Question 1

Under what circumstances is an expert chess player more successful than an unskilled player at memorizing the positions of chess pieces on a board?

Accepted Answer

Expert chess players are more successful at memorizing positions of chess pieces on a board when those positions resemble actual game scenarios because they can apply their understanding of the game and patterns they've learned, unlike in random setups where this expertise offers no advantage.

Question 2

Research on experts in fields ranging from violin to chess indicates that to become an expert,

Accepted Answer

Research suggests that becoming an expert in a field typically requires about 10 years of deliberate and concentrated practice, regardless of natural talent or overall intelligence. While some individuals may have an innate inclination towards a particular skill, effort and practice are ultimately the determining factors in achieving expertise. Mental disturbance is not a necessary component in becoming an expert in any field.

Question 3

Research on the effects of developing an expertise suggests that the longer that someone has been a London taxi driver, the larger the ____, which is important for ____.

Accepted Answer

Research has shown that the longer someone has been a London taxi driver, the larger their hippocampus, which is important for spatial memory. This is because London taxi drivers undergo extensive training to learn and memorize the city's complex road systems and landmarks, which requires highly developed spatial memory. The hippocampus is the brain region responsible for spatial memory, and it appears to undergo structural changes as a result of this training, leading to increased volume.

Question 4

In certain experiments, expert chess players and beginning players have tried to memorize patterns of chess pieces on a board, sometimes examining pieces arranged randomly and sometimes examining pieces arranged as they might appear in a well-played game. What conclusion emerged from those experiments?

Accepted Answer

The experiments suggest that expert chess players are able to quickly recognize patterns of pieces arranged in a familiar manner. This is likely due to their extensive experience playing and studying the game. The experiments do not necessarily indicate that expert players have a better memory overall or that their ability to memorize the position of pieces on the board has not changed with practice. The idea of proactive interference making them worse at recognizing familiar patterns is not supported by the experiments.

Question 5

Although years of playing chess improves people's expertise at playing the game, it does not improve their overall memory. What evidence do we have for this conclusion?

Accepted Answer

Expert chess players' ability to memorize positions on a chess board only extends to logical game positions, not random arrangements, indicating their memory improvement is specific to the context of chess and does not generalize to overall memory enhancement.

Question 6

An expert chess player and a beginner both look at a picture of chess pieces arranged on a board in a random manner. Then they try to draw that position from memory. Which one (if either) will remember better, and why?

Accepted Answer

The expert's advantage in memory is typically due to recognizing familiar patterns and structures from actual games. In a random arrangement, this advantage is neutralized, making it equally unfamiliar to both the expert and the beginner.

Question 7

At least under certain circumstances, an expert chess player can memorize the positions of chess pieces on a board more rapidly and more accurately than a beginning chess player can. Why?

Accepted Answer

Expert chess players develop the ability to recognize patterns that often occur in chess games, which allows them to more quickly and accurately memorize the positions of pieces. This ability comes from experience and practice in playing chess, rather than being based on a superior memory or a lack of discouragement.

Question 8

Hungarian author Laszlo Polgar devoted enormous time and effort to teach his three daughters chess. What was he attempting to demonstrate?

Accepted Answer

Laszlo Polgar believed in the theory of "geniuses are made, not born" and wanted to prove that expertise can be achieved through deliberate and intensive training, rather than being limited by innate talent.

Question 9

An expert chess player and a beginner look at a series of pictures of a chessboard. After each, the two people try to draw them from memory. How will their performances compare?

Accepted Answer

Experts in chess have a better recall for positions that are meaningful or could occur in a real game due to their familiarity with common patterns and game situations. Their advantage diminishes with random or nonsensical arrangements where their expertise and pattern recognition do not provide a benefit.

Question 10

Transformational grammar is a

Accepted Answer

Transformational grammar is a system for generating a sentence's surface structure from its underlying deep structure by applying a series of transformations (rules). It is not related to translation or changing verb tense, nor does it involve communication through signs and gestures.

