Introduction
Introduction to the Human Sensory Organs
Learn more about the human sensory organs. Start Today!
Human sensory organs such as the eye, ear, nose and tongue are central in the processing of sensory information from all the stimuli that bombards the body continuously. Without sensory organs we would not be able to make sense of our environment and surroundings. This free online course enables the learner to explore the functions and structure of the human sensory organs. It outlines the different special senses such as vision, hearing, balance, smell and taste, and their corresponding receptor organs such as the eye, ear, nose and tongue. It also explains the different reflexes associated with each of these senses. This free online course will be of interest to students of biology, physiology, anatomy and medicine, as well as healthcare professionals who would like to gain a basic knowledge and understanding of the human sensory organs.
[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpIhFSA1NVE&feature=player_detailpage]
Task
Module 1: The Sense of Vision
Eyes are the organs of vision. They detect light and convert it into electro-chemical impulses in neurons. The simplest photoreceptor cells in conscious vision connect light to movement. In higher organisms the eye is a complex optical system which collects light from the surrounding environment, regulates its intensity through a diaphragm, focuses it through an adjustable assembly of lenses to form an image, converts this image into a set of electrical signals, and transmits these signals to the brain through complex neural pathways that connect the eye via the optic nerve to the visual cortex and other areas of the brain. Eyes with resolving power have come in ten fundamentally different forms, and 96% of animal species possess a complex optical system.[1] Image-resolving eyes are present inmolluscs, chordates and arthropods.[2]
Function of the Eye
The main function of the eye is to work with the brain to provide us with vision. The eye and brain translate light waves into a sensation we call vision.
Sense of Touch
In This Issue:
- Skin Anatomy and Sense of Touch
- Sense of Touch Science Projects
- Science in the News
- Fabulous Facts
- Science Links
Our skin acts as the protective barrier between our internal body systems and the outside world. Its ability to perceive touch sensations gives our brains a wealth of information about the environment around us, such as temperature, pain, and pressure. Without our sense of touch, it would be very hard to get around in this world! We wouldn't feel our feet hitting the floor when we walked, we wouldn't sense when something sharp cut us, and we wouldn't feel the warm sun on our skin. It is truly amazing how much information we receive about the world through our sense of touch, and although we still don't know all the ins and outs of how the skin perceives touch, what we do know is interesting.
The olfactory system is the sensory system used for olfaction, or the sense of smell. Most mammals and reptiles have two distinct parts to their olfactory system: a main olfactory system and an accessory olfactory system. The main olfactory system detects volatile, airborne substances, while the accessory olfactory system senses fluid-phase stimuli. Behavioral evidence indicates that most often, the stimuli detected by the accessory olfactory system are pheromones.
The olfactory system is often spoken of along with the gustatory system as the chemosensory senses because both transduce chemical signals into perception.
Sense of Taste
The sense of taste is mediated by groups of cells called taste buds which sample oral concentrations of a large number of small molecules and report a sensation of taste to centers in the brainstem . In most animals, including humans, taste buds are most prevalent on small pegs of epithelium on the tongue called papillae. The taste buds themselves are too small to see without a microscope, but papillae are readily observed by close inspection of the tongue's surface. To make them even easier to see, put a couple of drops of blue food coloring on the tongue of a loved one, and you'll see a bunch of little light colored bumps - mostly fungiform papillae - stand out on a blue background. AdsDid Hubble Discover God?y-jesus.comNew Scientific Evidence Causes Scientists to Speak About GodGraphene Is The Futureoutsiderclub.com/GrapheneLearn How It Will Change The World It's All In This Free Investor Rpt.NextGen Sequence Analysiswww.biobase-international.comMake Sense of Your NGS Data Find SNPs, TFBinding Sites-Buy Now
In addition to signal transduction by taste buds, it is also clear that the sense of smell profoundly affects the sensation of taste. Think about how tastes are blunted and sometimes different when your sense of smell is disrupted due to a cold.
The sense of taste is equivalent to excitation of taste receptors, and receptors for a large number of specific chemicals have been identified that contribute to the reception of taste. These include receptors for such chemicals as sodium, potassium, chloride, glutamate and adenosine. Despite this complexity, five types of tastes are commonly recognized:
- Salty
- Sour
- Sweet
- Bitter
- Umami
HearingThis article is about auditory perception. For other uses, see Hearing (disambiguation)."Aural" redirects here. It is not to be confused with oral (disambiguation).
Hearing
Hearing, auditory perception, or audition is the ability to perceive sound by detecting vibrations,[1] changes in the pressure of the surrounding medium through time, through an organ such as the ear. Sound may be heard through solid, liquid, or gaseous matter.[2] It is one of the traditional five senses; partial or total inability to hear is called hearing loss.
In humans and other vertebrates, hearing is performed primarily by the auditory system: mechanical waves, known as vibrations are detected by the ear and transduced into nerve impulses that are perceived by the brain (primarily in the temporal lobe). Like touch, audition requires sensitivity to the movement of molecules in the world outside the organism. Both hearing and touch are types of mechanosensation.[3][4]
Process
- Why do we need our five senses?
- What can we do with our senses?
- Tell me two other names for the number five.
Performance Assessment
- Assess the students' performance on the sorting task at the Mathematics Center.
- Assess the students' performance on the writing task at the Writing Center.
- The students, using cubes, show two other names for the number five.
Evaluation
Conclusion
Credits
Teacher Page
THE AUTHORS
Name: Joy T. Villaralvo
" A teachers make every profession possible"
Name: Jester Jude Mendez
" To teach is to touch someones heart"
Name: Criza Relucio
" I earned nothing but i have all the love in the world"
Name: Carlo C. Polpol
" Service to other is the best justification for being alive"
" WE TEACH , WE TRANSFORM AND WE MADE IT WITH PURELOVE"
BEED 3A