Exploring Psychology - Chapter 2 Retrieve It Questions

What are the three key structures of the limbic system, and what functions do they serve?

(1) The amygdala is involved in aggression and fear responses. (2) The hypothalamus is involved in bodily maintenance, pleasurable rewards, and control of the hormonal systems. (3) The hippocampus processes conscious memory.

Try moving your right hand in a circular motion, as if cleaning a table. Then start your right foot doing the same motion, synchronized with your hand. Now reverse the right foot's motion, but not the hand's. Finally, try moving the left foot opposite to the right hand. 1. Why is reversing the right foot's motion so hard? 2. Why is it easier to move the left foot opposite to the right hand?

1. The right limbs' opposed activities interfere with each other because both are controlled by the same (left) side of your brain. 2. Opposite sides of your brain control your left and right limbs, so the reversed motion causes less interference.

Match the following terms to the correct explanation. 1. Epigenetics 2. Behavior genetics a. Study of the relative effects of our genes and our environment on our behavior b. Study of environmental factors that affect how our genes are expressed

1. b 2. a

Match the scanning technique with the correct description 1. fMRI Scan 2. PET Scan 3. MRI Scan a. Tracks radioactive glucose to reveal brain activity b. Tracks successive images of the brain tissue to show brain function c. Uses magnetic fields and radio waves to show brain anatomy

1. b 2. a 3. c

Match the type of Neuron to its description: 1. Motor Neurons 2. Sensory Neurons 3. Interneurons a. Carry incoming messages from sensory receptors to the CNS b. Communicate within the CNS and process information between incoming and outgoing messages c. Carry outgoing messages from the CNS to the muscles and glands

1. c 2. a 3. b

In what brain region would damage be most likely to (1) disrupt your ability to skip rope? (2) disrupt your ability to hear and taste? (3) perhaps leave you in a coma? (4) cut off the very breath and heartbeat of life?

1. cerebellum, 2. thalamus, 3. reticular formation, 4. medulla

(1) If we flash a red light to the right hemisphere of a person with a split brain, and flash a green light to the left hemisphere, will each observe its own color? (2) Will the person be aware that the colors differ? (3) What will the person verbally report seeing?

1. yes, 2. no, 3. green

Why are association areas important?

Association areas are involved in higher mental functions—interpreting, integrating, and acting on information processed in other areas.

How are the nervous and endocrine systems alike, and how do they differ?

Both of these communication systems produce chemical molecules that act on the body's receptors to influence our behavior and emotions. The endocrine system, which secretes hormones into the bloodstream, delivers its messages much more slowly than the speedy nervous system, and the effects of the endocrine system's messages tend to linger much longer than those of the nervous system.

Curare poisoning paralyzes its victims by block ACh receptors involved in muscle movements. Morphine mimics endorphin actions. Which is an agonist, and which is an antagonist?

Morphine is an agonist; curare is an antagonist

What happens in the synaptic gap?

Neurons send neurotransmitters (chemical messengers) across this tiny space between one neuron's terminal branch and the next neuron's dendrite or cell body.

How are Balyaev and Trut's breeding practices similar to, and how do they differ from, the way natural selection normally occurs?

Over multiple generations, Balyaev and Trut selected and bred foxes that exhibited a trait they desired: tameness. This process is similar to naturally occurring selection, but it differs in that natural selection is much slower, and normally favors traits (including those arising from mutations) that contribute to reproduction and survival.

How do researchers use twin and adoption studies to learn about psychological principles?

Researchers use twin and adoption studies to understand how much variation among individuals is due to genetic makeup and how much to environmental factors. Some studies compare the traits and behaviors of identical twins (same genes) and fraternal twins (different genes, as in any two siblings). They also compare adopted children with their adoptive and biological parents. Some studies compare traits and behaviors of twins raised together or separately.

Why is the pituitary gland called the "master gland"?

Responding to signals from the hypothalamus, the pituitary releases hormones that trigger other endocrine glands to secrete hormones, which in turn influence brain and behavior.

What bodily changes does your ANS direct before and after you give an important speech?

Responding to this challenge, your ANS sympathetic division will arouse you. It accelerates your heartbeat, raises your blood pressure and blood sugar, slows your digestion, and cools you with perspiration. After you give the speech, your ANS parasympathetic division will reverse these effects.

What is reuptake? What two other things can happen to excess neurotransmitters after a neuron reacts?

Reuptake occurs when excess neurotransmitters are reabsorbed by the sending neuron. They can also drift away or be broken down by enzymes.

How does our nervous system allow us to experience the difference between a slap and a tap on the back.

Stronger stimuli (the slap) cause more neurons to fire and to fire more frequently than happens with weaker stimuli (the tap).

Which area of the human brain is most similar to that of less complex animals? Which part of the human brain distinguishes us most from less complex animals?

The brainstem; the cerebral cortex

Electrical stimulation of a cat's amygdala provokes angry reactions. Which autonomic nervous system division is activated by such stimulation?

The sympathetic nervous system

When the mother's egg and the father's sperm unite, each contributes 23 __________________.

chromosomes

When a neuron fires an action potential, the information travels through the axon, the dendrites, and the cell body, but not in that order. Place these three structures in the correct order.

dendrites, cell body, axon

Put the following cell structures in order from smallest to largest; nucleus, gene, chromosome

gene, chromosome, nucleus

Serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins are all chemical messengers called __________________________.

neurotransmitters

Nerves from the left side of the brain are mostly linked to the __________________ side of the body, and vice versa.

right

Our brain's ______________ cortex registers and processes body touch and movement sensations. The ______________ cortex controls our voluntary movements.

somatosensory; motor