Question 1

Which of the following statements illustrates the concept of biophilia?

Accepted Answer

Biophilia is the concept that humans have an innate tendency to seek connections with nature and other forms of life, which is illustrated by the desire to have plants and pets in their homes.

Question 2

Moths that blend in with trees or grasses are:

Accepted Answer

Moths that blend in with trees or grasses are less likely to be seen by predators due to their camouflage. This adaptation increases their chances of survival by reducing the likelihood of being preyed upon.

Question 3

In the context of Tinbergen's "four levels of analysis," which of the following is a question about proximate cause?

Accepted Answer

Tinbergen's four levels of analysis include questions of mechanism (how a behavior occurs), ontogeny (how a behavior develops in an individual), evolutionary history (how a behavior evolved over time), and adaptive function (why a behavior evolved). A question about what brain regions are associated with a trait is asking about the mechanism of the behavior, which is a proximate cause.

Question 4

In order to test the memory of pigeons, Darlene trained them to peck a target in order to earn food. A week later, the trained target was presented among a variety of other novel targets to determine whether the pigeons could remember which target was the right one. Experiments like this demonstrate that the act of remembering can often be thought of as an instance of  _____.

Accepted Answer

This experiment demonstrates stimulus discrimination because the pigeons need to distinguish the trained target from the novel targets to demonstrate their memory. Stimulus discrimination involves recognizing and responding differently to various stimuli, which is exactly what the pigeons are doing by identifying the correct target among several.

Question 5

Brodbeck and Shettleworth compared the memory ability of black-capped chickadees to that of dark-eyed juncos using:

Accepted Answer

Brodbeck and Shettleworth used a modified delayed matching-to-sample task to compare the memory abilities of black-capped chickadees and dark-eyed juncos. This method involves presenting an initial sample stimulus followed by a delay, after which the subject must select the matching stimulus from among alternatives.

Question 6

According to Tinbergen, if you are examining a trait in order to determine how it contributes to the survival and reproduction of an organism, what are you studying?

Accepted Answer

Tinbergen's framework for understanding animal behavior includes the concept of ultimate causes, which are explanations for why a behavior evolved in the context of survival and reproduction.

Question 7

Brodbeck and Shettleworth's experiment revealed that food-storing birds have far superior _____ memory abilities compared to non-storing birds.

Accepted Answer

Brodbeck and Shettleworth's experiment demonstrated that food-storing birds exhibit significantly enhanced spatial memory abilities, which are crucial for relocating their caches, compared to non-storing birds.

Question 8

In the context of Tinbergen's "four questions," which of the following would be considered a question about ultimate cause?

Accepted Answer

Tinbergen's question about ultimate cause refers to the evolutionary reasons for a trait's existence, particularly how it contributes to survival and reproduction. A trait shared among species in similar environments suggests an evolutionary adaptation to those environments, fitting the category of an ultimate cause question.

Question 9

In order to test the memory of rats, Stacey trained them to press a lever to earn food whenever they heard an 800-Hz tone. A week later, the rats were exposed to a variety of different tones in order to determine whether they would respond preferentially to the correct tone. Experiments like this demonstrate that the act of remembering can often be thought of as an instance of   _____.

Accepted Answer

Stimulus discrimination is demonstrated in this experiment because the rats learned to respond to a specific tone (800-Hz) to earn food, and their ability to distinguish this tone from others when tested later shows they can differentiate between similar stimuli based on their learned experiences.

Question 10

In the context of Tinbergen's "four questions," which of the following is a question about ultimate cause?

Accepted Answer

Tinbergen's question about ultimate cause refers to the evolutionary reasons for a trait's existence, specifically how it contributes to survival and reproduction. Option A, asking how a trait allows an animal to live longer, addresses the evolutionary benefits or the 'why' aspect, making it a question of ultimate cause.

Question 11

Which of the following is a topic studied under comparative cognition?

Accepted Answer

Comparative cognition studies mental processes across different species, including self-awareness, which is a cognitive ability.

Question 12

In a delayed matching-to-sample task, an animal has to remember a(n) _____ following a(n)   _____.

Accepted Answer

In a delayed matching-to-sample task, the animal is first presented with a sample stimulus. Following a delay period, during which the animal must remember the sample, it is then required to select the matching stimulus from among alternatives. This process involves remembering the sample stimulus after a delay, not a reward, unconditioned stimulus, or operant response.

Question 13

If a pigeon is shown a signal indicating that it can forget a stimulus, then:

Accepted Answer

Research in animal cognition has shown that pigeons, like many other animals, can be trained to respond to signals in ways that affect their memory processes. When pigeons are shown a specific signal that they have been conditioned to understand means they can forget a stimulus, they tend to follow this instruction and act accordingly, demonstrating an ability to forget the stimulus. This is part of a broader set of findings in the field of animal learning and cognition that illustrates the flexibility and complexity of animal memory systems.

Question 14

In a directed forgetting procedure, a _____ is presented during the _____ period.

Accepted Answer

In a directed forgetting procedure, a "forget cue" is presented during the "delay" period to instruct participants to forget certain information.

Question 15

According to Tinbergen, if you are examining a trait in order to determine how it develops in an organism, from birth until adulthood, what are you studying?

Accepted Answer

Tinbergen's framework for understanding animal behavior includes both proximate and ultimate causes. Proximate causes concern the immediate biological and environmental factors influencing a trait's development and expression, such as its genetic, physiological, and ontogenetic (developmental) aspects. When examining a trait from birth until adulthood, you are studying its development, which falls under the category of proximate causes.

Question 16

As Jason walks down the street, a large raven starts squawking at him and flapping its wings. Jason thinks to himself, "That bird hates me!" This scenario best illustrates the concept of _____.

Accepted Answer

Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities, which is exactly what Jason is doing by assuming the raven has feelings of hatred towards him.

Question 17

Tara buys little t-shirts and ornaments for her dog because she feels that her dog is a princess, and that the dog likes wearing these things in order to feel pretty. Which of the following concepts is illustrated by this example?

Accepted Answer

Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities, which is exactly what Tara is doing by assuming her dog has a desire to feel pretty through wearing t-shirts and ornaments.

Question 18

In _____, an animal is first shown a sample stimulus and then, following a break, is required to select that stimulus out of a set of alternative stimuli.

Accepted Answer

Delayed matching-to-sample tasks involve showing an animal a sample stimulus and then, after a delay, requiring the animal to select that stimulus from a set of alternatives. This tests the animal's memory and ability to recognize the initial stimulus.

Question 19

If you are conducting research to determine whether cats have better memories than do turtles, which of the following fields are you studying?

Accepted Answer

Comparative cognition is the study of the differences and similarities in cognitive abilities across different species, which includes memory comparisons between animals like cats and turtles.

Question 20

In the context of Tinbergen's "four levels of analysis," which of the following would be considered a question about proximate cause?

Accepted Answer

Tinbergen's four levels of analysis include questions of proximate cause, which are about the immediate, mechanistic explanations for behavior, such as how it develops and what triggers it. Option D, asking about the age at which a trait emerges and its development, directly addresses these proximate concerns.

Quiz 13: Comparative Cognition