PSYC 233 FINAL modules 4-6
What is the process called when a primitive neuron begins to develop dendrites and an axon?
Differentiation
Sex-linked genes are usually found on the Y chromosome.
False
Which statement characterizes the fovea?
It has the greatest perception of detail.
Why does the fovea provide the clearest, most detailed visual information?
It has tightly packed receptors.
Which statement is TRUE with regard to peripheral vision?
It is easier to recognize single objects in the periphery that are not surrounded by other objects.
____ steer new axonal branches and synapses in the right direction.
Neurotrophins
____ are chemicals that release energy when struck by light.
Photopigments
What is signaled by nerve growth factor (NGF)?
That a target cell has "accepted" an axon
Three small bones connect the tympanic membrane to the oval window. What is the function of these bones?
They convert airwaves into waves of greater pressure.
Which of the following best characterizes how axons arrive at the correct target cells?
They follow chemical gradients from the target cell.
Genes become more prevalent in a population if they contribute to reproductive success.
True
To determine the contributions of heredity and environment, researchers rely mainly on studies of monozygotic and dizygotic twins.
True
How much alcohol, if any, can a pregnant woman drink without worrying about the negative effects on her child?
Unknown, and therefore abstention is recommended
Visual imagery is to ____ as auditory imagery is to ____.
V1; A1
Area ____ is particularly important for color constancy.
V4
To what does "shape constancy" refer?
We can recognize objects even at different orientations.
Migration requires ____.
a precise chemical environment
What dimension determines the intensity of a sound wave?
amplitude
Areas bordering the primary auditory cortex are important for ____.
analyzing the meaning of sounds
Infants with cataracts need to have surgical repair ____.
as easy as possible
According to the frequency theory, the ____.
basilar membrane vibrates in synchrony with a sound, producing action potentials at the same frequency
The areas of the cortex used by expert video game players are most likely to ____ than the same cortical areas of those who do not play video games.
be thicker
Parvocellular neurons most likely receive input from ____.
bipolar cells that receive input from cones
Which of the following are selective as axons form synapses with target cells?
both axons and target cells
Once within the cerebral cortex, a mixed pathway of magnocellular and parvocellular cells is important for ____.
brightness and color
Which of the following best describes the process by which developing axons find their general target areas?
chemical attraction
Which receptors are responsible for the perception of color?
cones only
Myelination in the human brain ____.
continues well into the adult years
According to the retinex theory, we perceive color by ____.
contrasting the activity in one area of the visual field with that of the others
After the migrating neuron reaches its destination, ____ begin to form.
dendrites
Damage to the primary auditory cortex results in ____.
difficulty in responding to sequences of sounds
After maturity, the apoptotic mechanisms become:
dormant
The visual path in the parietal cortex is referred to as the ____.
dorsal stream
Which of the following would be easiest for someone who is motion blind?
dressing themselves
In foveal vision, ____.
each ganglion cell is excited by a single cone
Human newborns come into the world predisposed to pay more attention to ____ than any other stationary displays.
faces
The fact that the refractory period limits the firing rate of a neuron is problematic for which of the following?
frequency theory only
Perception of a low tone is to ____ as perception of a high tone is to ____.
frequency theory; place theory
____ cells axons make up the optic nerve.
ganglion
Bipolar cells send their messages to ____, which are located close to the center of the eye.
ganglion cells
The optic nerve is composed of axons from which kind of cell?
ganglion cells
Alcohol suppresses the release of ____, the brain's main excitatory transmitter.
glutamate
Vibrations in the fluid of the cochlea causes ____.
hair cells to displace
The one additional feature that hypercomplex cells have that complex cells do not is that hypercomplex cells ____.
have a strong inhibitory area at one end of its receptive field
In the vertebrate retina, which cells are responsible for lateral inhibition?
horizontal cells
In response to nervous system injury, neurotrophins ____.
increase regrowth of damaged axons
Which structure has the largest receptive fields and the greatest preferential sensitivity to highly complex visual patterns, such as faces?
inferior temporal cortex
Once within the cerebral cortex, the magnocellular pathway continues, with a dorsal branch important for ____.
integrating vision with action
Apoptosis ____.
is a programmed mechanism of cell death
Necrosis ___.
is cell death caused by an injury or a toxic substance
Branches of the optic nerve go directly to what areas of the brain?
lateral geniculate and superior colliculus
What is responsible for sharpening contrast at visual borders?
