Sensory System quiz #1 Flashcards
Sensory System quiz #1
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What is the primary function of the sensory system in animals?
The sensory system detects and processes environmental stimuli through specialized receptors, allowing organisms to perceive and interact with their environment. How do sensory receptors convert external stimuli into signals the nervous system can interpret?
Sensory receptors transduce external stimuli into graded potentials, which can lead to action potentials that transmit information to the brain. What is sensory adaptation and why is it important?
Sensory adaptation is the process by which sensory receptors become less responsive to constant stimuli over time, allowing organisms to focus on new or changing stimuli. Describe the role of mechanoreceptors in the sensory system.
Mechanoreceptors respond to physical stimuli such as pressure or touch by opening ion channels, leading to changes in membrane potential and signal transmission. What types of stimuli do thermoreceptors and nociceptors detect?
Thermoreceptors detect changes in temperature, while nociceptors respond to tissue damage and can lead to the perception of pain. How do hair cells function in the auditory and vestibular systems?
Hair cells have stereocilia that bend in response to physical stimuli, opening ion channels and generating receptor potentials that contribute to hearing and balance. Explain the process by which the cochlea detects sound.
Sound waves cause the basilar membrane in the cochlea to vibrate, bending hair cells in the organ of Corti, which transduce these vibrations into electrical signals sent to the brain. What is the function of the semicircular canals in the inner ear?
The semicircular canals detect rotational motion and contribute to the sense of balance by sensing fluid movement that stimulates hair cells. How do rods and cones differ in their function within the retina?
Rods detect low levels of light and are responsible for black-and-white vision, while cones function in bright light and enable color vision. What is the role of the fovea in vision?
The fovea is a small pit in the retina densely packed with cones, providing the clearest and most detailed vision. Describe the pathway of visual information from photoreceptors to the brain.
Photoreceptors generate graded potentials that are relayed to bipolar cells, then to ganglion cells, whose axons form the optic nerve and transmit signals to the brain. How does binocular vision contribute to depth perception?
Binocular vision provides two slightly different images from each eye, which the brain compares to perceive depth and three-dimensional structure. What are chemoreceptors and what senses do they mediate?
Chemoreceptors detect chemical stimuli and mediate the senses of taste (gustation) and smell (olfaction). List the five basic tastes detected by taste receptors and the type of molecules associated with each.
The five basic tastes are salty (sodium ions), sour (hydrogen ions), sweet (carbohydrates), umami (amino acids/proteins), and bitter (potentially toxic compounds). How do olfactory receptors detect and process odorants?
Olfactory receptors bind airborne odorant molecules, triggering changes in membrane potential; signals are then processed in the olfactory bulb, where neurons of the same receptor type converge. What are pheromones and how are they detected in mammals?
Pheromones are chemical signals that affect the behavior and physiology of others in the same species, detected by the vomeronasal organ in the olfactory system.
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