Final Exam Practice

Question 1

Our primary goal of experimentation in science is to
a.Observe a system
b.Prove the validity of a theory
c.Disprove or fail to disprove a hypothesis
d.Demonstrate determinism

Answer 1

c.Disprove or fail to disprove a hypothesis

Question 2

One primary reason for applying statistical hypothesis testing is
a.To remove the human element and bias
b.To measure the mean of a sample
c.To quantify the magnitude of difference between two experimental groups
d.To quantify outliers

Answer 2

c. To quantify the magnitude of difference between two experimental groups

Question 3

One primary use of statistical hypothesis is
a.To draw confident conclusions about samples
b.To draw confident conclusions about individuals
c.To draw confident conclusions about populations

Answer 3

a.To draw confident conclusions about samples

Question 4

Which of the following best describes Popper’s concept of falsifiability?
a. The ability of a theory to be proven true
b. The capacity of a theory to be proven wrong
c. The widespread acceptance of a theory
d. The ability of a theory to make accurate predictions

Answer 4

b. The capacity of a theory to be proven wrong

Question 5

In the Barnes test, the reward of successful completion of the task is
a.Escape from water
b.Escape from bright light/open space
c.Food
d.Cocaine

Answer 5

a.Escape from water

Question 6

The alpha value is
a. The threshold for significance
b. The magnitude of group differences
c. The probability of getting a specific sample mean
d. The largest value in a sample

Answer 6

a. The threshold for significance

Question 7

A standard assay for motor coordination and balance is
a. The running wheel
b. Homecage activity observation
c. Visual cliff
d. Rotorod

Answer 7

d. Rotorod

Question 8

The elevated plus maze is a standard test of
a. Anxiety behaviors
b. Learned helplessness
c. Depression
d.All of the above

Answer 8

a. Anxiety behaviors

Question 9

The motivations to ________and_________ are pitted against each other in the elevated plus maze.
a. Reproduction and seek excitement
b. Explore and seek safety
c. Explore and defend resources
d. Explore and conquer

Answer 9

b. Explore and seek safety

Question 10

Which of the following is a landmark on the surface of the rodent skull that can be used for stereotaxic surgery?
a. Alpha Sigma
b. Lambda
c. Boolean

Answer 10

b. Lambda

Question 11

In order to perform stereotaxic surgery, the brain region of interest must first be located in
a. A brain atlas
b. A brain map
c. A brain database
d. A photograph

Answer 11

a. A brain atlas

Question 12

Bregma is
a. An XY coordinate system
b. A point on the rodent skull where sutures meet
c. The ideal point of entry for stereotaxic surgery
d.nA specialized cannula for electrophysiological implantation

Answer 12

b. A point on the rodent skull where sutures meet

Question 13

Describe the triphasic response of the BOLD signal in fMRI and biological processes underlying the signal and linking it to activity in the brain.

Answer 13

The BOLD signal reflects the balance between oxygenated and deoxygenated hemoglobin as a response to neural activity. The initial dip corresponds to an increase in oxygen consumption. This is followed by a large increase due to a vascular response delivering more oxygenated blood than needed. Lastly, a post-stimulus undershoot occurs as the blood flow normalizes.

Question 14

Describe how one would induce and then assay depression in a rodent. Explain how these approaches achieve their goals.

Answer 14

Chronic Stress Models: Rodents are subjected to chronic unpredictable stress (e.g., restraint, forced swimming, social defeat). This mimics stress-related aspects of human depression
Forced Swim Test (FST): Measures immobility time, with greater immobility interpreted as behavioral despair.
Sucrose Preference Test: Assesses anhedonia by measuring the preference for sucrose solution over water. Reduced preference indicates depressive-like behavior.
Tail Suspension Test (TST): Similar to FST, immobility time during suspension reflects despair.
Social Interaction Tests: Reduced social behavior indicates depressive phenotypes.

Question 15

In the context of statistical hypothesis testing, what does a low value for “p” tell us? Use the Z test as an example, and be specific.

Answer 15

A low p-value (e.g., < 0.05) in hypothesis testing suggests that the observed data is unlikely to occur under the null hypothesis. If the calculated Z-statistic falls in the critical region (e.g., corresponding to a significance level of 0.05), the p-value will be low. This indicates that the probability of observing such extreme data under H0H_0H0 is very small, leading to rejection of H0H_0H0.

Question 16

Briefly describe when one would use the T-test when we would use the ANOVA and why

Answer 16

T-Test:Use when comparing the means of two groups to determine if they are statistically different. Examples include comparing treatment vs. control groups or pre- vs. post-intervention in the same group.
ANOVA (Analysis of Variance):
Use when comparing the means of three or more groups. ANOVA determines if at least one group mean differs significantly from the others.

Question 16

Identify/name two types of patch clamps

Answer 16

*Whole Cell patch clamp
*Single-channel patch clamp

Question 16

When performing stereotaxic surgery, the surface of the skull must be level. What two points on the skull need to be made even for this purpose?

Answer 16

• lambda
• bregma

Question 17

Define resolution

Answer 17

The ability to distinguish two closely spaced objects as separate entities

Question 17

What is the limit of magnification?

Answer 17

Determined by the wavelength of light and numerical aperture of the microscope

Question 18

What is bromodeoxyuridine used to assay in research

Answer 18

Used to detect and measure cell proliferation

Question 19

Identify two techniques that can be used to visualize gene expression in research

Answer 19

In situ hybridization Immunohistochemistry

Question 20

Diagram and label an antibody. Be sure to include and clearly label

Answer 20