Exam 2: The Biological Basis of Behavior

The brain and spinal cord contain about ________ percent of the body's neurons.

You cannot gain conscious control over functions normally controlled by the autonomic nervous system.

A nerve is really a(n) ________.

Macroelectrode techniques are used to ________.

A resting potential is the electrical charge across a neural membrane when ________ ions concentrate on the outside and ________ ions concentrate on the inside.

A zygote contains ________ chromosomes in normal circumstances.

Each of the following is true of family study research designs in behavior genetics except they ________.

An extremely useful research method for studying human behavior genetics is a ________.

Andrew's friends have noticed that lately he sleeps constantly but is always tired and complains of feeling too hot or too cold. Although Andrew had formerly been very athletic, lately his muscle tone has been greatly reduced. The source of Andrew's problem is probably an ________ gland.

Describe the location and functioning of the medulla, cerebellum, thalamus, hypothalamus, and cerebral cortex.

The spinal cord contains ________ major neural pathway(s).

Phineas Gage was a foreman on a railroad crew who suffered brain damage in a blasting accident. After the accident, he lost interest in his job and had difficulty maintaining any goal-directed behaviors. He seemed apathetic and capable of only shallow emotions. The damaged part of his brain was probably the ________ lobe.

________ techniques are used to obtain an overall picture of activity in particular regions of the brain.

The heavy footsteps on the stairs get closer and closer. Slowly, the door to the bedroom creaks open. As a strange man with a knife in his hand lunges in, you let out an ear-piercing scream. Which of the following most accurately describes your nervous system at this point?

A middle-aged person who is depressed most likely has a problem with which of the following neurotransmitters?

Microelectrode techniques are used to ________.

Explain what evolutionary psychology is and identify the types of human behaviors evolutionary psychologists are interested in. Also, briefly discuss the criticisms of evolutionary psychology and how evolutionary psychologists respond to those criticisms.

The axon carries outgoing messages from the cell body.

The hormone melatonin is produced by the ________ gland.

The cerebral cortex accounts for about ________ percent of the weight of the human brain.