03.06Senses
Assignment
Directions: Test your senses by working through all four activities below.
Activity 1: Touch Receptors
List four sensations detected by the tactile receptors in the skin. (Hint: See lesson page 3.)
1.
2.
3.
4.
Have a volunteer touch each of these locations on your body using the same pressure. Close your eyes and rank how sensitive each area is from 1 (low sensitivity) to 5 (high sensitivity).
Location / RankingFingertip
Heel of hand
Forearm
Elbow
Back of neck
What can you conclude about the density of touch receptors in your skin?
Activity 2: Vision
#____Optic nerve
#____Retina
#____Cornea
#____Lens
#____Pupil
#____Iris
Test the age of your eyes.
1. Hold a pencil or ballpoint pen vertically at arm's length.
2. Close your left eye and focus on the tip.
3. Quickly bring the pencil closer to your eye until it is out of focus.
4. Have your partner measure the distance between your eye and the pencil.
5. Repeat for both eyes.
6. Try it with and without glasses (if you wear glasses).
Age of Your Eyes
Centimeters / 9 / 10 / 13 / 18 / 50 / 83Age of Eyes / 10 / 20 / 30 / 40 / 50 / 60
What was the "age" of your eyes?
Right without glasses____with glasses ____
Left without glasses____with glasses ____
How does this compare to your actual age?
Describe how the eye processes what is sees.(Hint: See lesson page 3.)
Name one age-related vision problem and explain what causes it. (Hint: Read this article.)
Activity 3: Hearing and Balance
#____Pinna
#____Tympanic membrane
#____Oval window
#____Semicircular canals
#____Eustachian tube
#____Ear canal
#____Ear ossicles
#____Cochlea
#____Cochlear nerve
Test your sense of balance.
1. Stand near your partner. Have your partner record the length and quality of your attempts.
2. Bend your right leg and hold your foot in your right hand.
3. Balance like this as long as you can (minimum 30 seconds).
4. Try the same pose, but close both of your eyes.
5. Again, have your partner nearby recording your attempts.
6. Balance for as long as possible.
7. Try the same pose, but close your eyes and tilt your head back slowly.
8. Again, have your partner nearby recording your attempts.
9. Balance for as long as possible.
Stance / Time(in minutes) / Stability
(high, med, low)
Standing on one foot
One foot, eyes closed
One foot, eyes closed, head back
Which stance made it the hardest to balance?
Balance depends on information your brain receives from your eyes,muscles, and the semicircular canals in your ear. The 3 semicircular canals are filled with fluid and small hairs, and they are aligned at right angles to each other. When the head moves, the fluid in the canals moves the hairs and a nerve impulse is sent to the brain.
With this information, explain why spinning makes you dizzy.
Activity 4: Taste and Smell
1. According to the information from 3.06, please label where on your tongue, you tasted each of the following:
SALTY BITTERSWEETSOUR
Pick four liquids (safe for consumption) to test on a volunteer.
1. Obtain a few sterile swabs.
2. Place a small amount of each solution into separate cups (don't tell what liquids you’reusing).
3. Using one solution at a time, dip a swab and run it along your volunteer's tongue.
4. Repeat the process again having your volunteer plug his or her nose during the tasting.
Type of Liquid / Taste Type(sweet, sour, salty, bitter, umami) / Taste Type
with nose plugged
Your tongue is covered in bumps called papillae. Papillae have taste receptors that are bundled together (taste buds). Taste buds have microscopic hairs called microvilli which send nerve impulses to the brain. However, your nose plays a role too! While you’re chewing, the food releases chemicals that travel up your nose and trigger olfactory receptors which also send nerve impulses to the brain to help you interpret the true flavor of what you’re eating.
Use your lesson notes to explain the results for the taste sensations in each of the regions of your tongue?
With this information, explain why a cold or allergies can diminish the flavor of your food.