Module 3.1 - Genetic and Evolutionary Perspectives on Behaviour

Question 1

genes

Answer 1

the basis units of heredity

Question 2

what are genes responsible for?

Answer 2

guiding the process of creating the proteins that make up our physical structures and regulate development and physiological processes throughout the life span

Question 3

genes are composed of ____

Answer 3

DNA

Question 4

DNA

Answer 4

a molecule formed in a double helix

Question 5

DNA is made up of 4 nucleotides called?

Answer 5

1) Guanine (G)
2) Cytosine (C)
3) Adenine (A)
4) Thymine (T)

Question 6

genotype

Answer 6

the genetic makeup of an organism–the unique set of genes that comprise that individuals genetic code

Question 7

phenotype

Answer 7

the physical traits or behavioural characteristics that show genetic variation, such as eye colour, the shape and size of facial features and even personality

Question 8

chromosomes

Answer 8

structures in the cellular nucleus that are lined with all of the genes an individual inherits

Question 9

humans have approx. ___-____ genes distributed across 23 pairs of chromosomes, half contributed by the mother ad half by the father

Answer 9

20,000 - 25,000 genes

Question 10

homozygous

Answer 10

if 2 corresponding genes at a given location on a pair of chromosomes are the same

Question 11

heterozygous

Answer 11

if 2 corresponding genes at a given location on a pair of chromosomes differ

Question 12

behavioural genomics

Answer 12

the study of DNA and the ways in which specific genes are related to behaviour

Question 13

what is the human genome project attempting to identify?

Answer 13

the entire sequence of genes in the human body

Question 14

how are genes related to diseases identified?

Answer 14

through the human genome project

Question 15

true or false: small differences in the genetic sequence can subtly change the expression of genes that regulate the timing of development

Answer 15

true

Question 16

behavioural genetics

Answer 16

the study of how genes and the environment influence behaviour

Question 17

what does behavioural genetics examine?

Answer 17

examines the genetic basis of individual differences in behaviour and personality

Question 18

monozygotic twins (identical twins)

Answer 18

come from a single ovum (egg), which makes them genetically identical (almost 100% genetic similarity)

Question 19

dizygotic twins (fraternal twins)

Answer 19

come from 2 separate eggs fertilized by 2 different sperm cells that share the same womb; these twins have approx. 50% of their genetics in common

Question 20

heritability

Answer 20

a statistic, expressed as a number between zero and one that represents the degree to which genetic differences between individuals contribute to individual differences in a behaviour or trait found in a population

Question 21

heritability is expressed as a number from __ to __

Answer 21

0 to 1

Question 22

true or false: heritability expressed as 0 means that genes do not contribute to individual differences

Answer 22

true

Question 23

true or false: heritability expressed as 1 means that genes don’t account for individual differences

Answer 23

FALSE: heritability expressed as 1 means that genes account for all individual differences

Question 24

true or false: almost all trait scores are between 0 and 1

Answer 24

true

Question 25

what 2 things affect any estimate of heritability?

Answer 25

1) the amount of genetic variability within the group being studied 2) the variability in the environments that members of that group might be exposed to

Question 26

gene expression

Answer 26

when a gene (or genes) becomes activitated

Question 27

how do genes become activated?

Answer 27

due to preprogrammed (genetic) factors and "environmental" influences

Question 28

epigenetics

Answer 28

changes in gene expression that occur as a result of experience

Question 29

natural selection

Answer 29

the process by which favourable trait become increasingly common in a population of interbreeding individuals while traits that are unfavourable become less common

Question 30

evolution

Answer 30

the change int he frquency of genes occurring in an interbreeding population over generations

Question 31

what are the 2 patterns of evolution?

Answer 31

1) Lamarckian evolution | 2) Darwinian evolution

Question 32

Lamarchian evolution

Answer 32

steady, linear improvement over time

Question 33

darwinian evolution

Answer 33

changes occur in spurts; they are not continuous

Question 34

evolution occurs through ____, or when a change in the genetic sequence make one individual different from the others

Answer 34

mutations

Question 35

_______ are mutations that, through chance, helped survival

Answer 35

adaptations

Question 36

Exaptations

Answer 36

characteristics that arise in one environment, but are exploited to a much greater degree in another environment

Question 37

what change from 500,000 years ago gave us the capability for language?

Answer 37

our throat (the elongated pharynx)

Question 38

evolutionary psychology

Answer 38

a branch of psychology that attempts to explain human behaviours based on the beneficial function(s) they may have served in our species development

Question 39

natural selection

Answer 39

nature determines which genes survive and reproduce and which genes disappear from the face of the planet

Question 40

sexual selection

Answer 40

members of the opposite (or same) sex determine a genes fate

Question 41

intrasexual selection

Answer 41

a situation in which members of the same sex compete in order to win the opportunity to mate with members of th opposite sex

Question 42

intersexual selection

Answer 42

a situation in which members of one sex select mating partner based on their desirable traits

Question 43

red dress effect

Answer 43

attraction is rated higher for women wearing red clothes, red lipstick and/or red hair bands

Question 44

true or false: women judge unsuccessful looking men as being more appealing

Answer 44

FALSE: women judge successful looking men as being more appealing

Question 45

true or false: men rate almost all women as being appealing

Answer 45

true

Question 46

do men or women place a higher value on their partners economic status

Answer 46

on average females place a higher value on males economic status than men do on women

Question 47

3 things about male gametes

Answer 47

- sperm - inexpensive - plentiful

Question 48

3 things about female gametes

Answer 48

- eggs - expensive - limited number

Question 49

the ______ cortex in humans is more developed than that of any other species.

Answer 49

prefrontal cortex