CHAPTER 4

Vision, Hearing and the Sensory Motor System

© 2019, University of Cyberjaya. Please do not reproduce, redistribute or share without the prior express permission of the author.
Vision, Hearing and the Sensory Motor
System

© 2019, University of Cyberjaya. Please do not reproduce, redistribute or share without the prior express permission of the author.
 Somehow a distorted and upside-
down 2-D retinal image is
transformed into the 3-D world we
perceive

What Do We See?
Two types of research needed to
study vision

• Research probing the components of the

visual system
• Research assessing what we see
 No species can see in the dark, but some are
capable of seeing when there is little light

Light can be thought of as

• Particles of energy (photons)
Light Enters the • Waves of electromagnetic radiation
Eye and Reaches
Humans see light between 380-760 nanometers
the Retina

Wavelength – perception of color

Intensity – perception of brightness

FIGURE 6.2 The electromagnetic
spectrum and the colors associated with
the wavelengths that are visible to
humans.
 Light enters the eye through the
pupil, whose size changes in
response to changes in
illumination

The Pupil and the Sensitivity – the ability to see

Lens when light is dim

Acuity – the ability to see details

 Lens – focuses light on the retina

The Pupil and the Ciliary muscles alter the shape of

Lens Continued the lens as needed

Accommodation – the process of

adjusting the lens to bring images
into focus
The human eye.
 The retina is in a sense “inside-out”

• Light passes through several cell layers before reaching its

receptors
The Retina and
Translation of
Vertical pathway – receptors > bipolar cells >
Light into Neural retinal ganglion cells
Signals

Transduction is the conversion of one form of

energy to another. Visual transduction is the
conversion of light to neural signals by the visual
receptors.
 Blind spot: no receptors where information
The Retina and exits the eye
Translation of Light The visual system uses information from cells around the blind spot
for “completion,” filling in the blind spot
into Neural Signals
Fovea: high acuity area at center of retina
Contin
Thinning of the ganglion cell layer reduces distortion due to cells
ued between the pupil and the retina
 Convergence – eyes
must turn slightly
inward when objects
are close
Binocular disparity –
difference between the
Eye Position and images on the two
Binocular Disparity retinas
Both are greater when
objects are close –
provides brain with a 3-
D image and distance
information
 •Color vision is the ability of the eye to detect different
wavelengths of light and to distinguish between
these different wavelengths and their corresponding
colors.

•In the mammalian eye this is achieved by the cone

cells, which are located in and around the fovea near
to the center of the retina.
•The cone cells contain the light-sensitive pigment
Seeing Colors iodopsin, which – according to the trichromatic
theory – exists in three forms, each form occurring in
a different cone cell.
• Normal-sighted individuals have three different types of
cones that mediate color vision. Each of these cone
types is maximally sensitive to a slightly different
wavelength of light

•
The relative stimulation of each type of cone will
determine the color that is interpreted by the brain.

• According to the Young-Helmholtz trichromatic

theory of color vision, all colors in the spectrum
can be produced by combining red, green, and blue.
The three types of cones are each receptive to one of
the colors.
How we hear?

The Auditory
System
 Natural sounds are complex patterns of
vibrations
The
A Fourier analysis breaks natural sounds
down into sine waves
Auditory
There is a complex relationship between
System natural sounds and perceived
frequency
 The relation
between the
physical and
perceptual
dimensions of
sound.
The breaking down of a sound—in
this case, the sound of a clarinet—
into its component sine waves by
Fournier analysis.
  There are three parts of the ear that work
together to pass noise from external sources
through your ear to your brain for information
processing. The three sections are known as; the
inner ear, the middle ear, the outer ear.

Pinna harnesses the sound waves and directs them into the ear canal

Ear canal Sound travels in waves through the ear canal to the eardrum.

Eardrum These incoming sound waves cause the eardrum to vibrate.

