Brain and Behavior
Textbook Exam Questions
Course Introduction
This course explores the intricate relationship between the brains structure and function and human behavior. Students will examine how neural processes underlie sensation, perception, emotion, learning, memory, motivation, and mental disorders. Through an interdisciplinary approach that blends neuroscience, psychology, and biology, the course investigates how different brain systems influence cognition and behavior, as well as the impact of genetics, environment, and injury on brain function. Foundational concepts such as neuroanatomy, neurotransmission, and neuroplasticity are introduced, providing students with a comprehensive understanding of how the brain shapes everyday experiences and complex behaviors.
Recommended Textbook
Biological Psychology 11th Edition by James W. Kalat
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15 Chapters
3327 Verified Questions
3327 Flashcards
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Chapter 1: The Major Issues
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following would contribute to an overestimation of heritability?
A) Increasing the genetic similarity between people
B) Eliminating the multiplier effect
C) Overestimating the effect of the environment
D) Ignoring the effect of the prenatal environment
Answer: D
Q2) The primary difference between biological psychologists and neuroscientists is that neuroscientists place greater emphasis on studying:
A) chemistry.
B) psychology.
C) biology.
D) behavior.
Answer: D
Q3) The ethical debate between animal researchers and abolitionists has always proceeded in an intelligent and mutually respectful way.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
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Chapter 2: Nerve Cells and Nerve Impulses
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Sample Questions
Q1) Compared to passive transport, the major disadvantage of active transport is that it:
A) cannot transport chemicals out of the brain.
B) requires expenditure of energy.
C) transports glucose into the brain.
D) transports viruses into the brain.
Answer: B
Q2) A drug that blocks the sodium gates of a neuron's membrane would:
A) decrease the threshold.
B) block the action potential.
C) cause repeated action potentials.
D) eliminate the refractory period.
Answer: B
Q3) Which of the following molecules would be able to passively cross the blood-brain barrier?
A) small, uncharged molecules
B) large, charged molecules
C) glucose
D) amino acids
Answer: A
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Page 4
Chapter 3: Synapses
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Sample Questions
Q1) The proper order of a reflex arc is:
A) motor neuron, sensory neuron, interneuron.
B) sensory neuron, motor neuron, interneuron.
C) motor neuron, interneuron, sensory neuron.
D) sensory neuron, interneuron, motor neuron.
Answer: D
Q2) What happens to acetylcholine after it attaches to a receptor on the postsynaptic cell?
A) It is broken down into two components.
B) It is reabsorbed intact by the presynaptic cell.
C) The postsynaptic cell metabolizes it as a source of energy.
D) It continues to stimulate the postsynaptic neuron until replaced by another neurotransmitter.
Answer: A
Q3) To measure temporal summation in single cells, researchers:
A) attach electrodes to the scalp.
B) insert an microelectrode into the scalp.
C) collect sodium and potassium ions from nearby glial cells.
D) record depolarizations of the postsynaptic neuron.
Answer: D
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Chapter 4: Anatomy of the Nervous System
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Sample Questions
Q1) Hydrocephalus is caused by inflammation of the meninges.
A)True
B)False
Q2) A fluid-filled channel in the center of the spinal cord is called the:
A) ventricle.
B) central canal.
C) raphe system.
D) meninge.
Q3) The choroid plexus reabsorbs the cerebrospinal fluid.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Which of the following is TRUE about the cortical areas that are sometimes known as "association areas"?
A) They do have the main control of thinking and reasoning.
B) They would be better described as additional sensory areas.
C) They form associations between touch and hearing.
D) They integrate information from more than one sensory system.
Q5) Name the major subcortical areas of the forebrain.
Q6) Briefly describe the general organization of the Cerebral cortex, including a brief description of each cortical lobe.
Page 6
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Chapter 5: Development and Plasticity of the Brain
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Sample Questions
Q1) If supersensitivity takes place, what can one expect to find regarding the number of receptors?
A) An increased number in the presynaptic cell
B) A decreased number in the presynaptic cell
C) An increased number in the postsynaptic cell
D) A decreased number in the postsynaptic cell
Q2) To promote recovery, stroke victims should be given:
A) stimulant drugs immediately after the stroke.
B) any drug that decreases dopamine.
C) stimulant drugs a few days after the stroke.
