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Vander's Human Physiology, 15e (Widmaier)
Chapter 6 Neuronal Signaling and the Structure of the Nervous System
1) You are studying a cross-sectional tissue slice of a nerve using a transmission electron
microscope. You find an area where there appears to be a small amount of cytoplasm
surrounded by about 100 layers of stacked cell membranes. You conclude that you have found
A) a neuron cell body.
B) a synapse.
C) an unmyelinated axon.
D) a myelinated axon.
Answer: D
Section: 06.01; 06.07
Topic: Microscopic anatomy of glial cells; Physiology of nerve impulse transmission
Bloom's: Level 3. Apply
HAPS Topic: Module H03 Gross and microscopic anatomy of nervous tissue.; Module H04
Neurophysiology, including mechanism of resting membrane potential, production of action
potentials, and impulse transmission.
HAPS Outcome: H03.03b Describe functions for each of the glial cells found in the CNS.;
H03.03c Explain how the anatomy of each CNS glial cell supports its function.; H03.04b
Describe functions for each type of glial cell found in the PNS.; H03.04c Explain how the
anatomy of each PNS glial cell supports its function.; H04.13b Explain how axon diameter and
myelination affect impulse conduction velocity.
2) Which of the following is NOT true about axon transport?

A) It refers to the passage of materials from the cell body of a neuron to the axon terminals.
B) It refers to the passage of materials from axon terminals to the cell body of a neuron.
C) It refers to the transport of materials from the inside to the outside across the axonal
membrane.
D) It is especially important for maintaining the integrity of neurons with long axons.
Answer: C
Section: 06.01
Topic: Microscopic anatomy of neurons
Bloom's: Level 1. Remember
HAPS Topic: Module H03 Gross and microscopic anatomy of nervous tissue.
HAPS Outcome: H03.02b Identify soma (cell body), axon, and dendrites in each of the three
structural types of neurons (unipolar, bipolar and multipolar).; H03.02c State which parts of each
of the three structural types of neurons (unipolar, bipolar and multipolar) receive information,
which parts integrate information, and which parts conduct the output signal of the neuron.
1
Copyright 2019 © McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. No reproduction or distribution without the prior
written consent of McGraw-Hill Education.
3) Some viruses can hide from the immune system by retrograde transport from axonal terminals
in the skin to the cell body of a neuron. Which of the following might be an effective
preventative therapy?
A) A kinesin inhibitor
B) A dynein inhibitor
C) Actin polymerization inhibitor
D) Myosin inhibitor
E) None of these would prevent this type of infection
Answer: B
Section: 06.01
Topic: Microscopic anatomy of neurons
which parts integrate information, and which parts conduct the output signal of the neuron.
4) Which is FALSE about neurons?

A) A given neuron can be either a presynaptic neuron or a postsynaptic neuron.
B) An individual neuron can receive information from multiple other neurons.
C) An individual neuron can transmit information to multiple other neurons.
D) A neuron can simultaneously release more than one type of neurotransmitter.
E) A neuron receives information on its axons and delivers it to other neurons through its
dendrites.
Answer: E
Section: 06.01; 06.02; 06.08
Topic: Anatomical and functional organization of the nervous system; Neurotransmitters and
their roles in synaptic transmission
Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic transmission.
HAPS Outcome: H03.02c State which parts of each of the three structural types of neurons
(unipolar, bipolar and multipolar) receive information, which parts integrate information, and
which parts conduct the output signal of the neuron.; H05.01 Identify the presynaptic and
postsynaptic cells at a synapse.
2
5) Which of the following is NOT true of glial cells?
A) They form the myelin for axons.
B) They are outnumbered 10 to 1 by neurons in the nervous system.
C) They deliver fuel molecules to neurons and remove the waste products of metabolism.
D) They are important for the growth and development of the nervous system.
E) They regulate the composition of the extracellular fluid in the CNS.
Answer: B
Section: 06.03
Topic: Anatomical and functional organization of the nervous system; Microscopic anatomy of
glial cells
HAPS Outcome: H03.03b Describe functions for each of the glial cells found in the CNS.;
H03.04b Describe functions for each type of glial cell found in the PNS.
6) The difference in electrical charge between two points

A) is called the potential difference between those points.
B) is called the diffusion potential between those points.
C) is called the current, and is expressed in the units of millimoles.
D) is the same for all ions.
Answer: A
Section: 06.05
Topic: Physiology of nerve impulse transmission
HAPS Topic: Module H04 Neurophysiology, including mechanism of resting membrane
potential, production of action potentials, and impulse transmission.
HAPS Outcome: H04.04 Differentiate between a concentration gradient and an electrical
potential.
3
7) According to the equation expressed as Ohm's law, which of these would cause the greatest
increase in current?
A) Doubling both voltage and resistance
B) Reducing both voltage and resistance by half
C) Doubling voltage and reducing resistance by half
D) Reducing voltage by half and doubling resistance
E) Quadrupling both voltage and resistance
Answer: C
Section: 06.05
Bloom's: Level 2. Understand
potential.
8) Compartments A and B are separated by a membrane that is permeable to K+ but not to Na+
or Cl-. At time zero, a solution of KCl is poured into compartment A and an equally concentrated
solution of NaCl is poured into compartment B. Which would be true once equilibrium is
reached?
A) The concentration of Na+ in A will be higher than it was at time zero.
B) Diffusion of K+ from A to B will be greater than the diffusion of K+ from B to A.
C) There will be a potential difference across the membrane, with side B negative relative to side
A.
D) The electrical potential difference and diffusion potential due to the concentration gradient for
K+ will be equal in magnitude and opposite in direction.
E) The concentration of Cl- will be higher in B than it was at time zero.
Answer: D
Section: 06.06
potential.; H04.05 Define electrochemical gradient.
4
9) Which is TRUE about the resting membrane potential?
A) It requires very few ions to be distributed unevenly.
B) It has the same value in all cells.
C) It is oriented so that the cell's interior is positive with respect to the extracellular fluid.
D) Only nerve and muscle cells have a potential difference across the membrane at rest.
E) It is not altered by changing concentration gradients of permeating ions.
Answer: A
Section: 06.06
HAPS Outcome: H04.06b Explain how passive ion channels cause development of the resting
membrane potential in neurons.
10) Which is TRUE about typical, resting neurons?

A) The plasma membrane is most permeable to sodium ions.
B) The concentration of sodium ion is greater inside the cell than outside.
C) The permeability of the plasma membrane to potassium ions is much greater than its
permeability to sodium ions.
D) The plasma membrane is completely impermeable to sodium ions.
E) The plasma membrane is completely impermeable to potassium ions.
Answer: C
Section: 06.06
potential, production of action potentials, and impulse transmission.; Module Q03 Chemical
composition of the major compartment fluids.
HAPS Outcome: H04.01 Define permeability.; H04.03 Contrast the relative concentrations of
sodium, potassium and chloride ions inside and outside of a cell.; Q03.02 Compare and contrast
the relative concentrations of major electrolytes in intracellular and extracellular fluids.
5
11) The membrane potential of most neurons at rest is
A) equal to the equilibrium potential for potassium.
B) equal to the equilibrium potential for sodium.
C) slightly more negative than the equilibrium potential of potassium ion.
D) more positive than the equilibrium potential for potassium.
E) more positive than the equilibrium potential for sodium.
Answer: D
Section: 06.06
HAPS Outcome: H04.03 Contrast the relative concentrations of sodium, potassium and
chloride ions inside and outside of a cell.; H04.05 Define electrochemical gradient.; H04.06b
Explain how passive ion channels cause development of the resting membrane potential in
neurons.
