APU PSYC304 2019 January All Weeks Forums Latest

PSYC304 Perception

Week 1 Forum

There are two parts to this assignment. The first part is an introduction and the second part is related to the course.

Part 1. Introduction

This part of the assignment should be a minimum of 150 words and requires completion for credit for the first forum.

You've probably experienced being required to do this in prior classes. It's an important element of any class because we enjoy knowing who we are talking to. Where are you stationed or do you live? What are some of your interests? What do you enjoy doing when you're not in this class working away learning about sensation and perception? What is one thing that you wonder about perception? Please include three specific goals that you hope to attain from this course.

(NOTE: Please don't copy an idea from the course syllabus or text--this question is about what you bring to the class before ever seeing those materials).

Part 2. Processes in perception. This part of the forum should be 150 words.

After watching the two videos below, discuss the role of higher-level or “cognitive” processes in perception. Then describe a situation in which you initially thought you saw or heard something, but then realized that your initial perception was in error. What was the role of bottom-up and top-down processing in this process of first having an incorrect perception and then realizing what was actually there?

Support your belief and use specific examples.  You may refer to your assigned Week 1 readings or draw on scholarly online resources. The latter must be academic in nature (e.g. from the APUS online library) and not from pop culture and/or commercial websites, blogs, opinion sites, etc.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unWnZvXJH2o

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-sVnmmw6WY

 

PSYC304 Perception

Week 2 Forum

Upon viewing the video on the Anatomy and Physiology of Hearing (the link can be found in the syllabus), describe the structure of the ear, focusing on the role that each component plays in transmitting the vibrations that enter the outer ear to the auditory receptors in the inner ear.  Then, discuss the basic difference between determining the location of a sound source and determining the location of the visual object. Lastly, discuss the differences a person may experience in hearing when living in the city versus a rural environment. Support your belief and use specific examples.

 

 

 

 

PSYC304 Perception

Week 3 Forum

Many people wear glasses to compensate for the fact that the optical system of their eye does not focus a sharp image on the retinas.  Once you have reviewed the videos below, discuss at least three of the disorders of focusing.  Be sure that you are discussing the complete epigenetic origin which should include a discussion of the genetic/biological origin and the environment influence related to these disorders of focusing. Include in your discussion the impact of culture in the development of the optical system at various stages of the lifespan. Support your belief and use specific examples.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0DYP-u1rNM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YxffFmi4Eo

 

PSYC304 Perception

Week 4 Forum

First, watch the video below discussing the primary visual cortex. Then discuss a minimum of two functional properties of visual cortical cells. Include in your discussion how the human brain uses these properties in perceiving objects in our everyday activities. In addition, discuss three things (objects, situations, age etc.) that can impede the normal functioning of these properties.

Support your answer and use specific examples. You may refer to your assigned Week 3 readings in the syllabus or draw on scholarly online resources. The latter must be academic in nature (e.g. from the APUS online library) and not from pop culture and/or commercial websites, blogs, opinion sites, etc.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1bkbWJ5jww

 

PSYC304 Perception

Week 5 Forum

Color is all around us, but just how deeply integrated is the phenomenon of color into our senses and neural pathways? Describe trichromatic theory and opponent-process theory of color vision, including the observations on which it is based and the physiological basis of each theory. Lastly, watch the video on synaethesia below, and discuss what it means to say that color is created by the nervous system. Explain what everyday life would be like for an individual with the disorder, including its impact on occupation, relationships, and leisure time. Be sure to include how the disorder might affect the person's behaviors and experiences in these settings.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiN5kSRxcqM

 

 

 

PSYC304 Perception

Week 6 Forum

The idea behind selective adaptation is that when we view a stimulus with a specific property, neurons tuned to that property fire, and if viewing continues for long enough, these neurons adapt. Discuss how the psychophysical procedure of selective adaptation has been used to demonstrate the link between feature detectors and (a) the perception of orientation, and (b) the perception of size. Be sure to include a discussion of your understanding of the rationale behind selective adaptation experiments and how we can draw conclusions about physiology from the results of such a psychophysical procedure. Provide two examples for the class that support your conclusions. For this week’s discussion, it is expected students will use their readings and outside scholarly web sources to answer this question completely.

 

PSYC304 Perception

Week 7 Forum

This week we will examine the chemical sense of smell (olfaction) and taste.  This is a two-part discussion question (part one pertaining to olfaction and part two pertaining to taste) and both parts must be answered in order to receive full credit. After viewing the material for this week as outlined in the syllabus, discuss the components of the olfactory system: the olfactory receptors, the olfactory sensory neurons, the olfactory bulb and the cortex. Then, discuss what kinds of evidence support the idea that different people may have different taste experiences. What mechanisms might be responsible for these differences? Lastly, explain the role of culture in the development of smell and taste and provide two examples of how culture could account for variation in perception.

 

PSYC304 Perception

Week 8 Forum

Learning to recognize; is this merely a human trait? After watching the videos for this week as listed in the syllabus, discuss what it means that our perceptional system has been shaped by the properties of the environment and provide two examples to support your point. In addition, discuss the strengths and limitations of human facial recognition and list some of the problems that make facial recognition and/or object recognition difficult for computers, but not for humans.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cgxsv1riJhI