MCAT practice Questions
with Correct Answers
A stroke patient comprehends speech but cannot move her mouth to form words. Which of the
following brain areas is likely affected?
■Broca's area
■Wernicke's Area
■Arcuate fasciculus
■Superior temporal gyrus - Answer:Broca's area (Broca's area governs the motor function of language. A
stroke that affects Broca's area will leave receptive language intact, but word formation will be affected.
A stroke affecting Wernicke's area, choice (B), will make it so the individual is unable to comprehend
speech. A stroke affecting the arcuate fasciculus, choice (C), will result in an inability to repeat words
heard but spontaneous language production is intact. The superior temporal gyrus, choice (D), is where
Wernicke's area is located.)
Each individual in a group of teenagers is asked to estimate the height of a tree. One individual
estimates the height to be 25 feet, but after discussing with the group is convinced that the height is
likely closer to 40 feet. Which type of conformity is seen here?
■Obedience
■Identification
■Internalization
■Compliance - Answer:Internalization (Internalization refers to the type of conformity in which an
individual changes her outward opinion to match the group and also personally agrees with those
ideas.)
Which of the following neurotransmitters is associated with both schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease?
■GABA
■Serotonin
■Dopamine
,■Enkephalins - Answer:Dopamine (Schizophrenia is associated with high levels of dopamine, or high
sensitivity to dopamine. Parkinson's disease is associated with destruction of the dopaminergic neurons
in the basal ganglia.)
Primary groups differ from secondary groups in that:
■A) primary groups are shorter-lived than secondary groups.
■B) primary groups are larger than secondary groups.
■C) primary groups are formed of stronger bonds than secondary groups.
■D) primary groups are assigned while secondary groups are chosen. - Answer:C (Primary groups have
direct and close bonds between members, providing warm, personal, and intimate relationships to its
members. Secondary groups, in contrast, form superficial bonds and tend to last for a shorter period of
time.)
A student is volunteering in a hospital with a stroke center. When asked what he believes is the
prevalence of stroke among those greater than 65 years old, the student states that it is probably about
40% even though data analysis indicates that it is significantly lower. What accounts for this error?
■Deductive reasoning
■Representativeness heuristic
■Base rate fallacy
■Confirmation bias - Answer:Base rate fallacy (The base rate fallacy occurs when prototypical or
stereotypical factors are used for analysis rather than actual data. Because the student is volunteering in
a hospital with a stroke center, he sees more patients who have experienced a stroke than would be
expected in a hospital without a stroke center. Thus, this experience changes his perception and results
in base rate fallacy. Deductive reasoning, choice (A), refers to drawing conclusions by integrating
different pieces of evidence. The representativeness heuristic, choice (B), involves categorization and
classification based on how well an individual example fits its category. Confirmation bias, choice (D),
occurs when a person only seeks information that reinforces his or her opinions.)
Why are triacylglycerols used in the human body for energy storage?
■A) They are highly hydrated, and therefore can store lots of energy.
■B) They always have short fatty acid chains, for easy access by metabolic enzymes.
■C) The carbon atoms of the fatty acid chains are highly reduced, and therefore yield more energy upon
oxidation.
, ■D) Polysaccharides, which would actually be a better energy storage form, would dissolve in the body. -
Answer:C (Triacylglycerols are highly hydrophobic and therefore not highly hydrated (which would add
extra weight from the water of hydration, taking away from the energy density of these molecules),
eliminating choice (A). The fatty acid chains produce twice as much energy as polysaccharides during
oxidation because they are highly reduced. The fatty acid chains vary in length and saturation.)
Prolonged vitamin B12 deficiency can be associated with subacute combined degeneration of the spinal
cord. Patients with this disease have difficulty walking because they lose the ability to feel where their
feet are in space. This represents a loss of:
■vestibular sense.
■kinesthetic sense.
■parallel processing.
■feature detection. - Answer:Kinesthetic sense (Kinesthetic sense, or proprioception, refers to the ability
to tell where body parts are in three-dimensional space. The sensors for proprioception are found
predominantly in the muscles and joints. Loss of vestibular sense, choice (A), would also cause difficulty
walking, but this would be due to a sense of dizziness or vertigo, not an inability to feel one's feet.)
Which of the following is/are function(s) of NADPH in the cell?
►I. Antimicrobial resistance via bacterial destruction by bleach within lysosomes.
►II. Involvement in the production of the precursors to steroid hormones.
►III. Functional carriage of energy across organelle membranes for use within the mitochondria
A) I only
B) I and II only
C) II and III only
D) I, II, and III - Answer:B (NADPH has three primary functions: involvement in biosynthesis of lipids and
cholesterol (the precursor to steroid hormones), production of bactericidal bleach in the lysosomes of
certain white blood cells, and maintenance of a supply of reduced glutathione for protection against
free radical damage. Energy carriage is an important function of NADH, not NADPH.)
Increases in which of the following hormones causes sleepiness?
■Cortisol
with Correct Answers
A stroke patient comprehends speech but cannot move her mouth to form words. Which of the
following brain areas is likely affected?
■Broca's area
■Wernicke's Area
■Arcuate fasciculus
■Superior temporal gyrus - Answer:Broca's area (Broca's area governs the motor function of language. A
stroke that affects Broca's area will leave receptive language intact, but word formation will be affected.
A stroke affecting Wernicke's area, choice (B), will make it so the individual is unable to comprehend
speech. A stroke affecting the arcuate fasciculus, choice (C), will result in an inability to repeat words
heard but spontaneous language production is intact. The superior temporal gyrus, choice (D), is where
Wernicke's area is located.)
Each individual in a group of teenagers is asked to estimate the height of a tree. One individual
estimates the height to be 25 feet, but after discussing with the group is convinced that the height is
likely closer to 40 feet. Which type of conformity is seen here?
■Obedience
■Identification
■Internalization
■Compliance - Answer:Internalization (Internalization refers to the type of conformity in which an
individual changes her outward opinion to match the group and also personally agrees with those
ideas.)
Which of the following neurotransmitters is associated with both schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease?
■GABA
■Serotonin
■Dopamine
,■Enkephalins - Answer:Dopamine (Schizophrenia is associated with high levels of dopamine, or high
sensitivity to dopamine. Parkinson's disease is associated with destruction of the dopaminergic neurons
in the basal ganglia.)
Primary groups differ from secondary groups in that:
■A) primary groups are shorter-lived than secondary groups.
■B) primary groups are larger than secondary groups.
■C) primary groups are formed of stronger bonds than secondary groups.
■D) primary groups are assigned while secondary groups are chosen. - Answer:C (Primary groups have
direct and close bonds between members, providing warm, personal, and intimate relationships to its
members. Secondary groups, in contrast, form superficial bonds and tend to last for a shorter period of
time.)
A student is volunteering in a hospital with a stroke center. When asked what he believes is the
prevalence of stroke among those greater than 65 years old, the student states that it is probably about
40% even though data analysis indicates that it is significantly lower. What accounts for this error?
■Deductive reasoning
■Representativeness heuristic
■Base rate fallacy
■Confirmation bias - Answer:Base rate fallacy (The base rate fallacy occurs when prototypical or
stereotypical factors are used for analysis rather than actual data. Because the student is volunteering in
a hospital with a stroke center, he sees more patients who have experienced a stroke than would be
expected in a hospital without a stroke center. Thus, this experience changes his perception and results
in base rate fallacy. Deductive reasoning, choice (A), refers to drawing conclusions by integrating
different pieces of evidence. The representativeness heuristic, choice (B), involves categorization and
classification based on how well an individual example fits its category. Confirmation bias, choice (D),
occurs when a person only seeks information that reinforces his or her opinions.)
Why are triacylglycerols used in the human body for energy storage?
■A) They are highly hydrated, and therefore can store lots of energy.
■B) They always have short fatty acid chains, for easy access by metabolic enzymes.
■C) The carbon atoms of the fatty acid chains are highly reduced, and therefore yield more energy upon
oxidation.
, ■D) Polysaccharides, which would actually be a better energy storage form, would dissolve in the body. -
Answer:C (Triacylglycerols are highly hydrophobic and therefore not highly hydrated (which would add
extra weight from the water of hydration, taking away from the energy density of these molecules),
eliminating choice (A). The fatty acid chains produce twice as much energy as polysaccharides during
oxidation because they are highly reduced. The fatty acid chains vary in length and saturation.)
Prolonged vitamin B12 deficiency can be associated with subacute combined degeneration of the spinal
cord. Patients with this disease have difficulty walking because they lose the ability to feel where their
feet are in space. This represents a loss of:
■vestibular sense.
■kinesthetic sense.
■parallel processing.
■feature detection. - Answer:Kinesthetic sense (Kinesthetic sense, or proprioception, refers to the ability
to tell where body parts are in three-dimensional space. The sensors for proprioception are found
predominantly in the muscles and joints. Loss of vestibular sense, choice (A), would also cause difficulty
walking, but this would be due to a sense of dizziness or vertigo, not an inability to feel one's feet.)
Which of the following is/are function(s) of NADPH in the cell?
►I. Antimicrobial resistance via bacterial destruction by bleach within lysosomes.
►II. Involvement in the production of the precursors to steroid hormones.
►III. Functional carriage of energy across organelle membranes for use within the mitochondria
A) I only
B) I and II only
C) II and III only
D) I, II, and III - Answer:B (NADPH has three primary functions: involvement in biosynthesis of lipids and
cholesterol (the precursor to steroid hormones), production of bactericidal bleach in the lysosomes of
certain white blood cells, and maintenance of a supply of reduced glutathione for protection against
free radical damage. Energy carriage is an important function of NADH, not NADPH.)
Increases in which of the following hormones causes sleepiness?
■Cortisol
