What are the chances of having a child with at least one dominant gene if both parents
are heterozygous?
a. 25%
b. 50%
c. 75%
d. 100%
An electroencephalograph displays:
a. action potentials of individual neurons.
b. a net average of all the neurons’ potentials.
c. the rate of glucose uptake in active regions of the brain.
d. the electrical resistance of the scalp.
The role of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in the regulation of biological rhythms
is to:
a. coordinate several biological clocks.
b. feed visual information to the biological clock.
c. generate the circadian rhythm.
d. generate circannual rhythms.
Selye inferred that any threat to the body, in addition to its specific effects, activated a
generalized response to stress, which he called the:
a. general stress syndrome.
b. general adaptation syndrome.
c. general activation syndrome.
d. general limbic syndrome.
One major difference between olfaction and VNO receptors is that:
a. there are many more VNO receptors.
b. VNO receptors are continuously growing.
c. VNO receptors do not adapt.
d. olfactory receptors are sensitive to pheromones.
The vagus and splanchnic nerves help to control feeding by relaying information to the
brain from the:
a. taste buds.
b. muscles.
c. stomach.
d. liver.
What is the role of the suprachiasmatic nucleus in circadian rhythms?
a. Its neurons generate a 24-hour rhythm by themselves.
b. Its neurons can reset the biological clock, but they do not generate it.
c. It relays visual information to the biological clock.
d. It relays information from the biological clock to areas that control temperature and
activity.
The motor cortex produces a kind of activity called a(n) ____ before any voluntary
movement.
a. readiness potential
b. action potential
c. evoked potential
d. motor potential
Which of the following would be the most promising treatment for Huntington’s
disease?
a. Enhancing formation of glutamine chains
b. Increasing production of huntingtin
c. Blocking formation of glutamine chain clustering
d. Decreasing production of BDNF
Which of the following is NOT a likely effect of using marijuana?
a. memory loss
b. decreased nausea
c. reduced risk of Parkinson’s disease
d. suppressed appetite
Some dendrites contain additional short outgrowths. What are these outgrowths called?
a. hillocks
b. dendritic spines
c. dendritic roots
d. myelin sheaths
If the brain is affected prenatally or neonatally, it could be that it takes many years
before the symptoms of schizophrenia are evident because the:
a. affected areas are among the slowest to mature.
b. behavioral deficits often look like normal behavior in children.
c. associated toxins do not have widespread effects until they have reached high levels.
d. deficits are learned from imitation of other schizophrenic people.
Suppose you are conscious of what you see in the right eye and not the left. Now a
word slowly fades into view in the left eye. What happens?
a. Your attention lingers even longer than usual on the right eye.
b. Your attention shifts to the left eye at the same speed as it would without the word.
c. The word grabs your attention at a certain speed regardless of its meaning.
d. The word grabs your attention faster if it is meaningful.
As with Korsakoff’s patients, Alzheimer’s patients have impairments in ____ memory,
but are relatively unimpaired in ____ memory.
a. short-term; long-term
b. implicit; explicit
c. procedural; declarative
d. declarative; procedural
What measurable differences are apparently related to homosexual versus heterosexual
orientation in adult men?
a. their testosterone levels
b. their estrogen levels
c. the size of certain parts of their hypothalamus
d. the pattern of dendritic branching in their cerebral cortex
What is the result of electrical stimulation to the reticular formation?
a. Sudden onset of sleep
b. Increased alertness
c. Coma
d. Hallucinations
The interlinked structures that form a border around the brainstem are referred to as the:
a. basal ganglia
b. hypothalamus
c. limbic system
d. rhombic system
A leukocyte attacks when it finds a cell with foreign:
a. antigens.
b. contours.
c. chromosomes.
d. neurotransmitters.
PTSD victims tend to have a ____ hippocampus and ____ cortisol levels.
a. larger, higher
b. larger, lower
c. smaller, higher
d. smaller, lower
Many female mammals become very attentive after delivering their babies largely
because of a sudden:
a. drop in testosterone levels.
b. surge of prolactin and oxytocin.
c. decrease of prolactin and increase of oxytocin.
d. increase of prolactin and decrease of oxytocin.
