Deck 1: Basic Concepts in the Biology of Aging

Question 1

Gerontology is defined as the study of human aging and the problems associated with aging.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

A period during which function remains at optimal levels or slowly declines defines which stage of aging?
(a)senescence
(b)development
(c)puberty
(d)maturity
A Definition of Aging for the Biology of Aging

Answer 2

D

Question 3

was the primary reason that the sciences paid so little attention to the mechanisms of aging and longevity prior to the 1930s?
(a)The government did not fund research before 1950.
(b)There were no evolutionary theories supporting the rise of aging in the population.
(c)Aging was an unimportant problem for biologists,because humans had relatively short life spans.
(d)The science of genetics had not yet been established.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Prior to the beginning of the twentieth century,the primary cause of death in human populations was:
(a)infant mortality.
(b)infectious diseases.
(c)cancer.
(d)heart disease.

Question 5

The branch of medicine that deals with the problems and diseases of old age and aging people is called geriatrics.

Question 6

Biogerontology is defined as:
(a)the scientific investigation of the biological processes that occur inside living things as they age.
(b)the study of aging and its associated problems.
(c)the integration of research from fields of biophysics,genetics,evolutionary biology,medicine,and gerontology.
(d)the scientific investigation of the diseases of aging.

Question 7

True or false: Wild animals cannot be used as models for aging research because aging does not occur in the wild.
Definitions of Biological Aging

Question 8

Fill in the blank: ______ is the post-reproductive period and manifests as negative changes in vitality and function.

Question 9

A definition of aging such as "biological aging is characterized by an increase in mortality rate" is most useful for:
(a)small laboratory animal populations.
(b)large human populations.
(c)wild animal populations.
(d)individuals.

Question 10

What characteristic marks the transition from maturity to senescence?
(a)The organism or molecule can no longer reproduce.
(b)The organism or molecule no longer has the capacity to resist the force of entropy.
(c)The organism loses 50% of its function compared with the development stage.
(d)The organism or molecule no longer has the capacity to resist the force of enthalpy.

Question 11

creation of which two professional societies marked the beginning of organized aging research in the United States?
(a)National Institutes of Health (NIH)and Gerontological Society of America
(b)American Geriatrics Society and National Institutes of Health (NIH)
(c)Gerontological Society of America and American Geriatrics Society
(d)National Institute on Aging (NIA)and American Geriatrics Society

Question 12

The stage of the life span during which functional change is generally positive is defined as:
(a)maturity.
(b)senescence.
(c)development.
(d)puberty.

Question 13

Finish the sentence: Longevity is ____________.

Question 14

Degradation of the matter in the universe to an ultimate state of inert uniformity is defined as:
(a)enthalpy.
(b)aging.
(c)entropy.
(d)none of the above.

Question 15

What is/are the limitation(s)of functional-based and mortality-based aging definitions?
(a)Neither addresses aging at a cellular level.
(b)Neither addresses aging of a population.
(c)Neither addresses aging events that occur prior to maturation.
(d)Both a and c are correct.

Question 16

True or false: Definitions of biological aging that are based on mortality are particularly useful in the science of biodemography.

Question 17

Choose the best statement concerning aging and disease.
(a)Disease occurs in every species that reaches a fixed size.
(b)The process of biological aging abides by the normal laws of physiology;disease does not.
(c)Aging,unlike disease,has been observed only during the past 200 years.
(d)Aging occurs only in animate objects.

Question 18

Choose the best definition of life span.
(a)the potential maximum life span of an individual of a species
(b)total length of life of an individual
(c)average length of life in a population
(d)average length of life of the longest lived 10% in a population

Question 19

institute within the National Institutes of Health that is responsible for providing funding for aging research is the:
(a)Center for Aging Research.
(b)Gerontological Society of America.
(c)American Geriatrics Society.
(d)National Institute on Aging.

Question 20

True or false: Genes regulate the aging process.

Question 21

The sum of all biological events occurring over an organism's life span is called:
(a)life history.
(b)senescence.
(c)aging.
(d)longevity.

