blend in together

question

The figure-ground relationship has demonstrated that:

answer

the same stimulus can trigger more than one perception.

question

Figure is to ground as ________ is to ________.

answer

cloud; sky

question

All of the following are laws of perceptual organization except:

answer

simplicity

question

Figures tend to be perceived as whole, complete objects, even if spaces or gaps exist in the representation, thus demonstrating the principle of:

answer

closure

question

The tendency to organize stimuli into smooth, uninterrupted patterns is called:

answer

continuity

question

Studying the road map before her trip, Colleen had no trouble following the route of the highway she planned to travel. Colleen's ability illustrates the principle of:

answer

continuity

question

Studies of the visual cliff have provided evidence that much of depth perception is:

answer

innate

question

Which of the following depth cues creates the impression of a visual cliff?

answer

texture gradient

question

When we stare at an object, each eye receives a slightly different image, providing a depth cue known as:

answer

retinal disparity

question

Which of the following is not a monocular depth cue?

answer

retinal disparity

question

The tendency to perceive hazy objects as being at a distance is known as ________. This is a ________ depth cue

answer

relative clarity; monocular

question

When two familiar objects of equal size cast unequal retinal images, the object that casts the smaller retinal image will be perceived as being:

answer

more distant than the other object

question

If you slowly bring your finger toward your face until it eventually touches your nose, eye-muscle cues called ________ convey depth information to your brain.

answer

convergence

question

How do we perceive a pole that partially covers a bush?

answer

as nearer

question

Objects higher in our field of vision are perceived as ________ due to the principle of ________.

answer

farther away; relative height

question

The depth cue that occurs when we watch stable objects at different distances as we are moving is:

answer

relative motion

question

Because the flowers in the foreground appeared coarse and grainy, the photographer decided that the picture was taken too near the subject. This conclusion was based on which depth cue?

answer

texture gradient

question

Which of the following is a monocular depth cue?

answer

light and shadow

question

An artist paints a tree orchard so that the parallel rows of trees converge at the top of the canvas. Which cue has the artist used to convey distance?

answer

linear perspective

question

According to the principle of light and shadow, if one of two identical objects reflects more light to your eyes it will be perceived as:

answer

nearer

question

As we move, viewed objects cast changing shapes on our retinas, although we do not perceive the objects as changing. This is part of the phenomenon of:

answer

perceptual constancy

question

Each time you see your car, it projects a different image on the retinas of your eyes, yet you do not perceive it as changing. This is because of:

answer

perceptual constancy

question

The phenomenon of size constancy is based upon the close connection between an object's perceived ________ and its perceived ________.

answer

size; distance

question

In the absence of perceptual constancy:

answer

objects would appear to chance size as their distance from us changed

question

As her friend Milo walks toward her, Noriko perceives his size as remaining constant because his perceived distance ________ at the same time that her retinal image of him ________.

answer

decreases; increases

question

Your friend tosses you a frisbee. You know that it is getting closer instead of larger because of:

answer

size constancy

question

The moon illusion occurs in part because distance cues at the horizon make the moon seem:

answer

father away and therefore longer

question

Which explanation of the Müller-Lyer illusion is offered by the text?

answer

The corners in our carpentered world teach us to interpret outward- or inward-pointing arrowheads at the end of a line as a cue to the line's distance from us and so to its length.

question

The insensitivity of many rural Africans to the Müller-Lyer illusion proves that perception:

answer

is influenced by cultural experience

question

The fact that a white object under dim illumination appears lighter than a gray object under bright illumination is called:

answer

lightness constancy

question

Adults who are born blind but later have their vision restored:

answer

typically fail to recognize familiar objects

question

Which philosopher maintained that knowledge comes from inborn ways of organizing our sensory experiences?

answer

Kant

question

According to the philosopher ________, we learn to perceive the world.

answer

Locke

question

Which of the following influences perception?

answer

all of the above

question

Which of the following statements best describes the effects of sensory restriction?

answer

it has more damaging effects when experienced during infancy

question

Kittens reared seeing only horizontal lines:

answer

kater had difficulty perceiving vertical lines, and never regained normal sensitivity

question

Experiments with distorted visual environments demonstrate that:

answer

human adapt, while lower animals do not

question

Although carpenter Smith perceived a briefly viewed object as a screwdriver, police officer Wesson perceived the same object as a knife. This illustrates that perception is guided by:

answer

perceptual set

question

The phenomenon that refers to the ways in which an individual's expectations influence perception is called:

answer

perceptual set

question

Thanks to ______, TiVo has solved the TV recording problem caused by the complexity of VCRs.

answer

human factors psychologists

question

Dr. Martin is using natural mapping to redesign the instrument gauges of automobiles to be more "user friendly." Dr. Martin is evidently a(n):

answer

human factors psychologist

question

A person claiming to be able to read another's mind is claiming to have the ESP ability of:

answer

telepathy

question

Psychologists who study ESP are called:

answer

parapsychologists

question

Jack claims that he often has dreams that predict future events. He claims to have the power of:

answer

precognition

question

Regina claims that she can bend spoons, levitate furniture, and perform many other "mind over matter" feats. Regina apparently believes she has the power of:

answer

psychokinesis

question

The predictions of leading psychics are:

answer

all of the above

question

Which of the following statements concerning ESP is true?

answer

Most research psychologists are skeptical of the claims of defenders of ESP

question

Using the ganzfeld procedure to investigate telepathy, researchers have found that:

answer

None of the above

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