Behavioral Sciences Review Flashcards
(15 cards)
A researcher deletes a gene from an organism to determine the gene’s function. This approach is most analogous to the work of which of the following scientists?
A. Paul Broca
B. Pierre Flourens
C. Franz Gall
D. Sir Charles Sherrington
B. Creating knockouts to study gene function is similar to ablation, or extirpation, in which specific parts of an organism’s anatomy are removed. This approach was used by Pierre Flourens to show that specific parts of the brain served particular functions, supporting (B) as the correct answer. Unlike Pierre, Paul Broca, choice (A), did not ablate regions of the brain; rather he studied the functional impairments in individuals with different brain lesions.
Which component of the nervous system is NOT involved in the initial reflexive response to pain?
A. Spinal cord
B. Cerebral cortex
C. Interneuron
D. Motor neuron
B. The cerebral cortex is not involved in the initial reflex- ive response to pain. Instead, the sensory receptors send information to the interneurons in the spinal cord, which stimulate a motor neuron to allow quick withdrawal. While the brain does ultimately get the signal, the reflexive with- drawl has already occurred by that time.
A child has experienced nervous system damage and can no longer coordinate the movements to dribble a basketball, although the child can still walk in an uncoordinated fashion. Which region of the central nervous system was most likely affected?
A. Forebrain
B. Midbrain
C. Hindbrain
D. Spinal cord
C. The hindbrain is responsible for balance and motor coor- dination, which would be necessary for dribbling a basket- ball. The midbrain, (B), manages sensorimotor reflexes that also promote survival. The forebrain, (A), is associated with emotion, memory, and higher-order cognition. The spinal cord, (D), is likely not damaged as the child can still walk.
The temporal lobe deals with all of the following EXCEPT:
A. language comprehension.
B. memory.
C. emotion.
D. motor skills.
D. The temporal lobes have many functions, but motor skills are not associated with this area. The temporal lobes contain Wernicke’s area, which is responsible for language comprehension, (A). The temporal lobes also function in memory and emotion, (B) and (C), because they contain the hippocampus and amygdala. Motor skills are associated with the frontal lobe (primary motor cortex), basal ganglia (smooth movements), and cerebellum (coordination).
Which part of the brain deals with both homeostasis and emotions?
A. Cerebellum
B. Pons
C. Hypothalamus
D. Thalamus
C. The hypothalamus is responsible for homeostatic and emotional functions. The cerebellum, (A), is responsible for maintaining posture and balance while the pons, (B), is above the medulla and contains sensory and motor tracts between the cortex and the medulla. The thalamus, (D), acts as a relay station for sensory information.
Which of the following activities would most likely be completed by the right hemisphere of a left- handed person?
A. Finding a car in a parking lot
B. Learning a new language
C. Reading a book for pleasure
D. Jumping rope with friends
A. The right hemisphere is usually the nondominant hemisphere, even in left-handed individuals. Sense of direction is an ability of the nondominant hemisphere. The other answer choices are all abilities attributed to the dominant hemisphere.
Which of the following is/are true with regard to neurulation?
I. The neural tube differentiates from endoderm.
I. The neural tube becomes the peripheral nervous system.
Ill. Neural crest cells migrate from their original site.
A. I only
B. III only
C. II and Ill only
D. I, Il, and III
B. Neurulation occurs when the notochord causes differentia- tion of overlying ectoderm into the neural tube and neural crest cells. The neural tube ultimately becomes the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), and neural crest cells migrate to other sites in the body to differentiate into a number of different tissues. Thus, only statement Ill is true.
Which of the following neurotransmitters is NOT classified as a catecholamine?
A. Epinephrine
B. Norepinephrine
C. Dopamine
D. Acetylcholine
D. Catecholamines are the hormones produced by the adre- nal glands during the fight-or-flight response, and include epinephrine, norepinephrine, and dopamine. Acetylcho- line is produced by cholinergic neurons and is, thus, not a catecholamine.
If the amount of acetylcholinesterase, an enzyme that breaks down acetylcholine, is increased, which of the following would likely be the result?