Question 22

Which insect has found the greatest use in biogerontology?
(a)S.cerevisiae
(b)D.melanogaster
(c)C.elegans
(d)M.musculus

Question 23

Concerning the definition of aging developed for this book,choose the best answer:
(a)aging is random
(b)aging occurs only to organisms
(c)aging is a purposefully genetic program
(d)aging is intrinsic;it is not affected by the environment
How Biogerontologists Study Aging: The Use of Laboratory Organisms in Human Aging Research

Question 24

Fill in the blank: ______ are mitotic cells that do not have a finite life span;they either are derived from cancerous tumors or are normal cells that have had their internal biochemistry altered in order to make them immortal.

Question 25

True or false: The cost of housing nonhuman primates limits their use in biogerontology.

Question 26

Which two factors most likely contributed to the extended longevity seen in some mammals?
(a)flight
(b)placentas
(c)expanded foraging areas
(d)fur

Question 27

Which of the four basic cell systems is most widely used in biogerontology?
(a)primary cell cultures
(b)replicating cell cultures
(c)cell lines
(d)stem cells

Question 28

Which type of nonhuman primate is the most widely used in biogerontology?
(a)lemurs
(b)marmosets
(c)monkeys
(d)great apes

Question 29

Which type of organisms or cells may serve as a good model for extended longevity?
(a)insects
(b)aquatic invertebrates
(c)mice and rats
(d)stem cells

Question 30

Which type of animals tend to have high metabolic rates and long life span compared with animals of similar body size?
(a)marsupials
(b)fish
(c)nonhuman primates
(d)birds

Question 31

Choose the correct answer: Brain size may predict longevity between / within taxonomic groups.

Question 32

True or false: Without a sophisticated vascular,neural,or endocrine system,yeast tend to be good models for studying environmental factors that affect aging.

Question 33

Organisms that have a fixed number of cells when they reach maturity are referred to as:
(a)eutelic.
(b)pluripotent.
(c)rangifera.
(d)sulcipes.

Question 34

Which of the following is not a reason that C.elegans makes a good model for the study of aging?
(a)It has a fixed number of cells.
(b)It has a short life span.
(c)It has many different types of cells.
(d)Its genome is compact.

Question 35

The gene involved in Werner syndrome,wrn,seems to affect:
(a)intracellular signaling.
(b)DNA repair and maintenance.
(c)membrane fluidity.
(d) )reproductive hormones.
How Biogerontologists Study Aging: Comparative Biogerontology

Question 36

True or false: Superior homeostatic control provides a survival advantage that can lead to greater longevity over evolutionary time.

Question 37

True or false: Primary cell cultures are undifferentiated cells removed directly from their in vivo location and maintained in an in vitro environment.

Question 38

The study of wild species that show resistance to aging and extended longevity in environments that are otherwise conducive to short life spans is called:
(a)demography.
(b)comparative biogerontology.
(c)comparative genetics.
(d)biogerontological demography.

Question 39

Stem cells exist in two forms,embryonic and adult.Embryonic stem cells are:
(a)totipotent.
(b)pluripotent.
(c)multipotent.
(d)Both a and b are correct.

Question 40

The evolutionary sequence of events involved in the development of a species or groups of organisms is known as:
(a)genetics.
(b)phenotyping.
(c)phylogeny.
(d)genotyping.

Question 41

Of the animals listed below,with similar body size,which one would you expect to have the lowest metabolic rate?
(a)gray squirrel
(b)rabbit
(c)barn owl
(d)Chihuahua

Question 42

What factor mostly likely set nonhuman primates on a different longevity trajectory from other mammals?
(a)brain size
(b)upright walking
(c)body size
(d)intelligence

Question 43

Some aquatic species,such as sea anemones,live more than 150 years.What factor appears to be closely associated with their extended longevity?
(a)unlimited food source
(b)lack of predation
(c)continual growth
(d)larger range of environmental temperatures and ability to survive in many different types of environmental conditions

Question 44

True or false: Nonsocial animals tend to live longer than social animals.

Question 45

Fill in the blank: The different life spans of the several types of honeybees are closely linked to their ______ schedule.

Question 46

True or false: A kilojoule is the amount of energy needed to heat 1 liter of water 1 degree centigrade.

Question 47

True or false: The rate-of-living theory of aging suggested that life span is related to metabolic rate.

Question 48

Eutherians are:
(a)animals that separate specialized tasks and share care of the young.
(b)animals with placentas.
(c)flightless birds.
(d)upright-walking mammals.