Humans are amazing sensors! This course will help you understand our sensing capabilities including taste, olfaction, tactile senses, vision, and audition. The course will explain at a high-level the anatomy, physiology, and chemistry of the senses and give you an appreciation of how senses are transmitted to, and experienced by, the brain. You’ll learn by experience to assess cases such as dysfunctions in olfaction or tactile temperature adaptation. Optional podcast conversations with experts in the field are included each week to provide additional insight on our senses and sensory research.
Sensory Science: The Senses
Sensory Science: The Senses
This course is part of Essentials of Sensory Science Specialization
Instructor: Rebecca Bleibaum
Gain insight into a topic and learn the fundamentals.
Beginner level
No prior experience required
13 hours to complete
3 weeks at 4 hours a week
Flexible schedule
Learn at your own pace
Details to know
Earn a career certificate
Add to your LinkedIn profile
Assessments
4 assignments
Taught in English
See how employees at top companies are mastering in-demand skills
Build your subject-matter expertise
This course is part of the Essentials of Sensory Science Specialization
When you enroll in this course, you'll also be enrolled in this Specialization.
- Learn new concepts from industry experts
- Gain a foundational understanding of a subject or tool
- Develop job-relevant skills with hands-on projects
- Earn a shareable career certificate
Earn a career certificate
Add this credential to your LinkedIn profile, resume, or CV
Share it on social media and in your performance review
There are 4 modules in this course
In this module, we will begin our discussion on the senses starting with taste. We will also discuss primary tastes, anatomy, physiology, and chemistry of taste. We will then touch on transducer and neural effects including receptor types, stimulus-receptor transducer mechanisms, neural channels, neural codes, and cortical cell types and mechanisms. We will do an activity on taste adaptation and finish the module with an optional podcast conversation with Joel Sidel. Let's get started.
What's included
11 videos7 readings1 assignment4 discussion prompts
In this module, we will continue discussing the senses focusing on olfaction and the tactile sensations. We will discuss the chemical nature of odorous stimuli, the anatomy of the olfactory system, and smell transduction. Let's begin.
What's included
6 videos2 readings1 assignment
In this module, we will discuss retronasal olfaction versus orthonasal olfaction, dysfunctions in olfaction, and the basic system to describe the tactile senses. We will also do an activity on temperature adaptation. This module will end with an optional podcast conversation with Dr. Ann Noble. Let's begin.
What's included
4 videos4 readings1 assignment2 discussion prompts
In this final module, we will continue discussing the senses focusing on vision and audition. At the end of the lesson, you will be able to describe the parts of the eye and parts of the retina. We will explain how receptor functions work, describe how to explain optical illusions, and go through aspects of depth perception. Finally, we will go into concepts surrounding hearing anatomy, transduction and adaptation. We will finish off this module with an optional podcast conversation with Dr. Armand Cardello.
What's included
10 videos3 readings1 assignment3 discussion prompts
Instructor
Offered by
Recommended if you're interested in Psychology
University of California, Davis
University of California, Davis
University of California, Davis
University of California, Davis
Why people choose Coursera for their career
Felipe M.
Learner since 2018
"To be able to take courses at my own pace and rhythm has been an amazing experience. I can learn whenever it fits my schedule and mood."
Jennifer J.
Learner since 2020
"I directly applied the concepts and skills I learned from my courses to an exciting new project at work."
Larry W.
Learner since 2021
"When I need courses on topics that my university doesn't offer, Coursera is one of the best places to go."
Chaitanya A.
"Learning isn't just about being better at your job: it's so much more than that. Coursera allows me to learn without limits."
New to Psychology? Start here.
Open new doors with Coursera Plus
Unlimited access to 7,000+ world-class courses, hands-on projects, and job-ready certificate programs - all included in your subscription
Advance your career with an online degree
Earn a degree from world-class universities - 100% online
Join over 3,400 global companies that choose Coursera for Business
Upskill your employees to excel in the digital economy
Frequently asked questions
Access to lectures and assignments depends on your type of enrollment. If you take a course in audit mode, you will be able to see most course materials for free. To access graded assignments and to earn a Certificate, you will need to purchase the Certificate experience, during or after your audit. If you don't see the audit option:
The course may not offer an audit option. You can try a Free Trial instead, or apply for Financial Aid.
The course may offer 'Full Course, No Certificate' instead. This option lets you see all course materials, submit required assessments, and get a final grade. This also means that you will not be able to purchase a Certificate experience.
When you enroll in the course, you get access to all of the courses in the Specialization, and you earn a certificate when you complete the work. Your electronic Certificate will be added to your Accomplishments page - from there, you can print your Certificate or add it to your LinkedIn profile. If you only want to read and view the course content, you can audit the course for free.
If you subscribed, you get a 7-day free trial during which you can cancel at no penalty. After that, we don’t give refunds, but you can cancel your subscription at any time. See our full refund policy.