| Sensory System | Source | Receptors | Key Brain Areas |
|---|
| Vision | Light waves striking the eye | Rods and cones in the retina | Occipital lobes |
| Hearing | Sound waves striking the outer ear | Cochlear hair cells in the inner ear | Temporal lobes |
| Touch | Pressure, warmth, cold | Receptors, most in the skin, detect pressure, warmth, cold, and pain | Somatosensory cortex |
| Taste | Chemical molecules in the mouth | Basic tongue receptors for sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami | Frontal temporal lobe border |
| Smell | Chemical molecules breathed in through the nose | Millions of receptors at top of nasal cavity | Olfactory bulb |
| Body position—kinesthesia | Any change in position of a body part, interacting with vision | Kinesthetic sensors in joints, tendons, and muscles | Cerebellum |
| Body movement—vestibular sense | Movement of fluids in the inner ear caused by head/body movement | Hair-like receptors in the ears’ semicircular canals and vestibular sacs | Cerebellum |