12) Which of the following is TRUE about the concentration gradient of Na+ in a neuron at rest?
A) It favors its movement into the cell at the resting membrane potential.
B) It favors its movement out of the cell at the resting membrane potential.
C) It is equal and opposite to the electrical potential acting on Na+ at the resting membrane
potential.
D) It is in the same direction as the diffusion potential due to the concentration gradient for K+.
E) It favors movement of Na+ in the opposite direction as the electrical potential acting on Na+ at
the resting membrane potential.
Answer: A
Section: 06.06
chloride ions inside and outside of a cell.; H04.04 Differentiate between a concentration gradient
and an electrical potential.; H04.05 Define electrochemical gradient.; Q03.02 Compare and
contrast the relative concentrations of major electrolytes in intracellular and extracellular fluids.
6
13) If there was an increased concentration of K+ outside of the neuron, which would be TRUE?
A) Neurons would spontaneously depolarize.
B) Neurons would spontaneously hyperpolarize.
C) The potassium equilibrium potential of nerve cells would become more negative.
D) The sodium equilibrium potential would become less positive.
E) During an action potential, the neuron would repolarize slowly or stay depolarized.
Answer: E
Section: 06.06
potential.; H04.05 Define electrochemical gradient.; H04.06b Explain how passive ion channels
cause development of the resting membrane potential in neurons.
14) Which is TRUE about the Na+, K+ ATPase pump in neurons?

A) It generates a small electrical potential such that the inside is made negative with respect to
the outside.
B) It maintains a concentration gradient for K+ such that diffusion forces favor movement of K+
into the cell.
C) It maintains an electrical gradient at the equilibrium potential of K+.
D) It transports equal numbers of sodium and potassium ions with each pump cycle.
E) It pumps 3 Na+ ions into the cell for every 2 K+ ions it pumps out.
Answer: A
Section: 06.06
and an electrical potential.; H04.08 Describe the role of the sodium-potassium exchange pump in
maintaining the resting membrane potential and making continued action potentials possible.;
Q03.02 Compare and contrast the relative concentrations of major electrolytes in intracellular
and extracellular fluids.
7
15) Which of these would occur if the concentration of ATP were depleted in a typical nerve
cell?
A) Resting membrane potential would become more negative.
B) Resting membrane potential would become less negative.
C) The concentration gradient for Na+ would remain the same.
D) The resting membrane potential would eventually become positive inside with respect to
outside.
E) There would be no change in the resting membrane potential.
Answer: B
Section: 06.06
HAPS Outcome: H04.08 Describe the role of the sodium-potassium exchange pump in
maintaining the resting membrane potential and making continued action potentials possible.
16) Which is FALSE about the equilibrium potential of a given ion across a membrane?
A) It is a function of the concentration of that ion on both sides of the membrane.
B) It is the potential at which there is no net movement of that ion across the membrane.
C) It is the potential difference across the membrane at which an electric force favoring
movement of the ion in one direction is equal in magnitude and opposite in direction to the
diffusion force provided by the concentration difference of the ion across the membrane.
D) A permeable ion will move in the direction that will tend to bring the membrane potential
toward that ion's equilibrium potential.
E) An anion that is in higher concentration inside the cell than outside the cell will have a
negative equilibrium potential.
Answer: E
Section: 06.06
potential.; H04.05 Define electrochemical gradient.
8
17) Two neighboring neurons are at rest. Neuron A has a resting membrane potential of -80mV,
Neuron B has a resting membrane potential of -70mV. Which is likely to be TRUE?
A) Neuron A has more K+ channels open than Neuron B.
B) Neuron B has more K+ channels open than Neuron A.
C) Neuron A has more Na+ channels open than Neuron B.
D) Neuron B has more Na+ channels open than Neuron A.
E) None of the answer choices are correct.
Answer: A
Section: 06.06
potential.; H04.05 Define electrochemical gradient.; H04.06b Explain how passive ion channels
cause development of the resting membrane potential in neurons.
18) Which of the following statements concerning the permeability of a typical neuron
membrane at rest is TRUE?
A) The permeability to Na+ is much greater than the permeability to K+.
B) All of the K+ channels in the membrane are open.
C) The voltage-gated Na+ channels are in the inactivated state.
D) Most of the voltage-gated Na+ channels are in the closed state.
E) There is equal permeability to Na+ and K+.
Answer: D
Section: 06.06
HAPS Outcome: H04.01 Define permeability.; H04.02 Explain how ion channels affect neuron
selective permeability.; H04.06b Explain how passive ion channels cause development of the
resting membrane potential in neurons.; H04.06d Describe the voltage-gated ion channels that
are essential for development of the action potential.
9
19) Which is NOT an example of a graded potential?
A) A receptor potential in a sensory receptor cell
B) A depolarizing excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP)
C) A hyperpolarizing inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP)
D) A depolarizing pacemaker potential
E) A depolarizing action potential
Answer: E
Section: 06.07
HAPS Topic: Module H05 Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic transmission.; Module
H06 Sensory receptors and their roles.
HAPS Outcome: H05.08 Define excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) and inhibitory
postsynaptic potential (IPSP) and interpret graphs showing the voltage vs. time relationship of an
EPSP and an IPSP.; H05.12 Compare and contrast synaptic potentials with action potentials.;
H06.03 Explain the generator potential that occurs when receptors for general senses are
stimulated.
20) An action potential in a neuronal membrane differs from a graded potential in that
A) an action potential requires the opening of Ca2+ channels, whereas a graded potential does
not.
B) an action potential is propagated without decrement, whereas a graded potential decrements
with distance.
C) an action potential has a threshold, whereas a graded potential is an all-or-none phenomenon.
D) movement of Na+ and K+ across cell membranes mediate action potentials, while graded
potentials do not involve movement of Na+ and K+.
E) action potentials vary in size with the size of a stimulus, while graded potentials do not.
Answer: B
Section: 06.07
potential, production of action potentials, and impulse transmission.; Module H05
HAPS Outcome: H04.07 Discuss the sequence of events that must occur for an action potential
to be generated.; H04.09 Define threshold.; H04.10 Discuss the role of positive feedback in
generation of the action potential.; H04.13a Describe how local circuit currents cause impulse
conduction in an unmyelinated axon.; H04.13c Describe saltatory conduction.; H05.10 Explain
how movement of sodium ions alone, or movement of both sodium and potassium ions, across
the postsynaptic cell membrane can excite a neuron.; H05.11 Explain how movement of
potassium or chloride ions across the postsynaptic cell membrane can inhibit a neuron.; H05.12
Compare and contrast synaptic potentials with action potentials.
10
21) A threshold stimulus applied to an excitable membrane is one that is just sufficient to
A) trigger an excitatory postsynaptic potential.
B) cause a change in membrane potential.
C) trigger an action potential.
D) be conducted to the axon hillock.
E) depolarize a dendrite.
Answer: C
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.09 Define threshold.; H05.08 Define excitatory postsynaptic potential
(EPSP) and inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP) and interpret graphs showing the voltage vs.
time relationship of an EPSP and an IPSP.; H05.12 Compare and contrast synaptic potentials
with action potentials.
22) Using a micropipette, a neuroscientist injects an axon with enough Na+ ions to move the
membrane potential +25mV (from resting). What happens next?
A) The membrane potential will be at the Na+ equilibrium potential.
B) Voltage-gated Na+ will be triggered to open.
C) The neuron membrane will be hyperpolarized.
D) Na+ channels will all be inactivated.
E) None of the answer choices are correct.