A. Weakness of muscle movements
B. Excessive pain or discomfort
C. Mood swings and mood instability
D. Auditory and visual hallucinations
A. If there were increased amounts of acetylcholinesterase, more acetylcholine would be degraded, lowering acetylcho- line levels in the body. Low levels of acetylcholine would result in weakness or paralysis of muscles. Pain, (B), could result if one were injured and endorphins were found in low levels. Mood swings, (C), could be a result of varying levels of serotonin. Hallucinations, (D), have been seen to result from high levels of dopamine.
The adrenal glands do all of the following EXCEPT:
A. promote the fight-or-flight response via estrogen.
B. produce stress responses via cortisol.
C. produce both hormones and neurotransmitters.
D. release estrogen in males and testosterone in females.
A. The adrenal glands do promote the fight-or-flight response, but through epinephrine and norepinephrine, not estrogen. The adrenal cortex produces both estrogen and testosterone in both sexes, as mentioned in (D), thus serving as a source of estrogen in males and testosterone in females.
A disorder of the pineal gland would most likely result in which of the following disorders?
A. High blood pressure
B. Diabetes
C. Insomnia
D. Hyperthyroidism
C. The pineal gland is responsible for producing melatonin, which controls the body’s circadian rhythm. Insomnia would be a disturbance of this circadian rhythm, and may be attributable to a pineal gland disorder in some cases. Hypertension, diabetes, and hyperthyroidism would be unrelated to issues with the pineal gland.
Which of the following conclusions would William James most likely support?
A. Mental processes help individuals adapt to their environments.
B. Psychological attributes could be measured by feeling the skull.
C. Specific functional impairments can be linked to specific lesions in the brain.
D. Synaptic transmission is an electrical process.
A. William James studied how the mind adapts to the environ- ment and formed the foundation of functionalism. Thus, (A) is correct. The remaining wrong answer choices can be ascribed to other scientists. Answer (B) describes phre- nology, the theory of Franz Gall. Answer (C) describes the conclusions of Paul Broca. Answer (D) describes one of the conclusions of Sir Charles Sherrington (although we now know that his conclusion was false).
A scientist designs a study to determine if different regions of the brain are activated when a person speaks their native language vs. a second language. Which of the following methods would the scientist most likely choose?
A. MRI
B. CT scan
C. fMRI
D. EEG
C. Activity in different regions of the brain is assumed to positively correlate with blood flow. Thus, regions that are more active should have increased blood flow. Changes in blood flow can be measured via fMRI, supporting (C) as the preferred methodology. On the other hand, MRI and CT scans are used to image tissues, ruling out (A) and (B), and EEGs are useful in measuring broad brain activity and not specific brain regions, eliminating (D).
During a physical examination, a physician brushes the bottom of the foot of a patient who is fifty years old with multiple sclerosis. The patient’s toes are observed to curl toward the bottom of the foot, with no fanning of the toes. This response is:
A. abnormal, and evidence that the patient is exhibiting a primitive reflex.
B. normal, and evidence that the patient is exhibiting a primitive reflex.
C. abnormal, and evidence that the patient is not exhibiting a primitive reflex.
D. normal, and evidence that the patient is not exhibiting a primitive reflex.
D. The Babinski reflex is a primitive reflex that refers to an extension of the big toe accompanied by fanning of the other toes. It is normal in infants, but should disappear with time- certainly by the time a child begins to walk. In a person who is fifty years old, the Babinski reflex would be abnormal. However, despite having a neurological illness, this patient is exhibiting a normal response to the brushing of the foot; that is, the patient is not showing the Babinski reflex.
Which of the following fine motor tasks would one expect to see first in an infant?
A. Grasping for objects with two fingers
B. Following objects with the eyes
C. Scribbling with a crayon
D. Moving a toy from one hand to the other
B. Motor skills tend to develop from the core toward the periphery. Following objects with the eyes occurs around four weeks of age. The other actions all require movements of the hand, which do not occur in an organized fashion until later.
