PHYS 261 MIDTERM EXAM / ACTUAL PHYS HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY
MIDTERM EXAM WEST COAST UNIVERSITY (WCU) 2026/2027 HIGH
YIELD PRACTICE QUESTIONS AND STUDY GUIDE ACCURATE EXAM
1. A physiology student is asked to distinguish physiology from anatomy when
studying how the body maintains normal function. Which statement best
describes physiology?
A. The study of disease-causing microorganisms
B. The study of body structures and their physical relationships
C. The study of the normal functions and mechanisms of living organisms
and their component parts
D. The study of medications used to modify body structures
Answer: C
2. During a laboratory discussion, an instructor asks why homeostasis is
considered a central concept in human physiology. Which explanation is
most accurate?
A. It describes the body's ability to maintain relatively stable internal
conditions despite changing external or internal conditions
B. It means that every physiological variable remains absolutely constant
throughout life
C. It refers exclusively to maintaining normal body temperature
D. It means that all physiological systems function independently of one
another
Answer: A
3. A patient develops an elevated body temperature during exercise and
begins sweating, increasing heat loss from the skin. Which type of
regulatory mechanism is primarily illustrated?
A. Positive feedback
B. Feedforward control
C. Open-loop control
D. Negative feedback
Answer: D
pg. 1
, 4. During childbirth, cervical stretching promotes oxytocin release, which
increases uterine contractions and causes additional cervical stretching.
Which regulatory pattern does this represent?
A. Negative feedback
B. Positive feedback
C. Feedforward inhibition
D. Homeostatic antagonism
Answer: B
5. A researcher proposes that increased blood glucose stimulates pancreatic
insulin release, which subsequently lowers blood glucose. Which
component of the homeostatic control system detects the changing
variable?
A. Effector
B. Integrator
C. Receptor or sensor
D. Response
Answer: C
6. A physiology experiment is designed to determine whether increasing
extracellular potassium changes cardiac muscle excitability. Which variable
is the investigator deliberately manipulating?
A. Extracellular potassium concentration
B. Cardiac excitability
C. Heart rate response
D. Statistical significance
Answer: A
7. In an experiment examining the effect of temperature on enzyme activity,
the researcher records the rate at which the enzyme converts substrate into
product. Which variable is the dependent variable?
A. Temperature selected by the investigator
B. Enzyme concentration
C. Reaction rate
pg. 2
, D. Experimental group assignment
Answer: C
8. A researcher compares two groups receiving different treatments while
keeping other experimental conditions as similar as possible. What is the
primary purpose of maintaining controlled conditions?
A. To guarantee that the hypothesis is correct
B. To eliminate the need for repeated experiments
C. To make every participant respond identically
D. To reduce the influence of variables other than the factor being tested
Answer: D
9. A physiology student reads that a treatment produced no physiological
effect and asks what type of substance could be used as a comparison in a
controlled experiment. Which answer is correct?
A. A placebo
B. An antagonist
C. A catalyst
D. An electrolyte
Answer: A
10. A student proposes that increasing exercise intensity will increase oxygen
consumption and then designs an experiment to test that prediction. What
is the proposed testable explanation called?
A. Theory
B. Hypothesis
C. Meta-analysis
D. Placebo
Answer: B
11. A physician explains that pathophysiology focuses on how normal
physiological processes become altered by disease. Which example best
illustrates this concept?
A. Describing the normal function of a healthy nephron
B. Measuring the normal resting membrane potential of a neuron
pg. 3
, C. Explaining how impaired insulin signaling contributes to abnormal blood
glucose regulation
D. Identifying the anatomical position of the pancreas
Answer: C
12. During a chemistry review, a student is asked what determines whether an
atom becomes electrically charged. Which statement is correct?
A. Changing the number of neutrons always creates an ion
B. Changing the number of protons changes the atomic identity
C. Changing the number of electrons can produce an ion
D. Changing the number of nucleons always creates an anion
Answer: C
13. A molecule contains atoms that share electrons unequally because one
atom has a greater attraction for the shared electrons. What type of bond is
most directly involved?
A. Polar covalent bond
B. Ionic bond
C. Nonpolar covalent bond
D. Peptide bond
Answer: A
14. A student examines sodium chloride and notes that sodium has transferred
an electron to chlorine, producing oppositely charged ions. Which
interaction primarily holds these ions together?
A. Hydrogen bonding
B. Ionic bonding
C. Peptide bonding
D. Nonpolar covalent bonding
Answer: B
15. Water molecules attract one another through weak attractions involving
partially charged regions of neighboring molecules. Which interaction is
primarily responsible?
