Sense organs

Sense organs contain specialized receptors that detect stimuli from the external environment or within the body and relay sensory information to the nervous system.

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Sensory receptor: A specialized cell or nerve ending that detects a stimulus and initiates a sensory signal. Receptors are the detectors within sense organs that convert stimuli into neural information.
Eye: A light-sensitive organ that forms visual signals through the retina. The eye collects and focuses light onto its sensory tissue, the retina.
Visual perception: The interpretation of visual information to recognize objects, spaces, and events. Visual perception depends on signals gathered by the eyes and interpreted by the brain.
Sensory neuron: A neuron that carries information about stimuli from sensory receptors toward the central nervous system. A sensory neuron transmits signals; a sense organ is a structure that houses or organizes detectors.
Sensory transduction: The conversion of a physical or chemical stimulus into an electrical or biochemical signal. It explains how light, sound, pressure, and chemicals become signals from sense organs.
Ear: An organ for hearing and balance that detects sound vibrations and head motion. The ear combines auditory and vestibular sensing in distinct structures.
Hearing: The perception of sound produced by auditory processing of mechanical vibrations. Hearing begins when the ear converts sound vibrations into neural signals.
Mechanoreceptor: A receptor that responds to mechanical forces such as pressure, stretch, or vibration. Mechanoreceptors are one receptor class found in organs including the skin and inner ear.
Afferent nerve: A nerve pathway that carries sensory information toward the central nervous system. Afferent nerves carry information from many sense organs toward the brain and spinal cord.
Olfactory system: The sensory system that detects airborne chemicals as odors. Olfactory receptors detect odor molecules in the nasal cavity.