Cog Sci C100 Midterm 1 | Questions and Correct
Answers | Latest Update 2024/2025 | Graded A+
Models of Object Perception - answer Template Matching Model
Feature-Analysis Model
Recognition by components Model
Prototype Model
Template Matching Model - answer Object perception involves a comparison of the stimulus
with a set of templates or specific patterns stored in memory.
Problem w/ this model:
cannot account for complexity and flexibility of object recognition (e.g individual differences in
handwriting)
Feature-analysis model - answer Discrimination of objects is based on a small number of
characteristics of stimuli
e.g People are faster at deciding whether the letters "G" and "M" are different than letters "P" and
"R"
Supported by neurological evidence - some neurons respond only to horizontal lines, others to
diagonals, etc.
Problem w/ this model:
Cannot explain recognition of complex objects with features that move/distort (e.g
horse/kangaroo)
recognition by components model - answer View that an object is represented as an arrangement
of simple 3-D shapes called geons.
-Cup/pail composed of cylinder and curved tube geons in a particular arrangement
, Prototype Model - answer Object perception involves a comparison of the stimulus with an
ideal, abstract example
- people are faster at identifying a sparrow as a bird than penguin
- one of the most famous models in all of cognitive psychology
-it has been hypothesized that our sensory systems act primarily as a selective filtering
mechanism
- But prototype theory suggests that our minds can also perceive objects in a very different way...
-that which is essential is invisible to the eye
Selective Filtering Mechanism (Baseline of the Prototype Model) - answer - This filter sorts
things according to a limited number of variables (e.g warm, unpleasant, green) out of which we
construct our world
Mindfulness - answer An alternative mode of perception.
Mindfulness is largely about seeing the "suchness" of things, that is , seeing things directly
without conceptual filters
- Our preconceived notions prevent us from seeing the real things in front of us.
Human Neurons - answer • Many different neurons connect to the dendrites of each neuron
-Some produce excitatory effect; others produce inhibitory effect
- There are also different levels of intensity of the effects
• If the activation of the neuron reaches a certain minimum threshold, the neuron will fire.
Artificial neural networks - answer • The nodes or neurons are organized into layers in much the
same way that human neural networks are
• The weights attached to the connections between pairs of units in adjacent layers determine the
overall behavior of the network
,− This is similar to the way in which excitatory and inhibitory neurons of various strengths
connect to a particular neuron in human neural networks
• The bias term indicates what the weighted sum needs to be before the node/neuron will activate
− This is similar to the threshold necessary for activation of a neuron in human neural networks
Two Pathways of Visual Perception - answer Active Pathway:
Activated when attention is directed actively towards a target
(I.e looking at every individual component in the circle example.)
Passive Pathway:
Activated when attention is based on "gut instinct"
eg. example with circles where participants used the secondary "passive" pathway to perform
task.
-Visual perception did not go through visual cortex
-Instead simply makes a very short loop through the limbic system: the emotional, instinctual
center of the brain.
As humans, we are cognitive beings who - answer • Acquire information about the world around
us
• Integrate that information with prior knowledge from our stored memory
• Store that knowledge in our memory so we can use it later to help us achieve our goals
First Step in the process of acquiring knowledge about the world involves: - answer Sensation
and Perception
Sensation - answer process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive stimulus
energies from the environment and transduce them into neural impulses
Perception - answer process of interpreting and organizing sensory information through use of
previous knowledge
, Evidence of two pathways - answer Rats auditory cortex was destroyed and then they were
exposed to a tone followed by an electric shock.
rats learned to fear tone, though they could not "hear it"
possible explanation:
the sound took the direct rout from ear to thalamus to amygdala, bypassing higher avenues.
Blindsight and the Second Pathway - answer the second pathway has been used to account for
this phenomenon where people who are blind due to damage in their visual cortex can "guess"
significantly above chance
- The Identity or location of particular objects
- The particular emotions expressed by a face in a photo in front of them
-> proposed mechanism for intuition
face recognition - answer Face Recognition is "special"
- Single cell recordings of monkeys show activation of particular cells in lower temporal lobe
only when full-face photos of other monkeys are presented
Recognition accuracy for faces and houses: parts vs. whole - answer •Participants were shown
series of faces with person's name and series of houses with owner's name
•Later on recognition test, they showed greater recall of
- Parts of Houses
-Whole Faces
People tend to perceive women more in parts
Prosopagnosia - answer failure to recognize particular people by the sight of their faces
-After stroke, a sheep rancher could not recognize people but could recognize sheep
Importance of Eyes - answer 70-90% of famous portrait painting sampled from the last 5
centuries have an eye at or within 5% of the painting's exact centerline
Answers | Latest Update 2024/2025 | Graded A+
Models of Object Perception - answer Template Matching Model
Feature-Analysis Model
Recognition by components Model
Prototype Model
Template Matching Model - answer Object perception involves a comparison of the stimulus
with a set of templates or specific patterns stored in memory.
