Ch 2 - Cognitive Neuroscience - Multiple Choice

There are many methods for studying the physiology of the brain. ________ is the technique involving subtraction whereby brain activity is compared between baseline and stimulation measurements. A. Convergence B. Single unit recording C. Positron emission tomography D. Mental chronometry

C. Positron emission tomography

Positron emission tomography (PET) utilizes which of the following tools? A. Disc electrode B. Microelectrode C. Radioactive tracer D. Hemoglobin

C. Radioactive tracer

Which of the following is consistent with the idea of localization of function? a. Specific areas of the brain serve different functions. b. All of the above. c. Neurons in different areas of the brain respond best to different stimuli. d. Brain areas are specialized for specific functions.

b. All of the above.

Sarah has experienced brain damage making it difficult for her to understand spatial layout. Which area of her brain has most likely sustained damage? a. Fusiform face area (FFA) b. Parahippocampal place area (PPA) c. Functional magnetic area (FMA) d. Extrastriate body area (EBA)

b. Parahippocampal place area (PPA)

The impulse that is transmitted down the axon once the neuron's receptor is stimulated is called the ________ . a. reference electrode b. action potential c. resting potential d. recording electrode

b. action potential

The key structural components of neurons are a. transmitters, dendrites, and nodes of Ranvier. b. cell body, dendrites, and axon. c. cell body, cellular membrane, and transmitters. d. axon, dendrites, and glands.

b. cell body, dendrites, and axon.

The physiological basis behind thought processes defines the field of ________ . a. social neuroscience b. cognitive neuroscience c. behavioral genetics d. biopsychology

b. cognitive neuroscience

The extrastriate body area would be expected to become activated by seeing all of the following EXCEPT ________ . a. legs b. faces c. torsos d. hands

b. faces

Suppose you're carefully deliberating as to whether to accept a certain job offer. In doing so, you are especially using your ________ lobe. a. parietal b. frontal c. occipital d. temporal

b. frontal

The chief limitation of magnetic resonance imaging is that ________ . a. it can't reveal brain structures b. it doesn't indicate neural activity c. it is rarely used in clinical practice d. it does not detect brain abnormalities

b. it doesn't indicate neural activity

In a physiological levels of analysis to memory, what would be the second step? a. brain storage b. neurons activated c. storage activated d. chemical processes

b. neurons activated

When conducting an experiment on how stimuli are represented by the firing of neurons, you notice that neurons respond differently to different faces. For example, Arthur's face causes three neurons to fire, with neuron 1 responding the most and neuron 3 responding the least. Roger's face causes three different neurons to fire, with neuron 7 responding the least and neuron 9 responding the most. Your results support ____ coding. a. specificity b. sparse c. distributed d. divergence

b. sparse

The fact that certain neurons might respond to only your mother's face but not your father's face highlights the importance of ________ . a. population coding b. specificity coding c. feature detectors d. hierarchical processing

b. specificity coding

Brain-imaging techniques can determine all of the following EXCEPT: a. areas of the brain activated during cognitive tasks. b. the structure of individual neurons. c. patterns of blood flow in the brain. d. localization of brain activity in response to a specific stimulus.

b. the structure of individual neurons.

The neuron doctrine, ________ the nerve net theory, suggests that individual cells transmitting signals ________ continuous with each other. a. unlike ; are b. unlike; are not c. like ; are not d. like ; are

b. unlike; are not

A specific person's face is represented in the nervous system by the firing of: a. a receptor in the retina that responds when the face is present. b. a group of neurons that all respond only to that face. c. a group of neurons each responding to a number of different faces. d. a feature detector that fires specifically to that face.

c. a group of neurons each responding to a number of different faces.

If a researcher detects how water diffuses along the length of nerve fibers, then he or she is likely engaged in the technique called ________ . a. magnetic resonance imaging b. functional magnetic resonance imaging c. diffusion tensor imaging d. distributed representation

c. diffusion tensor imaging

Suppose you're carefully deliberating as to whether to accept a certain job offer. In doing so, you are especially using your ________ lobe. a. occipital b. temporal c. frontal d. parietal

c. frontal

Greta suffers from prosopagnosia. As such, we would expect her to ________ . a. have poor speech production b. show limited intelligence c. have an inability to recognize faces d. not be able to see clearly

c. have an inability to recognize faces

You are walking down the street and see a really nice car drive by. You notice many features of it: its color, movement, shape, location, and so forth. All of these features are processed a. in one localized area of the brain. b. through fMRI potentials. c. in different parts of the brain. d. by the grandmother cells in the brain.

c. in different parts of the brain.

