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contents

1. 1: General principles
2. 2: The chemical senses
3. 3: The body senses
4. 4: The physics and biology of audition
   • Sound as a physical stimulus
   • The physiology of the auditory system
   • Multiple-choice questions
   • Fill-the-blanks
   • Key terms
   • Essay questions
5. 5: Perception of sound
6. 6: The physics of vision—light and the eye
7. 7: Visual physiology
8. 8: Spatial vision
9. 9: Shape and object perception
10. 10: Depth perception
11. 11: Visual motion perception
12. 12: Colour vision
13. 13: Individual differences in perception

Chapter 4: The physics and biology of audition

Sample Essay Questions

• Simple sound waves have three important features. What are they and how are they measured?
• Describe how Fourier analysis can be used to break down complex sounds into their sine wave components,
• When using Fourier theory to analyse the properties of an acoustic filter, why is it vital that the filter is linear, and what are the three criteria for linearity?
• Describe the main components of the peripheral auditory system, and how they function to transmit sound energy to the central auditory system.
• What is impedance matching, and why is it necessary?
• Is the ear a Fourier analyser?
• How is sound frequency coded in the auditory nerve?
• Explain how the ascending auditory pathway transmits neural information from the cochlea to auditory cortex.
• Which structures and processes are important for sound localisation in the auditory system?
• What is tonotopic organisation, and why is it important in the auditory system?

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