AP Psychology : Biology and Sensation

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for AP Psychology

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Example Questions

Example Question #6 : Evolutionary Principles

According to the principle of natural selection, which genes are most likely to get passed on?

Possible Answers:

Those that manifest in high physical attractiveness

Those that are likely to increase the neural regeneration

Those that manifest in high practical intelligence

Those that are exclusively likely to increase reproduction

Those that are most likely to increase survival and reproduction

Correct answer:

Those that are most likely to increase survival and reproduction

Explanation:

Darwin's principle of natural selection holds that the genes most likely to increase the chance of survival and reproduction are also the most likely to be passed on. Survival and reproduction are the fundamental basis of Darwin's principles.

Example Question #7 : Evolutionary Principles

What is a common factor among human beings?

Possible Answers:

Sympathy

The ability to eat dairy products

Use of language

Nurturing instinct

Empathy

Correct answer:

Use of language

Explanation:

There are many dimensions that make the human species united as well as many that differentiate humans from one another One factor that unites humans is the imperative to use language, a trait that has evolved over time to help us communicate and coexist with one another. Other common factors among humans are biological heritage, brain architecture, and social behavior. The ability to eat dairy products and experience empathy are not common to all people, as some people are lactose intolerant, and some are psychopathic, and largely incapable of empathy and sympathy. While a nurturing instinct is extremely common, it is not considered a universally common human trait.

Example Question #8 : Evolutionary Principles

Which of the following is a differentiating characteristic within the human species?

Possible Answers:

The inclination to be social 

The general structure of our brains

The predisposition to learn/acquire a language

The endocrine system

Familial upbringing

Correct answer:

Familial upbringing

Explanation:

The human species is united on many fronts, namely our social bonding tendencies, inherited mental structures, biological origins, and the predisposition to acquire language. Of course there are exceptions to this, as a variety of disorders may affect our abilities to acquire language, bond socially, or the development of our cognitive functions. These traits are, however, widely observable in the majority of the human species.

The dimensions that make most of us different from one another, both at the individual and societal level, have to do with our personalities, familial upbringing, cultures, and personal interests.

Example Question #191 : Biology

Which of the following answer choices does not accurately describe the theory of natural selection?

Possible Answers:

All of these

Organisms' offspring compete for survival

Certain variations in biological and physical characteristics increase organisms' reproductive and survival chances in their environment

Offspring that survive are more likely to pass on their genes to future generations and offspring

Natural selection can cause a population's characteristics to change over long periods of time

Correct answer:

All of these

Explanation:

Natural selection is a term coined by Charles Darwin that states that the biological and physical traits that lead to an organism's increased survival and reproduction will be the traits that will eventually be passed onto future generations. All of the answer choices accurately describe concepts surrounding the idea of natural selection.

Example Question #192 : Biology

According to evolutionary theory, the ability of an octopus to blend into its environment by changing colors is an example of which of the following?

Possible Answers:

Heritability

Adaptation

None of these

Fitness

Correct answer:

Adaptation

Explanation:

Adaptation is an inherited characteristic that increased in a population because it helped solve a problem of survival or reproduction during the time it emerged. For an octopus, blending into their environment is a way to increase survival because predators are less likely to notice the octopus. 

Fitness also has to do with evolutionary psychology, but it refers to the reproductive success of an organism. Heritability also sounds like it might be a correct answer because the adaptive ability of blending in might be a trait that was inherited; however, heritability has to do with measuring the tendency for a particular trait to be passed down to a future generation.

Example Question #1491 : Ap Psychology

Which of the following best describes the concept of adaptation? 

Possible Answers:

Reproductive success of an individual organism relative to the average reproductive success in the population

Inherited characteristics that decrease the probability of an organism's survival or reproductive success

Heritable characteristics that provide a survival advantage are more likely than other characteristics to be passed on to subsequent generations

Inherited characteristics that increased in a population because it helped solve a problem of survival when it emerged

Correct answer:

Inherited characteristics that increased in a population because it helped solve a problem of survival when it emerged

Explanation:

Adaptation is best described as inherited characteristics that increase in a population because it helped to solve a problem of survival when it emerged. Adaptation is a process that occurs through natural selection, which is described as heritable characteristics that provide a survival advantage are more likely than other characteristics to be passed on to subsequent generations. The two concepts are very similar, but an organism's adaptation is the result of the natural selection process. The reproductive success of an individual organism relative to the average reproductive success in the population is best understood as that organism's fitnessThe remaining option of decreasing the probability of an organism's chance of survival or reproduction is not in line with evolutionary theory, which posits that organisms are becoming increasingly complex and adaptable. 

Example Question #193 : Biology

Which of the following terms is most commonly associated with the field of evolutionary psychology?

Possible Answers:

The unconscious

Biofeedback

Unconditional positive regard

Kin selection

Genetically modified organisms (GMOs)

Correct answer:

Kin selection

Explanation:

Evolutionary psychology attempts to explain psychological phenomena under the lens of natural selection. "Kin selection" is the evolutionary strategy that favors the reproductive success of one's biological relatives as opposed to strangers. All of the other answer choices are not associated with the field of evolutionary psychology. 

Example Question #321 : Biology And Sensation

Which of the following scientists developed the concept known as natural selection?

Possible Answers:

Daryl Bem

Henry Morgan

Charles Darwin

James Peter

James Maas

Correct answer:

Charles Darwin

Explanation:

Charles Darwin believed that organisms produce a greater number of individuals each generation than can actually survive; furthermore, he theorized that those who survived would pass their favorable traits onto future generations. This concept developed into natural selection, a core tenet of evolutionary psychology. 

Example Question #322 : Biology And Sensation

Damage to Wernicke's area will result in which of the following?

Possible Answers:

An aphasia in which language comprehension is limited, and so speech thereafter will be nonsensical and difficult to follow

An aphasia in which a person cannot process information from a certain part of their field of vision

Inability to cope with stress

A change in personality and temperament

An aphasia in which language comprehension remains intact, but sentence formulation and execution is limited

Correct answer:

An aphasia in which language comprehension is limited, and so speech thereafter will be nonsensical and difficult to follow

Explanation:

Wernicke's area deals largely with understanding written and spoken speech. A patient with damage to this structure will have difficulty understanding what is said, even though they themselves have retained many of their own speech abilities. Due to the problem of misunderstanding most incoming information, the affected person's speech usually carries no meaning, although it maintains the normal inflections and cadence of regular speech.

Example Question #1 : Other Biological Principles

Which of the following allows for color sight?

Possible Answers:

Cones

Rods

Retina

Lens

Correct answer:

Cones

Explanation:

Cones are photoreceptor cells that process color images. Different types of cones process different wavelengths of light. A difficiency in one type of receptor can result in an inability to process certain wavelengths, leading to colorblindness.

Rods are photoreceptor cells that process black and white images; they are also credited with our ability to see in the dark. The retina is a light-sensitive tissue that lines the inner eye and creates the image of what comes through the front part of the eye. Rods and cones are both located in the retina. The lens is a transparent, biconvex structure that refracts light to be focused on the retina.

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