Chapter 40

How do the senses encode the intensity of a stimulus? The type of stimulus?

What mechanism does our body use to sense whether a substance is hot or cold?

Why are we apparently able to distinguish hundreds of different flavors if we have only five types of taste receptors? How are we able to distinguish so many different odors?

Describe the structure and function of the various parts of the human ear by tracing the route of a sound wave from the air outside the ear to action potentials in the auditory nerve.

How does the structure of the inner ear allow for the perception of pitch? Of loudness?

How does the eye's lens change shape to allow focusing of distant objects? What defects make focusing on distant objects impossible, and what is this condition called? What type of lens can be used to correct it, and how does the lens do so?

Differentiate between human olfactory and taste receptors.

Is it more advantageous to have eyes in front of the head than to have them at the sides? Justify your answer.