Deck 13: Touch

Question 1

Touch can be considered to be more reliable than vision because

A) we tend to disbelieve an object exists if we feel it but cannot see it.
B) we tend to believe an object exists if we feel it but cannot see it.
C) we tend to believe an object exists if we see it but cannot feel it.
D) we tend to believe an object exists only if we can both see and touch it.

Answer 1

we tend to believe an object exists if we feel it but cannot see it.

Question 2

People who lose all large touch fibers from a viral infection

A) find it almost impossible to walk.
B) cannot tell where a thermal probe is placed on the body.
C) experience phantom-limb pain.
D) all of these

Answer 2

find it almost impossible to walk.

Question 3

Mechanoreceptors are specialized cells that

A) register the mechanical resistance of the muscles.
B) innervate the mechanical action of the muscles.
C) transform mechanical energy into heat.
D) register mechanical pressure from deformation of the skin.

Answer 3

register mechanical pressure from deformation of the skin.

Question 4

The _________ is to the body as the ________ is to the eye.

A) hand, fovea
B) thumb, cornea
C) mind, lens
D) skin, retina

Question 5

Touch has been used as a substitute for the sense of

A) hearing.
B) seeing.
C) smell.
D) both hearing and seeing.

Question 6

Touch sensitivity to vibration is highest on the

A) fingertips.
B) lips.
C) palm.
D) toes.

Question 7

Touch acuity varies with

A) the region of the body touched.
B) the sex of the person being touched.
C) temperature of the skin.
D) all of these

Question 8

How small of a separation can be detected using the two-point threshold technique?

A) 70 mm
B) 30 mm
C) 20 mm
D) 2 mm

Question 9

The region of the body exhibiting greatest sensitivity to vibration is

A) the fingertips.
B) the lips.
C) the palm.
D) the back.

Question 10

Sensitivity to vibrotactile stimulation is greatest for vibration frequencies around

A) 50 Hz.
B) 100 Hz.
C) 150 Hz.
D) 200 Hz.

Question 11

The ability to distinguish between two simultaneous deformations of the skin is referred to as

A) touch acuity.
B) localization ability.
C) grating perception.
D) none of these

Question 12

According to the textbook, our localization ability by touch

A) is poor.
B) is fair.
C) is good.
D) depends on the part of the body being stimulated.

Question 13

The density of a series of grooves refers to an object's grating

A) spatial frequency.
B) localization ability.
C) grating perception.
D) touch acuity.

Question 14

Places on the body with keen touch acuity tend to be places where

A) touch sensitivity is greatest.
B) touch sensitivity is least.
C) touch sensitivity is intermittent.
D) none of these

Question 15

If a person is holding a cube out of sight and at the same time is looking at a cotton-stuffed rubber glove holding a similar cube,

A) accuracy in detecting vibration to the hand is uninfluenced by a light in the same place on the glove.
B) accuracy in detecting vibration to the hand is increased by a light in the same place on the glove.
C) accuracy in detecting vibration to the hand is decreased by a light in the same place on the glove.
D accuracy in detecting vibration to the hand is uninfluenced by a light in the same place on the glove if . the person had been told to ignore the light.

Question 16

In distinguishing whether a surface has fine grooves inscribed on it, the most acute part of your body to use is the

A) palm.
B) index finger.
C) ring finger.
D) lip.

Question 17

Calluses of the skin on the fingers can

A) amplify pressure changes in the skin when one touches an object.
B) make smoothly textured fabrics more enjoyable to touch.
C) degrade the ability to judge an object's shape from touching it.
D) reduce the perceived roughness of a touched surface.

Question 18

When we rub our hands together, we can be made to experience our hands as dry and rough by placing a microphone near our hands and

A) amplifying the high-frequency sounds.
B) reducing the high-frequency sounds.
C) amplifying the low-frequency sounds.
D) reducing the low-frequency sounds.

Question 19

The Braille system

A) works about as well as embossed letters.
B) works better than embossed letters do, because, compared to embossed letters, the dot-characters aren't blurred mechanically by the fingers.
C) works better than embossed letters do, because blind people have never seen letters before.
D) slows reading to a rate below 30 words/minute.

