Depth perception: monocular cues are cues that are presented in two dimensions or to one retina and affect

our perception of a third dimension Note: Ames Room Illusion, which is presented to observer through a single peep hole and room dimensions make 2nd individual appear smaller Monocular vs. Binocular Vision: our binocular vision contributes to our accurate perceptions of depth, experience of seeing this way is exploited by monocular cues in illusions 2 point perspective gives sense of 3rd dimension Differences in resolution are simulated by differences in crispness of edges, shading Occlusion: using one image to cover part of another suggests the one that is completely visible is closer Ex: Muller-Lyer and Ponzo illusions Comparison with other objects whose size we generally know can cause us to overestimate size of distant object Motion parallax: apparent motion of objects in foreground and background is also used as a cue of distance Parallax can also be a binocular cue Retinal disparity = parallax in astronomy = binocular cue allows relative judgment of distance Babies develop an interest in and the ability to recognize faces before they develop most other visual skills Myopia (near-sightedness) vs. Farsightedness (age-related decline in ability to adjust focus) Astigmatism: differences in the thickness of the cornea Sound is the result of vibration perpetuated through a fluid (air, water) that is sensed and perceived by a nervous system Sound can be characterized according to the properties of the vibrating waves it generates. This cannot happen in a vacuum . Amplitude: height of the waves (explains loudness (dB)) Frequency: # waves per unit time (Hz), inverse of wavelength We can hear 20-20,000 Hz but typical of speech and most sensitive to 80-10K Ultrasound: above our perceptive ability Infrasound: beneath our perceptive ability (sensitive range)

Timbre: characteristic of complex sounds with a combination of frequencies Slide 34 and 35: Insert Diagrams Vibrating waves enter the outer ear causing vibration in the eardrum/tympanum, which transmits vibration to the oval window of the cochlea through the ossicles Ossicles ensure maximum sensitivity to vibrations as they are transferred to aqueous channels of vestibular canal and tympanic canal Basilar membrane: holds sensitive hairs in fluid of the tympanic canal Base of basilar membrane (nearest the oval window) is stiffest, thickest part and is most sensitive to high frequency Most distal (part closest to the apex) is wider and thinner and sensitive to low frequency Slide 37: really good (labeled) diagram of the ear Auditory nerve is activated by vibrating sensory hairs in basilar membrane Eustachian tubes and vestibular canals regulate balance Auditory nerve communicates with medulla, which communicates with the midbrain (reflexive turning to sounds source), from the midbrain the signal travels to the thalamus, then to the primary auditory cortex (in temporal lobe for processing pitch, timbre, frequency, etc.) Secondary auditory cortex relieves input from primary. This analyzes more complex aspects of the stimulus. Our sensory regions for visual analysis compare visual stimuli with auditory stimuli and cause us to associate speech on film with movement of actors mouths even if sound and visual stimuli are coming from different places Grouping: the tendency to associate sounds originating in one location with same start and stop times as having a shared source. INSERT NOTES FROM 10/18/2012 Our heat receptors can be tricked with capsacin chemicals or real heat can trigger thermostat in hypothalamus and bring about physiological cooling Gate theory and pain management: different somatosensory stimuli can cancel each other out Periaqueductal Gray Matter (PAG) has high concentration of opiate receptors that dampen pain Placebo effect: what we expect to happen/feel can have real effects on what we actually feel (top-down processing)

Perception of pain is dependent on cortical processing Olfaction and gustation both use sensory hairs to detect chemicals dissolved in mucus Slide 55: Insert diagram Amygdala processes smells for emotional content (probably important for our ancestors safety) Orbitofrontal cortex also processes emotional content in olfaction and gustation Olfactory cortex is non-emotional Slide 56: Insert diagram of gustation Papilla: site of taste buds, each taste bud combines several kinds of receptors Slide 57: Gustatory Pathway diagram