A. Ionic bonding
pg. 4
MIDTERM EXAM WEST COAST UNIVERSITY (WCU) 2026/2027 HIGH
YIELD PRACTICE QUESTIONS AND STUDY GUIDE ACCURATE EXAM
1. A physiology student is asked to distinguish physiology from anatomy when
studying how the body maintains normal function. Which statement best
describes physiology?
A. The study of disease-causing microorganisms
B. The study of body structures and their physical relationships
C. The study of the normal functions and mechanisms of living organisms
and their component parts
D. The study of medications used to modify body structures
Answer: C
2. During a laboratory discussion, an instructor asks why homeostasis is
considered a central concept in human physiology. Which explanation is
most accurate?
A. It describes the body's ability to maintain relatively stable internal
conditions despite changing external or internal conditions
B. It means that every physiological variable remains absolutely constant
throughout life
C. It refers exclusively to maintaining normal body temperature
D. It means that all physiological systems function independently of one
another
Answer: A
3. A patient develops an elevated body temperature during exercise and
begins sweating, increasing heat loss from the skin. Which type of
regulatory mechanism is primarily illustrated?
A. Positive feedback
B. Feedforward control
C. Open-loop control
D. Negative feedback
Answer: D
pg. 1
, 4. During childbirth, cervical stretching promotes oxytocin release, which
increases uterine contractions and causes additional cervical stretching.
Which regulatory pattern does this represent?
A. Negative feedback
B. Positive feedback
C. Feedforward inhibition
D. Homeostatic antagonism
Answer: B
5. A researcher proposes that increased blood glucose stimulates pancreatic
insulin release, which subsequently lowers blood glucose. Which
component of the homeostatic control system detects the changing
variable?
A. Effector
B. Integrator
C. Receptor or sensor
D. Response
Answer: C
6. A physiology experiment is designed to determine whether increasing
extracellular potassium changes cardiac muscle excitability. Which variable
is the investigator deliberately manipulating?
A. Extracellular potassium concentration
B. Cardiac excitability
C. Heart rate response
D. Statistical significance
Answer: A
7. In an experiment examining the effect of temperature on enzyme activity,
the researcher records the rate at which the enzyme converts substrate into
product. Which variable is the dependent variable?
A. Temperature selected by the investigator
B. Enzyme concentration
C. Reaction rate
pg. 2
, D. Experimental group assignment
Answer: C
8. A researcher compares two groups receiving different treatments while
keeping other experimental conditions as similar as possible. What is the
primary purpose of maintaining controlled conditions?
A. To guarantee that the hypothesis is correct
B. To eliminate the need for repeated experiments
C. To make every participant respond identically
D. To reduce the influence of variables other than the factor being tested
Answer: D
9. A physiology student reads that a treatment produced no physiological
effect and asks what type of substance could be used as a comparison in a
controlled experiment. Which answer is correct?
A. A placebo
B. An antagonist
C. A catalyst
D. An electrolyte
Answer: A
10. A student proposes that increasing exercise intensity will increase oxygen
consumption and then designs an experiment to test that prediction. What
is the proposed testable explanation called?
A. Theory
B. Hypothesis
C. Meta-analysis
D. Placebo
Answer: B
11. A physician explains that pathophysiology focuses on how normal
physiological processes become altered by disease. Which example best
illustrates this concept?
A. Describing the normal function of a healthy nephron
B. Measuring the normal resting membrane potential of a neuron
pg. 3
, C. Explaining how impaired insulin signaling contributes to abnormal blood
glucose regulation
D. Identifying the anatomical position of the pancreas
Answer: C
12. During a chemistry review, a student is asked what determines whether an
atom becomes electrically charged. Which statement is correct?
A. Changing the number of neutrons always creates an ion
B. Changing the number of protons changes the atomic identity
C. Changing the number of electrons can produce an ion
D. Changing the number of nucleons always creates an anion
Answer: C
13. A molecule contains atoms that share electrons unequally because one
atom has a greater attraction for the shared electrons. What type of bond is
most directly involved?
A. Polar covalent bond
B. Ionic bond
C. Nonpolar covalent bond
D. Peptide bond
Answer: A
14. A student examines sodium chloride and notes that sodium has transferred
an electron to chlorine, producing oppositely charged ions. Which
interaction primarily holds these ions together?
A. Hydrogen bonding
B. Ionic bonding
C. Peptide bonding
D. Nonpolar covalent bonding
Answer: B
15. Water molecules attract one another through weak attractions involving
partially charged regions of neighboring molecules. Which interaction is
primarily responsible?
A. Ionic bonding
pg. 4