Problem w/ this model:
cannot account for complexity and flexibility of object recognition (e.g individual differences in
handwriting)
Feature-analysis model - answer Discrimination of objects is based on a small number of
characteristics of stimuli
e.g People are faster at deciding whether the letters "G" and "M" are different than letters "P" and
"R"
Supported by neurological evidence - some neurons respond only to horizontal lines, others to
diagonals, etc.
Problem w/ this model:
Cannot explain recognition of complex objects with features that move/distort (e.g
horse/kangaroo)
recognition by components model - answer View that an object is represented as an arrangement
of simple 3-D shapes called geons.
-Cup/pail composed of cylinder and curved tube geons in a particular arrangement
, Prototype Model - answer Object perception involves a comparison of the stimulus with an
ideal, abstract example
- people are faster at identifying a sparrow as a bird than penguin
- one of the most famous models in all of cognitive psychology
-it has been hypothesized that our sensory systems act primarily as a selective filtering
mechanism
- But prototype theory suggests that our minds can also perceive objects in a very different way...
-that which is essential is invisible to the eye
Selective Filtering Mechanism (Baseline of the Prototype Model) - answer - This filter sorts
things according to a limited number of variables (e.g warm, unpleasant, green) out of which we
construct our world
Mindfulness - answer An alternative mode of perception.
Mindfulness is largely about seeing the "suchness" of things, that is , seeing things directly
without conceptual filters
- Our preconceived notions prevent us from seeing the real things in front of us.
Human Neurons - answer • Many different neurons connect to the dendrites of each neuron
-Some produce excitatory effect; others produce inhibitory effect
- There are also different levels of intensity of the effects
• If the activation of the neuron reaches a certain minimum threshold, the neuron will fire.
Artificial neural networks - answer • The nodes or neurons are organized into layers in much the
same way that human neural networks are
• The weights attached to the connections between pairs of units in adjacent layers determine the
overall behavior of the network
,− This is similar to the way in which excitatory and inhibitory neurons of various strengths
connect to a particular neuron in human neural networks
• The bias term indicates what the weighted sum needs to be before the node/neuron will activate
− This is similar to the threshold necessary for activation of a neuron in human neural networks
Two Pathways of Visual Perception - answer Active Pathway:
Activated when attention is directed actively towards a target
(I.e looking at every individual component in the circle example.)
Passive Pathway:
Activated when attention is based on "gut instinct"
eg. example with circles where participants used the secondary "passive" pathway to perform
task.
-Visual perception did not go through visual cortex
-Instead simply makes a very short loop through the limbic system: the emotional, instinctual
center of the brain.
As humans, we are cognitive beings who - answer • Acquire information about the world around
us
• Integrate that information with prior knowledge from our stored memory
• Store that knowledge in our memory so we can use it later to help us achieve our goals
First Step in the process of acquiring knowledge about the world involves: - answer Sensation
and Perception
Sensation - answer process by which our sensory receptors and nervous system receive stimulus
energies from the environment and transduce them into neural impulses
Perception - answer process of interpreting and organizing sensory information through use of
previous knowledge
, Evidence of two pathways - answer Rats auditory cortex was destroyed and then they were
exposed to a tone followed by an electric shock.
rats learned to fear tone, though they could not "hear it"
possible explanation:
the sound took the direct rout from ear to thalamus to amygdala, bypassing higher avenues.
Blindsight and the Second Pathway - answer the second pathway has been used to account for
this phenomenon where people who are blind due to damage in their visual cortex can "guess"
significantly above chance
- The Identity or location of particular objects
- The particular emotions expressed by a face in a photo in front of them
-> proposed mechanism for intuition
face recognition - answer Face Recognition is "special"
- Single cell recordings of monkeys show activation of particular cells in lower temporal lobe
only when full-face photos of other monkeys are presented
Recognition accuracy for faces and houses: parts vs. whole - answer •Participants were shown
series of faces with person's name and series of houses with owner's name
•Later on recognition test, they showed greater recall of
- Parts of Houses
-Whole Faces
People tend to perceive women more in parts
Prosopagnosia - answer failure to recognize particular people by the sight of their faces
-After stroke, a sheep rancher could not recognize people but could recognize sheep
Importance of Eyes - answer 70-90% of famous portrait painting sampled from the last 5
centuries have an eye at or within 5% of the painting's exact centerline
