Senses and information processing Knowledge-Based Download PDF

Questions

1. 1.

   In the human nervous system, how does an individual sensory neuron encode an increase in the intensity of an incoming stimulus?

   • A) By increasing the amplitude of individual action potentials
   • B) By speeding up the conduction velocity of the nerve impulse along the axon
   • C) By altering the biochemical structure of the neurotransmitters released
   • D) By increasing the frequency of action potentials fired along the axon
2. 2.

   Which term describes the decrease in sensitivity and action potential frequency of sensory receptors when exposed to a continuous, unchanging stimulus?

   • A) Sensory summation
   • B) Spatial summation
   • C) Sensory adaptation
   • D) Synaptic potentiation
3. 3.

   Which structure within the brain functions as the major relay station that sorts and directs incoming sensory signals to the appropriate regions of the cerebral cortex, with the exception of olfactory impulses?

   • A) Hypothalamus
   • B) Cerebellum
   • C) Medulla oblongata
   • D) Thalamus
4. 4.

   During the processing of sensory information in the human nervous system, which process refers to the analysis and synthesis of incoming sensory signals within the central nervous system to formulate an appropriate response?

   • A) Sensory transduction
   • B) Sensory adaptation
   • C) Neural integration
   • D) Motor transmission
5. 5.

   Which of the following statements accurately describes the primary role of sensory receptors in information processing?

   • A) They interpret complex sensations directly at the stimulus site without sending impulses to the central nervous system.
   • B) They convert physical or chemical stimuli into electrical signals that are transmitted along sensory neurons to the central nervous system.
   • C) They generate conscious perception locally within peripheral tissues by bypassing the cerebral cortex.
   • D) They directly secrete hormones into the bloodstream to coordinate rapid muscular reflexes without neural pathways.