 Middle Ear

ossicles  Function of the ossicles: Transmit vibrations of the

eardrum membrane to the oval window

 The ossicles, namely the malleus, incus, and stapes

(ear bones). these three bones are named after their

(stirrup). During shape:

development,
malleusthe auditory ossicles
(“hammer”), incus (anvil),
are the
and first bones to fully ossify and are mature at the
stapes
time of birth, where they do not grow afterwards.

Did you know, ear bones is the smallest bone in the body?
Round
window
 Inner ear

Video
  oval window - connects the middle ear with the inner
Inner Ear ear

 semicircular ducts - filled with fluid; attached to

cochlea and nerves; send information on balance and
head position to the brain

 cochlea - spiral-shaped organ of hearing; transforms

sound into signals that get sent to the brain

 auditory tube - drains fluid from the middle ear into

the throat behind the nose

 The cochlear nerve carries auditory sensory

information from the cochlea of the inner ear directly
to the brain. The other portion of the
vestibulocochlear nerve is the vestibular nerve, which
carries spatial orientation information to the brain
from the semicircular canals, also known as
semicircular ducts.
Insides of a cochlea  The cochlea contains the organ of Corti, which is the
receptor organ for hearing. It consists of tiny hair cells
that translate the fluid vibration of sounds from its
surrounding ducts into electrical impulses that are
carried to the brain by sensory nerves.

 the basilar membrane is found in the cochlea; it

forms the base of the organ of Corti, Movement of
the basilar membrane in response to sound
waves causes the depolarization of hair cells in
the organ of Corti. The hair cells transduce
auditory signals into electrical impulses.
Anatomy of the ear.
 Cochlear coding:

The Ear Different frequencies

produce maximal
Continued stimulation of hair cells at
different points along the
basilar membrane

Tonotopic (frequency)
organization of the basilar
membrane and most
other auditory system
components
 From the Ear to the
Primary Auditory Cortex
The axons of each auditory nerve synapse in the
ipsilateral cochlear nuclei
From there, many projections lead to the superior
olives on both sides of the brain stem
From there, axons project via the lateral
lemniscus to the inferior colliculi
Axons then project from the inferior colliculi to
the medial geniculate nuclei of the thalamus
Thalamic neurons then project to the primary
auditory cortex
Some of the pathways of the
auditory system that lead from one
ear to the cortex.
General location of the primary
auditory cortex and areas of
secondary auditory cortex.
The hypothesized anterior
and posterior auditory
pathways.
The Sensory System
How we sense?
 For example,
striate cortex
receives input
Primary – input mainly from
from the
thalamic relay nuclei lateral
geniculate
nucleus

Principles of
Secondary – input mainly from primary and
Sensory System secondary cortex within the sensory
system
Organization

Association – input from more than one sensory

system, usually from secondary sensory cortex
 Hierarchical Organization
Specificity and Perception –
complexity increases Sensation – detecting a understanding the
with each level stimulus stimulus

Principles of
Sensory System Functional Segregation – distinct
Organization functional areas within a level
Continued

Parallel Processing – simultaneous analysis

of signals along different pathways
 The
hierarchical
organizatio
n of the
sensory
systems.
Two models of sensory system organization:
The former model was hierarchical,
functionally homogeneous, and serial; the
current model, which is more consistent
with the evidence, is hierarchical,
functionally segregated, and parallel.
 SENSATION
Definition of a Sensation S
• Must meet four conditions:
 stimulus or change in environment, activate certain sensory neurons
• form of light, heat, pressure, mechanical energy, or chemical energy
 sensory receptor must convert stimulus to electrical signal which produces one or more nerve impulses if it is
large enough
 nerve impulses must be conducted along a neural pathway from sensory receptor to brain
 region of brain must receive and integrate nerve impulses into a sensation

Characteristics of Sensations
• Perceptions: conscious sensation
 “eyes see” ; specialized sensory neurons integrated in cerebral cortex where they are interpreted
• Adaptation: a decrease in strength of a sensation due to prolonged stimulus which may lead
to perceptions fading or disappearing even though stimulus persists
SOMATOSENSORY
SYSTEM
■ Somatosensations: sensations from your body