Question 20

Surfaces such as steel and cement feel cold to the touch because

A) these surfaces tend to be smooth.
B) more of the finger contacts these kinds of surfaces.
C) these surfaces draw heat away from the skin more quickly.
D) we expect them to feel cold.

Question 21

A weight that has been cooled feels

A) lighter than the same weight does at room temperature.
B) heavier than the same weight does at room temperature.
C) no different from the same weight at room temperature.
D) cooler than the same weight does at room temperature

Question 22

What is the rate called at which a surface draws heat away when touched by a body part?

A) spread of effect
B) thermal conductivity
C) spatial frequency
D) none of these

Question 23

Which of the following is NOT believed to influence the perceived temperature of an object?

A) skin temperature
B) the hardness of a surface
C) the temperature of the object
D) all of these affect the perceived temperature of an object

Question 24

When uncertain about where to expect a tactile stimulus, we tend to

A) have more difficulty identifying the stimulus.
B) be more sensitive to touch stimulation all over the body.
C) use a different set of mechanoreceptors for touch.
D) try harder to identify it, thus making fewer errors.

Question 25

The side of the hand containing the smallest finger is innervated by what nerve(s)?

A) ulnar
B) median
C) both ulnar and median
D) neither ulnar nor median

Question 26

The side of the hand containing the thumb and the outside portion of the arm are innervated by what nerve(s)?

A) ulnar
B) median
C) both ulnar and median
D) neither ulnar nor median

Question 27

Which one of the following is NOT a type of fiber associated with perceiving the temporal properties associated with touch?

A) slowly adapting fibers
B) rapidly adapting fibers
C) punctate fibers
D) all of these are associated with perceiving temporal properties

Question 28

Which one of the following is NOT a type of fiber associated with perceiving the spatial properties associated with touch?

A) rapidly adapting fibers
B) punctate fibers
C) diffuse fibers
D) all of these are associated with perceiving temporal properties

Question 29

Touch fibers can be categorized by the

A) sharpness of spatial boundaries of their receptive fields.
B) pattern of neural activity over time.
C) mechanoreceptors they innervate.
D) all of these

Question 30

Sensitivity to very light touch is probably mediated by

A) SA fibers.
B) RA fibers.
C) ulnar nerve.
D) none of these

Question 31

Stimulation of RA units elicits

A) the sensation of light, uniform pressure.
B) a buzzing, vibration feeling.
C) sensation of coolness.
D) no tactile sensation whatsoever.

Question 32

Degree of loss of touch sensitivity to small probes with age correlates well with

A) increase in skin callousness.
B) decrease in the number of Meissner corpuscles.
C) increased skin elasticity.
D) cell loss in cortical area SI.

Question 33

Which of the following is NOT a touch receptor?

A) Meissner corpuscle
B) Pacinian corpuscle
C) Merkel disc
D) von Frey hair

Question 34

The most deeply situated mechanoreceptors are the

A) Meissner corpuscles.
B) Merkel disks.
C) Pacinian corpuscles.
D) Ruffini endings.

Question 35

Which of the following is NOT true?

A) The somatosensory cortex is divisible into several subdivisions, each with its own touch map.
B) The somatosensory area of the left hemisphere receives input from the left side of the body.
C) Some areas of the body receive a more detailed representation in the brain than do others.
D) The lemniscal pathway carries input to somatosensory cortex.

Question 36

In the case of touch, cortical magnification refers to the

A) larger number of somatosensory cortical cells compared to mechanoreceptors.
B) larger cortical representation of larger body areas such as the back.
C) larger cortical representation of body parts with better tactile sensitivity, such as the fingers.
D) increase in size of tactile cortical receptive fields.

Question 37

The sense of our limb position is called

A) kinesthesis.
B) negative feedback.
C) touch-sight.
D) exploratory actions.

Question 38

The perception of the position of one's limbs is

A) haptics.
B) proprioception.
C) exploratory touch.
D) none of these

Question 39

The term haptics refers to

A) thermal transfer between the skin and a surface.
B) disuse of a hand following brain damage.
C) active exploration of objects by the hands.
D) a method of reading employed by blind people.

Question 40

When people explore objects with their hands, the hand movements are

A) random.
B) predictable.
C) inaccurate.
D) slow.

