Introduction

What is the difference between vision and perception? Where does vision occur and where does perception occur? Vision is the process of detecting light from objects it is a biological process. Whereas perception is the way we make sense of a visual image it is a psychological process that helps us to make sense of the image.

Lesson objectives
To identify the key parts of the eye and brain for vision To describe how each of these parts contributes to vision and perception

The structure of the eye

The light reflected from an object enters the eye and makes an image on the retina, a layer at the back of the eye. The retina is sensitive to light and sends nerve impulses to the brain, via the optic nerve. This is possible because the retina is covered with thousands of cells which can detect light. There are two types of retina cells: 1) Rods, 2) Cones

The structure of the retina

Rods are sensitive to light and respond to movement. They will respond even in very dim light. They are found mainly around the edge of the retina (see below). Cones are mainly found in the centre of the retina, in a special area just opposite the pupil (fovea). They help us to see clearly and in detail, as there are lots of cones pack very close together. Cones are less sensitive to light; they only work in bright light. Unlike rods, cones can detect different colours of light. Our colour vision therefore relies on our cones.

The optic nerve

Rods and cones are special nerve cells. When enough light falls on a rod or cone, the cell responds by sending a nerve impulse. Nerve impulses travel along other nerve cells which are bundled together in the optic nerve. The nerve impulses in the optic nerve are carried to the brain.

How do we see the world? 01 The biology of the eye

The blind spot

Blind spot test: Cover your right eye. Hold the image about 30cm away from your head. With your left eye, look at the red dot. Slowly bring the image closer while looking at the red dot. At a certain distance, the blue line will appear solid. Now reverse the process. Cover your left eye and look at the dot with your right eye. Move the image slowly closer to you and the gap should disappear.

At the point on the retina where the optic nerves leaves the eye, there is no space for any rods or cones. This little area is therefore blind. If the light from an object falls on to the part of the retina there are no light-sensitive cells to detect it. This area of the retina is called the blind spot. There is a blind spot in each eye. You might be surprised that you dont notice your blind spot. Why isnt part of the world missing? The reason is that the two blind spots dont overlap so even if one eye cant see something, the other one can.

The optic chiasma

Information from each eye goes to both sides of the brain. Some from the left eye goes to the left side of the brain and some to the right. Similarly, some information from the right eye goes to the left side of the brain, some to the right. Information from the left and right eye crosses over at a point called the optic chiasma. (It has his name because optic relates to light and the Greek letter Chi is shaped like a big cross X). This is the shape of the nerves as they cross over on the way to the opposite side of the brain.

The brain
Many perceptual processes happen in an area called the visual cortex. You can see where this is in the artwork below. The job of the visual cortex is to interpret the information from the rods and cones.

How do we see the world? 01 The biology of the eye