PSYC 302 Perception

This course focuses on how sensory systems function, with emphasis on quantitative methodologies, neurophysiological mechanisms, structure/function relationships, and ecological contexts. How humans perceive the world is situated in a comparative landscape -- that is, human are assumed to be creatures with much in common with other creatures and yet different in some crucial ways tied to their evolutionary history and habitats. Attention is paid to phenomenology and philosophical issues, such as the relationship between perception and "reality." This course is distinguished from cognitive or social psychology approaches to perception, by virtue of its focus on evolutionarily old, fully embodied, and sensuous experience.