Question 11

When chess experts were shown a chess board and asked to recall the pieces, they

Accepted Answer

Chess experts remember better than novices when pieces are arranged in a meaningful game pattern due to their experience, but their advantage diminishes when pieces are placed randomly.

Question 12

An expert chess player and a beginner both look at a picture of chess pieces arranged on a chessboard as they might appear during a well-played game. Then both try to draw the picture from memory. Which one (if either) will probably do better, and why?

Accepted Answer

The expert chess player is likely to remember better because they have a greater ability to recognize familiar patterns on the board. Through years of practice and experience, expert chess players develop a deep understanding of the game's strategies and tactics, including the positioning of pieces on the board. This knowledge allows them to quickly recognize and remember patterns that beginners might not be able to see. Additionally, research has shown that experts in a domain often have better memory for information related to their area of expertise, further supporting the idea that the expert would likely perform better in this task.

Question 13

In a wide variety of fields, including chess and violin, the key to becoming an expert is

Accepted Answer

Research has shown that about ten years (or ten thousand hours) of deliberate and focused practice, along with effective feedback and coaching, is the key to becoming an expert in various fields. This applies to both cognitive and physical skills and is independent of factors like memory, intelligence, or genetics. A well-rounded personality may be beneficial, but it is not a determining factor for expertise.

Question 14

The ability to find a way to express new ideas or different ways of expressing old ideas demonstrates what feature of language?

Accepted Answer

The answer of The ability to find a way to...

Question 15

Several studies have compared the ability of expert chess players and beginners to memorize the positions of chess pieces arranged in various ways on the board. Which general conclusion do psychologists draw from the results of those studies?

Accepted Answer

The studies suggest that an important aspect of expertise is the ability to recognize and memorize complex, familiar patterns, such as the arrangements of chess pieces on a board. This conclusion aligns with the idea that expertise often involves developing specialized knowledge and skills in a particular domain. The other answer choices are not supported by the evidence provided in the question.

Question 16

Research on the development of expertise reveals that, in general,

Accepted Answer

Research on the development of expertise, including studies by psychologist K. Anders Ericsson, suggests that it generally takes about 10 years, or 10,000 hours, of dedicated practice to achieve expertise in most fields. This contradicts the notion that expertise is solely innate (A) or can be achieved in significantly shorter (B) or longer (D) periods of concentrated effort.

Question 17

Expert chess and average chess players look at a chess board for a few seconds and try to memorize the location of the chess pieces. Under what circumstances, if any, will the expert chess players show much better memory than the others?

Accepted Answer

Expert chess players are likely to be more familiar with well-played games and common patterns, so they may be able to quickly recognize and remember the positions of the pieces if the arrangement follows a familiar pattern. In contrast, if the arrangement is highly unusual or random, both average and expert players may struggle to memorize it. However, the expert players may still have an advantage due to their greater experience and expertise in the game.

Question 18

Extended practice at a skill can improve

Accepted Answer

Extended practice at a skill can lead to improved development in the brain areas specific to that skill. This is supported by research in neuroplasticity, which suggests that the brain can reorganize itself in response to experience. However, becoming an expert at one skill does not necessarily translate to expertise in other unrelated skills, as in option C. While overall brain functioning may improve to some extent with extended practice, there is no guarantee that this reduces the likelihood of mental decline, as in option D.

Question 19

Developing an expertise has been associated with physical changes in the brain, such as

Accepted Answer

The answer of Developing an expertise has been associated with...

Question 20

You are asked to determine which of two people is an expert chess player. (The other one is a beginner.) You could quickly do so by answering the following question:

Accepted Answer

Being able to quickly and accurately memorize the positions of chess pieces as they occur during a game is a key skill of an expert player. Option A tests short-term memory, which is not necessarily indicative of chess-playing ability. Option B tests knowledge of a specific, memorized starting position, which can be learned through studying, but does not necessarily reflect skill in playing the game. Option D is a meaningless and irrelevant factor in determining chess expertise.

Quiz 8: Cognition and Language