Brass Instrument Psychology
Modified: 2020-10-08
Early psychophysics consisted of discovering the identification and
location of those receptors. That era of psychology is often called
the "brass-instrument psychology" era because much of the data on hot
and cold receptors was collected by brass instruments. In the diagram
on the skin senses (see diagram), a brass instrument is shown in
silhouette. It has a handle and a large piece of brass attached. The
brass part was immersed in either hot or cold water. Then it was
touched lightly to the arm of a blindfolded subject, who responded
whether or not it felt hot or cold. Notice also in the diagram that
the map of the skin is divided up into discrete areas. So, there are
places on your skin where you cannot feel hot, other places where you
cannot feel cold, and places where you can feel neither pressure nor
pain.
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