Answer: B
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.06d Describe the voltage-gated ion channels that are essential for
development of the action potential.; H04.07 Discuss the sequence of events that must occur for
an action potential to be generated.; H04.09 Define threshold.; H04.12a Define absolute and
relative refractory periods.; H05.08 Define excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) and
inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP) and interpret graphs showing the voltage vs. time
relationship of an EPSP and an IPSP.
11
23) Which describes the response of the voltage-gated channels when an axon is stimulated to
threshold?
A) K+ channels open before the Na+ channels.
B) Na+ channels are activated and then inactivated.
C) K+ channels open at the same time as the Na+ channels.
D) K+ channels are opened when Na+ binds to the channel.
E) K+ influx causes Na+ channels to inactivate.
Answer: B
Section: 06.07
an action potential to be generated.
24) During the rising (depolarizing) phase of a neuronal action potential,

A) PK+ becomes much greater than PNa+.
B) PNa+ becomes much greater than PK+.
C) PK+ is the same as PNa+.
D) Na+ efflux (flow out of the cell) occurs.
E) K+ flows rapidly into the cell.
Answer: B
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.01 Define permeability.; H04.07 Discuss the sequence of events that
must occur for an action potential to be generated.; H04.10 Discuss the role of positive feedback
in generation of the action potential.; H04.11 Interpret a graph showing the voltage vs. time
relationship of an action potential, and relate the terms depolarize, repolarize, and hyperpolarize
to the events of an action potential.
12
25) Procaine (Novocain) is a drug that blocks voltage-gated Na+ channels. When present, what
would happen in a neuron?
A) Graded potentials are possible, but the neuron will not have the depolarizing phase of the
action potential.
B) Neither graded potentials nor action potentials will occur.
C) Graded potentials are possible and the neuron will have the depolarizing phase of the action
potential, but will be unable to repolarize.
D) No phase of the action potential will be affected.
Answer: A
Section: 06.07
to be generated.; H04.10 Discuss the role of positive feedback in generation of the action
potential.; H04.11 Interpret a graph showing the voltage vs. time relationship of an action
potential, and relate the terms depolarize, repolarize, and hyperpolarize to the events of an action
potential.
26) Which is TRUE about neuronal membrane electrical and concentration gradients at the peak
of the action potential?
A) The electrical gradient is in a direction that would tend to move K+ out of the cell.
B) The concentration gradient for K+ is in a direction that would tend to move it into the cell.
C) The concentration gradient for K+ greatly increases compared to at rest.
D) The concentration gradient for Na+ is in a direction that would tend to move it out of the cell.
E) The electrical gradient for Na+ is in a direction that would tend to move it into the cell.
Answer: A
Section: 06.07
and an electrical potential.; H04.05 Define electrochemical gradient.; H04.07 Discuss the
sequence of events that must occur for an action potential to be generated.; H04.11 Interpret a
graph showing the voltage vs. time relationship of an action potential, and relate the terms
depolarize, repolarize, and hyperpolarize to the events of an action potential.; Q03.02 Compare
and contrast the relative concentrations of major electrolytes in intracellular and extracellular
fluids.
13
27) Which is most directly responsible for the falling (repolarizing) phase of the action potential?
A) Voltage-gated Na+ channels are opened.
B) The Na+, K+ pump restores the ions to their original locations inside and outside of the cell.
C) The permeability to Na+ increases greatly.
D) ATPase destroys the energy supply that was maintaining the action potential at its peak.
E) The permeability to K+ increases greatly while that to Na+ decreases.
Answer: E
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.01 Define permeability.; H04.06d Describe the voltage-gated ion
channels that are essential for development of the action potential.; H04.07 Discuss the sequence
of events that must occur for an action potential to be generated.; H04.08 Describe the role of the
sodium-potassium exchange pump in maintaining the resting membrane potential and making
continued action potentials possible.; H04.11 Interpret a graph showing the voltage vs. time
to the events of an action potential.
28) Two stimuli occur on the same neuron more than a minute apart. The second stimulus is
more than ten times greater than the first. If we compare the two resulting action potentials,
which is TRUE?
A) The second stimulus will lead to an action potential with higher amplitude.
B) The second stimulus will lead to an action potential with a longer duration.
C) The second stimulus will lead to an action potential with a longer hyperpolarization at the
end.
D) The amplitude of the two action potentials will be the same.
E) The amplitude and duration of the second action potential will be greater than the first.
Answer: B
Section: 06.07
generation of the action potential.; H04.11 Interpret a graph showing the voltage vs. time
to the events of an action potential.; H04.12a Define absolute and relative refractory periods.;
H04.13b Explain how axon diameter and myelination affect impulse conduction velocity.;
H05.12 Compare and contrast synaptic potentials with action potentials.
14
29) Which of the following statements about the refractory period of a membrane is TRUE?
A) The absolute refractory period refers to the period of time during which another action
potential cannot be initiated in that part of the membrane that is undergoing an action potential,
no matter how great the strength of the stimulus.
B) The relative refractory period refers to the period of time during which another action
potential can be initiated in that part of the membrane that has just undergone an action potential
if a stronger than normal stimulus is applied.
C) The refractory period prevents the action potential from spreading back over the part of the
membrane that just underwent an action potential.
D) The refractory period places an upper limit on the frequency with which a nerve cell can
conduct action potentials.
E) All of the answer choices are correct.
Answer: E
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.12a Define absolute and relative refractory periods.; H04.12c Discuss the
consequence of a neuron having an absolute refractory period.
30) The relative refractory period of an axon coincides with the period of
A) activation and inactivation of voltage-dependent Na+ channels.
B) Na+ permeability that is greater than that during the depolarization phase.
C) increased K+ flux into the cell.
D) increased K+ permeability of the cell.
E) Increased Na+ flux through K+ channels.
Answer: D
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.12b Explain the physiological basis of the absolute and relative
refractory periods.
15
31) Neuronal axons typically have abundant
A) voltage-gated channels for Na+ that open in response to depolarization.
B) voltage-gated channels for K+ that open in response to hyperpolarization.
C) ligand-gated channels for Na+.
D) ligand-gated channels for K+.
E) voltage-gated channels for Ca2+.
Answer: A
Section: 06.07
which parts conduct the output signal of the neuron.; H04.06c Differentiate between voltage-
gated and chemically-gated ion channels.; H04.06d Describe the voltage-gated ion channels that
are essential for development of the action potential.
32) Which of the following statements regarding action potentials generated in a neuronal
membrane is FALSE?
A) Action potentials travel in both directions along the axon.
B) An action potential generates a new action potential in an adjacent area of membrane.
C) An action potential generates a local current that depolarizes adjacent membrane to threshold
potential.
D) Action potentials are usually initiated at the axon hillock of a neuron.
E) An action potential generated by a threshold stimulus is the same size as one generated by a
supra-threshold stimulus.
Answer: A
Section: 06.07
potentials, and impulse transmission.; Module H05 Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic
transmission.
which parts conduct the output signal of the neuron.; H04.07 Discuss the sequence of events that
must occur for an action potential to be generated.; H04.09 Define threshold.; H04.10 Discuss
the role of positive feedback in generation of the action potential.; H04.13a Describe how local
circuit currents cause impulse conduction in an unmyelinated axon.; H04.13c Describe saltatory
conduction.; H05.12 Compare and contrast synaptic potentials with action potentials.
16
33) Which of the following statements concerning the properties of action potentials is TRUE?
A) The rate of propagation of an action potential down an axon is independent of stimulus
strength.
B) Action potentials can undergo summation.
C) A supra-threshold stimulus can stimulate an action potential during the absolute refractory
period.
