ABSTRACT
Perception is the use of memory to make sense of phenomena and, if necessary, calculate the requisite motor responses needed to negotiate the objects in space.
Three functions of the central nervous system contribute to the totality of perception
Motivation Memory Learning
Motivation The emergent human being has a compelling need to make sense of his environment. Initially the paramount drives are linked to the hunger need, and the infant soon learns the tactile and topographical qualities of that special part of his environment which pays off in terms of food. This information impresses itself in the memory not necessarily through an innate ability to perceive, but through detailed experimentation to learn the location and shape of this very rewarding part of his little cosmos. Seeing is an intrinsic ability; perception is largely, but not perhaps exclusively, a learned ability. It is a commonplace to say that 'we need to see', but it would be more accurate to conclude that 'we see what we need'. Without motivation there would be no perception. If homeostatic equilibrium were maintained within the infant by some ingenious mechanism, as is the case when the infant is in the womb, it would have no incentive to make sense of the chaos that bombards the receptors. External environment only has reality because the brain has specific needs and has learnt that certain combinations of light and shadow, texture and perspective, have a three-dimensional probability in relation to those needs. This, however, is merely inference based on past experiences which only suggests that visual phenomena obey certain rules.