lateral inhibition
The most common form of color vision deficiency is due to ____.
long- and medium- wavelength cones making the same photopigment
What is the perception of the intensity of a sound wave called?
loudness
Once information is sent to the secondary visual cortex, it ____.
may return to the primary visual cortex
Cells in the inferior temporal cortex that are sensitive to a particular shape are also likely to respond to the shape's ____.
mirror-reversal
Damage to the magnocellular pathway would most likely lead to the loss of ____.
motion perception
Once within the cerebral cortex, the magnocellular pathway continues, with a ventral branch sensitive to ____.
movement
The concept that neurons refine their many connections based on which ones are most successful is known as ____.
neural Darwinism
Axons from the lateral geniculate extend to which area of the cerebral cortex?
occipital lobe
After you stare at a bright green object for a minute and look away, you see red. Which theory attempts to explain this finding?
opponent- process theory
The optic nerves from the right and left eye initially meet at the ____.
optic chiasm
Being able to detect fine details of a color painting would depend most on which type of ganglion cells?
parvocellular
Chemicals that release energy when struck by light are called ____.
photopigments
In development, neurotrophins ____. During adulthood, they ____.
preserve neurons; increase neuronal branching
Proliferation is the ____.
production of new cells
Nerve growth factor (NGF) ____.
promotes the survival and growth of the axon
Damage to the dorsal stream may interfere with ____.
reaching out to grasp an object
The ____ of any neuron in the visual system is the area of the visual field that excites or inhibits it.
receptive field
A person with visual agnosia is unable to ____.
recognize visual objects
In addition to having difficulty recognizing faces, people with prosopagnosia may have difficulty____.
recognizing different kinds of plants and animals
Someone with prosopagnosia has difficulty with ____.
recognizing faces
Difficulty distinguishing between ____ and ____ is the most common form of color vision deficiency.
red; green
According to the trichromatic theory of color vision, the most important factor in determining the color we see is the ____.
relative activity of short, medium, and long wavelengths
V1 neurons would be most strongly activated by viewing ____.
repeating stripes on a flag
In depth perception, different views are received by each eye, depending on the distance of the object being viewed. What is this called?
retinal disparity
Stereoscopic depth perception requires the brain to detect ____.
retinal disparity
Color and brightness constancy are best explained by the ____ theory of color vision.
retinex
In comparison to the rods, cones are more ____.
sensitive to detail
When cells in the middle temporal cortex respond to visual stimuli, their response depends mostly on the ____.
speed and direction of movement
Brain cells that are neither neurons nor glia, but which are capable of dividing and then differentiating into neurons or glia, are called ____.
stem cells
The primary visual cortex is also known as the ____.
striate cortex
The formation of new synapses is called ____.
synaptognesis
To what lobe of the cerebral cortex is auditory information sent?
temporal
In the visual system, the ____ and ____ constantly feed information back and forth.
thalamus; cortex
Damage to the ventral stream may interfere with ____.
the ability to describe the shape or size of an object
At the level of rods and cones, the ____ theory seems to fit best, while at the level of the bipolar cells, the ____ theory seems to fit best.
trichromatic; opponent process
What would be the likely outcome of a person who was blind at birth, and had vision restored later in life by the removal of cataracts (clouded lenses)?
trouble describing the shapes of objects
Early in development, the nervous system begins as a ____.
tube surrounding a fluid-filled cavity
The eardrum is also known as the ____.
tympanic membrane
Chemicals in the amphibian tectum guide the growth of axons from the retina to their correct location in the tectum by ____.
using a chemical gradient
The visual paths in the temporal cortex collectively are referred to as the ____.
ventral stream
The fluid-filled cavity of the developing neural tube becomes the ____.
ventricular system
An inability to recognize objects despite otherwise satisfactory vision is called ____.
visual agnosia
The current view of how we perceive high frequencies is based on ____.
where along the basilar membrane neurons fire most rapidly
What is one way to determine whether a given cell in the primary visual cortex is "simple" or "complex"?
whether it can response equally to lines in more than one location
According to the law of specific nerve energies, the brain tells the difference between one sensory modality and another by ____.
which neurons are active
Why do humans perceive faint light better in the periphery of the eye?
More receptors in the periphery than in the fovea funnel input to each ganglion cell.
What is strabismus
a failure of the two eyes to focus on the same thing at the same time
Color constancy is the ability to ____.
recognize the color of an object despite changes in lighting