Psychology 3203

Questions about Vision to Ponder before Test 3

1. What is a binocular depth cue? How can you tell the difference between a binocular depth cue and a monocular depth cue?

2. Be able to identify the difference between corresponding and noncorresponding retinal points. What conditions produce each?

3. What is the horopter? Where is the horopter located in space? What is special about the retinal images of objects that are on the horopter? What is Panum's Area?

4. Diagram two objects, one of which is in front of the horopter and another object that is beyond the horopter, and indicate where their retinal images will be located. Understand the difference between crossed and uncrossed disparity.

5. Imagine that you are sitting in class and you look at various people/objects. Explain how retinal disparity changes as you look about the room.

6. Understand how binocular stereograms, anaglyphs, and single image stereograms produce their depth effects. What is important about a random-dot stereogram?

7. What is a monocular depth cue? What are examples of monocular depth cues? How/why do the monocular depth cues work? How does "linear perspective" work?

8. What is an "Ames room"? Understand how an Ames room is constructed to create its illusion. Is it a size illusion or a depth illusion?

9. What is speed constancy? Does speed of an image across the retina predict our experience of object speed? Why or why not?

10. What is "corollary discharge theory"? Understand how corollary discharge theory applies to concrete situations in which your eyes may be moving (or not) and an object may be moving (or not).

11. Understand how corollary discharge theory accounts for the case examples we discussed in class.

12. What is the autokinetic effect? Explain how corollary discharge theory accounts for these effects.

13. What is stroboscopic motion? Why does the effect happen according to Helmholtz? Apply this explanation to the effects seen in the wagon wheel illusion.

14. What is the difference between beta and phi motion? What is seen in each case? Which one did Gestalt psychology consider more important? Why?

15. What is motion parallax? How does it operate? How does it contribute to object identification?

16. What is a "Gestalt"? What do we do when looking at a scene, according to Gestalt psychologists?

17. What are the Gestalt grouping principles and how do they operate? What is a problem with the Gestalt psychology approach to analysis of a "Gestalt?