Question 41

Haptics and vision provide

A) complementary sources of information.
B) confusing sources of information.
C) essentially identical sources of information.
D) independent sources of information.

Question 42

Touch may clarify an object's perceived shape by

A) concurrent activation of somatosensory brain areas and visual brain areas.
B) concurrent activation of receptors from skin, muscle, and tendons.
C) concurrent activation of S-I and S-II.
D) concurrent activation of all four types of mechanoreceptors.

Question 43

The condition called unilateral neglect is associated with damage to

A) area 2.
B) area 3B.
C) parietal cortex.
D) spinothalamic tract.

Question 44

The first to attribute phantom limb to residual activation of touch perception was

A) Aristotle.
B) Descartes.
C) Paré.
D) Ramachandran.

Question 45

People with pain insensitivity

A) have lowered thresholds for pain.
B) have lowered life expectancy.
C) have fewer social interactions.
D) all of these

Question 46

Wong and Baker introduced a pain scale for use by children based on

A) the numbers from 1 to 10.
B) physiological signs of pain of different intensities.
C) evoked potentials.
D) smiley faces.

Question 47

A? fibers respond to ___________ or to ___________ producing a(n) ___________ sensation of pain; C fibers also respond to ___________ producing a(n) ___________ sensation of pain.

A) strong mechanical stimulation; thermal stimulation; immediate; chemical stimulation; delayed
B) chemical stimulation; thermal stimulation; immediate; strong mechanical stimulation; delayed
C) chemical stimulation; thermal stimulation; delayed; strong mechanical stimulation; immediate
D) strong mechanical stimulation; thermal stimulation; delayed; chemical stimulation; immediate

Question 48

Allodynia is

A) perception of pain from a nonpainful stimulus.
B) release from pain fibers of chemicals causing inflammation.
C) contraction of the muscles around the site of an injury.
^D. the balance of activity between A? and C fibers.

Question 49

If told that a very cold object is very hot, volunteers

A) experienced it as hotter than did volunteers told it was very cold.
B) experienced it as colder than did volunteers told it was very cold.
C) experienced it as more painful than did volunteers told it was very cold.
D) experienced it as less painful than did volunteers told it was very cold.

Question 50

Research by Merzenich revealed that one area of the brain can take over the function of another part of the brain. Which one of the following is true?

A) This is true for the adult nervous system.
B) This is true for the infant nervous system.
C) This is true regardless of the age of the organism.
D) none of these

Question 51

The theory of Mountcastle and the research by Merzenich and others have shown that the synapses associated with touch are continuously being affected by one's experiences. This suggests that the neuronal connections supporting touch are

A) plastic.
B) multisynaptic.
C) diffuse fibers.
D) none of these

Question 52

Plasticity in the somatosensory cortex

A) is limited to a critical period early in an organism's life.
B) occurs only when the organism engages in active tactile behavior.
C) can expand to encompass other sensory cortical areas.
D) is irreversible.

Question 53

The research-based touch rehabilitation therapy developed by Dannenbaum and Dykes (1988) uses the strategy of

A) reeducating one component of touch at a time.
B) having patients wear blindfolds to emphasize touch perception.
C) teaching Braille visually before relying on touch.
D) using touch to enhance visual perception.

Question 54

Aristotle's illusion refers to

A) misjudgment of an object's weight when the object is cold.
B) misperception of an object's shape.
C) inability to judge surface texture when the fingers are motionless.
D) the perception of two objects when a single object is pressed between crossed fingers.

Question 55

Aristotle found that if two adjacent fingers are crossed and touch a singular object, the perception is of touching two separate objects. This phenomenon of "double touch" has been labeled

A) phantom limb.
B) plasticity.
C) diplesthesia.
D) none of these

Question 56

What is the distinction between touch sensitivity and touch acuity?

Question 57

Describe how surface roughness seems to be registered by the nervous system.

Question 58

Why are raised dots used for portraying written language for the blind instead of embossed or raised letter shapes?

Question 59

In what way(s) is registration and processing of tactile information comparable to registration and processing of visual information?

Question 60

Why is proprioceptive information crucial for haptics?

Question 61

Explain how gate control theory explains perception of pain.