D) tranquilizers a few days after the stroke.
Q3) Recent evidence suggests that adult vertebrate brains generate new neurons.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Following a stroke, amphetamine could help by:
A) inducing apoptosis.
B) blocking activity in overstimulated areas of the brain.
C) blocking glutamate release.
D) increasing activity in understimulated areas of the brain.
Q5) Define proliferation during neural development.
Page 7
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Chapter 6: Vision
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Sample Questions
Q1) ____ are chemicals that release energy when struck by light.
A) Phototransmitters
B) Photosins
C) Photopigments
D) Photoions
Q2) A species that has a high rod to cone ratio is most likely to be active during the day.
A)True
B)False
Q3) The one additional feature that hypercomplex cells have that complex cells do not is that:
A) they respond to their receptive field faster.
B) hypercomplex cells have a strong inhibitory area at one end of its receptive field.
C) they have receptive fields that are triangular.
D) they respond to bars of light in more than one orientation.
Q4) What is blindsight?
Q5) Bipolar cells are the light sensitive cells in the retina.
A)True B)False
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Chapter 7: The Other Sensory Systems
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Sample Questions
Q1) Endorphins:
A) can interact with the same receptors as morphine.
B) have chemical structures just like morphine.
C) increase pain.
D) are human-made drugs which mimic endorphins.
Q2) The structure that we commonly refer to as the ear (on the outside of the head) is formally known as the:
A) tympanic membrane.
B) stapes.
C) pinna.
D) malleus.
Q3) If two voices differ in their frequency, this means they differ in their:
A) amplitude.
B) number of waves per second.
C) height of each wave.
D) loudness.
Q4) Adaptation occurs quickly to pheromones.
A)True
B)False
Q5) Briefly describe the behavioral effects of pheromones in humans.
Page 9
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Chapter 8: Movement
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Sample Questions
Q1) The motor cortex produces a kind of activity called a(n) ____ before any voluntary movement.
A) readiness potential
B) action potential
C) evoked potential
D) motor potential
Q2) Damage to one side of the lateral tract below the level of the medulla would most likely affect:
A) fine motor control on the opposite side of the body.
B) fine motor control on the same side of the body.
C) bilateral control of the neck, shoulders, and trunk.
D) rapid ballistic movements.
Q3) Of the three types of skeletal muscles found in fish, which type is least susceptible to fatigue?
A) Red
B) White
C) Blue
D) Pink
Q4) What is the main function of the posterior parietal cortex?
Q5) Briefly describe the Babinski reflex.
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Chapter 9: Wakefulness and Sleep
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Sample Questions
Q1) What is the best way to determine if an individual who claims to never dream does, in fact, have dreams?
A) Ask them about their dreams immediately after they wake up in the morning.
B) Wake them up during REM sleep and ask them if they have been dreaming.
C) Wake them up during NREM sleep and ask them if they have been dreaming.
D) Ask them under hypnosis if they have had any dreams recently.
Q2) The probability of sleep apnea is increased among which group of people?
A) College students during finals week
B) Those who are addicted to tranquilizers
C) Overweight men
D) People who work on swing shifts
Q3) After isolating a neuron from the rest of the brain, you find that it has a moderately stable circadian rhythm. The most likely home of this neuron is in the:
A) optic nerve.
B) MPOA.
C) SCN.
D) pineal gland.
Q4) Discuss the leading theories on the biological perspectives on dreaming.
Q5) Briefly describe the role of the locus coeruleus in arousal and attention.
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Chapter 10: Internal Regulation
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Sample Questions
Q1) CCK, insulin, and leptin provide input to the ____ neurons in the ____ nucleus.
A) satiety-sensitive, paraventricular
B) satiety-sensitive, arcuate
C) hunger-sensitive, arcuate
D) hunger-sensitive, paraventricular
Q2) The way that mammals with damage to their preoptic area regulate their body temperature is similar to what other group?
A) birds
B) reptiles
C) normal mammals
D) inanimate objects
Q3) The rate at which the posterior pituitary releases vasopressin is under the control of the:
A) lateral preoptic area of the hypothalamus.
B) supraoptic and paraventricular nuclei.
C) subfornical organ.
D) thalamus.
Q4) CCK limits meal size.