■ 3 separate but interacting systems

1. Exteroceptive system
– Senses external stimuli interacting with the skin
2. Proprioceptive system
– Monitors body position
– Receptors in the muscles, joints & organs of balance
3. Interoceptive system
– General info on the internal body conditions
■ Ex: temp, BP
■ 5 exteroceptive sensory systems
1. Visual
2. Auditory (hearing)
3. Somatosensory (touch)
4. Olfactory (smell)
5. Gustatory (taste)
Exteroceptive System

■ 3 distinct divisions for perceiving different types of stimuli

1. Mechanical (touch)
2. Thermal (temperature)
3. Nociceptive (pain)
 Free nerve endings

Encapsulated nerve endings

Mechanoreceptors
Types of
Sensory Thermoreceptors
Receptors Nociceptors

Photoreceptors

Chemoreceptors
Cutaneous Receptors
■ When constant pressure is applied to the skin, there is a burst of firing in all of the receptors,
corresponding to the sensation of touch.
– But after a bit, only the slowly adapting receptors stay active & the sensation changes
(often becoming unnoticeable)
– So to maintain constant input, you move & manipulate objects in your hands
– Stereognosis: identification of objects by touch

■ Each type has its own unique structure, but they all basically work the same way

■ Stimuli to the skin changes the chemistry of the receptor, which changes the permeability
of the receptor cell membrane to ions, which sends a neural signal
Sensory receptors in the skin and subcutaneous layer

a. Meissner corpuscles (Corpuscles of touch)

b. Pacinian corpuscles (Lamellated corpuscles)
c. Ruffini corpuscles (Type II cutaneous
mechanoreceptors)
d. Merkel Disks (Type I cutaneous
mechanoreceptors)
e. Hair Root Plexuses
f. Free nerve Endings
 Sensory receptors in the skin and subcutaneous layer
■ Receptors in the skin; many types
■ Free nerve endings
– Simplest; neuron endings with no specialized
structures
– Sensitive to temperature change & pain

■ Pacinian corpuscles
– Largest & deepest
– Adapt rapidly
– Respond to sudden displacements of skin, not
constant pressure

■ Merkel’s disks
– Adapt slowly
– Respond to gradual skin indentation

■ Ruffini endings
– Adapt slowly
– Respond to
gradual skin
stretch
SOMATIC SENSES
Tactile Sensations (Mechanoreceptors)
 Touch, pressure, vibration
 Detected by encapsulated nerve endings
 Itch, and tickle
 Detected by free nerve endings
 SOMATIC SENSES…continued
■ Touch
– rapidly adapting touch receptors:
■ Corpuscles of touch (Meissner corpulses)_
■ Hair root plexuses_
– slowly adapting touch receptors:
■ Type I cutaneous mechanoreceptors (Merkel disks)
■ Type II cutaneous mechanoreceptors (Ruffini corpulses)
■ Pressure and Vibration
– pressure is a sustained sensation felt over a larger area than touch
■ Pressure receptors:: Type I mechanoreceptors and lamellated (pacinian) corpulses
– lower frequency vibrations: corpulses of touch
– higher frequency vibrations: lamellated corpulse.
■ Itch and tickle
– Itch sensations stimulated by stimulation of free nerve endings by certain chemicals like bradykinin, often a
result of local inflammatory response
Can you tickle yourself? Why or why not? Impulses are conducted to and from cerebellum when you are moving
your fingers and touching yourself does not occur when someone else tickles you
Thermal Sensations
(Thermoreceptors)
■Thermoreceptors: free nerve endings

■ Thermal sensations: coldness and warmth

– Temperatures between 10 and 40C (50-105F)
■activate cold receptors
– located in the epidermis

– Temperatures between 32 and 48C (90- 118F)

■activate warm receptors
– located in the dermis

– Below 10C and above 48C stimulate

■nociceptors
– produce painful sensations
Painful Sensations
(Nociceptors)
■ Nociceptors: free nerve endings
– Found in almost every tissue of body except brain
■ Five stimuli that can cause pain
– excessive stimulus of sensory receptors
■ bright light in your eyes
– excessive stretching of structure
– prolonged muscle contractions
■ hold weight for a long time
– inadequate blood flow to organ
– certain chemical substances
■ Referred pain: pain felt in skin above or located near but not in
organ
■ Fast pain: within 0.1 seconds of stimulus; acute, sharp, or
prickling pain; localized not in deep tissue
■ Slow pain: begins a second or more after stimulus is applied;
chronic burning, aching, throbbing; skin deep tissue and internal
organs
 Inform you consciously and unconsciously of
amount of tension
degree to which your orientation of your
present in your positions of your joints
muscles are contracted head
tendons

Proprioceptive Receptors for these sensations called:

Sensations Proprioreceptors and are located in:
• skeletal muscles, tendons, in and around synovial joints, and in inner ear
(Proprioceptors) • They adapt slowly and only slightly

Kinesthesia: perception of body movements, allows

you to walk, type, or dress without using your eyes
SPECIAL SENSES

OLFACTION: SENSE OF SMELL

(Chemoreceptors)
■ CHARACTERISTICS OF RECEPTORS:
– first-order neuron of
olfactory pathway
– tips are protected by olfactory
hairs
– stimulated by odorants;
inhaled chemicals
– cells live about a month and
then replaced
 GUSTATION: SENSE OF TASTE (Chemoreceptors)
■ CHARACTERISTICS OF RECEPTORS:
– chemicals known as tastants stimulate them
– electrical signal stimulate release of neurotransmitter molecules that bind to gustatory receptors on
dendrites of taste buds’ first-order neurons
– respond to any one of five primary tastes: sweet, sour, bitter, salty, or umami (savory, glutamate
detection)
1.bitter
2.Salty
3.Sour
4.swee
t
VISION
(Photoreceptors)

■ Retina is the beginning of visual pathway

■ Three layers:
– photoreceptor layer, bipolar cell layer, and ganglion cell layer
■ Two types of cells in photoreceptor layer:
– rods (allow us to see shades of gray in dim light, like moonlight)
– cones (stimulated by brighter light- highly acute, color vision)
■ Stimulation of photoreceptors
– photopigment absorbs light ; undergo change in structure to adjust to amount of light
available
■ rods photopigment is rhodopsin
 HEARING AND EQUILIBRIUM (Mechanoreceptors)
■ Ear three principle regions: the outer ear, the middle ear, and the inner ear.

■ Physiology of Hearing
(1) auricle directs sound waves into external auditory canal
(2) sound waves strike eardrum; produce vibrations, eardrum vibrates in
response
(3) central area of eardrum connects to malleus that also starts to
vibrate,
vibration moves from malleus to incus to stapes
(4) stapes moves back and forth, pushes the oval window in and out
(5) movement of oval window sets up fluid pressure waves in cochlea
(6) pressure waves move eventually to membrane covering the round
window causing it to bulge into the middle ear
(7) pressure waves deform walls internal structures pushing
membranes back and forth, creating pressure waves inside cochlear
duct
(8) pressure causes basilar membrane to vibrate, moving hair cells of
the spiral organ release neurotransmitter molecules; sensory
neurons generate nerve impulses along nerve and sound is received
and interpreted
HEARING AND EQUILIBRIUM (Mechanoreceptors)
Physiology of Equilibrium

Static equilibrium

• maintenance of the position of the body relative to the force of gravity; maintains posture
and balance by providing sensory information on the position of the head

Dynamic equilibrium

• maintenance of body position in response to sudden movements such as rotation,

acceleration, and deceleration; reestablish balance to disturbed equilibrium by regulating
sensitivity of hair cells in the ear
Q & A Session

© 2019, University of Cyberjaya. Please do not reproduce, redistribute or share without the prior express permission of the author.
 Next Topic
Development and Plasticity of the Brain

© 2019, University of Cyberjaya. Please do not reproduce, redistribute or share without the prior express permission of the author.
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