PHYSIOLOGY

Chapter: 2
PowerPoint Slides

Human Factor Engineering-490220

Lect : 04
Dept of Aero & Astro
Institute of Space Technology
Thursday, March 19,
2015

Human Factor Engineering

490220
Lect : 05

MENTAL PROCESSES
OUTLINE
1. Attention
2. Perception
3. Sensation Vision, Hearing, Taste, Smell &
Balance.
4. Memory
5. Emotions, motivation
6. Thinking and intelligence
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2015

Human Factor Engineering

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MANTAL PROCESSES
Human capabilities and limitations
Eureka!
We will change the human!

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2015

Human Factor Engineering

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MANTAL PROCESSES
1. Attention and perception

How methodical should you be?

Do you notice the small things?
Are you being constantly distracted by the actions
of other people, whether for your interpretation of
something or just to supply some extra grunt on a
difficult task?
Human Factor Engineering
Thursday, March 19,
2015

490220
Lect : 05

Attention and Perception

How readily can you pick up the thread of your thoughts
from before the disturbance?
Do you keep mental or written notes of the stages of
work carried out to aid you?
How have you interpreted the maintenance procedure
from the manual?

Thursday, March 19,

2015

Human Factor Engineering

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Sensation and Perception

Sensation
The processes by which our sense organs receive
information from the environment.

Transduction
The process by which physical energy is converted into
sensory neural impulses.

Perception
The processes by which people select, organize,
and interpret sensations ie., conscious awareness

Cerebral cortex function

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Perceptual Organization

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Form Perception
Depth Perception
Motion Perception
Perceptual Constancy

Human Factor Engineering

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Perceptual Interpretation
Sensory Deprivation and Restored
Vision
Perceptual Adaptation
Perceptual Set
Perception and the Human Factor

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2015

Human Factor Engineering

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Sensation & Perception

How do we construct our representations of the
external world?
To represent the world, we must detect physical
energy (a stimulus) from the environment and
convert it into neural signals. This is a process
called sensation.
When we select, organize, and interpret our
sensations, the process is called perception.
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Sensation and
Perception

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The Forest Has Eyes, Bev Doolittle

Our
sensory
and
perceptual
processes
work
together
to help us
sort out
complex
processes

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Sensation
Bottom-Up Processing
analysis that begins with the sense
receptors and works up to the brains
integration of sensory information

Top-Down Processing
information processing guided by
higher-level mental processes
as when we construct perceptions
drawing on our experience and
expectations

Bottom-up Processing
Analysis of the stimulus begins with the sense
receptors and works up to the level of the brain
and mind.

Letter A is really a black blotch broken down into

features by the brain that we perceive as an A.
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Top-Down Processing
Information processing guided by higher-level
mental processes as we construct perceptions,
drawing on our experience and expectations.

THE CHT
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Sensation- Basic Principles

Psychophysics
study of the relationship between
physical characteristics of stimuli
and our psychological experience
of them
Light- brightness
Sound- volume
Pressure- weight
Taste- sweetness

Sensation- Thresholds
Absolute Threshold
minimum stimulation needed to detect
a particular stimulus 50% of the time

Difference Threshold
minimum difference between two
stimuli required for detection 50% of the
time
just noticeable difference (JND)

Sensation- Thresholds
Signal Detection Theory
predicts how and when we detect the
presence of a faint stimulus (signal) amid
background stimulation (noise)
assumes that there is no single absolute
threshold
detection depends partly on persons
experience
expectations
motivation
level of fatigue

Making Sense of Complexity

Our sensory and perceptual processes work
together to help us sort out complex images.

The Forest Has Eyes, Bev Doolittle

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2015

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Sensing the World

Senses are natures gift that suit an organisms
needs.
A frog feeds on flying insects; a male silkworm
moth is sensitive to female attractant odor; and we
as human beings are sensitive to sound frequencies
that represent the range of human voice.

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Exploring the Senses

What stimuli cross our threshold for
conscious awareness?

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Psychophysics
A study of the relationship between physical
characteristics of stimuli and our psychological
experience with them.

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Physical World

Psychological
World

Light

Brightness

Sound

Volume

Pressure

Weight

Sugar

Sweet

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Thresholds

Proportion of Yes Responses

0.00
0.50
1.00

Absolute Threshold: Minimum stimulation needed

to detect a particular stimulus 50% of the time.

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Intensity
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Subliminal Threshold
Subliminal Threshold:
When stimuli are below
ones absolute threshold for
conscious awareness.

Kurt Scholz/ Superstock

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Webers Law
Two stimuli must differ by a constant minimum
percentage (rather than a constant amount), to be
perceived as different. Weber fraction: k = I/I.

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Stimulus

Constant (k)

Light

8%

Weight

2%

Tone

3%

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Sensory Adaptation
Diminished sensitivity as a consequence of
constant stimulation.

Put a band aid on your arm and after awhile

you dont sense it.
Human Factor Engineering

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Now you see, now you dont

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Key Takeaways
Sensation is the process of receiving
information from the environment through
our sensory organs. Perception is the
process of interpreting and organizing the
incoming information in order that we can
understand it and react accordingly.
Although our experiences of the world are
rich and complex, humans - like all
species - have their own adapted sensory
strengths and sensory limitations.
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Key Takeaways
Sensation and perception work
together in a fluid, continuous
process.
Our judgments in detection tasks are
influenced by both the absolute
threshold of the signal as well as our
current motivations and experiences.
Signal detection analysis is used to
differentiate sensitivity from
response biases.
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Key Takeaways
The difference threshold, or just noticeable
difference, is the ability to detect the smallest
change in a stimulus about 50% of the time.
According to Weber's law, the just noticeable
difference increases in proportion to the total
intensity of the stimulus.
Research has found that stimuli can influence
behavior even when they are presented below
the absolute threshold (i.e., subliminally). The
effectiveness of subliminal advertising, however,
has not been shown to be of large magnitude.
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Assignment No: 2
Exercises and Critical Thinking
The accidental shooting of one's own soldiers (friendly fire) frequently
occurs in wars. Based on what you have learned about sensation,
perception, and psychophysics, why do you think soldiers might
mistakenly fire on their own soldiers?
If we pick up two letters, one that weighs 1 ounce and one that weighs 2
ounces, we can notice the difference. But if we pick up two packages, one
that weighs 3 pounds 1 ounce and one that weighs 3 pounds 2 ounces, we
can't tell the difference. Why?
Take a moment and lie down quietly in your bedroom. Notice the variety
and levels of what you can see, hear, and feel. Does this experience help
you understand the idea of the absolute threshold?

Submit on 31st March 2015 to CR Mr Zeeshan.

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