Question 1

Which of the following systems controls and coordinates the operation of working memory?

Accepted Answer

The central executive is the system that controls and coordinates the operation of working memory. It is responsible for directing attention, allocating cognitive resources, and integrating information from various sources in working memory. The phonological loop, episodic buffer, and visuospatial sketchpad are subsystems of working memory that specialize in the processing of verbal, spatial, and episodic information, respectively.

Question 2

According to CRUNCH, how will brain activation in younger and older adults compare when the task is very difficult?

Accepted Answer

According to CRUNCH, when the task is very difficult, older adults will show equal or less activation than younger adults.

Question 3

Maurice is having a test to see if a recent stroke resulted in any structural damage to his brain. Which of the following may be used to conduct this test?

Accepted Answer

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be used to detect structural damage in the brain, such as lesions or changes in tissue density, which may indicate the presence of a stroke. A positron emission tomography (PET) scan can be used to measure brain activity but may not necessarily detect structural damage. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and near infrared spectroscopic imaging (NIRS) are more specialized imaging techniques that may not be routinely used for stroke diagnosis.

Question 4

Which neurotransmitter has been associated with declines in short-term memory and working memory?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which neurotransmitter has been associated with declines...

Question 5

Dr. Rashid is conducting a longitudinal study examining changes in different types of memory as people age. Dr. Rashid is MOST likely to observe changes in which types of memory?

Accepted Answer

Working memory and episodic memory are most likely to show changes as people age. Working memory often declines, making it harder to hold and manipulate information in mind. Episodic memory, which involves the recollection of specific events, also tends to decline, leading to difficulties in remembering past experiences.

Question 6

Veronica is 81 years old. She went to take a medication for her arthritis that was stored in her pill organizer and was surprised to see that she had already taken the pill. Based on research on older adults, what is the MOST likely cause of this memory failure?

Accepted Answer

Older adults often experience memory failures due to encoding issues, where the information is not effectively processed into memory, leading to difficulties in recalling whether an action, like taking medication, was completed.

Question 7

Which of the following concepts are MOST central to HAROLD?

Accepted Answer

HAROLD (Hemispheric Asymmetry Reduction in Older Adults) is a theory that suggests that as individuals age, they become less reliant on one hemisphere of the brain and shift towards bilateral processing. This is known as bilateralization. However, it is not a perfect process, and compensation may also occur in which the brain has to work harder to perform certain tasks due to age-related changes. Therefore, the most central concepts of HAROLD are bilateralization and compensation.

Question 8

Jerry has a university education, is a physics professor, and reads every day. Mike did not finish high school, is unemployed, and does not read. Both Jerry and Mike have brain damage due to stroke in the same area of the brain, however Jerry functions at a much higher level than Mike. This difference BEST reflects which of the following concepts?

Accepted Answer

The concept that explains this difference in cognitive function despite similar brain damage is cognitive reserve. Jerry's higher level of education and cognitive stimulation throughout his life likely created a greater cognitive reserve, allowing him to better compensate for the brain damage.

Question 9

Which theory involves the notion that aging leads to a weakened ability to stop irrelevant information from entering working memory?

Accepted Answer

The theory that involves the notion that aging leads to a weakened ability to stop irrelevant information from entering working memory is the inhibition theory.

Question 10

Suppose a 20-year-old and a 70-year-old are both performing the same cognitive task. On which side of the prefrontal cortex would the 20-year-old and the 70-year-old show activity, respectively?

Accepted Answer

Research indicates that younger adults tend to show lateralized activity in the prefrontal cortex when performing cognitive tasks, often on the left side. Older adults, however, often show activity on both sides of the prefrontal cortex, a phenomenon known as bilateral activation, which is thought to compensate for age-related declines in cognitive function.

Question 11

Dr. Seto believes that as people age the brain develops more efficient neural circuits to help compensate for inefficient cognitive structures. Which of the following theories does Dr. Seto support?

Accepted Answer

The STAC (Scaffolding Theory of Aging and Cognition) suggests that the brain compensates for age-related changes by developing more efficient neural circuits, aligning with Dr. Seto's belief.

Question 12

Which of the following is an example of functional neuroimaging?

Accepted Answer

Positron emission tomography (PET) is an example of functional neuroimaging as it measures the metabolic activity of the brain by detecting the positron emissions from a radiolabeled tracer injected into the bloodstream. A, B, and C are examples of structural neuroimaging, which provide information about the anatomy of the brain but not about its functional activity.

Question 13

Which of the following is MOST related to the tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) state?

Accepted Answer

The tip-of-the-tongue state is when someone knows the meaning of the word they're looking for but can't retrieve the word itself from their memory. This is related to semantic memory, which stores knowledge about the meanings of words, concepts, and facts. Divided and selective attention refer to the ability to direct your attention to specific tasks or stimuli, and while attention can play a role in memory encoding and retrieval, it is not directly related to the TOT state. Episodic memory refers to memory for specific events in time, and is not directly related to the TOT state either.

Question 14

Maxwell is completing a reading-span task for a researcher. What is the researcher MOST likely to be studying?

Accepted Answer

A reading-span task requires participants to read a sentence and then remember the last word or words of the sentence while also comprehending the next sentence. This task is used to measure working memory capacity, which is directly related to the central executive component of working memory.

Question 15

Which of the following terms BEST characterizes the loss of neurons as a result of normal aging?

Accepted Answer

While the loss of some neurons can occur with normal aging, it is typically minimal and not noticeable in overall brain function. Extreme or moderate loss of neurons is typically associated with more severe neurological disorders or damage.

Question 16

The loss of grey-matter volume begins during which part of the lifespan?

Accepted Answer

The answer of The loss of grey-matter volume begins during...

Question 17

Dr. Ng has both old and young participants complete the Mockworth clock task. Which of the following describes what Dr. Ng finds when replicating the results from published examples of this experiment?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Dr. Ng has both old and young...

Question 18

Which of the following brain regions shows little change in volume as people age?

Accepted Answer

The occipital lobe is the brain region responsible for visual processing and shows little change in volume as people age. The parietal lobe, prefrontal cortex, and hippocampus, on the other hand, all show some degree of age-related decline in volume and function.

Question 19

Which aspect of cognition does bilingualism seem to benefit MOST?

Accepted Answer

Bilingualism has been consistently linked to better executive control or cognitive flexibility, which refers to the ability to adapt cognitive and behavioral responses in accordance with changing situational demands. This has been demonstrated in tasks such as cognitive shifting, task-switching, and conflict resolution. While bilingualism can also have positive effects on other aspects of cognition such as episodic memory and cognitive reserve, the evidence suggests that executive control is the domain that is most consistently and strongly impacted by bilingual experience.

Question 20

Dr. McKenzie conducted an experiment and found older adults performed much worse than younger adults on a task with high attentional demands, but showed little sign of impairment on tasks that were less demanding. Dr. McKenzie's finding is MOST consistent with which of the following theories?

Accepted Answer

The reduction of processing resources theory suggests that as we age, our ability to allocate attention and process information declines due to a limited amount of resources. This theory explains why older adults struggle with tasks that require high levels of attentional demands.

Quiz 4: Cognitive Changes, Post-Formal Thought, and Wisdom