Multiple Choice
6.1 An Overview of the Visual System
1. Light is most frequently described by the:
a. amplitude of pressure waves in the air.
b. wavelength of electromagnetic waves.
c. size of photons.
d. speed of photons.
Answer: b
2. Where are the cells that respond to light in the eye located?
a. Lens
b. Cornea
c. Retina
d. Vitreous humor
Answer: c
3. The defects that cause myopia are typically in the:
a. retina.
b. brain.
c. shape of the eye.
d. ear.
Answer: c
6.2 The Retina
4. Your sharpest (highest acuity) vision is mediated by:
a. rods.
b. cones.
c. outer segments.
d. inner segments.
Answer: b
5. Imagine you are recording from a photoreceptor. You start recording in the dark then
shine bright light on the photoreceptor. What will happen?
a. The photoreceptor will fire action potentials. The brighter the light, the more action
potentials it will fire.
, Introduction to Behavioral Neuroscience Instructor Answer Guide
b. The photoreceptor will stop firing action potentials. The brighter the light, the fewer
action potentials it will fire.
c. The photoreceptor will hyperpolarize. The brighter the light, the more it will
hyperpolarize.
d. The photoreceptor will depolarize. The brighter the light, the more it will
depolarize.
Answer: c
6. In the dark, Na+ channels in rods are:
a. open.
b. closed.
c. sensitized.
d. absent.
Answer: a
7. Which of the following molecules changes shape directly in response to light exposure?
a. 11-cis-retinal
b. phosphodiesterase
c. cGMP
d. Na+ channels
Answer: a
8. Color vision relies on:
a. the sensitivities of different cone types to different wavelengths of light.
b. comparing activation of rods versus cones.
c. the location of the photoreceptors on the retina.
d. the 3 major types of retinal ganglion cells.
Answer: a
9. Color blindness:
a. is caused by mutations that make one of the cone types less functional.
b. is more common in males than females.
c. does not make a person actually blind to a wavelength of light but just makes some
colors look more similar than they do for non-color blind individuals.
d. All of these are true
Answer: d
10. What would the vision of someone who did not have red cones be like?
a. They would not see anything red; red objects would be mostly invisible
2
Updated October 2024
6.1 An Overview of the Visual System
1. Light is most frequently described by the:
a. amplitude of pressure waves in the air.
b. wavelength of electromagnetic waves.
c. size of photons.
d. speed of photons.
Answer: b
2. Where are the cells that respond to light in the eye located?
a. Lens
b. Cornea
c. Retina
d. Vitreous humor
Answer: c
3. The defects that cause myopia are typically in the:
a. retina.
b. brain.
c. shape of the eye.
d. ear.
Answer: c
6.2 The Retina
4. Your sharpest (highest acuity) vision is mediated by:
a. rods.
b. cones.
c. outer segments.
d. inner segments.
Answer: b
5. Imagine you are recording from a photoreceptor. You start recording in the dark then
shine bright light on the photoreceptor. What will happen?
a. The photoreceptor will fire action potentials. The brighter the light, the more action
potentials it will fire.
, Introduction to Behavioral Neuroscience Instructor Answer Guide
b. The photoreceptor will stop firing action potentials. The brighter the light, the fewer
action potentials it will fire.
c. The photoreceptor will hyperpolarize. The brighter the light, the more it will
hyperpolarize.
d. The photoreceptor will depolarize. The brighter the light, the more it will
depolarize.
Answer: c
6. In the dark, Na+ channels in rods are:
a. open.
b. closed.
c. sensitized.
d. absent.
Answer: a
7. Which of the following molecules changes shape directly in response to light exposure?
a. 11-cis-retinal
b. phosphodiesterase
c. cGMP
d. Na+ channels
Answer: a
8. Color vision relies on:
a. the sensitivities of different cone types to different wavelengths of light.
b. comparing activation of rods versus cones.
c. the location of the photoreceptors on the retina.
d. the 3 major types of retinal ganglion cells.
Answer: a
9. Color blindness:
a. is caused by mutations that make one of the cone types less functional.
b. is more common in males than females.
c. does not make a person actually blind to a wavelength of light but just makes some
colors look more similar than they do for non-color blind individuals.
d. All of these are true
Answer: d
10. What would the vision of someone who did not have red cones be like?
a. They would not see anything red; red objects would be mostly invisible
2
Updated October 2024
