COGS 101A: Sensation and Perception

SPRING, 2018
Lecture: Tuesday/Thursday
12:30– 1:50 in Galbraith Hall 242

TEACHING TEAM
Name Role Office OH Time Contact Information
Location
Drew E. Hoffman, PhD Instructor CSB 245 Thursday 2-3pm cogs101a.ucsd@gmail.com
Josh Davis Teaching SSRB 204 Mon 2:40-3:40pm jdd001@ucsd.edu
Assistant
Eric Morgan Teaching CSB 225 Wed 2-3pm e1morgan@eng.ucsd.edu
Assistant
Yonghoon Chung Instructional Earls Market Wed 11-12pm yhc036@ucsd.edu
Assistant (Warren
college market)
Judy Chun Instructional Muir Woods Wed 1-2pm j5chun@ucsd.edu
Assistant
Jason Guerrero Instructional CSB 114 Fri 2-3pm jcg002@ucsd.edu
Assistant
Xinwen Wang Instructional Starbucks Fri 11am-12pm xiw315@ucsd.edu
Assistant Price Center

The fastest way for you to get a response to an email is to email your section IA or either graduate TA, they
will forward your email to me (Prof. Walker) if I am needed to answer the question.

DISCUSSION SECTIONS
Section Location Day/Time Instructor
A01 PETER 102 Monday 2-2:50pm Jason Guerrero
A02 PCYNH 121 Monday 4-4:50pm Josh Davis
A03 WLH 2111 Wednesday 9-9:50am Eric Morgan
A04 WLH 2111 Wednesday 12-12:50pm Judy Chun
A05 MANDE B-150 Friday 3-3:50pm Xinwen Wang
A06 PCYNH 121 Friday 4-4:50pm Yonghoon Chung

Website: http://tritoned.ucsd.edu/ (There will be a link to COGS 101A in your course list if enrolled)

Use your UCSD email username and password to sign into TritonEd. You can find instructions here:
https://students.ucsd.edu/my-tritonlink/tools/tool-help/about-ted.html
______________________________________________________________________________________________

About this Class

How do we come to experience what is “out there” in our world? The physical stimuli in our environment
interact with our sensory organs, and ultimately produce our subjective experience of reality. The goal of this
course is to develop a basic understanding of the underlying mechanism that make this possible. We will
learn about some of the tools used to study perception, the behavioral and neural evidence that have
informed our current theories, as well as discuss the many mysteries yet to be explained regarding how we
come to have a conscious awareness of the world around us. The majority of the course will focus on vision,
but we will also cover audition, olfaction, taste and touch.

Learning Objectives
-Summarize and interpret classic and current empirical findings in sensation and perception
-Be familiar with the research methods used to study sensation and perception
-Describe the structure of the major sensory systems
-Describe the process of transduction in the major sensory systems
-Describe the neural mechanisms responsible for sensation and perception
-Be familiar with the limitations of our understanding, and the nature of phenomena yet to be
explained
-Practices reading and critically evaluating research in cognitive science

You will need
Sensation and Perception, 10th Ed. By Goldstein & Brockmole
Using the 9th edition seems like a fine alternative. There are minor changes, but the chapter order in the 9th and 10th edition
mostly align. If you choose to use the 9th (or earlier) edition I would recommend comparing the older version to the 10th
edition that is available on reserve in the library.

i>clicker 2, or i>clicker , i>clicker
Available new and used in the university bookstore and online (I’d check online first!)

Clickers
We will be using i>Clickers (i>clicker, i>clicker 2, or i>clicker +) for this class. No other brand of clicker
will work with this system. Clickers are a wonderful way for class to be more interactive and for you to
check your understanding during lectures.

You must register your clickers on TritonEd by Tuesday 4/10/18

Lecture and Attendance
Attendance in this course is important for your success, and you will receive points for participating in class.
It is strongly recommended that you complete the relevant book chapter before they are covered in class. If
you must miss class it is your responsibility to find out what you missed with regard to lecture notes and
announcements by asking a classmate and checking TritonEd. It is possible that the schedule will change, so
it is important you stay updated. If you have missed class we will not have the resources to recap lecture in
office hours, section or via email.
Slides
I will posted lecture slides on the course website before class. You will still need to attend lecture in order to
understand the slides fully. You may be tested on information given in lecture that will not necessarily be
included in the lecture slides. The course will be podcast, but there are often many bugs in the system, so this
is not a guarantee.