D) Action potentials generally propagate from the axon terminal toward the axon hillock.
E) Increasing the size of a stimulus will increase the amplitude of an action potential.
Answer: A
Section: 06.07
transmission.
which parts conduct the output signal of the neuron.; H04.07 Discuss the sequence of events that
must occur for an action potential to be generated.; H04.09 Define threshold.; H04.10 Discuss
the role of positive feedback in generation of the action potential.; H04.12a Define absolute and
relative refractory periods.; H04.12c Discuss the consequence of a neuron having an absolute
refractory period.; H04.13b Explain how axon diameter and myelination affect impulse
conduction velocity.; H05.12 Compare and contrast synaptic potentials with action potentials.
34) How is the strength of a stimulus encoded by neurons?

A) By the size of action potentials
B) By the frequency of action potentials
C) By the duration of action potentials
D) By whether the action potential peak is positive or negative
Answer: B
Section: 06.07
generation of the action potential.; H04.11 Interpret a graph showing the voltage vs. time
to the events of an action potential.; H04.12c Discuss the consequence of a neuron having an
absolute refractory period.; H05.12 Compare and contrast synaptic potentials with action
potentials.
17
35) Visual signals travel on myelinated axons. While most pain signals travel on unmyelinated
axons. If you get a paper cut, will you see the cut happen or feel the pain first?
A) Both sensations will occur at the same time.
B) You will feel the pain sensation before the visual sensation.
C) You will experience the visual sensation before the pain sensation.
D) It depends on the magnitude of the pain sensation, it may reach the brain first or second.
Answer: C
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.13b Explain how axon diameter and myelination affect impulse
conduction velocity.
36) An action potential does not re-stimulate the adjacent membrane that was previously
depolarized because
A) stimulation is inhibited by the myelin sheath.
B) it is impossible for an action potential to be propagated along an axon toward the nerve cell
body.
C) the resting membrane potential of the axon is too positive.
D) the resting membrane potential of the axon is too negative.
E) that area of the membrane is in the absolutely refractory period.
Answer: E
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.12a Define absolute and relative refractory periods.; H04.12b Explain the
physiological basis of the absolute and relative refractory periods.; H04.12c Discuss the
consequence of a neuron having an absolute refractory period.
18
37) The regions of myelinated axon membrane that have the highest permeability to ions are the
A) ganglia.
B) nodes of Ranvier.
C) synaptic membranes.
D) glial cells.
E) pia mater.
Answer: B
Section: 06.01; 06.07
transmission.
HAPS Outcome: H03.03c Explain how the anatomy of each CNS glial cell supports its
function.; H03.04c Explain how the anatomy of each PNS glial cell supports its function.;
H04.13c Describe saltatory conduction.; H05.02 List the structures that comprise a chemical
synapse.
38) Which is FALSE about interneurons?

A) They receive synaptic input from other neurons in the CNS.
B) They sum excitatory and inhibitory synaptic inputs.
C) They deliver synaptic input on other neurons.
D) They make synapses on effector organs in the PNS.
E) They can transmit information between afferent neurons and efferent neurons.
Answer: D
Section: 06.02
Topic: Anatomical and functional organization of the nervous system
HAPS Topic: Module H02 Organization of the nervous system from both anatomical and
functional perspectives.
HAPS Outcome: H02.01 Describe the nervous system as a control system identifying nervous
system elements that are sensory receptors, the afferent pathway, control centers, the efferent
pathway, and effector organs.
19
39) If you block Ca2+ channels on an axon, which will not occur?
A) The depolarization phase of the action potential
B) The repolarization phase of the action potential
C) The exocytosis of neurotransmitter
D) The graded potential
E) All of these will not occur
Answer: C
Section: 06.09
Topic: Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic transmission
HAPS Topic: Module H05 Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic transmission.
HAPS Outcome: H05.04 Restate the steps that lead from the action potential arriving in the
synaptic terminal to the release of neurotransmitter from synaptic vesicles.
40) Inside a neuron, calcium binding sites are likely found on

A) smooth endoplasmic reticulum.
B) kinesin proteins.
C) proteins associated with synaptic vesicles.
D) dyenin proteins.
E) lysosomal proteins.
Answer: C
Section: 06.09
synaptic terminal to the release of neurotransmitter from synaptic vesicles.; H05.07 Describe the
events of synaptic transmission in proper chronological order.
20
41) At an excitatory chemical synapse between two neurons
A) there is increased permeability of the postsynaptic cell to both Na+ and K+.
B) a small hyperpolarization of the postsynaptic membrane occurs when the synapse is activated.
C) an action potential in the presynaptic neuron always causes an action potential in the
postsynaptic neuron.
D) excitation occurs because K+ enters the postsynaptic cell.
E) action potentials spread through gap junctions between cells.
Answer: A
Section: 06.10; 06.11
HAPS Outcome: H05.07 Describe the events of synaptic transmission in proper chronological
order.; H05.08 Define excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) and inhibitory postsynaptic
potential (IPSP) and interpret graphs showing the voltage vs. time relationship of an EPSP and
an IPSP.; H05.09 Explain temporal and spatial summation of synaptic potentials.; H05.10
Explain how movement of sodium ions alone, or movement of both sodium and potassium ions,
across the postsynaptic cell membrane can excite a neuron.; H05.11 Explain how movement of
potassium or chloride ions across the postsynaptic cell membrane can inhibit a neuron.; H05.17
Compare and contrast chemical and electrical synapses.
42) You are studying the role of a newly discovered neurotransmitter. You find that there are
receptors for this neurotransmitter on interneurons in the brain and that when it binds, it causes
the opening of K+ channels. What can we expect of the postsynaptic cells under influence of
this neurostransmitter?
A) The postsynaptic cell will immediately undergo an action potential.
B) The postsynaptic cell will undergo an IPSP.
C) The postsynaptic cell will undergo an EPSP.
D) There will be no change to the membrane potential in the postsynaptic cell.
Answer: B
Section: 06.10; 06.11
EPSP and an IPSP.; H05.09 Explain temporal and spatial summation of synaptic potentials.;
H05.10 Explain how movement of sodium ions alone, or movement of both sodium and
potassium ions, across the postsynaptic cell membrane can excite a neuron.; H05.11 Explain how
movement of potassium or chloride ions across the postsynaptic cell membrane can inhibit a
neuron.
21
43) Which of the following statements about EPSPs is FALSE?
A) They are produced by the opening of ligand-gated sodium channels.
B) They transmit signals over relatively short distances.
C) They depolarize postsynaptic cell membranes.
D) They are able to summate.
E) They are always the same amplitude.
Answer: E
Section: 06.10; 06.11
HAPS Outcome: H05.06 Explain how the receptors for neurotransmitters are related to
chemically- gated ion channels.; H05.08 Define excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) and
inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP) and interpret graphs showing the voltage vs. time
relationship of an EPSP and an IPSP.; H05.09 Explain temporal and spatial summation of
synaptic potentials.; H05.10 Explain how movement of sodium ions alone, or movement of both
sodium and potassium ions, across the postsynaptic cell membrane can excite a neuron.; H05.12
Compare and contrast synaptic potentials with action potentials.
44) An EPSP
A) is a direct result of the opening of ligand-gated channels permeable to both Na+ and K+ ions.
B) is a direct result of the opening of voltage-gated channels permeable to both Na+ and K+ ions.
C) stabilizes the membrane to remain at its resting potential.
D) opens voltage-gated Ca2+ channels in the presynaptic membrane.
E) occurs when voltage-gated Cl- channels open in a postsynaptic cell membrane.
