Sensing in the Nervous System

What does the term "Sensing" refer to in the context of the nervous system?

• The process of moving muscles in response to stimuli

• The cognitive recognition of different smells

• Sensory cells translating stimuli (chemical, electromagnetic, mechanical) into action potentials

• The transmission of signals to the brain for interpretation

What are general sensory receptors typically made of?

• Specialized muscle fibers

• Modified nerve endings of sensory neurons

• Bone marrow cells

• Blood vessels

Touch is considered a general (somatic) sense because it relates to our ability to detect:

• Sound and vibration only

• Light and color only

• Pressure, pain, temperature, and tension through a variety of general sensory receptors

• Taste and smell only

What are considered special senses?

• Touch, pressure, temperature

• Vision, smell, taste, hearing, and equilibrium

• Pain, itch, proprioception

• Hunger, thirst, fatigue

What is the dominant sense of humans?

• Taste

• Hearing

• Vision

• Smell

What do photoreceptors in our eyes convert light energy into?

• Chemical energy

• Mechanical energy

• Electrical energy

• Thermal energy

Where do the electrical signals created by photoreceptors travel to?

• The heart

• The lungs

• The muscles

• The brain

What is the function of eyebrows?

• To produce and secrete tears

• To keep sweat and sunlight out of eyes

• To trigger reflexive blinking to keep eyes moist

• To drain the secretions from eyes

What does the lacrimal apparatus consist of?

• Eyebrows and eyelashes

• The lacrimal gland and ducts that drain the secretions

• Eyelids and the bony orbits

• Accessory structures that protect the eye

What are the eyes surrounded by for protection?

• Lacrimal apparatus

• Accessory structures

• Protective fat and the bony orbits in the skull

• Eyelids and eyelashes