human sensory reception

Introduction
General considerations of sensation
- Basic features of sensory structures
- Approaches to the study of sensing
Survey of some of the human senses
- Cutaneous (skin) senses
  - Nerve function
  - Tactile psychophysics
- Kinesthetic (motion) sense
  - Nerve function
  - The feedback system
- Vestibular sense (equilibrium)
- Taste (gustatory) sense
  - Nerve supply
  - Physiological basis of taste
  - The qualities of taste
    - Sour
    - Salt
    - Sweet
    - Bitter
  - Factors affecting taste sensitivity
  - Food choice
- Smell (olfactory) sense
  - Olfactory qualities
  - Odourous substances
  - Odour sensitivity
  - Effects on behaviour

References & Edit History Related Topics

Images & Videos

Diagram of a horizontal section of the human eye showing labeled parts including the cornea, iris, lens, retina, sclera, optic nerve, and blood vessels, with internal structures and muscles visible.

Cross-section diagram of the human ear showing the outer ear, middle ear, and inner ear, with labeled parts including the auricle, auditory canal, tympanic membrane, ossicles, cochlea, semicircular canals, and nerves.

Diagram showing the layered structure of the human retina, with labeled optic nerve fibers, ganglion cells, bipolar neurons, rod cells, cone cells, and pigmented epithelium at the base.

Diagram showing the chemical transmission of nerve impulses at a synapse, with labeled steps illustrating neurotransmitter release from the presynaptic terminal, movement across the synaptic cleft, binding to postsynaptic channel receptors, and resulting signal propagation in the nervous system.

Labeled diagram of the human brain from a side view, highlighting regions for motor, sensory, auditory, visual, and speech functions, including Broca's and Wernicke's areas.

How does the McGurk effect trick your brain?

Two anatomical illustrations of the human tongue: the left shows a close-up of the tongue's surface with a magnified view of papillae, while the right displays a labeled cross section of the tongue in the mouth, highlighting its position relative to the teeth, lips, roof of mouth, lower jawbone, and air passage.

Investigating dogs' remarkable sense of smell

Quizzes

Male muscle, man flexing arm, bicep curl.

Facts You Should Know: The Human Body Quiz

3d illustration human heart. Adult Anatomy Aorta Black Blood Vessel Cardiovascular System Coronary Artery Coronary Sinus Front View Glowing Human Artery Human Heart Human Internal Organ Medical X-ray Myocardium

Human Organs

Muscles of facial expression, human anatomy, (Netter replacement project - SSC). Human face, human head.

Characteristics of the Human Body

Related Questions

How are afferent neurons different from efferent neurons?
How are conductive hearing loss and sensorineural hearing loss different?
How can damage to the auditory cortex affect hearing?
How can people adapt to spectacles that reverse visual images?
How can people who are blind from an early age use echolocation to sense objects?
How can repeated exposure to loud noise cause hearing loss?
How do exteroceptors monitor the environment outside the body?
How do hair cells convert movement into electrical signals?
How do hair follicle receptors respond when a hair moves?
How do interoceptors help the body maintain homeostasis?
How do ion channels help sensory receptors turn stimulation into electrical signals?
How do nociceptors respond to potentially damaging stimuli?
How do people locate the source of a sound using both ears?
How do receptors in muscles, tendons, and joints contribute to the kinesthetic sense?
How do sensory impairments such as color blindness reduce information about the environment?
How do the thalamus and cerebral cortex process sensory information?
How do the utricle and saccule provide a reference for vertical direction?
How do vestibular receptors detect linear acceleration and gravity?
How do vision, hearing, touch, smell, and balance combine to create spatial perception?
How do visual and vestibular cues help pilots maintain orientation during flight?
How does a receptor potential lead to an action potential in a sensory neuron?
How does surround inhibition improve the ability to locate sensory stimuli?
How does the auditory nerve signal sound frequency below 1 kilohertz?
How does the basilar membrane help the brain identify sound frequency?
How does the fovea support detailed color vision?
How does the vestibular system help people maintain balance?
How does the vestibulo-ocular reflex keep vision steady while the head moves?
How does turning the head help a person locate a sound?
What happens when stereocilia bend toward or away from a kinocilium?
What is a receptive field in the sensory nervous system?
What roles do otoconia and the otolithic membrane play in balance?
Which internal conditions can interoceptors detect?
Which senses are detected by exteroceptors?
Which touch receptors respond to light touch in human skin?
Why can people become disoriented in darkness?
Why can receptive fields change instead of remaining fixed?
Why can the vestibular sense mislead pilots during aircraft movement?
Why does the image projected onto the retina appear upside down?
Why does vision provide much of the information people use to perceive space?

Health & Medicine Anatomy & Physiology

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sensory reception Human sensory reception.

human sensory reception

Written by

Carl Pfaffmann

Vincent and Brooke Astor Professor of Physiological Psychology, Rockefeller University, New York City, 1980–83. Editor of Olfaction and Taste, proceedings of the Third International Symposium on...

Carl Pfaffmann

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....

Britannica Editors

History

human sensory reception, means by which humans react to changes in external and internal environments. Ancient philosophers called the human senses “the windows of the soul,” and Aristotle described at least five senses—sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. Aristotle’s influence has been so enduring that many people still speak of the five senses as if there were no others. Yet the modern sensory catalog now includes receptors in the muscles, tendons, and joints, which give...