Download IPHY 3480 Spring, 2008 First Exam Essays

IPHY 3430 Spring 2011
First Exam Essays
TWO of the following essays will be on the first exam. Prepare your answers carefully,
provide as much RELEVANT detail as possible and practice writing them out by
memory several times before the exam. You may use diagrams as part of your answer
but be sure to explain the diagrams. BE SURE THE GRADER CAN READ YOUR
ANSWERS. YOUR GOAL IS TO CONVINCE THE READER THAT YOU
UNDERSTAND THE CONCEPTS INVOLVED IN THE ANSWER.
In the case of COMPARE AND CONTRAST questions, the question is NOT asking you
to describe one factor and then the other. The question IS asking you to describe
similarities and differences among the factors and give a concluding sentence about what
these similarities and differences mean. DON’T answer these questions by simply
describing one factor and then the other and expecting the grader to figure out what
differences and similarities are.
1. You have one glucose molecule, one amino acid, and one triglyceride containing 3 16C fatty acids. Rank them (most, intermediate, least) in terms of how many ATP each
molecule would produce if catabolized aerobically, and explain your ranking in detail.
2. Compare and contrast the processes of swallowing and vomiting.
3. Compare and contrast the production of sweat, saliva, and tears.
4. If a person is lost in the desert at an air temperature of 110 F, describe all mechanisms
by which heat moves between the person and the air. Which of these can be used to lose
heat only when air temperature is higher than body temperature and why? Describe how
the output of the hypothalamus would attempt to regulate body temperature under these
hot conditions.
5. A skier is caught in a snow avalanche and is buried up to his nose (i.e. he can breathe).
He is unable to free himself, and no one knows where he is. Although he has several
layers of clothes on, he is dead within an hour from hypothermia. Describe the processes
of heat flow between him and the snow, the physiological processes used by his
hypothalamus to try to prevent hypothermia, how hypothermia would be caused despite
the best attempts of the hypothalamus, and how bodily processes would change as body
temperature drops.
6. Describe how HCl is made in the stomach and how the stomach wall is normally
protected from damage by this acid. Describe the benefits of high acidity in the stomach
during digestion.
7. Describe the interactions of the stomach and small intestine that determine how fast
food can be moved from the stomach to the small intestine.
8. Describe the role of hormones in the function of the stomach and small intestine.
9. Describe the process by which triglycerides are broken down in the small intestine,
how the products of the enzymatic breakdown are absorbed through the wall of the small
intestine, and delivered into the blood.
10. Compare and contrast the absorption of triglycerides, amino acids, and simple
sugars into the blood from the lumen of the small intestine.
11. If you wanted to solve the obesity crisis in the US, what one factor in the regulation
of food intake would you select to target with medication, and why? (you can’t use the
leptin to target with medication—choose another factor).