Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

PSY 120 > Chapter 4 > Flashcards

Chapter 4 Flashcards

1
Q

What was the main theory that Darwin developed in “the origin of species”?

A

Natural selection

Animals could possess certain traits (physical or mental) that convey an advantage for survival, those traits would be shared by most members of the species and would then be passed on to future generations.
Traits of advantage could be passed on - basis for his idea of natural selection

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Are modern humans ancient or recent in geological record?

A

relatively recent

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

How long have modern humans or homosapiens been around?

A

200,000 years

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

How long has it been since the first human-like brain?

A

7 million years

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

How have modern humans evolved?

A

cognitive and physical changes

bipedalism
diet change, smaller facial muscles and teeth
greater range of vocalization
language
toolmaking
hunting, cooking
social organization
brain size and cognitive ability have increased

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What is bipedalism?
What is the benefit?

A

Instead of walking on all fours, our earliest ancestors were able to walk on two legs.

Allows for long-distance migration
Much more efficient way to cover ground (requires less energy)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

How has changes in diet evolved humans?

A

Now, our ancestors were able to incorporate things like fruits into diet, meaning that the facial muscles don’t have to be as strong, teeth don’t have to be as large

Trend through human lineage towards smaller jaws and teeth

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

How has a smaller jaw and teeth created other evolutionary adaptations?

A

Smaller facial muscles, teeth, and smaller jaws - opens up vocal tract and allows it to become more flexible, allowing for a greater range of vocalization and therefore a range of verbal communication

one theory of how language has developed

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What impacts have toolmaking, hunting and cooking, and social organization had on human evolution?

A

Shows more advanced cognition

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

Does brain size determine intelligence or cognitive ability?

A

no, brain size alone is NOT something that means an animal will be more intelligent
- in mammals, brain size is correlated with body size

but, from early to modern humans, brain size and cognitive ability have increased

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Where is the genetic code blueprint for each organism contained?

A

within every cell of the organism’s body, genetic code contained in the chromosomes

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What is the difference between a genotype and phenotype?

A

Genotype: genetic blueprint for a particular trait or particular behaviour

Phenotype: actual expression of that genotype

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

Are all physical traits contained on 1 gene?

A

No, a lot of physical traits are not contained on 1 gene, it is usually multiple genes that go into expressing some sort of physical or cognitive trait.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What are the 4 nitrogenous bases of DNA?

A

Adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

How do genes code for proteins?

A

the sequence of the bases within a gene determine which amino acids are used to build the specific protein that is coded for

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

How do nitrogenous bases base pair?

A

A with T
C with G

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

Amino acids are linked together by what type of bond?

A

peptide bond

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

How do amino acids become proteins?

A

Form polypeptide chains – form pleated sheets or helices –sheet and helices fold to form a protein – a number of proteins combine to form a more complex protein

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

The process from DNA to mRNA is called:

A

transcription: copying of DNA within the nucleus and turning that into mRNA

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

The process from mRNA to an amino acid chain is called:

A

translation: conversion of mRNA into individual amino acids that form a chain

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

Where are amino acids produced within the cell?

A

in the endoplasmic reticulum

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

What moves along the mRNA strand, coding for a specific amino acid?

A

Ribosomes move along the mRNA and for each small section, it codes for a specific amino acid

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

What is a codon?

A

3 bases, coding for a specific amino acid

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

What replaces thymine base in mRNA?

A

uracil

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

What is involved in the transcription phase?

A
  • DNA in nucleus is transcribed into a section of mRNA
  • Every 3 bases along mRNA represents a codon
  • Each codon codes for specific amino acid
    Chain of amino acids construct intended protein
26
Q

What are the 2 basic ways of studying genetics?

A

Molecular genetics (cellular level)

Behavioural genetics (outward expression of different traits and abilities)

27
Q

What are transgenic techniques?

A

When a gene is introduced into the embryo, this is considered: knock-in

Sometimes gene expression can be prevented, a gene can be prevented from expressing itself, considered: knock-out

28
Q

Why are animal models sometimes used for human disorder research?

A

Promising therapies and the risks that come along with them can be tested first on rats or mice instead of humans

The mammalian brain is essentially the same across species

29
Q

What is selective breeding? What does it tell us?

A

breeding for specific traits and abilities

Speaks that basic intelligence could be selected for.
Seems to suggest that there is a genetic difference between the two groups of rats.

No manipulation of the genes themselves, purely behavioural

30
Q

According to strict Darwinian evolution, what is the source of species variation?

A

random genetic mutation

31
Q

What is random genetic mutation?

A

errors in DNA replication - can be positive or negative

the trait is later passed on

natural selection of traits that increase fitness

32
Q

What is the heritability of traits?

A

Heritability of traits - those that have an advantage are passed on to future generations

Future generations can benefit from that trait by having the survival advantage

33
Q

What was the heritability of traits not able to account for?

A

wasn’t able to account for the influence of the environment

34
Q

What is an example of how the environment can influence the expression of the trait?

A

parental care - some traits may not be expressed or not to the same degree without proper parental care

35
Q

When did the human genome project happen?

A

2003

36
Q

How many genes are contained in the human genetic code?

