Practice Test #1

Potential Multiple Choice Questions

(Of course, on the test you will have four answers to choose from)

  1. Where would you expect to find myelin?
    a.)  In skin cells near the surface of the skin.
    b.)  In the nucleus of a neuron.
    c.)  In the nucleus of a glia.
    d.)  Covering an axon.
  2. As a rule, one neuron communicates with another neuron at the synapse by
    a.)  vibrating the second neuron's membrane.
    b.)  redirecting the flow of blood.
    c.)  releasing a chemical.
    d.)  transmitting an electrical impulse.
  3. The three parts of a neuron are the cell body, the _____, and the _____.
    a.)  glia ...  dendrites
    b.)  action potential ...  membrane
    c.)  glia ...  axon
    d.)  dendrites ...  axon
  4. When an axon is at rest, positively charged sodium ions are:
    a.) more concentrated inside the axon than outside.
    b.) equally concentrated inside and outside the axon.
    c.) more concentrated outside the axon than inside.
    d.) trapped inside small channels in the axon's membrane.
  5. Transmission at synapses
    a.) depends on the same chemical at all synapses.
    b.) depends on different chemicals at different synapses.
    c.) depends on electrical rather than chemical activity.
    d.) can go in either direction equally easily.
  6. Which of the following is a subcortical structure involved in eating, drinking, sexual behavior, and other motivated or emotional behaviors?
    a.) pons
    b.) hypothalamus
    c.) cerebral cortex
    d.) cerebellum
  7. Which of the following is NOT one of the lobes of the cerebral cortex?
    a.) occipital
    b.) parietal
    c.) callosal
    d.) temporal
  8. For what medical purpose have surgeons sometimes cut the corpus callosum?
    a.) to control aggressive behavior
    b.) to control epilepsy
    c.) to reduce blood pressure
    d.) to relieve the problems caused by a prefrontal lobotomy
  9. Naloxone is an:
    a.) Opiate antagonist
    b.) Opiate agonist
    c.) Endorphin
    d.) Neurotransmitter stored in the terminal buttons
  10. Surgical destruction of brain tissue is called a(n):
    a.) EEG.
    b.) synapse.
    c.) lesion.
    d.) lobotomy.
  11. Dr. Johnson briefly flashed a picture of a key in the right visual field of a split-brain patient. The patient could probably:
    a.) verbally report that a key was seen.
    b.) write the word key using the left hand.
    c.) draw a picture of a key using the left hand.
    d.) do none of the above.
  12. If some characteristic depends to a large degree on genes, then we should expect to find that
    a.)  dizygotic twins resemble each other more closely than monozygotic twins do.
    b.)  monozygotic twins and dizygotic twins resemble each other equally closely.
    c.)  monozygotic twins who are separated at birth and reared in separate environments resemble each other.
    d.)  adopted children resemble their adoptive parents but not their biological parents.
  13. The human genome is best defined as:
    a.)  a complex molecule containing genetic information that makes up the chromosomes.
    b.)  a segment of DNA.
    c.) the complete instructions for making an organism.
    d.)  the code for synthesizing protein.
  14. The New Zealand study examining the interaction of genetics and environment determined that people with the:
    a.)  short form of the serotonin transporter gene were more likely to suffer a major depressive episode
    b.)  long form of the serotonin transporter gene were more likely to suffer a major depressive episode
    c.)  short form of the serotonin transporter gene were more likely to suffer a major depressive episode if they had also experienced childhood trauma
    d.)  Both A and C
  15. A man with red hair (red hair is recessive) marries a woman with black hair (black hair is dominant) whose mother had red hair. What are their chances that their first child will have red hair?
    a.) It is impossible to tell
    b.)  25%
    c.)  50%
    d.)  75%
  16. Compared to environmentally impoverished rats, those rats housed in enriched environments experienced a dramatic increase in the number of their:
    a.) X chromosomes.
    b.)  neurotransmitters.
    c.)  synapses.
    d.)  sex hormones.
  17. The first successful clone of an adult animal was:
    a.) a raccoon named Rocky
    b.)  a rhesus monkey named Tetra
    c.)  a sheep named Dolly
    d.)  None of the above. There have been no successful clones of an adult animal.
  18. Gene sequencing shows that humans share the greatest genomic similarities with which of these?
    a.) Yeast
    b.)  Nematode worm
    c.)  Gorilla
    d.)  Chimpanzee.
  19. For this year's corn crop, a farmer chooses to plant the seeds of the best-tasting corn plants from last year's crop. This is an example of:
    a.) Artificial selection.
    b.)  Natural selection.
    c.)  Gene cloning.
    d.) Whole animal cloning.
  20. Whole animal cloning puts a nucleus from the cell of one animal into:
    a.) the chromosome of a bacterium.
    b.)  the plasmid of a bacterium.
    c.)  the egg cell from another animal (of the same species).
    d.) the sperm cell from another animal (of the same species).

    21. Potential Short Answer Questions

  1. The action potential of a nerve cell is all-or-nothing whereas synaptic transmission is graded.  Explain what this means.

  2. What is the difference between an agonist and an antagonist?

  3. What is the limbic system?  Name at least three of its component parts.

  4. How does the myelin sheath help speed neural transmission?

  5. Raccoons have much more precise control of their paws than dogs do. Explain how you would expect the primary motor cortex of racoons to differ from a dog's primary motor cortex?

  6. In class, we discussed an example of an amputee (right arm) that started feeling sensation in his phantom limb whenever he was shavingthe left side of his face. Explain how this is possible.

  7. Name three mechanisms by which damaged nerves can regain lost function. For one of the three you listed, briefly explain the mechanism by which this occurs.

  8. Explain how identical and fraternal twins can be used to examine the degree to which genetics and the environment contribute to behavior.

  9. Explain what it means for a trait to be a recessive trait?

  10. Provide one explanation for why human cloning has been banned by the National Academy of Sciences.