A)True
B)False
Page 12
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Chapter 11: Reproductive Behaviors
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Sample Questions
Q1) Describe how the mother's immune system may exert prenatal effects on sexual orientation.
Q2) An organizing effect differs from an activating effect of a hormone in that an organizing effect:
A) inhibits the effects of another hormone.
B) lasts only briefly.
C) activates excitatory receptors.
D) produces more long-lasting effects.
Q3) Some researchers found that the ____ was slightly larger in heterosexual than homosexual men.
A) amount of testosterone in the blood.
B) amount of estradiol in the blood.
C) size of one nucleus of the hypothalamus.
D) size of one nucleus of the medulla.
Q4) ____ prepares the uterus for pregnancy.
A) Testosterone
B) Androgen
C) Progesterone
D) Estradiol
Q5) Briefly describe the role of the sex hormone oxytocin.
Page 13
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Chapter 12: Emotional Behaviors
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Sample Questions
Q1) Psychologists typically define emotion in terms of three components.
A)True
B)False
Q2) When people were forced to smile, by clenching a pen between their teeth, how did they rate a cartoon they were reading?
A) funnier than if they were not forced to smile
B) just as funny as when they were frowning
C) not as funny as when they were holding a pen between their lips
D) as frightening
Q3) Stress activates two systems. One is the:
A) HPA axis, which reacts more quickly than the other.
B) HPA axis, which becomes increasingly important with prolonged stressors.
C) autonomic nervous system which secretes the hormone ACTH.
D) autonomic nervous system which secretes the hormone cortisol.
Q4) An experimental drug, Ro15-4513, has been shown to block the behavioral effects of:
A) tricyclics.
B) amphetamines.
C) alcohol.
D) endozepines.
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Chapter 13: The Biology of Learning and Memory
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Sample Questions
Q1) Damage to the ____ produces symptoms similar to Korsakoff's syndrome.
A) prefrontal cortex
B) basal ganglia
C) occipital cortex
D) precentral gyrus
Q2) After LTP is established, NMDA receptors are not required to maintain it.
A)True
B)False
Q3) Which of the following experiments would be a reasonable test of whether an animal has suffered damage to its hippocampus?
A) Does it reenter a single arm before entering all the other appropriate arms in a radial maze?
B) Does it sometimes enter an arm in a radial maze that is never correct?
C) Can it learn to climb along a thin wire without losing its balance?
D) Can it learn to turn one direction when it hears a loud tone and a different direction when it hears a soft tone?
Q4) Describe the delayed matching-to-sample task.
Q5) What is habituation as it relates to memory research?
Q6) Describe the difference between declarative and procedural memory.
Page 15
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Chapter 14: Cognitive Functions
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Sample Questions
Q1) Wernicke's aphasia is primarily a problem of speech production.
A)True
B)False
Q2) All of the following are explanations for Kanzi and Mulika's language abilities EXCEPT that?
A) their species may be more adapted to learning language.
B) learning through imitation is more effective than learning with rewards.
C) they began learning at an earlier age.
D) they were given a special diet.
Q3) Which of the following is a rare condition in which people are retarded in many ways, but yet are remarkably skilled in their use of language?
A) Williams syndrome
B) dyslexia
C) Wernicke's aphasia
D) anomia
Q4) A child born without a corpus callosum can name something felt with the left hand, but an adult who suffered damage to the corpus callosum cannot. What are two likely explanations?
Q5) Describe some of the research conducted in nonhuman's dealing with language.
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Chapter 15: Mood Disorders and Schizophrenia
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following statements about the genetic basis of schizophrenia is FALSE?
A) Monozygotic twins have a higher concordance rate than dizygotic twins.
B) Twins are more likely to resemble each other if they think they are monozygotic than if they actually are.
C) Schizophrenia is more common in the biological relatives of an adopted schizophrenic child than in the adoptive relatives.
D) The prevalence of schizophrenia has been declining worldwide.
Q2) An advantage of bright light therapy for SAD, as compared to other antidepressant treatments, is that bright light therapy:
A) is highly effective without apparent side effects.
B) produces a permanent cure after one or two treatments.
C) is well understood theoretically.
D) is financially supported by several drug companies.
Q3) Which of the following MOST strongly increases your risk of depression?
A) relatives with early-onset depression
B) relatives with late-onset depression
C) spending time with a depressed person (regardless of being related)
D) living in South America
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