The chief limitation of magnetic resonance imaging is that ________ . a. it is rarely used in clinical practice b. it does not detect brain abnormalities c. it doesn't indicate neural activity d. it can't reveal brain structures

c. it doesn't indicate neural activity

The pattern of feature detectors firing in response to a stimulus creates the _____ for representing what the stimulus is (e.g., a tree, a person, a ball, and so forth). A. neural code B. module C. event-related potential D. receptor

A. neural code

Josiah is trying to speak to his wife, but his speech is very slow and labored, often with jumbled sentence structure. Josiah may have damage to his A. Broca's area. B. Parahippocampal place area (PPA) C. Extrastriate body area (EBA) D. Wernicke's area.

A. Broca's area.

Damage to Wernicke's area is in which lobe of the brain? A. Temporal B. Occipital C. Parietal D. Frontal

A. Temporal

Which of the following do PET and fMRI have in common? A. The use of the subtraction technique B. The measurement of magnetic fields C. The use of radioactive tracers D. All of the above are characteristics of both PET and fMRI

A. The use of the subtraction technique

Early studies of brain tissue that used staining techniques and microscopes from the 19th century described the "nerve net." These early understandings were in error in the sense that the nerve net was believed to be A. continuous. B. composed of discrete individual units. C. composed of cell bodies, axons, and dendrites. D. composed of neurotransmitters rather than neurons.

A. continuous.

Brain imaging has made it possible to A. determine which areas of the brain are involved in different cognitive processes. B. view individual neurons in the brain. C. show how environmental energy is transformed into neural energy. D. view propagation of action potentials.

A. determine which areas of the brain are involved in different cognitive processes.

A 10-month-old baby is interested in discovering different textures, comparing the touch sensations between a soft blanket and a hard wooden block. Tactile signals such as these are received by the _____ lobe. A. parietal B. occipital C. frontal D. temporal

A. parietal

If the intensity of a stimulus that is presented to a touch receptor is increased, this tends to increase the _____ in the receptor's axon. A. rate of nerve firing B. size of the nerve impulses C. speed of nerve conduction D. all of these

A. rate of nerve firing

The layer of neurons that lines the back of the eye is called the A. retina. B. grandmother cell. C. reference electrode. D. feature detector.

A. retina.

The occipital lobe is A. the first place in the cerebral cortex where visual information is received. B. important for language, memory, hearing, and vision. C. important for higher functions such as language, thought, and memory, as well as motor functioning. D. where signals are received from the sensory system for touch.

A. the first place in the cerebral cortex where visual information is received.

Which of the following statements best describes how neurons communicate with one another? A. The end of one neuron makes direct contact with the receiving end of another neuron. B. A chemical process takes place at the synapse. C. An electrical process takes place in the receptors. D. Action potentials travel across the synapse.

B. A chemical process takes place at the synapse.

Sarah has experienced brain damage making it difficult for her to understand spatial layout. Which area of her brain has most likely sustained damage? A. Fusiform face area (FFA) B. Parahippocampal place area (PPA) C. Extrastriate body area (EBA) D. Functional magnetic area (FMA)

B. Parahippocampal place area (PPA)

When conducting an experiment on how stimuli are represented by the firing of neurons, you notice that neurons respond differently to different faces. For example, Arthur's face causes three neurons to fire, with neuron 1 responding the most and neuron 3 responding the least. Roger's face causes the same three neurons to fire, with neuron 1 responding the least and neuron 3 responding the most. Your results support ____ coding. A. specificity B. distributed C. convergence D. divergence

B. distributed

The idea that specific functions are processed in many parts of the brain is known as A. localization of function. B. distributed processing. C. modularity. D. aphasia.

B. distributed processing.

Neurons that respond to features that make up objects are called A. retinal cells. B. feature detectors. C. dendrites. D. receptors

B. feature detectors.

The _____ lobe of the cortex serves higher functions such as language, thought, and memory. A. subcortical B. frontal C. occipital D. parietal

B. frontal

An oscilloscope can display "spikes" that correspond to nerve impulses in response to a certain stimulus intensity. If the stimulus intensity is decreased, you are likely to observe spikes that are A. less frequent and smaller in size. B. less frequent and of the same size. C. as frequent and smaller in size. D. the same signal as with the higher stimulus intensity.

B. less frequent and of the same size.

Paul Broca's and Carl Wernicke's research provided early evidence for A. distributed processing. B. localization of function. C. prosopagnosia. D. neural net theory

B. localization of function.

Ramon is looking at pictures of scantily clad women in a magazine. He is focusing on their body parts, particularly their chest and legs. Which part of Ramon's brain is activated by this viewing? A. Fusiform face area (FFA) B. Parahippocampal place area (PPA) C. Extrastriate body area (EBA) D. Functional magnetic area (FMA

C. Extrastriate body area (EBA)

Recordings from single neurons are conducted using which of these pieces of equipment? A. Positron emission tomography scanner B. Functional magnetic resonance imaging scanner C. Microelectrode D. Neurotransmitter

C. Microelectrode

Action potentials occur in the A. cell body. B. synapse. C. neurotransmitters. D. axon.