Sherrington found that repeated stimuli within a brief time have a cumulative effect. He
referred to this phenomenon as:
a. temporal summation
b. spatial summation
c. synaptic summation
d. saltatory summation
An injection of testosterone in a castrated male rat:
a. has no effect.
b. elicits typical female sexual behavior.
c. restores male sexual behavior.
d. diminishes male sexual behavior.
Most researchers now believe that the accumulation of amyloid and tau protein:
a. is a result of the Alzheimer’s disease.
b. are partly the cause of Alzheimer’s disease.
c. are byproducts of acetylcholine.
d. are byproducts of dying glial cells.
The overall mechanism of early sexual differentiation has been described by saying that
nature’s “default setting” is to make every mammal:
a. male.
b. female.
c. intermediate between male and female.
d. fully both male and female.
Currently, the most prevalent theory of pitch perception is:
a. the frequency theory.
b. the place theory.
c. the volley principle.
d. a combination of frequency, place, and volley principles, depending on the frequency
of the tone.
One reason why axons regenerate better in the peripheral nervous system of mammals
than in the central nervous system is that the peripheral nervous system:
a. has fewer myelinated axons.
b. has glial cells that destroy scar tissue.
c. maintains a temperature closer to that at which embryonic cells form.
d. produces a chemical that promotes axon growth.
The stimulant effects of MDMA are likely due to actions at ____ synapses, while the
hallucinogenic effects are likely due to actions at ____ synapses.
a. dopamine, nitric oxide
b. neuropeptide Y, serotonin
c. dopamine, serotonin
d. serotonin, dopamine
A person who ‘sees” spoken language or music may be experiencing:
a. synesthesia.
b. amnesia.
c. anesthesia.
d. aphasia.
Where is the basal membrane most sensitive to the vibrations of low-frequency sound
waves?
a. closest to the cochlea
b. at the apex, farthest from the cochlea
c. about half-way between the cochlea and the apex
d. It is equally sensitive across the entire membrane.
The correct sequence of chemical events at a synapse is:
a. reuptake, release, transport, synthesis
b. synthesis, transport, release, reuptake
c. transport, release, reuptake, synthesis
d. recycle, reuse, release, return
Cardiac muscles have properties:
a. just like those of smooth muscles.
b. just like those of skeletal muscles.
c. just like those of antagonistic muscles.
d. intermediate between those of smooth and skeletal.
Many women living in a college dormitory will gradually begin to synchronize their
menstrual cycles. The research indicates that this is, at least in part, based on:
a. sound.
b. sight.
c. pheromones.
d. similar activity schedules.
How do adult mammals with damage to the preoptic area regulate their body
temperature?
a. physiologically
b. pharmacologically
c. behaviorally
d. not at all
Describe how the auditory cortex parallels the visual cortex.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
Substantia nigra gives rise to the dopamine-containing pathway that facilitates readiness
for movement.
The structures within the ear amplify the sound waves coming into the ear.
People born without a corpus callosum can perform many tasks in which split-brain
patients fail.
Briefly describe Lamarckian evolution.
Describe the role of the human amygdala in emotions.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
St. John’s wort acts by selectively inhibiting the reuptake of serotonin.
A first diagnosis of schizophrenia is usually made for a person in which age range?
A preteens
B 20s
C 30s or 40s
D 50s or beyond
Describe the relationship of sensory representation and phantom limb sensation.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
Observations of Williams syndrome indicate that language is not simply a by-product of
overall intelligence.
Describe the main properties of neuropeptides (neuromodulators).
Answer:
Answers will vary.
Only reptiles use behavioral mechanisms to regulate body temperature.
What is habituation as it relates to memory research?
Glial cells transmit information across long distances.
List the four major categories of antidepressant drugs.
Marijuana withdrawal is more intense than opiate withdrawal.
Punishment makes it less likely for a behavior to occur again in the future.