Grading
Assignment Percent
Labs 6
Participation 6
Article response paper 6
Midterm 1 25
Midterm 2 25
Final Exam 32
SONA Extra Credit 2

A+ 98-100% B+ 87-89% C+ 77-79% D 60 -69%
A 93-97% B 83-86% C 73-76% F Below 60%
A- 90-92% B- 80-82% C- 70-72%

SONA Extra Credit (research participation)
Spend 2 hours being a research participant in an experiment here at UCSD. To sign up visit:

https://ucsd.sona-systems.com

You must assign your credit to this class before the final exam. No changes can be made after the final.

If you do not wish to participate as a research subject please contact the instructor by Friday 4/12 to
discuss alternative assignment options. If you don’t contact the instructor by this date we cannot allow
you to do an alternative assignment.

Class Participation
Participation is an essential part of this class. We expect and look forward to your participation. We
encourage you to ask questions whenever you are confused! If you are confused we promise you are not the
only one, and it is helpful to everyone if you ask for clarification! You will get credit for responding to
questions asked in class using clickers. Clicker questions are not graded for accuracy, but only for your
participation/response.

Each class you attend and participate in starting the third day (4/10) earns you 0.6%, totaling up to
6% for the session. There are 16 clicker lectures in all (starting with the third day, excluding exam
days) and you need to attend and participate in 10 to earn the full 6% (10 x 0.60% = 6%). If you, for
example, attend 9 your participation grade would be (9 x. .60% = 5.4% ). I am providing this very
generous 6 class cushion to accommodate ANY issues that arise with clickers. This includes:
registering past the deadline, forgetting your clicker at home, running out of batteries,
unexplained technical issues that prevent your response from recording, coming to class late,
leaving class early, or missing class entirely. The 6 class cushion is meant to buffer your grade
against these issues and I WILL NEVER ADD CLICKER POINTS MANUALLY FOR ONE-OFF ISSUES.
However, if you have persistent technical issue I will try to help you resolve it.

For each class, you need to answer 70% of the questions to be counted as being present. For example,
if there are 5 questions, you need to answer 3 (3.5 to be exact, but in these non-integer cases we will
round down). Questions are not graded for accuracy but only for participation.

Although it is not recommended, you may opt-out of the participation component of the course. If
you choose this option the 6% will be distributed evenly among your midterms and final exam. You
must inform your section TA/IA via email by the end of week 2 (4/12) if you choose this option.

Paper
The purpose of this papers is to expose you to primary literature in Sensation and Perception, and,
more generally, hone your ability to read and critically evaluate research in cognitive science, as well
as improve your written expression. The paper will involve reading a primary literature article
(options and detailed prompt posted on the course website), and writing a response paper that
includes a summary of the article and some analysis of the methods and results. You are highly
encouraged to email a draft of your paper in .doc or .docx format to your assigned TA (who this person is
will be based on the article you choose, and will be listed in the article prompt) by the draft deadline of
Friday May 3rd at 12:30 pm to receive feedback. You will not get credit directly for turning in a draft,
but the feedback should help improve your final paper grade. The sooner in the quarter that you send
your paper, the more detailed feedback we will be able to provide. You may also discuss your papers
with me, or the graduate TAs during office hours if time permits (other student questions will take
priority). The final paper will be worth 6% of your final course grade.

You must fully address all questions in the prompt for full points. Your reaction paper is expected to be
2-4 pages of meaningful content, double-spaced and typed. Papers will be graded based on content,
clarity, organization, and style. Points will be reduced for adding “fluff” to meaninglessly increase the
paper length. You will submit your paper via Turnitin on TritonEd by the start of the final class. Since
you will have had the entire quarter to complete the paper, absolutely no late papers will be
accepted under any circumstances, including documented emergencies, and we will not be able
to give you feedback on drafts submitted after the draft deadline. When you use words or ideas
from another source, whether it is the article on which the paper is based, lecture, or another source,
you must let me know where the words or ideas have come from. No particular citation format is
required.

Section/Labs
In order to gain a more hands-on exploration of concepts, 3 of the sections will consist of lab assignments.
Sections are mandatory on lab days and you must go to your assigned section on these days. I am sorry we
cannot be more flexible with this, but in a class this size exceptions would be unmanageable for the teaching
team. You will work with 1 or 2 other students in section to complete one joint lab assignment. Lab
assignments can turn in at the end of section OR if you are not finished, you can turn in to your section
instructor at the beginning of the next section. Late lab assignments will not be accepted. It will be
impossible for you to make up a lab later if you miss it. The other sections are optional, but are a great
opportunity for you to gain detailed clarification of material covered in lecture.
Exams
The midterms (2) and the final will consist of multiple-choice questions. The midterms will focus
primarily on material since the previous exam, and the final will be cumulative, with a focus on the
material in the last third of the course.