D. axon.

A specific person's face is represented in the nervous system by the firing of A. a feature detector that fires specifically to that face. B. a group of neurons that all respond only to that face. C. a group of neurons each responding to a number of different faces. D. a receptor in the retina that responds when the face is present.

C. a group of neurons each responding to a number of different faces.

Neural circuits are groups of interconnected neurons that A. have only excitatory synapses. B. have only inhibitory synapses. C. can result in a neuron that responds best to a specific stimulus. D. are primarily responsible for automatic behaviors, like reflexes.

C. can result in a neuron that responds best to a specific stimulus.

The key structural components of neurons are A. cell body, dendrites, and transmitters. B. axon, dendrites, and modules. C. cell body, dendrites, and axon. D. transmitters, dendrites, and axon.

C. cell body, dendrites, and axon.

The study of the physiological basis of cognition is known as A. cognitive psychology. B. neuroscience. C. cognitive neuroscience. D. neuropsychology.

C. cognitive neuroscience.

You are walking down the street and see a really nice car drive by. You notice many features of it: its color, movement, shape, location, and so forth. All of these features are processed A. in one localized area of the brain. B. by the grandmother cells in the brain. C. in different parts of the brain. D. through fMRI potentials.

C. in different parts of the brain.

Recent research on language has modified our earlier understanding of Broca's aphasia such that it is now understood as a problem in A. language production but not understanding. B. language production but not meaning. C. language form but not meaning. D. language meaning but not form

C. language form but not meaning.

Recording from single neurons in the brain has shown that neurons responding to specific types of stimuli are often clustered in specific areas. These results support the idea of A. cortical association. B. dissociation. C. localization of function. D. the information processing approach.

C. localization of function.

Compared to brain-imaging techniques, ERP occurs on a A. much slower time scale. B. similar time scale. C. much faster time scale. D. more precise scale for understanding which brain structures are active.

C. much faster time scale.

The fusiform face area (FFA) in the brain is often damaged in patients with A. Broca's aphasia. B. Wernicke's aphasia. C. prosopagnosia. D. Alzheimer's disease.

C. prosopagnosia.

Most cognitive psychologists _____ the notion of a grandmother cell. A. accept B. are uncertain about C. reject D. are actively investigating

C. reject

Brain-imaging techniques can determine all of the following EXCEPT A. areas of the brain activated during cognitive tasks. B. localization of brain activity in response to a specific stimulus. C. the structure of individual neurons. D. patterns of blood flow in the brain

C. the structure of individual neurons.

Which of the following is consistent with the idea of localization of function? A. Specific areas of the brain serve different functions. B. Neurons in different areas of the brain respond best to different stimuli. C. Brain areas are specialized for specific functions. D. All of these

D. All of these

Which of the following neural components is NOT found at the receiving end of neurons? A. Cell body B. Dendrite C. Receptor D. Axon

D. Axon

Research using the ERP method shows that damage to the frontal lobes reduces the larger _____response that occurs when the form of a sentence is incorrect. A. N100 B. N400 C. P300 D. P600

D. P600

Which part of the brain is important for touch? A. Occipital lobe B. Hippocampus C. Temporal lobe D. Parietal lobe

D. Parietal lobe

When recording from a single neuron, stimulus intensity is represented in a single neuron by the A. size of the action potentials. B. size of the synapse. C. firing rate of the neurotransmitters. D. firing rate of the action potentials.

D. firing rate of the action potentials.

The neuron doctrine is A. in agreement with nerve net theory. B. unrelated to nerve net theory. C. synonymous with nerve net theory. D. in disagreement with nerve net theory.

D. in disagreement with nerve net theory.

Hemoglobin molecules in areas of high brain activity A. gain some of the ferrous molecules they are transporting. B. lose some of the ferrous molecules they are transporting. C. gain some of the oxygen they are transporting. D. lose some of the oxygen they are transporting.

D. lose some of the oxygen they are transporting.

The concept of distributed neural coding proposes that a specific object, like a face, is represented across a number of A. microelectrodes. B. stimuli. C. modalities. D. neurons.

D. neurons.

If kittens are raised in an environment that contains only verticals, you would predict that most of the neurons in their visual cortex would respond best to the visual presentation of a A. brick wall. B. chain link fence. C. solid wall. D. picket fence.

D. picket fence.

The way patterns of neural firing represent a specific stimulus or experience is known as A. the action potential. B. a propagated signal. C. convergence. D. the neural code.

