Self test 5.  - Sensation 

    Note: These questions are part of a larger data base of questions on Module 5 & 
are selected to represent the type of question you should expect on unit exam two. 
You can, in fact, expect to see many of these very same questions on that exam. 
Exam questions, however, may deal with topics not covered in the self tests or in 
lectures but are discussed in your textbook. You are responsible for the content of 
your text book plus the content of lectures, interactive activities, & material on 
the web site.

Use these sample questions to test yourself & to practice for the test. 

1. Which is not a characteristic of all senses? 

 adaptation 
 perception 
 translucence 
 transduction 

2. Which word best describes transduction? 

 creates 
 reduces 
 changes 
 stabilizes 

3. Kim is unaware of the feel of the chair she sits in while playing with 
her computer. Kim’s lack of sensitivity is the result of: 

 adaptation 
 hypersensitivity 
 changing stimuli 
 lack of stimulation 

4. Sensations are to perception as _________ is to ________. 

 illusion; constancy 
 combining; separating 
 adaptation; transduction 
 meaningless; meaningful 

5. The structure of the eye that first helps focus light waves into a narrower 
beam is the: 

 lens 
 retina 
 fovea 
 cornea 

6. The path that the light takes through your eye is: 

 cornea; pupil; lens; retina 
 lens; cornea; pupil; retina 
 lens, fovea; cornea; retina 
 pupil; lens; retina 

7. Information is transmitted from the eye to the brain through the: 

 fovea 
 cornea 
 retina 
 optic nerve 

8. As you walk on campus, you suddenly recognize an old friend who is heading 
towards you. What point in the visual pathway is responsible for the creation 
of this meaningful image of an old friend? 

 cornea 
 rhodopsin 
 primary visual cortex 
 visual association areas 

9. The trichromatic theory explains how: 

 we experience an afterimage 
 cones in the retina change light waves into colors 
 rods in the retina change light waves into colors 
 the brain changes light waves into color 

10. The most common problem for a dichromat is: 

 an inability to distinguish between red and green 
 an inability to recognize objects presented visually 
 an inability to focus both eyes on a near object at the same time 
 seeing printed stimuli as though they were inside out and backwards 

11. The height of a sound wave is called _____ and the speed of the 
sound wave is called _______. 

 frequency; decibel 
 volume; frequency 
 amplitude; frequency 
 altitude; amplitude 

12. Amplitude is to loudness as _______ is to ________. 

 pitch; frequency 
 frequency; pitch 
 decibel; whisper 
 yell; decibel 

13. Which of the following cliches best describes the relationship between the 
hammer, anvil, and stirrup? 

 Passing the buck. 
 Out of sight, out of mind. 
 A stitch in time saves nine. 
 A penny saved is a penny earned. 

14. In what order do sound waves pass through the auditory system? 
 
 - external ear, stirrup, auditory canal, tympanic membrane, hammer, anvil, & cochlea 
 - external ear, auditory canal, hammer, tympanic membrane, anvil, stirrup, & cochlea 
 - external ear, auditory canal, tympanic membrane, hammer, anvil, stirrup, 
   &  cochlea 
 - external ear, auditory canal, anvil, stirrup, cochlea, tympanic membrane, 
   &  hammer 

15. Emma's primary auditory cortex is damaged, but other structures are healthy. 
What will be her auditory experience? 

 Total deafness 
 She can hear basic auditory sounds. 
 She can recognize songs, but not spoken words 
 She can recognize individual words, but not complete sentences. 

16. The _________ transforms auditory sensations into meaningful perception. 

 vestibular system 
 basilar membrane 
 primary auditory cortex 
 auditory association area 

17. The frequency theory, and place theory are explanations of how the auditory 
system calculates: 

 pitch 
 direction 
 loudness 
 amplitude 

18. The vestibular organs provide our sense of: 

 taste 
 smell 
 taste and flavor 
 position and balance 

19. Rachel suffers from attacks of dizziness. Her doctor says that she has a viral 
infection of the inner ear. Rachel most likely has: 

 motion sickness 
 Meniere's disease 
 Parkinson's disease 
 conduction deafness 

20. What is the fifth taste that we can detect? 

 umami 
 flowery 
 rancid 
 acidity 

21. If we could state flavor in a mathematical formula, what would it look like? 

 taste = flavor 
 taste + spicy = flavor 
 taste + smell = flavor 
 bitter + sour + salty + sweet = flavor 

22. We smell ______ substances. 

 kinetic 
 volatile 
 pacinian 
 transductive 

23. Our sense of touch comes from: 

 a half-dozen miniature sensors located in the skin 
 special glands for pressure, temperature, and pain 
 stimulation of the tiny hairs that cover the body 
 millions of tiny nerves on the surface of the skin 

24. Consider this: A free nerve ending, rod, and a Pacinian corpuscle walk into a 
bar and each orders a cold beer. Which one is most likely to tell the bartender 
that the beer is warm? 

 rod 
 free nerve ending 
 Pacinian corpuscle 
 rod & Pacinian corpuscle 
 
25. The process of ________ refers to the sense organ changing physical energy into 
electrical signals that become neural impulses. 

 adaptation 
 perception 
 transduction 
 accommodation 

26. If a sense organ is continuously stimulated, the sense organ will decrease responding 
through the process of:

 agnosia
 adaptation
 perception
 transduction
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                            Topics in Psychology
                               Robert C. Gates