PSYC 251 Chapter Notes - Chapter 3, 4: Postcentral Gyrus, Dorsal Root Ganglion, Somatosensory System
Document Summary
Psyc 251 - chapter 3 & 4: perception: perception: the set of processes by which we recognize, organize, & make sense of the sensations we receive from environmental stimuli. Experiences resulting from stimulation of the senses. What we sense (in our sensory organs) what we perceive (in our minds) Attempt to understand what is going on outside the brain, in order to know how we should act, in order to achieve goals. Inverse problem: trying to create a representation (perception) of what is out in the world (distal stimulus), from what we sense (proximal stimulus) Distal stimulus: an object or process out in the world. Proximal stimulus: energy/matter that impinges on sensory receptors. Sensory receptors: specialized cells to transduce (convert) external phenomena into neural signals. Neural pathway: from sensory receptors to cerebral cortex, via thalamic nuclei. Hierarchy of cortical areas: attempts to construct useful representations of distal stimuli.