A

less then 30,000

(less than originally predicted)

37
Q

What is the difference between monozygotic and dizygotic twins?

A

monozygotic = identical
have exactly the same genetic code

dizygotic = fraternal
develop from 2 separate zygotes, have a different genetic code, can be different biological sex

38
Q

What is the use of identical twins in studies?

A

One method for investigating the idea of degree of how certain traits or abilities are a result of genetics or how much they are a result of environmental influences

39
Q

What can comparison of fraternal and identical twins determine?

A

can determine the degree of genetic influence on different diseases and disorders

40
Q

What did the Minnesota Twin study show?

A

Showed that identical twins raised apart still had remarkable similarities in physical traits and personality traits

41
Q

What type of studies can be used to study genetic influences on different behaviours, learning disabilities, or mental disorders?

A

behavioural genetics - can look at what degree identical twins show similar kinds of behaviours or effects

42
Q

What is the heritability coefficient?

A

Heritability coefficient is the correlation of how much a behaviour is related to the individual genetics (or more related to environment).

Ex. to what degree do a particular set of twins exhibit the same kind of trait?

Closer it is to 1, the more highly correlated a particular trait is between individuals

43
Q

Are physical traits impacted much by environment? Explain.

A

When it comes to physical traits, there is not too much influence of the environment on these kinds of traits - ex. eye colour, hair colour, height, fingerprint patterns

Highly dependent on genetic code at birth

44
Q

What is the source of variation in humans?

A

BOTH genetics and the environment

45
Q

What is epigenetics?

A

The study of the impact that the environment has on our genetic code.

It has found that a powerful source of individual differences involves the interaction between genes and the environment. A person’s personal experience they go through in life can essentially affect their genetic code.

46
Q

What is epigenetic drift?

A

As identical twins age, they go through epigenetic drift - at behavioural and cellular level.

There is differences in the genetic make-up of identical twins as they get older that are not present when they are younger - this reflects the effect of the environment on their genetic code.

47
Q

What are the 3 mechanisms of the epigenetic drift?

A

Histone modification

DNA modification

mRNA modification

all cause a disruption between genotype and intended phenotype

48
Q

What occurs in histone modification?

A

Before transcription, the DNA has to uncoil and a copy has to be made. With histone modification, this process is prevented or altered, resulting in a protein that is not produced correctly, or not produced at all.

blocks or opens histones for transcription

49
Q

What occurs in DNA modification?

A

Occurs at level of transcription

An enzyme can bind or block transcription by blocking the base pairs within a particular gene. As a result, an incorrect sequence of amino acids is produced and the final result is that a protein produced is not the proper protein, or is altered in some way.

50
Q

What occurs in mRNA modification?

A

At the level of translation.

The mRNA is blocked, so the ribosome cannot translate it, and the correct sequence of amino acids is not produced. As a result, an incorrect protein is produced, or not produced at all.

51
Q

When do the most profound epigenetic influences occur?

A

early in development

The proper environmental experience is required for the underlying genetics to be expressed properly.

52
Q

What is the epigenome?

Can epigenetics be passed on?

A

record of the chemical changes to genetic code

theoretically these are changes that can be passed down to the subsequent generations

53
Q

What are the types of evolutionary adaptations?

A

survival adaptation

reproductive adaptation

54
Q

What is a survival adaptation?

A

An adaptation that conveys some sort of survival advantage - giving the organism an advantage to survive and that will be passed on to future generations

55
Q

What is a reproductive adaptation?

Are they also survival adaptations?

A

Can actually come at cost of a survival adaptation

They allow an organism to better find a mate and produce offspring and pass their genes on to the next generation

56
Q

What is the sexual selection theory? What are the two parts?

A

Not just driven to survive, but also to reproduce - to find a mate and pass their genes on to future generations
- occurs in animals and humans

2 parts:
Intrasexual competition
Intersexual competition

57
Q

What is the difference between intrasexual and intersexual competition?

A

Intrasexual competition = competition between members of the same sex for opportunities to mate with members of the opposite sex; males will compete with other males and females will compete with other females

Intersexual selection - the winner of the intrasexual competition now gets to mate with the opposite sex
Member of opposite sex will theoretically select the winner of the intrasexual competition

58
Q

What animal was used as an example for the sexual selection theory?

A

Bowerbird

59
Q

What is evolutionary psychology?

A

Looks at natural selection relating to human behaviour and human fitness

focus on sexual selection strategies

looks at why certain cognitive traits and abilities have persevered through generations and are expressed by people to the degree they do

60
Q

Risk-taking and behaviour like jealousy are 2 topics often discussed in what type of psychology? Why?

A

Evolutionary psychology - why do people exhibit these behaviours? What advantage would they have over generations?

61
Q

What are the differences between males and females in what they look for when looking for a mate? (long-term / short-term mating strategies)

A

Found that long-term mating strategies for males and females were actually very similar in what they look for
- Predicts that both sexes will be extremely choosy when pursuing a long-term mating strategy (ex. healthy, dependable, loyal) as opposed to a short-term partner

Short-term may choose for different reasons, but for long-term, they have remarkably similar strategies

PSY 120 (10 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions