Biological Beginnings

Question 1

natural selection

Answer 1

evolutionary process by which those individuals of a species that are best adapted are the ones that survive and reproduce

Question 2

Darwin

Answer 2

On the Origin of Species, adaptation to survive & pass on genes

Question 3

adaptive behavior

Answer 3

behavior that promotes an organism’s survival in the natural habitat

Question 4

evolutionary psychology

Answer 4

emphasizes importance of adaptation, reproduction, and “survival of the fittest” in shaping behavior

Question 5

Buss

Answer 5

evolution pervasively influences our aggression, fears, and mating habits

Question 6

extended childhood of humans

Answer 6

to develop large brain and experiences necessary to become competent adults before reproducing

Question 7

Baltes

Answer 7

benefits conferred by evolutionary selection decrease with age, thereby making old age filled w/diseases & disorders like Alzheimer’s that would have been weeded out through natural selection if it affected more 20 year-olds

Question 8

bidirectional evolutionary view

Answer 8

just as our environment shapes us, we shape our environments, cyclical

Question 9

chromosomes

Answer 9

nucleus of human cells, threadlike DNA structures

Question 10

DNA

Answer 10

complex molecule w/ double helix shape (like a spiral staircase) that carry genetic info

Question 11

Gene

Answer 11

units of hereditary info, short segments of DNA, humans have about 20,500 genes that collaborate with each other and with nongenetic factors inside & outside the body

Question 12

mitosis

Answer 12

cell reproduction wherein nucleus duplicates itself and then cell divides, each w/ 23 pairs of chromosomes

Question 13

meiosis

Answer 13

person reproduction where cell of the testes or ovaries duplicates its chromosomes but then divides twice, forming 4 cells with half the genetic material each so that each egg or sperm has 23 unpaired chromosomes

Question 14

fertilization

Answer 14

egg & sperm fuse to create a single cell, called a zygote

Question 15

X & Y chromosomes

Answer 15

females-23rd pair is XX

males-23rd pair is XY

Question 16

genetic variability

Answer 16

combining genes of 2 parents is valuable b/c there are more characteristics for natural selection to operate on

Question 17

genotype

Answer 17

all of a person’s genetic material

Question 18

phenotype

Answer 18

observable characteristics, expressed genetic material

Question 19

dominant vs. recessive genes

Answer 19

dominant-the gene that exerts its effects

recessive-the gene that is overridden by the dominant one, only being expressed if both genes in the pair are recessive

Question 20

X-linked inheritance

Answer 20

when a mutated gene is carried on the X chromosome
In males (who have no “back-up” X) it will express itself.
In females it will usually be overridden.

Question 21

genetic imprinting

Answer 21

the expression of a gene has different effects depending on whether the mother or the father passed it on

Question 22

polygenic inheritance

Answer 22

the interaction of many different genes that affect a characteristic

Question 23

chromosomal abnormalities

Answer 23

lack of appropriate number of chromosomes

Down syndrome, Klinefelter syndrome, Fragile X syndrome, Turner syndrome, XYY syndrome

Question 24

gene-linked abnormalities

Answer 24

presence of harmful genes

Phenylketonuria (PKU), Sickle-cell anemia

Question 25

ultrasound sonography

Answer 25

prenatal medical procedure in which high-frequency sound waves are directed into the pregnant woman's abdomen, no risk, detects structural abnormalities

Question 26

fetal MRI

Answer 26

magnetic resonance imaging uses a magnet and radio images to generate detailed images of the body's organs and structures

Question 27

chorionic villus sampling

Answer 27

prenatal medical procedure in which a small sample of the placenta is removed

Question 28

amniocentesis

Answer 28

prenatal medical procedure in which a sample of amniotic fluid is withdrawn by syringe and tested for chromosomal or metabolic disorders

Question 29

triple screen

Answer 29

maternal blood test to determine elevated risk for birth defects

Question 30

noninvasive prenatal diagnosis

Answer 30

isolating and examining fetal cells circulating in the mother's blood and analyzing cell-free fetal DNA in maternal plasma

Question 31

infertility

Answer 31

approx. 10-15% of couples in the US struggle; more than 2 million couples seek help for infertility yearly

Question 32

adoption

Answer 32

children adopted very early in life have better outcomes than those adopted as older children

Question 33

behavior genetics

Answer 33

field that seeks to discover the influence of heredity and environment on individual differences in human traits and development

Question 34

twin study

Answer 34

behavioral similarity of identical twins is compared with the behavioral similarity of fraternal twins

Question 35

adoption study

Answer 35

investigators seek to discover whether behavior and psychological characteristics of adopted children are more like those of their adoptive parents or their biological parents

Question 36

heredity-environment correlations

Answer 36

individuals' genes may influence the types of environments to which they are exposed

Question 37

passive genotype-environment correlations

Answer 37

biological parents, who are genetically related to the child, also provide the rearing environment

Question 38

evocative genotype-environment correlations

Answer 38

a child's characteristics elicit certain types of environments

Question 39

active (niche-picking) genotype-environment correlations

Answer 39

children seek out environments they find compatible and stimulating

Question 40

shared environmental experiences

Answer 40

siblings' common experiences

Question 41

nonshared environmental experiences

Answer 41

a child's unique experiences, both with the family and outside the family

Question 42

epigenetic view

Answer 42

development is the result of an ongoing, bidirectional interchange between heredity and the environment

Question 43

G X E interaction

Answer 43

gene X environment interaction | the interaction of a specific measured variation in the DNA and a specific measured aspect of the environment

Question 44

pharmacogenetics

Answer 44

study of gene-environment interaction involving the individual's genotype and drug treatment