Question 1

A surprising aspect of brain growth is that

Accepted Answer

A)  the neural tube produces far less neurons than the brain will need. 
B)  as synapses form, 20 to 80 percent of the surrounding neurons die. 
C)  during infancy and toddlerhood, neural fibers stagnate. 
D)  once neurons are in place, they cannot differentiate.

Question 2

When Samer was born, stimulation in his brain resulted in a massive overabundance of synapses. Neurons that were seldom stimulated soon lost their synapses. This process is known as

Accepted Answer

A)  myelination. 
B)  synaptic pruning. 
C)  neuroimaging. 
D)  neurotransmission.

Question 3

By the end of the first year, a baby's ability to manipulate objects greatly expands with the development of

Accepted Answer

A)  the pincer grasp. 
B)  the ulnar grasp. 
C)  the fine-motor reflex. 
D)  prereaching.

Question 4

Research indicates that around 7 to 9 months, infants

Accepted Answer

A)  detect when words are deliberately mispronounced. 
B)  begin to divide the speech stream into wordlike units. 
C)  become sensitive to syllable stress patterns in their own language. 
D)  detect words that start with weak syllables.

Question 5

Research reveals that babies perceive input from different sensory systems in a unified way by detecting

Accepted Answer

A)  amodal sensory properties. 
B)  invariant features of the environment. 
C)  affordances. 
D)  pictorial depth cues.

Question 6

Which of the following is an example of a gross-motor skill?

Accepted Answer

A)  climbing 
B)  pointing 
C)  reaching 
D)  scribbling

Question 7

A researcher hangs a mobile over the crib of 4-month-old Anya. When the researcher attaches Anya's foot to the mobile with a long cord, Anya can, by kicking, make the mobile turn. The turning of the mobile is an example of

Accepted Answer

A)  a reinforcer. 
B)  punishment. 
C)  an unconditioned stimulus. 
D)  an conditioned response.

Question 8

The cerebral cortex

Accepted Answer

A)  contains the greatest number of neurons and synapses in the brain. 
B)  is the first part of the brain to stop growing. 
C)  is less sensitive to environmental influences than other parts of the brain. 
D)  fully develops during the third trimester of pregnancy.

Question 9

As early as 3 months, infants prefer and more easily discriminate among __________ than __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  male adults; boys 
B)  female faces; male faces 
C)  members of other races; members of their own race 
D)  unfamiliar faces; familiar faces

Question 10

Around 2 months, babies

Accepted Answer

A)  can keep track of an object that travels on a curvilinear course at varying speeds. 
B)  realize that a moving rod whose center is hidden behind a box is a complete rod rather than two rod pieces. 
C)  first perceive that a ball that moves back and forth behind a screen moves in a continuous path. 
D)  first begin to perceive an object's size as the same, despite changes in the size of its retinal image.

Question 11

"Baby fat"

Accepted Answer

A)  helps the infant maintain a constant body temperature. 
B)  peaks at about 6 months. 
C)  increases very slowly during infancy. 
D)  helps the infant gain strength and physical coordination.

Question 12

__________ preference assesses infants' __________.

Accepted Answer

A)  Familiarity; recent memory 
B)  Novelty; remote memory 
C)  Novelty; recent memory 
D)  Familiarity; reflexes

Question 13

Which of the following mothers is most likely to actively discourage rapid motor development?

Accepted Answer

A)  Elyse, a Canadian mother 
B)  Indira, a West Indian mother 
C)  Biyaki, a Gusii mother 
D)  Cheruiyot, a Kipsigis mother

Question 14

Perception studies demonstrate that

Accepted Answer

A)  Western adults, but not infants, can detect rhythmic-pattern deviations of non-Western music. 
B)  Western children retain the ability to detect deviations in foreign musical rhythms throughout childhood. 
C)  Western babies lose their ability to detect deviations in foreign musical rhythms by 12 months of age. 
D)  daily opportunities to listen to non-Western music restores Western adults' sensitivity to music rhythms.

Question 15

When a 1-month-old kitten is put in the dark and kept there during the fourth week of life and beyond, damage to visual centers of the brain is severe and permanent. This example provides evidence of

Accepted Answer

A)  brain plasticity. 
B)  synaptic pruning. 
C)  lateralization of the cerebral cortex. 
D)  sensitive periods in brain development.

Question 16

Infants and toddlers grow

Accepted Answer

A)  by making steady gains over time. 
B)  slower than at any other time during childhood. 
C)  in little spurts. 
D)  in dramatic leaps.

Question 17

Which of the following children is most likely to be above North American growth norms?

Accepted Answer

A)  Timmy, a Caucasian-American boy 
B)  June, an Asian girl 
C)  Freddy, an African-American boy 
D)  Kim, an Asian boy

Question 18

Which of the following statements about breastfeeding is true?

Accepted Answer

A)  Human milk is lower in fat and higher in protein than the milk of other mammals. 
B)  A mother who breastfeeds needs to add solid foods to her infant's diet around 4 months. 
C)  Breastfed babies suffer from more gastrointestinal problems than do bottle-fed infants. 
D)  Breastfed infants accept new solid foods more easily than do bottle-fed infants.

Question 19

Zahara, age 3 months, is painfully thin. Her mother is too malnourished to produce enough breast milk, and the supply of formula is inadequate for bottle-feeding. Zahara is probably in danger of dying from

Accepted Answer

A)  marasmus. 
B)  growth faltering. 
C)  kwashiorkor. 
D)  nonorganic failure to thrive.

Question 20

A study in which researchers made periodic home visits to several hundred low-income first-time mothers and their babies found that

Accepted Answer

A)  the majority of infants were breastfed. 
B)  inappropriate feeding practices were pervasive. 
C)  the majority of infants did not receive solid food soon enough. 
D)  only about 25 percent of infants received juices by 6 months.

Exam 5: Physical Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood