Perception (PSY 323) 41215

Spring 2024, MWF 10:00 – 11:00, ECJ 1.222

Instructor: Robbe Goris (email: Robbe.Goris@utexas.edu)

Office: SEA 5.520
Office hours: Online, by appointment
Modality: In person

Content:
To interact with the environment, organisms need a window on the world. Perceptual systems are
that window. Everything that we –our conscious “selves”– know about the world around us is
based on information extracted by our visual, auditory, tactile, olfactory, and gustatory system.
This lecture course provides an introduction to the scientific study of our perceptual systems.
Course material will cover the physical and biological basis of our perceptual experience,
including the physics of light, the biochemistry of retinal light transduction, the neural code used
to analyze images in the visual cortex, and the perceptual consequences of visual adaptation. We
will primarily, but not exclusively, focus on the visual system. It is assumed that you have a
background in math and science commensurate with a sophomore college education.

Prerequisites:
The Psychology Department will drop all students who do not meet the following prerequisites:
(a) PSY 301 with a C or better
(b) PSY 418 (or an equivalent listed in the course schedule) with a C or better
(c) Upper-Division standing (60 hours completed)

Classes:
The class will be taught in-person.

Writing:
This course carries the Writing flag. Writing flag courses are designed to give students
experience with writing in an academic discipline. In this class, you can expect to write regularly
during the semester, complete substantial writing projects, and receive feedback from your
instructor to help you improve your writing. You will also have the opportunity to revise one or
more assignments, and you will be asked to read and discuss your peers’ work. The writing
assignments consists of (1) writing a 3 page critique of a scientific publication selected in
consultation with the instructor in which you discuss the aims, methods, results, and strengths
and weaknesses of the work (submission deadline: 04/01); (2) reading and discussing your
peers’ critiques in class; (3) revising your critique in light of the feedback received from peers
and instructor (submission deadline: 04/18); and (4) delivering an oral presentation of the
critique.

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Plagiarism and Academic Integrity:
Using someone else’s work in your own writing without giving proper credit is considered
plagiarism, a serious form of academic dishonesty that can result in severe penalties. Copying
someone else’s work, buying a paper and submitting it as your own, copying and pasting text
(even with changes), or borrowing images from an online source, are some examples of
plagiarism. Even if you plagiarize accidentally, you can be held responsible and penalized.

Learning to cite sources appropriately is an important part of becoming a professional. When you
are unsure about citation, you are encouraged to ask your instructor (who is already an expert
in the discipline) what is appropriate in the context of your assignment. Consultants at The
University Writing Center can also help you determine whether you are citing sources correctly
—and they have helpful guides online for using direct quotations and paraphrasing. Reviewing
those skills will help you feel confident that you are handling sources professionally in your
writing.

You can read the University’s definition of plagiarism and other forms of academic dishonesty in
Sec. 11–402 of the Student Conduct Code. For more information, visit the Dean of Students’ site.

Grades:
Two one-hour exams, writing assignments, and a comprehensive final exam will be given in this
course. Exams will be a mixture of multiple choice and short answer questions. The two best
exams will each be worth one third of the grade, the writing assignments will together also be
worth one third of the grade. The worst exam will not contribute to the final grade. Grade cutoffs
for this course are firm (no curve).

Grade Cutoff
A 94%
A- 90%
B+ 87%
B 84%
B- 80%
C+ 77%
C 74%
C- 70%
D 65%
F <65%

Textbook and readings:

Wolfe et al (2018), Sensation & Perception (fifth edition), Sunderland: Sinauer
Textbook extras website: http://sites.sinauer.com/wolfe5e/
List of scientific publications for writing assignments (see end of this document).
Basic course materials (e.g., slides with notes) will be available (without charge) via Canvas.

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Sharing of Course Materials is Prohibited:
No materials used in this class, including, but not limited to, lecture hand-outs, videos,
assessments (quizzes, exams, papers, projects, homework assignments), in-class materials,
review sheets, and additional problem sets, may be shared online or with anyone outside of the
class unless you have my explicit, written permission. Unauthorized sharing of materials
promotes cheating. It is a violation of the University’s Student Honor Code and an act of
academic dishonesty. I am well aware of the sites used for sharing materials, and any materials
found online that are associated with you, or any suspected unauthorized sharing of materials,
will be reported to Student Conduct and Academic Integrity in the Office of the Dean of
Students. These reports can result in sanctions, including failure in the course.

Students with disabilities:

The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations
for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact Services for Students with
Disabilities, 471-6259, http://diversity.utexas.edu/

Title IX Reporting:
Title IX is a federal law that protects against sex and gender-based discrimination, sexual
harassment, sexual assault, sexual misconduct, dating/domestic violence and stalking at federally
funded educational institutions. UT Austin is committed to fostering a learning and working
environment free from discrimination in all its forms. When sexual misconduct occurs in our
community, the university can:
1. Intervene to prevent harmful behavior from continuing or escalating.
2. Provide support and remedies to students and employees who have experienced harm or have
become involved in a Title IX investigation.
3. Investigate and discipline violations of the university’s relevant policies.

