Sensation and Perception Second Edition Test Bank
Sensation and Perception Second Edition Test Bank offers expert-reviewed explanations and practice questions to boost your exam performance.
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Highest Answer Letter: D
Multiple Keywords in Same Paragraph: No
Chapter: Chapter 1: Essay
Essay
1. Describe five distal stimuli and their associated proximal stimuli that one experiences in the
environment. No two stimuli should have the same perceptual dimension. For each of these distal
stimulus, discuss the top-down information used in perceiving it.
Ans: Answers should first relate sensory experience (visual, auditory, olfactory, etc.) to the
physical objects (or, distal stimuli) in the environment, and then show how knowledge and
expectations of an observer lead to perception of the stimuli.
2. Describe three activities in which one uses three different senses to detect small differences in
the intensity of sensory stimuli. What role does difference threshold play in each activity?
Ans: Cooking can be taken as an example here because one needs to adjust seasonings based on
the perception of taste. Similarly, proper functioning of a mechanical device (car, air conditioner,
etc.) can be detected based on the sound it makes. In the same way, an observer’s like or dislike
for a painting depends on his or her visual perception. The minimum difference between two
stimuli that allows an observer to perceive that the two stimuli are different is known as a
difference threshold. In all these cases, difference threshold helps an observer to differentiate
between any two given stimuli.
Settings: Brownstone Default
Information Field: Level
Information Field: Page
Information Field: Topic
Information Field: Question Type
Information Field: Bloom’s Level
Highest Answer Letter: D
Multiple Keywords in Same Paragraph: No
Chapter: Chapter 1: Essay
Essay
1. Describe five distal stimuli and their associated proximal stimuli that one experiences in the
environment. No two stimuli should have the same perceptual dimension. For each of these distal
stimulus, discuss the top-down information used in perceiving it.
Ans: Answers should first relate sensory experience (visual, auditory, olfactory, etc.) to the
physical objects (or, distal stimuli) in the environment, and then show how knowledge and
expectations of an observer lead to perception of the stimuli.
2. Describe three activities in which one uses three different senses to detect small differences in
the intensity of sensory stimuli. What role does difference threshold play in each activity?
Ans: Cooking can be taken as an example here because one needs to adjust seasonings based on
the perception of taste. Similarly, proper functioning of a mechanical device (car, air conditioner,
etc.) can be detected based on the sound it makes. In the same way, an observer’s like or dislike
for a painting depends on his or her visual perception. The minimum difference between two
stimuli that allows an observer to perceive that the two stimuli are different is known as a
difference threshold. In all these cases, difference threshold helps an observer to differentiate
between any two given stimuli.
3. Compare the advantages and disadvantages of the method of adjustment, the method of
constant stimuli, and the staircase method in determining absolute threshold.
Ans: The method of adjustment is the simplest method for estimating absolute thresholds. In this
method, a person observes the stimulus and manipulates a control that directly adjusts the
intensity of the stimulus. The results tend to vary quite a bit, even when the method is used
repeatedly with the same person. When compared to the method of adjustment, the method of
constant stimuli provides more reliable results. It isn’t very efficient because it involves repeated
presentations of stimuli that are already known to be well below or well above threshold. Hence,
presenting these stimuli doesn’t generate much useful data. The staircase method is a more
efficient version of the method of constant stimuli. It can be used to eliminate repeated
presentations of stimuli well below or above the threshold and to focus instead on presenting
stimuli near the threshold.
4. If the volume on an audio device is increased from one to two, how should the physical
intensity of the sound be changed so that the perceived intensity is doubled? Explain with the
help of Fechner’s law.
Ans: According to the text, when the physical intensity of a stimulus is low, doubling the
physical stimulus will double the perceived intensity of the stimulus. However, if the intensity of
the stimulus is much greater, there should be a considerable increase in the physical stimulus to
produce a noticeable difference in the perceived intensity.
5. What is the role of voltage-gated channels in the course of an action potential? Describe the
events in which they play their crucial role.
Ans: When a neuron receives a signal from another neuron, the receiving neuron undergoes an
abrupt change in membrane potential, which causes voltage-gated sodium channels to open at the
base of the axon, where it emerges from the cell body. This in turn allows extracellular sodium
ions (Na+) to flow into the axon. They move into the axon because the concentration of Na+ ions
is much greater outside the membrane than inside. The influx of positively charged Na+ ions
causes the membrane potential to become more positive. This change in membrane potential is
called depolarization, because the membrane potential is becoming less polarized—that is, less
extreme, moving from −70 mV toward 0. If the depolarization surpasses a threshold at about −45
mV, the inflow of Na+ ions continues rapidly until the difference in electric charge at the inner
and outer surfaces of the membrane is reversed, with the inside of the axon becoming more
positively charged than the outside, resulting in a membrane potential of about +30 mV at its
peak. Immediately after the sodium channels open, they close again, stemming the inflow of Na+
ions, and nearby potassium channels open (in response to the depolarization of the membrane),
allowing positively charged potassium ions (K+) to flow out of the axon, again driven by the
constant stimuli, and the staircase method in determining absolute threshold.
Ans: The method of adjustment is the simplest method for estimating absolute thresholds. In this
method, a person observes the stimulus and manipulates a control that directly adjusts the
intensity of the stimulus. The results tend to vary quite a bit, even when the method is used
repeatedly with the same person. When compared to the method of adjustment, the method of
constant stimuli provides more reliable results. It isn’t very efficient because it involves repeated
presentations of stimuli that are already known to be well below or well above threshold. Hence,
presenting these stimuli doesn’t generate much useful data. The staircase method is a more
efficient version of the method of constant stimuli. It can be used to eliminate repeated
presentations of stimuli well below or above the threshold and to focus instead on presenting
stimuli near the threshold.
4. If the volume on an audio device is increased from one to two, how should the physical
intensity of the sound be changed so that the perceived intensity is doubled? Explain with the
help of Fechner’s law.
Ans: According to the text, when the physical intensity of a stimulus is low, doubling the
physical stimulus will double the perceived intensity of the stimulus. However, if the intensity of
the stimulus is much greater, there should be a considerable increase in the physical stimulus to
produce a noticeable difference in the perceived intensity.
5. What is the role of voltage-gated channels in the course of an action potential? Describe the
events in which they play their crucial role.
Ans: When a neuron receives a signal from another neuron, the receiving neuron undergoes an
abrupt change in membrane potential, which causes voltage-gated sodium channels to open at the
base of the axon, where it emerges from the cell body. This in turn allows extracellular sodium
ions (Na+) to flow into the axon. They move into the axon because the concentration of Na+ ions
is much greater outside the membrane than inside. The influx of positively charged Na+ ions
causes the membrane potential to become more positive. This change in membrane potential is
called depolarization, because the membrane potential is becoming less polarized—that is, less
extreme, moving from −70 mV toward 0. If the depolarization surpasses a threshold at about −45
mV, the inflow of Na+ ions continues rapidly until the difference in electric charge at the inner
and outer surfaces of the membrane is reversed, with the inside of the axon becoming more
positively charged than the outside, resulting in a membrane potential of about +30 mV at its
peak. Immediately after the sodium channels open, they close again, stemming the inflow of Na+
ions, and nearby potassium channels open (in response to the depolarization of the membrane),
allowing positively charged potassium ions (K+) to flow out of the axon, again driven by the
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Subject
Psychology