PSYC 3250 Chapter Notes - Chapter 7: Auditory Cortex, Cochlear Nucleus, Basilar Membrane

• School: York University
• Department: Psychology
• Course: PSYC 3250
• Professor: J De Souza

Document Summary

Scent travels through the nostrils to the olfactory bulbs in the brain, through the amygdala and onto the olfactory cortex and the temporal and frontal lobes. Olfaction is the one sense that bypasses the thalamus. The receptive organ for audition is the organ of corti, located on the basilar membrane (consisting of the hair cells, and the tectorial membrane). When sound strikes the tympanic membrane, it sets the ossicles into motion, and the baseplate of the stapes pushes against the membrane behind the oval window. Pressure changes thus applied to the fluid within the cochlea cause a portion of the basilar membrane to flex, causing the basilar membrane to move laterally with respect to the tectorial membrane that overhangs it. These events cause movements in the fluid within the cochlea, which, in turn, causes the cilia of the inner hair cells to wave back and forth.