Senses and the endocrine system - Essay Example

Sensory System Sensation and Perception is a specialized field in psychology, which deals with the way in which the brain intakes external stimuli, processes it and integrates it into the brain of the individual making it meaningful. As with all natural biological processes, as humans age, the way and efficiency in which the sensory system processes information begins to decline. This is the result of a degradation of the biological systems that process their respective systems. However, in some cases, there are further abnormalities that will develop which can further hinder the ability of these sensory systems to process correctly.

These abnormalities that occur sometimes have no effect on the systems while in other cases the effects are detrimental. One of the common seen abnormalities as people age is the formation of cataracts. Cataracts are a clouding of the lenses in the eye to where light becomes hard to pass through. As a result of the light not being able to penetrate, problems with vision occur. Cataracts can form in a person’s eyes as the result of multiple conditions. Exposure to ultraviolet light can cause proteins to denature, which can lead to the condition.

Certain diseases such as diabetes have been known to cause this to occur. Eye trauma and genetic issues can also be accounted for with the development of cataracts (Goldstein, 2010). Cataracts are an abnormality that is forming which affects the visual field of the individual. This is because the lenses in eyes are biologically centered around having a clear lens that is adjusted by the retina to allow light in depending on the light level. Even though aging of biological components is inherent as humans age, the formation of cataracts is often caused or started by external or internal determinalistic factors that cannot be accounted for.

As a result, these are biological factors, which represent an abnormality to normal human physiology. Another important sensory component is the ability to hear sounds. When a person starts going deaf, the ability to process auditory stimuli becomes more challenging. The degredation of hearing can begin in multiple places in the ear and auditory organs. One common type is sensorineural hearing loss, which is focused on the vestibulochoclear nerve in the inner ear. The problem lies in the abnormalities of the hairs within the ear, which can be the result of genetics and/or external factors such as trauma from loud noise.

As sensorineural hearing loss progresses, the person might start loosing the ability to hear sounds at certain frequencies at first and this can eventually lead to total deafness (May, 2007). Hearing impairments that are normal are a majority of the time caused by trauma or loud noises/external factors. When this does not cause them, it is a genetic issue. In the case of coding the DNA, there could be problems with the coding of proteins in the hair follicles or other portions of the auditory sensory organs.

There could also be deformations at birth, which account for these problems in hearing, thus this makes them an abnormal development in physiology. With these abnormalities, society has figured out ways in which they can correct them through the use of biotechnology. Hearing aids are made now to help transmit sounds into the auditory canal so that those with limited hearing can hear more on the auditory spectrum. For cataracts, there have been implants and surgical procedures, which have been developed to help counter the effects of blurred and hued vision.

As technology and research becomes more complex, more permanent solutions may be developed. References Goldstein, B. (2010). Sensation and perception. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. May, M. (2007). Sensation and perception. New York, NY: Infobase Publishing.