D. the neural code.

A synapse is A. a tube filled with fluid that conducts electrical signals. B. the structure that contains mechanisms to keep a neuron alive. C. the structure that receives electrical signals from other neurons. D. the space between neurons.

D. the space between neurons.

In ERP methodology, the number that follows the N or the P (N400 or P300, for example) stands for A. the positivity or negativity of the response. B. how likely the response is, with higher numbers indicating a more likely response. C. how strong the response is in millimeters on the reading. D. the time at which the response peaks in milliseconds.

D. the time at which the response peaks in milliseconds.

The temporal lobe is A. the first place in the cerebral cortex where visual information is received. B. important for language, memory, hearing, and vision. C. important for higher functions such as language, thought, and memory, as well as motor functioning. D. where signals are received from the auditory system

D. where signals are received from the auditory system

How does Broca's area differ from Wernicke's area? a. Broca's area is involved with producing language whereas Wernicke's area helps to comprehend language. b. Broca's area is in the frontal lobe whereas Wernicke's area is in the occipital lobe. c. Broca's area tends to be damaged in stroke victims whereas Wernicke's area is damaged in schizophrenic individuals. d. Broca's area is involved in memory whereas Wernicke's area is not.

a. Broca's area is involved with producing language whereas Wernicke's area helps to comprehend language.

Which part of the brain is important for touch? a. Parietal lobe b. Temporal lobe c. Occipital lobe d. Hippocampus

a. Parietal lobe

Nerve nets were initially likened to work like ________ . a. a highway b. a mountain c. a volcano d. quicksand

a. a highway

The levels of analysis approach presumes that a problem a. can be studied in many ways. b. can only be studied with the use of medical devices. c. should only be studied with psychological measures. d. should be ignored.

a. can be studied in many ways.

Neural circuits are groups of interconnected neurons that: a. can result in a neuron that responds best to a specific stimulus. b. have only inhibitory synapses. c. have only excitatory synapses. d. are primarily responsible for automatic behaviors, like reflexes.

a. can result in a neuron that responds best to a specific stimulus.

With a double dissociation, a. damage present in one area of the brain causes disruption while another area continues to function. b. damage to one area of the brain causes damage to another area. c. two areas of the brain are simultaneously damaged but then improve. d. one area of brain improves its functioning while another area remains constant.

a. damage present in one area of the brain causes disruption while another area continues to function.

Specifically, ________ receive signals from other neurons. a. dendrites b. nerve fibers c. cell bodies d. axons

a. dendrites

If you're having problems with your vision, then it's likely that there could be a problem with your ________ lobe. a. occipital b. frontal c. temporal d. parietal

a. occipital

In most people the left hemisphere of the brain is dominant for language. Based on this finding, we can expect that _______. a. people tend to remember words better when the words are projected to the right visual field b. people tend to remember words better when the words are projected to the left visual field c. people tend to remember words better when the words are projected to the center of the visual field d. people tend to remember only a few words when the words are projected visually

a. people tend to remember words better when the words are projected to the right visual field

The temporal lobe is a. where signals are received from the auditory system. b. important for higher functions such as language, thought, and memory, as well as motor functioning. c. the first place in the cerebral cortex where visual information is received. d. important for language, memory, and hearing. It is also where the primary visual cortex is located

a. where signals are received from the auditory system.

If the intensity of a stimulus that is presented to a touch receptor is increased, this tends to increase the ________ in the receptor's axon. a. size of the nerve impulses b. all of these c. rate of nerve firing d. speed of nerve conduction

c. rate of nerve firing

Consistent with the principle of neural representation, which of the following factors would be LEAST consequential in understanding our experience of seeing another person? a. electrical signals in one's brain b. electrical signals in one's optic nerve c. the light reflected from the other person d. the image on one's retina

c. the light reflected from the other person

The neuron doctrine, ________ the nerve net theory, suggests that individual cells transmitting signals ________ continuous with each other. a. like ; are not b. like ; are c. unlike; are not d. unlike ; are

c. unlike; are not

Population coding is to sparse coding as ________ . a. disorganized is to pattern b. pattern is to disorganized c. small is to large d. large is to small

d. large is to small

Your ability to perceive pain is particularly guided by your ________ lobe. a. occipital b. temporal c. frontal d. parietal

d. parietal

A ________ is located some distance away from a neuron. a. microelectrode b. resting potential c. recording electrode d. reference electrode

d. reference electrode

The fact that certain neurons might respond to only your mother's face but not your father's face highlights the importance of ________ . a. hierarchical processing b. feature detectors c. population coding d. specificity coding

d. specificity coding

The idea of a grandmother cell is consistent with a. distributed coding. b. subtraction techniques. c. primary receiving areas. d. specificity coding.

d. specificity coding.