Deck 1: General Principles

Question 1

Stevens's power law defines the relationship between:

A) Stimulus intensity and neural response
B) Neural response and sensory magnitude
C) Muscle effort and sensory magnitude
D) Stimulus intensity and sensory magnitude

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Transduction describes:

A) Conversion of stimulus energy into electrical activity
B) Transmission of nerve impulses along an axon
C) Transmission of signals across synapses
D) Changes in the permeability of a neuron's ion channels

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Which of the following stimuli are humans unable to sense?

A) Light polarisation
B) Electromagnetic energy
C) Chemical composition
D) Acceleration

Answer 3

A

Question 4

According to the law of specific nerve energy, neural signals are associated with a characteristic sensory quality because:

A) They reach different cortical receiving areas
B) They are labelled by different neurotransmitters
C) They are generated by different kinds of receptors
D) They are labelled by their different firing frequencies

Question 5

The human cortex:

A) Is 2.5mm thick, and has surface area of 1000cm2
B) Is 12.5mm thick, and has surface area of 1000mm2
C) Is 2.5mm thick, and has surface area of 1m2
D) Is 2.5mm thick, and has surface area of 100cm2

Question 6

Following exposure to a relatively intense stimulus:

A) Sensitivity to the stimulus increases
B) The perceived magnitude of the stimulus increases
C) Sensitivity to the stimulus decreases
D) Sensitivity to all other stimuli decreases

Question 7

If the JND for sweetness is 1/20 and the stimulus concentration is 100 units, how much sweeter must it be made for a participant to just detect the change

A) 5 units
B) 10 units
C) 15 units
D) 20 units

Question 8

After sensory signals arrive at a receiving area in the cortex, they are passed on to:

A) Primary cortex
B) Cerebellum
C) Association cortex
D) Frontal cortex

Question 9

Which one of the following is a symbolic representation?

A) A text description of a particular species of bird
B) The height of a mercury thermometer
C) The movement of the second hand on a watch face
D) An audio clip of a bird's call

Question 10

Cells in the visual cortex are not grouped according to which stimulus dimension?

A) Contrast
B) Orientation
C) Receptive field position
D) Eye preference

Question 11

Which of the following is not a universal feature of human sensory systems?

A) Uniformity of function
B) Adaptability
C) Plasticity
D) Stimulus selectivity

Question 12

Which psychophysical methodology attempts to make separate measures of sensitivity and response bias?

A) The method of adjustment
B) Signal detection theory
C) Classical psychophysical theory
D) The method of constant stimuli

Question 13

Which of the bat's senses has the largest total cortical area devoted to it?

A) Hearing
B) Touch
C) Smell
D) Vision

Question 14

In humans, which sensory signals do not go via the thalamus, en route from receptor cells to cortex?

A) Olfactory
B) Auditory
C) Somatosensory
D) Vestibular

Question 15

In most sensory modalities the neural pathway to the cortex passes through:

A) The pineal
B) The pituitary
C) The brainstem
D) The thalamus

Question 16

Which of these links between receptors and cortical receiving area is not correct?

A) Chemoreceptors - striate cortex
B) Mechanoreceptors - Heschl's gyrus
C) Nociceptors - primary somatosensory cortex
D) Chemoreceptors - primary olfactory cortex

Question 17

Stevens's power law defines the relationship between:

A) Stimulus intensity and neural response
B) Neural response and sensory magnitude
C) Muscle effort and sensory magnitude
D) Stimulus intensity and sensory magnitude

Question 18

Which technique cannot be used to make valid inferences about localisation of function in the cortex:

A) Psychophysics
B) Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)
C) Lesion experiments
D) Clinical studies

Question 19

A temporary change in neural sensitivity to an aspect of the immediate environment is called

A) Plasticity
B) Magnification
C) Critical period
D) Adaptation

Question 20

Univariance in individual neural responses was first described by

A) Hubel and Weisel
B) Naka and Rushton
C) Blakemore and Cooper
D) Johannes Mueller

Question 21

Which is not a biological sensory receptor?

A) Mechanoreceptor
B) Chemorecepto
C) Waveceptor
D) Nociceptor
E) Photoreceptor