Under Senate Bill 212 (SB 212), the professor and TAs for this course are required to report for
further investigation any information concerning incidents of sexual harassment, sexual assault,
dating violence, and stalking committed by or against a UT student or employee. Federal law and
university policy also requires reporting incidents of sex- and gender-based discrimination and
sexual misconduct (collectively known as Title IX incidents). This means we cannot keep
confidential information about any such incidents that you share with us. If you need to talk with
someone who can maintain confidentiality, please contact University Health Services
(512-471-4955 or 512-475-6877) or the UT Counseling and Mental Health Center
(512-471-3515 or 512-471-2255). We strongly urge you to make use of these services for any
needed support and that you report any Title IX incidents to the Title IX Office.

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Tentative schedule of lectures:
Date Topic Reading
01/17 Syllabus/Introduction Chapter 1
01/19 Introduction Chapter 1
01/22 Introduction Chapter 1

01/24 First steps in vision Chapter 2

01/26 First steps in vision Chapter 2

01/29 Spatial vision Chapter 3

01/31 Spatial vision Chapter 3
02/02 Spatial vision Chapter 3

02/05 Perceiving objects Chapter 4

02/07 Perceiving objects Chapter 4
02/09 Perceiving objects Chapter 4

02/12 Perception of color Chapter 5

02/14 Perception of color Chapter 5
02/16 Perception of color Chapter 5

02/19 Binocular vision Chapter 6

02/21 Binocular vision Chapter 6
02/23 Binocular vision Chapter 6

02/26 Attention and perception Chapter 7

02/28 Attention and perception Chapter 7
03/01 Review class Chapter 1–5

03/04 Exam 1 Chapter 1–5

03/06 Visual motion perception Chapter 8
03/08 Visual motion perception Chapter 8

03/18 Hearing: Physiology and psychoacoustics Chapter 9

03/20 Hearing: Physiology and psychoacoustics Chapter 9
03/22 Hearing: Physiology and psychoacoustics Chapter 9

03/25 The vestibular system Chapter 12

03/27 The vestibular system Chapter 12
03/29 Review class Chapter 6–9, 12

04/01 Exam 2 Chapter 6–9, 12

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04/03 Writing – peer feedback
04/05 Writing – peer feedback

04/08 Writing – peer feedback

04/10 Writing – peer feedback
04/12 Revise paper

04/15 Revise paper

04/17 Revise paper
04/19 Oral paper presentations

04/22 Oral paper presentations

04/24 Oral paper presentations
04/26 Oral paper presentations

04/29 Review class Chapter 1–9, 12

05/04 Final exam (ECJ 1.222, 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm) Chapter 1–9, 12

List of scientific publications for writing assignments

Every student will select one paper from the list for their writing assignments. Each paper can
only be selected by one student. Check with the instructor whether the paper you prefer is still
available. The sooner you commit to a paper, the more choice options will be available to you.

Chapter 1 – Introduction & Research tools

1. Logothetis et al (2001) – Neurophysiological investigation of the basis of the fMRI signal.

2. Ernst and banks (2002) – Humans integrate visual and haptic information in a statistically
optimal fashion.

3. Boundy-Singer et al (2023) – Confidence reflects a noisy decision reliability estimate.

Chapter 2 – The first steps in vision

4. Poletti et al (2017) – Selective attention within the foveola.

5. Spillmann et al (2006) – Perceptual filling-in from the edge of the blind spot

6. Mante et al (2005) – Independence of luminance and contrast in natural scenes and in the
early visual system.

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Chapter 3 – Spatial vision
7. Campbell & Robson (1968) – Application of Fourier analysis to the visibility of gratings.

8. Priebe et al (2004) – The contribution of spike threshold to the dichotomy of cortical simple
and complex cells.

9. Norcia et al (1990) – Development of contrast sensitivity in the human infant.

Chapter 4 – Object recognition

10. Freeman, Ziemba et al (2013) – A functional and perceptual signature of the second visual
area in primates.

11. Balas et al (2009) – A summary-statistic representation in peripheral vision explains visual

crowding.

12. Yamins et al (2014) – Performance-optimized hierarchical models predict neural responses in

higher visual cortex.

Chapter 5 – Color perception

13. Hansen et al (2006) – Memory modulates color appearance.

14. Hansen et al (2009) – Color perception in the intermediate periphery of the visual field.

15. Sasaki and Watanabe (2004) – The primary visual cortex fills in color.

Chapter 6 – Binocular vision

16. Hayhoe et al. (2009) – The role of binocular vision in walking.

17. Cumming & Parker (1997) – Responses of primary visual cortical neurons to binocular
disparity without depth perception.

Chapter 7 – Attention and Perception

18. Carrasco et al (2004) – Attention alters appearance.

19. Brefczynski & DeYoe (1999) – A physiological correlate of the ‘spotlight’ of visual
attention.

20. Kristjanson (2015) – Reconsidering visual search.

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Chapter 8 – Visual motion perception
21. Salzman et al (1990) – Cortical microstimulation influences perceptual judgements of
motion direction.

22. Kohn & Movshon (2004) – Adaptation changes the direction tuning of macaque MT
neurons.

Chapter 9 – Hearing
23. McDermott et al (2010) – Individual differences reveal the basis of consonance.

24. Schweinberger et al (2008) – Auditory adaptation in voice perception.

25. Hofman et al (1998) – Relearning sound localization with new ears.

Chapter 12 – Vestibular system

26. Fetsch et al (2013) – Neural correlates of reliability-based cue weighting during multi
sensory integration.