A note of caution: Exams in this class will be difficult and require you to have thought about the
content deeply. The questions require that you fully grasp the material, can apply it to novel situations,
and can discriminate between very similar concepts. Do not try to study everything the night before
because this will not give you enough time to really think about the material.

Example question:

In the image above, the two monsters are actually the same size (on your retina) even though monster B appears
larger. Which of the following is the best explanation for this?
a) Changes in visual angle clash with changes in linear perspective
b) There is no atmospheric perspective
c) Objects at the same elevation but different distances are falling on different elevations on your retina
d) You are using relative size cues and linear perspective cues to form your perception
e) All of the above explanations can account for this illusion

Makeup Policy
If you miss an exam, class, or lab assignment, you cannot make it up later. Under special
circumstances (e.g. you have a doctor’s excuse for a serious ailment) we will work with you. This
policy is strictly enforced. Additionally, if you cannot make the final exam time (see schedule) or
your assigned section, you should not take this class; final exams cannot be given at another time
(having multiple exams in one day does not count as a special circumstance).

TA Discussion Sections & Office Hours
The TAs are extremely knowledgeable, patient and approachable, and thus a wonderful resource that
should be utilized. Discussion sections/office hours provide a great forum in which to seek detailed
clarification on material presented in class or in the textbook.




Academic Integrity
Please don’t cheat. I have been forced to report cheating to the UCSD Academic Integrity Office in the
past, and it is an unpleasant experience for everyone involved. So just don’t do it. If I suspect a student
of cheating they will not know until an “X” appears on their transcript and they will be contacted by
the Academic Integrity Office after the quarter ends, so students who cheat might feel like they are
getting away with it during the quarter, but they likely are not. Cheating undermines the success of
every other student who has worked hard and honestly for their knowledge/grade. I therefore take
academic dishonesty very seriously. Some examples of academic dishonesty include, but are not
limited to, using your phone or unauthorized notes during an exam, copying from another student,
asking another student to respond to clicker questions for you (or vice versa). It is your responsibility
to familiarize yourself with UCSD academic integrity policies.

http://academicintegrity.ucsd.edu/































 Class Schedule
This is my best approximation and is subject to change. Schedule
updates will be on the course website and announced in class.
Week 1
Tuesday 4/3 Introduction, Syllabus & Class organization Read syllabus
Chapter 1
Thursday 4/5 Measuring perception
No section this week

Week 2
Tuesday 4/10 Introduction to vision Read chapter 2 & 3
Register clicker deadline
Thursday 4/12 Neural processing and vision (4/10)
Clicker opt-out deadline
(4/12)
Section optional

Week 3
Tuesday 4/17 Neural processing and vision Read chapter 3 & 4

Thursday 4/19 Visual processing: from retina to cortex Vision Lab #1

Section Mandatory

Week 4
Tuesday 4/24 Visual processing: from retina to cortex
Read chapter 4
Thursday 4/26 Midterm 1 Section optional

Week 5
Tuesday 5/1 Object Perception Read chapter 5 & 9

Thursday 5/3 Color Perception Section optional

Deadline to submit paper
drafts for feedback (5/3)
See online prompt for who
to send to
 Week 6
Tuesday 5/8 Motion Perception Read chapter 8 & 10

Thursday 5/10 Depth and Size Section optional

Week 7
Tuesday 5/15 Visual Attention Read chapter 6

Thursday 5/17 Social perception

Vision Lab #2
Section Mandatory

Week 8
Tuesday 5/22 Midterm 2 Read chapter 15
Thursday 5/24 Chemical senses

Week 9
Tuesday 5/29 Chemical senses Read chapter 15 & 14

Thursday 5/31 The somatosensory system and cutaneous senses Paper due via Turnitin
(5/31 start of class)

Week 10
Tuesday 6/5 Read chapter 11 & 12
Audition
Taste and Touch Lab #3
Thursday 6/7 Audition
Due at final exam
Section Mandatory

Finals Week
Monday 6/11 Final Exam
11:30-2:29pm, location TBD