Download 99 4A midterm studyq`s

HUMBIO STUDY QUESTIONS
2002 4A Midterm
These are merely thought questions; they are not all–encompassing. The exam covers material through
Thursday, April 25, 2002. You are responsible for material presented in lecture, PSOH, Silverthorn and
Summit. The goal is for you to integrate your understanding of the many topics we have covered so far
this quarter. A great way to study for this exam is to look at the old midterm and be ready to play
around with the concepts and mechanisms in new, hypothetical situations. Try coming up with some
test questions of your own to try thinking along such lines. We also recommend working in groups and
tackling these study questions together—go find some classroom with a white board and draw everything
up there, trace all the pathways together and do some HumBio bonding. Of course, read all your notes
carefully, and review the reading as well. Best of luck studying—see you at 8:50am on Monday!
1. Your body tightly regulates many parameters. Why is this necessary? How does your body
regulate such parameters? How do feedback and homeostasis relate to each other? What
four physiological components are required for feedback systems? Describe a feedback
system you have studied.
2. Although the nervous system is complex, many principles can be identified. How is the
nervous system organized/categorized? You have studied input, processing and output
types of neurons -- how do each of these relate to the CNS and PNS? How do the brain and
brainstem differ in function? What is the purpose of topographic mapping? What is the
significance of the relationship between the neuraxis of the brain and complexity of
function?
3. The neuron is the fundamental unit of the nervous system. How is the neuron unique from
other cells? Describe the different kinds of neurons, the different parts of a neuron, and the
significance of those differences. What establishes resting potential? What is the
significance of concentration and charge gradients? What is threshold? What is the
significance of variable permeabilities? Compare and contrast action vs. graded potentials.
What is summation? What is saltatory conduction? How is it related to multiple sclerosis?
4. Biologists use the Nernst and Goldman Equations to describe a neuron's ionic composition.
Compare and contrast these two equations.
5. Compare and contrast the transmission of signals within one neuron and between two
neurons, including the roles of ion channels, neurotransmitters, neuromodulators and
drugs. In what ways are chemical synapses advantageous to other connections between
cells?
6. What is the role of development in the neural synaptic network, as discussed in Professor
McConnell's lecture? Where do neurons come from? How do axons find their targets?
What pathways do they use? How does refinement of synaptic connections occur?
7. You are walking barefoot across the dorm lounge when you have the misfortune of
stubbing your big toe on a misplaced piano bench that some a cappella group moved while
they were rehearsing there last night. You yank back your foot, scream in pain, and then
hop around the room cursing a cappella. Trace the circuit from initial sensory input to final
motor output, identifying neuron types and waystations.
8. All the sensory systems possess big similarities and differences to one another. How might
such similarities have come about? Compare and contrast vision, audition, olfaction, taste
and touch in terms of form of energy, receptor cell, receptor structure, receptor transduction
pathway, neurotransmitters, graded vs. action potential, second–order cells, mapping, etc.
9. What is visual transduction? What are the steps? How does amplification play a role?
Contrast baseline conditions with activated conditions.
10. What is the anatomy of the visual system? What are the cells that make up the visual
system? Trace the path of a light signal from when it enters the eye to where you
consciously perceive seeing something, including all brain structures and nerve pathways.
What does a receptive field represent and how does it respond to different stimuli? What is
the purpose of having receptive fields?
11. There are two classes of photoreceptors: rods and cones. Why did two different classes
arise? Compare and contrast rods and cones in terms of size, function, location, etc. How
do we perceive color? How do we adapt to continued light or darkness?
12. You are watching your baby niece for the evening and decide to take her out for a drive in
the car. As you start the engine, your niece starts to cry! How does your brain process the
different properties of the sound from the car vs. the sound from your niece? What are
Fourier components? Trace a sound from outside your ear to where you consciously
perceive hearing something, including all structures and pathways. What is the function of
each structure? How does the vestibular system differ from the auditory system? What
may be the purpose in having them physically connected?
13. How do we act on our environment? What is the pathway/hierarchy of motor control?
What is the anatomy and cellular components of motor control? Compare and contrast the
three types of movement. What is the advantage in having different circuits available?
What is the role of feedback in muscle movement? Compare and contrast muscle spindle
fibers/cells with Golgi tendon organs. What is coactivation?
14. Lesions to different locations in the nervous system may lead to widely disparate
symptoms, as shown in Professor Graber's lecture. Contrast focal lesions to diffuse damage.
What is fMRI? How is it generated? What are its strengths and weaknesses as a diagnostic
instrument?
15. Consider the locations in which different processes of learning and comprehension are
localized in the brain, as discussed in Professor Gabrieli's lecture. Identify the relationship
between type of learning, time frame of learning, and the intensity of activity in certain
brain locations.