Answer: A
Section: 06.10
synaptic terminal to the release of neurotransmitter from synaptic vesicles.; H05.06 Explain how
the receptors for neurotransmitters are related to chemically- gated ion channels.; H05.08 Define
excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) and inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP) and
interpret graphs showing the voltage vs. time relationship of an EPSP and an IPSP.; H05.10
Explain how movement of sodium ions alone, or movement of both sodium and potassium ions,
across the postsynaptic cell membrane can excite a neuron.; H05.11 Explain how movement of
potassium or chloride ions across the postsynaptic cell membrane can inhibit a neuron.
22
45) Which best describes temporal summation?
A) A synapse is stimulated a second time before the effect of a first stimulus at the synapse has
terminated.
B) It only refers to addition of EPSPs.
C) Two synapses on different regions of a cell are stimulated at the same time.
D) It always brings a postsynaptic cell to threshold.
E) The size of an EPSP depends on the size of the stimulus.
Answer: A
Section: 06.11
HAPS Outcome: H04.09 Define threshold.; H05.08 Define excitatory postsynaptic potential
(EPSP) and inhibitory postsynaptic potential (IPSP) and interpret graphs showing the voltage vs.
time relationship of an EPSP and an IPSP.; H05.09 Explain temporal and spatial summation of
synaptic potentials.; H05.12 Compare and contrast synaptic potentials with action potentials.
46) A postsynaptic neuron has three presynaptic inputs—from neurons X, Y, and Z. Stimulation
of neuron X causes the postsynaptic neuron to depolarize by 0.5 mV. When X and Y are
stimulated simultaneously, the postsynaptic neuron depolarizes by 1 mV. When X and Z are
stimulated simultaneously, however, there is no change in the membrane potential of the
postsynaptic neuron. What is most likely true about presynaptic neurons Y and Z?
A) They are both excitatory.
B) They are both inhibitory.
C) Y is excitatory and Z is inhibitory.
D) Z is excitatory and Y is inhibitory.
Answer: C
Section: 06.11
HAPS Outcome: H05.09 Explain temporal and spatial summation of synaptic potentials.
23
47) A postsynaptic neuron has an RMP of -70mV and a typical threshold of -55mV. It has three
presynaptic inputs—from neurons X, Y, and Z. Stimulation of neuron X causes the postsynaptic
neuron to depolarize by 0.5 mV. When X and Y are stimulated simultaneously, the postsynaptic
neuron depolarizes by 1 mV. If X fires 10 times and Y fires 10 times the result will be
A) a subthreshold summation.
B) presynaptic inhibition.
C) threshold is reached and an AP is fired.
D) many APs are fired.
E) the membrane depolarizes.
Answer: A
Section: 06.08; 06.11; 06.12
HAPS Outcome: H05.09 Explain temporal and spatial summation of synaptic potentials.
48) Which is TRUE about the axon hillock of an axon?

A) Its membrane potential at threshold is more positive than that of the cell body and dendrites.
B) Its membrane potential at threshold is more negative than that of the cell body and dendrites.
C) Synapses far from the axon hillock are more effective in influencing whether an action
potential will be generated in the axon than are synapses close to the axon hillock.
D) It is the region where neurotransmitter vesicles are docked and ready to be released by
exocytosis.
E) It can only conduct graded potentials because it lacks voltage-gated Na+ channels.
Answer: B
Section: 06.07; 06.08; 06.11
Topic: Physiology of nerve impulse transmission; Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic
transmission
transmission.
structural types of neurons (unipolar, bipolar and multipolar).; H04.06d Describe the voltage-
gated ion channels that are essential for development of the action potential.; H04.09 Define
threshold.; H05.03 Describe the synaptic (axon) terminal.; H05.09 Explain temporal and spatial
summation of synaptic potentials.
24
49) A presynaptic (axo-axonal) synapse
A) is a synapse between an axon terminal and a dendrite that can be either excitatory or
inhibitory.
B) is a synapse between an axon terminal and another axon's terminal that can be either
excitatory or inhibitory.
C) is any synapse onto a cell body, and they can be either stimulatory or inhibitory.
D) is a synapse between an axon terminal and a dendrite of the same cell, which is always
inhibitory.
E) is a synapse between an axon terminal and another axon's terminal that is always inhibitory.
Answer: B
Section: 06.12
HAPS Outcome: H05.01 Identify the presynaptic and postsynaptic cells at a synapse.
50) Neuron X makes inhibitory axon-axonal synaptic contact with neuron Y at the synapse of Y
and neuron Z. Which will occur when action potentials are stimulated in neuron X?
A) Neuron Y will be inhibited from reaching the threshold to fire an action potential.
B) The release of neurotransmitter by neuron Y will be inhibited.
C) The synapse between neurons Y and Z will be changed from an excitatory synapse to an
inhibitory one.
D) Neurons Y and Z will both be more likely to reach threshold and fire an action potential.
E) Neurons Y and Z will both be less likely to reach threshold and fire an action potential.
Answer: B
Section: 06.12
HAPS Outcome: H05.01 Identify the presynaptic and postsynaptic cells at a synapse.; H05.04
Restate the steps that lead from the action potential arriving in the synaptic terminal to the
release of neurotransmitter from synaptic vesicles.; H05.07 Describe the events of synaptic
transmission in proper chronological order.
25
51) Which of the following is NOT known to be an important neurotransmitter in the CNS?
A) Dopamine
B) Acetylcholine
C) Morphine
D) Glutamate
E) Substance P
Answer: C
Section: 06.13
H16 Predictions related to homeostatic imbalance, including disease states and disorders.
HAPS Outcome: H05.15 List the most common excitatory neurotransmitter(s) in the CNS and
the most common inhibitory neurotransmitter(s) in the CNS.; H16.01 Predict factors or situations
affecting the nervous system that could disrupt homeostasis.
52) Heroin causes similar, but much stronger effects to the nervous system as endogenous
opioids. Heroin's mechanism of action might be that it acts as an:
A) agonist to serotonin receptors.
B) agonist to the endogenous opioid receptors.
C) agonist to glycine receptors.
D) agonist to epinephrine receptors.
E) Any of these are possible
Answer: B
Section: 06.13
26
53) Nicotinic receptors are expressed on skeletal muscle cells. Which of the following would
likely be a side-effect of the use of nicotine, an agonist for those receptors?
A) Muscle relaxation
B) Muscle cell twitches (contractions)
C) Muscle paralysis
D) Drowsiness
E) None of the answer choices are correct
Answer: B
Section: 06.13
Topic: Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic transmission; Comparisons of somatic and
autonomic nervous systems
HAPS Topic: Module H13 Functions of the autonomic nervous system.; Module H14
Comparisons of somatic and autonomic nervous systems.
HAPS Outcome: H13.02 Contrast the anatomy of the parasympathetic and sympathetic
systems, including central nervous system outflow locations, ganglia locations, pre- and post-
ganglionic neuron relative lengths, and ganglionic and effector neurotransmitters.; H13.07
Differentiate between cholinergic and adrenergic nerve fibers and discuss the physiological
interactions of transmitters released by these neurons with specific cholinergic and adrenergic
receptor subtypes.; H14.03 Name the neurotransmitters released at synapses with effector organs
in the somatic and autonomic motor pathways and classify each effector response as excitatory
or inhibitory.
27
54) Which of the following statements regarding neurotransmitters is TRUE?
A) Acetylcholine is broken down by enzymes present on postsynaptic cell membranes.
B) Acetylcholine that is released at synapses binds to adrenergic receptors in the postsynaptic
cell membrane.
C) Catecholamines are the most abundant neurotransmitters in the central nervous system.
D) Opiate drugs, such as morphine, are antagonists of a class of neurotransmitters called
endorphins.
E) Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is a major excitatory transmitter in the central nervous
system.
Answer: A
Section: 06.13
Topic: Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic transmission; Clinical applications of the
nervous system
H13 Functions of the autonomic nervous system.; Module H16 Predictions related to
homeostatic imbalance, including disease states and disorders.
the most common inhibitory neurotransmitter(s) in the CNS.; H13.02 Contrast the anatomy of
the parasympathetic and sympathetic systems, including central nervous system outflow
locations, ganglia locations, pre- and postganglionic neuron relative lengths, and ganglionic and
effector neurotransmitters.; H13.07 Differentiate between cholinergic and adrenergic nerve fibers
and discuss the physiological interactions of transmitters released by these neurons with specific
cholinergic and adrenergic receptor subtypes.; H16.01 Predict factors or situations affecting the
nervous system that could disrupt homeostasis.
55) Acetylcholine is the main neurotransmitter released by

A) preganglionic sympathetic neurons and cells of the adrenal medulla.
B) cells of the adrenal medulla and postganglionic parasympathetic neurons.
C) motor neurons and postganglionic sympathetic neurons.
D) preganglionic sympathetic neurons and postganglionic sympathetic neurons.
E) preganglionic sympathetic neurons and motor neurons.
Answer: E
Section: 06.13; 06.18
ganglionic neuron relative lengths, and ganglionic and effector neurotransmitters.; H14.03 Name
the neurotransmitters released at synapses with effector organs in the somatic and autonomic
motor pathways and classify each effector response as excitatory or inhibitory.
28
56) Which of the following statements about norepinephrine is FALSE?
A) Norepinephrine is a neurotransmitter.
B) Norepinephrine binds to adrenergic receptors.
C) Norepinephrine is a catecholamine.
D) Dopamine is a precursor to norepinephrine.
E) Epinephrine is a precursor to norepinephrine.
Answer: E
Section: 06.13
Topic: Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic transmission; Functions of the autonomic
nervous system
HAPS Topic: Module H13 Functions of the autonomic nervous system.
receptor subtypes.
57) Which of the following enzymes is important for the metabolism of catecholamines?
A) Tyrosine hydroxylase
B) Acetylcholinesterase
C) Superoxide dismutase
D) Trypsin
E) Adenylyl cyclase
Answer: A
Section: 06.13
Topic: Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic transmission; Functions of the autonomic
nervous system
ganglionic neuron relative lengths, and ganglionic and effector neurotransmitters.
29
58) Nicotine is
A) a cholinergic antagonist.
B) a beta-adrenergic agonist.
C) a cholinergic agonist.
D) an alpha-adrenergic antagonist.
E) a neurotransmitter.
Answer: C
Section: 06.13
Topic: Functions of the autonomic nervous system; Clinical applications of the nervous system
Predictions related to homeostatic imbalance, including disease states and disorders.
HAPS Outcome: H13.08 Propose clinical uses of specific drugs that act at cholinergic and
adrenergic receptor subtypes.; H16.01 Predict factors or situations affecting the nervous system
that could disrupt homeostasis.
59) Serotonin
A) acts as a neuromodulator.
B) is a catecholamine neurotransmitter.
C) is a neuropeptide.
D) has an inhibitory effect on pathways that are involved in the control of muscles.
E) has an excitatory effect on pathways that mediate sensations.
Answer: A
Section: 06.13
HAPS Outcome: H05.14 Describe the mechanism by which neurotransmitters may have
indirect (metabotropic) effects on postsynaptic cells.; H05.16 Propose a possible CNS function
for each biogenic amine neurotransmitter.
30
60) Alzheimer's disease is thought to involve primarily
A) loss of neurons that secrete or respond to catecholamines.
B) loss of adrenergic neurons.
C) loss of cholinergic neurons.
D) loss of neurons that secrete or respond to dopamine.
E) tumors that produce excess serotonin.
Answer: C
Section: 06.13
Topic: Clinical applications of the nervous system
HAPS Topic: Module H16 Predictions related to homeostatic imbalance, including disease
states and disorders.
HAPS Outcome: H16.01 Predict factors or situations affecting the nervous system that could
disrupt homeostasis.
61) Which is one of the major inhibitory neurotransmitters in the CNS?

A) Glutamate
B) Dopamine
C) Norepinephrine
D) Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)
E) Beta-endorphin
Answer: D
Section: 06.13
the most common inhibitory neurotransmitter(s) in the CNS.
31
62) You are studying a disease in which inhibition of sensory neurons is diminished, leading to
more dramatic sensory sensations than are appropriate for stimulus strength. For example, when
a person with this disease listens to a person talking in a normal voice, it sounds like they are
yelling. Which neurotransmitter might be expressed at lower levels in this disease compared to
a healthy individual?
A) Glutamate
B) Dopamine
C) Norepinephrine
E) Beta-endorphin
Answer: D
Section: 06.13
63) Which is one of the most abundant excitatory neurotransmitters in the CNS?
A) Glutamate
B) Dopamine
C) Norepinephrine
E) Endorphin
Answer: A
Section: 06.13
32
64) The central nervous system includes the
A) afferent nerves and spinal cord.
B) efferent nerves and spinal cord.
C) autonomic nervous system and the brain.
D) brain stem and the autonomic nervous system.
E) brain and spinal cord.
Answer: E
Section: 06.15
HAPS Outcome: H03.01 List the parts of the nervous system that constitute the central nervous
system (CNS) and those that constitute the peripheral nervous system (PNS).
65) The portion of the peripheral nervous system that is composed of nerve fibers that innervate
skeletal muscle is called the
A) afferent nervous system.
B) sympathetic nervous system.
C) parasympathetic nervous system.
D) somatic motor nervous system.
E) autonomic nervous system.
Answer: D
Section: 06.07
Topic: Anatomical and functional organization of the nervous system; Comparisons of somatic
and autonomic nervous systems
functional perspectives.; Module H14 Comparisons of somatic and autonomic nervous systems.
pathway, and effector organs.; H02.02 Differentiate between the somatic and autonomic
divisions of the nervous system.; H14.01 Distinguish between the effectors of the somatic and
autonomic nervous systems.
33
66) Multiple sclerosis is a disease that primarily effects the somatic motor nervous
system. Which of the following might be symptoms of multiple sclerosis?
A) Difficulty controlling muscle movements, such as using a fork and knife to cut food
B) Inappropriate sensory sensation, such as hearing voices when in a silent room
C) Difficulty expressing appropriate emotional responses
D) Cognitive and memory decline
E) Difficulty digesting foods due to inactivity of the muscles in the walls of abdominal organs
Answer: A
Section: 06.17
HAPS Outcome: H02.02 Differentiate between the somatic and autonomic divisions of the
nervous system.; H14.01 Distinguish between the effectors of the somatic and autonomic
nervous systems.
67) A patient has been experiencing difficulty with homeostatic regulation. An MRI scan
reveals a brain tumor. Which brain region is the tumor likely in?
A) The thalamus
B) The hippocampus
C) The cerebrum
D) The cerebellum
E) The hypothalamus
Answer: E
Section: 06.15
Topic: Division, origin, and function of parts of the brain
HAPS Topic: Module H07 Division, origin, and function of component parts of the brain.
HAPS Outcome: H07.02 Correlate functions with each major area of the adult brain.
34
68) Which of the following kinds of neurons are NOT generally cholinergic?
A) Somatic motor neurons
B) Postganglionic sympathetic neurons
C) Postganglionic parasympathetic neurons
D) Preganglionic sympathetic neurons
E) Preganglionic parasympathetic neurons
Answer: B
Section: 06.18
Topic: Comparisons of somatic and autonomic nervous systems; Functions of the autonomic
nervous system
ganglionic neuron relative lengths, and ganglionic and effector neurotransmitters.; H14.03 Name
the neurotransmitters released at synapses with effector organs in the somatic and autonomic
motor pathways and classify each effector response as excitatory or inhibitory.
35
69) Which of the following does NOT result from the binding of nicotine with nicotinic
acetylcholine receptors?
A) A mild form of skeletal muscle paralysis that creates a more relaxed state
B) Signal transmission at neuromuscular junctions
C) Generation of excitatory signals within autonomic ganglia
D) The release of norepinephrine, dopamine, and epinephrine
E) Facilitation of the release of multiple neurotransmitters within the brain, including the
"reward pathway" involving dopamine
Answer: A
Section: 06.13
Comparisons of somatic and autonomic nervous systems.; Module H16 Predictions related to
homeostatic imbalance, including disease states and disorders.; Module G04 Physiology of
skeletal muscle contraction
HAPS Outcome: G04.04 Describe, in order, the events that occur at the neuromuscular junction
that elicit an action potential in the muscle fiber.; H13.02 Contrast the anatomy of the
parasympathetic and sympathetic systems, including central nervous system outflow locations,
ganglia locations, pre- and postganglionic neuron relative lengths, and ganglionic and effector
neurotransmitters.; H13.07 Differentiate between cholinergic and adrenergic nerve fibers and
discuss the physiological interactions of transmitters released by these neurons with specific
cholinergic and adrenergic receptor subtypes.; H14.03 Name the neurotransmitters released at
synapses with effector organs in the somatic and autonomic motor pathways and classify each
effector response as excitatory or inhibitory.; H13.08 Propose clinical uses of specific drugs that
act at cholinergic and adrenergic receptor subtypes.; H16.01 Predict factors or situations
36
70) In clinical trials, scientists discover that use of drug X results in a decrease in norepinephrine
signaling. In the process of making a list of possible mechanisms of this drug to test, which of
the following is NOT a plausible explanation for the effects of drug X?
A) X inhibits synthesis of norepinephrine at the axon terminal.
B) X inhibits norepinephrine release from the terminal.
C) X blocks reuptake of norepinephrine by the terminal.
D) X is an adrenergic receptor antagonist.
E) X stimulates the catabolism of norepinephrine.
Answer: C
Section: 06.13
H13 Functions of the autonomic nervous system.
HAPS Outcome: H05.07 Describe the events of synaptic transmission in proper chronological
order.; H13.07 Differentiate between cholinergic and adrenergic nerve fibers and discuss the
physiological interactions of transmitters released by these neurons with specific cholinergic and
adrenergic receptor subtypes.
71) Synthesis of neuropeptides differs from that of other neurotransmitters because it

A) takes place in the axon terminals of neurons.
B) takes place in the cell bodies of neurons.
C) takes place on ribosomes in the postsynaptic cell's membrane.
D) uses amino acids as precursor molecules.
E) only takes place at synapses outside the central nervous system.
Answer: B
Section: 06.13
Topic: Microscopic anatomy of neurons; Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic
transmission
which parts integrate information, and which parts conduct the output signal of the neuron.;
H05.03 Describe the synaptic (axon) terminal.
37
72) Which best describes the reticular formation of the brain?
A) It is mainly involved in motor coordination and balance.
B) It is the master endocrine gland of the brain.
C) It is primarily responsible for visual perception.
D) It integrates information from all regions of the CNS, and incorporates the mechanisms that
regulate sleep and wakefulness.
E) It is the primary synaptic relay station for sensory information entering the CNS.
Answer: D
Section: 06.15
HAPS Outcome: H07.02 Correlate functions with each major area of the adult brain.; H07.09
Describe the location and functions of the reticular activating system.
73) Excessive alcohol intake can cause difficulty maintaining posture and coordinating body
movements. This is likely due to alcohol's effect stimulatory effect on GABA-releasing neurons
in the
A) cerebellum.
B) diencephalon.
C) medulla oblongata.
D) eyes.
E) cerebrum.
Answer: A
Section: 06.15
Topic: Division, origin, and function of parts of the brain; Gross anatomy of the components of
the brain
38
74) When you have a negative experience, your brain ties the emotion to the memory so that you
avoid similar experiences in the future. If you were in a bike accident, and were afraid to get on
a bike again, which brain structure functional group is active in guiding your fear?
A) Diencephalon
B) Cerebrum
C) Limbic system
D) Reticular formation
E) Cerebellum
Answer: C
Section: 06.15
HAPS Outcome: H07.02 Correlate functions with each major area of the adult brain.; H07.07
Describe the location and functions of the limbic system.
75) Which is a FALSE statement about the cerebrospinal fluid?

A) It has the same composition as blood plasma.
B) It acts as a cushion for the brain and spinal cord.
C) It is secreted by cells lining the ventricles of the brain.
D) It circulates within and between brain ventricles and surrounds the spinal cord.
E) It is in diffusion equilibrium with the extracellular fluid of the central nervous system.
Answer: A
Section: 06.19
Topic: Protective roles of cranial bones, meninges, and cerebrospinal fluid
HAPS Topic: Module H08 Protective roles of the cranial bones, meninges, and cerebrospinal
fluid.
HAPS Outcome: H08.03 Describe the functions of cerebrospinal fluid, as well as the details of
its production, its circulation within the central nervous system, and its ultimate reabsorption into
the bloodstream.
39
76) Which of the following is NOT characteristic of the sympathetic division of the autonomic
nervous system?
A) Preganglionic neurons tend to be long, with the ganglion located in or near the effector target
tissue(s).
B) Preganglionic neurons are short and synapse in ganglia located near the spinal cord.
C) Preganglionic neurons release acetylcholine at synapses with postganglionic neurons.
D) Postganglionic neurons release norepinephrine at their neuroeffector junctions.
E) Postganglionic neuron cell bodies are located in the collateral chain ganglia (sympathetic
trunk).
Answer: A
Section: 06.18
Topic: Anatomy of the sympathetic division of the ANS; Functions of the autonomic nervous
system
77) Postganglionic neuron cell bodies of the autonomic nervous system have which category of
neurotransmitter receptor?
A) Adrenergic receptors
B) Serotonin receptors
C) Muscarinic acetylcholine receptors
D) Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors
E) Dopamine receptors
Answer: D
Section: 06.18
Topic: Functions of the autonomic nervous system
receptor subtypes.
40
78) The fire alarm in your building is sounding off and you are hurriedly collecting your
belongings before evacuating. Which portion of the nervous system is dominant?
A) Afferent nervous system
B) Sympathetic nervous system
C) Parasympathetic nervous system
D) Somatic motor nervous system
E) Autonomic nervous system
Answer: B
Section: 06.17
79) A myelinated axon is shielded from direct contact with the extracellular fluid all along its
length.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.01
Topic: Microscopic anatomy of neurons; Physiology of nerve impulse transmission
HAPS Outcome: H03.03c Explain how the anatomy of each CNS glial cell supports its
function.; H03.04c Explain how the anatomy of each PNS glial cell supports its function.;
H04.13c Describe saltatory conduction.
80) The lipid portion of a cell's plasma membrane constitutes a barrier to current.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.05
potential, production of action potentials, and impulse transmission.; Module C07 Membrane
structure and function
HAPS Outcome: H04.02 Explain how ion channels affect neuron selective permeability.;
C07.01 Describe how lipids are distributed in the cell membrane, and explain their functions.
41
81) Ions other than K+ play no role in generating the resting membrane potential of a cell.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.06
HAPS Outcome: H04.06b Explain how passive ion channels cause development of the resting
membrane potential in neurons.
82) The maintenance of a resting potential in a neuron depends indirectly upon the functioning of
the Na+, K+-ATPase pumps in the membrane.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.06
HAPS Outcome: H04.08 Describe the role of the sodium-potassium exchange pump in
83) If a graded potential on a dendrite results in a 5mV depolarization, the depolarization at the
axon hillock of the axon might be less than 5mV.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H05.12 Compare and contrast synaptic potentials with action potentials.
84) During a hyperpolarizing graded potential, positively charged ions flow away from the site
of the initial hyperpolarization on the outside of membrane and toward this site on the inside.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.07
EPSP and an IPSP.; H05.11 Explain how movement of potassium or chloride ions across the
postsynaptic cell membrane can inhibit a neuron.
42
85) Because so many Na+ ions move into a cell during an action potential and so many K+ ions
move out, no further action potentials can be generated in a given membrane until the Na+, K+-
ATPase pumps can restore the concentration gradient.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.07
to be generated.; H04.08 Describe the role of the sodium-potassium exchange pump in
86) The Na+ and K+ channels that open during an action potential are voltage-regulated, both
opening in response to depolarization of the membrane.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.07
an action potential to be generated.
87) SNARE receptor protein complexes in presynaptic neurons function as inhibitors of calcium
transport to dampen or reduce the amount of neurotransmitter vesicles that participate in
exocytosis.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.09
HAPS Outcome: H05.03 Describe the synaptic (axon) terminal.; H05.04 Restate the steps that
lead from the action potential arriving in the synaptic terminal to the release of neurotransmitter
from synaptic vesicles.
43
88) A genetic mutation that results in faulty SNARE receptor protein complexes would have
only very mild effects on the nervous system.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.09
HAPS Outcome: H05.03 Describe the synaptic (axon) terminal.; H05.04 Restate the steps that
lead from the action potential arriving in the synaptic terminal to the release of neurotransmitter
from synaptic vesicles.
89) The action potential elicited by a supra-threshold stimulus is larger than one elicited by a
threshold stimulus.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.07
generation of the action potential.
90) The relative refractory period of an excitable membrane refers to the period of time during
which no stimulus, however strong, will elicit a second action potential in the membrane.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.12a Define absolute and relative refractory periods.
44
91) The absolute refractory period of an excitable membrane roughly corresponds to the period
when sodium channels are opening and inactivated.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.07
development of the action potential.; H04.12b Explain the physiological basis of the absolute and
relative refractory periods.
92) Because all parts of a neuronal cell body have the same threshold, no one synapse on the cell
is more important than any other.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.07; 06.11
Topic: Physiology of nerve impulse transmission; Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic
transmission
HAPS Outcome: H04.09 Define threshold.; H05.09 Explain temporal and spatial summation of
synaptic potentials.
93) Drug Z is an agonist for a neurotransmitter receptor. It has a much higher affinity for the
receptor and binds four times longer than the endogenous neurotransmitter. If you compare drug
Z with the endogenous neurotransmitter, it's likely that drug Z will cause more frequent action
potentials than the endogenous ligand.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.07
to be generated.; H04.09 Define threshold.
45
94) Catecholamines are the most abundant neurotransmitters in the CNS.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.13
95) Opioid drugs, such as morphine, are agonists of the receptors for a class of neurotransmitters
called endorphins.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.13
Topic: Neurotransmitters and their roles in synaptic transmission; Clinical applications of the
nervous system
96) The most common neurotransmitters for neuroeffector communication are dopamine and
acetylcholine.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.14; 06.17; 06.18
HAPS Topic: Module H14 Comparisons of somatic and autonomic nervous systems.
HAPS Outcome: H14.03 Name the neurotransmitters released at synapses with effector organs
in the somatic and autonomic motor pathways and classify each effector response as excitatory
or inhibitory.
97) Dorsal root ganglia contain the cell bodies of efferent neurons.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.16
Topic: Anatomy of the spinal cord and spinal nerves
HAPS Topic: Module H10 Anatomy of the spinal cord and spinal nerves.
HAPS Outcome: H10.04 Identify the dorsal root ganglia, dorsal and ventral roots, and spinal
nerves.
46
98) You have a patient who severed a spinal nerve in an accident. She will only lose sensory
sensation, but all motor innervation to that area will remain intact.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.16
Topic: Anatomy of the spinal cord and spinal nerves
HAPS Outcome: H10.04 Identify the dorsal root ganglia, dorsal and ventral roots, and spinal
nerves.; H10.01 Describe the gross anatomy of the spinal cord and spinal nerves and specify
their location relative to the anatomy of the skeletal system.
99) Although nerve cells in each cerebral hemisphere make connections with other cells in the
same hemisphere, there is no crossover of information between the two hemispheres.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.15
the brain
HAPS Outcome: H07.06 Discuss the concept of cerebral hemispheric specialization and the
role of the corpus callosum in connecting the two halves of the cerebrum.
100) The cerebrum consists only of gray matter.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.15
Topic: Gross anatomy of the components of the brain
HAPS Outcome: H10.03 Contrast the relative position of gray matter and white matter in the
spinal cord with the corresponding arrangement of gray and white matter in the brain.
101) The basal nuclei are important subcortical nuclei in the cerebrum.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.15
the brain
47
102) The thalamus is the single most important control area for regulating the homeostasis of
the internal environment.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.15
103) The efferent division of the peripheral nervous system consists of the somatic nervous
system and the autonomic nervous system.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.17
functional perspectives.
divisions of the nervous system.
104) You pass by the office of a practitioner of alternative medicine. A poster hanging in the
window offers therapies that result in "activation of the brainstem and sacral portions of the
spinal cord." The poster is promoting methods that will result in enhanced activation of the
parasympathetic nervous system.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.18
Topic: Anatomy of the parasympathetic division of the ANS
48
105) Most of the parasympathetic ganglia lie in chains along the spinal cord called sympathetic
trunks.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.18
Topic: Anatomy of the parasympathetic division of the ANS
106) The neurons connecting the adrenal medulla to the brain have been severed during
surgery. The result will be a significant decrease in parasympathetic signaling.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.18
Topic: Anatomy of the parasympathetic division of the ANS; Functions of the autonomic
nervous system
Discuss the two divisions of the autonomic nervous system and the general physiological roles of
each.
107) The sympathetic division of the autonomic nervous system is arranged so that it acts largely
as a unit, whereas the components of the parasympathetic division generally act as
discrete, independent components.
Answer: TRUE
Section: 06.18
Topic: Functions of the autonomic nervous system
Discuss the two divisions of the autonomic nervous system and the general physiological roles of
each.; H13.09 Describe major parasympathetic and/or sympathetic physiological effects on target
organs.
49
108) "Dual innervation of effectors" refers to the innervation of the same effector organs by
somatic and autonomic nerves.
Answer: FALSE
Section: 06.18
Topic: Comparisons of somatic and autonomic nervous systems; Functions of the autonomic
nervous system
HAPS Outcome: H13.03 Describe examples of specific effectors dually innervated by the two
branches of the autonomic nervous system and explain how each branch influences function in a
given effector.; H14.01 Distinguish between the effectors of the somatic and autonomic nervous
systems.
109) Which of the following is/are functions of the human nervous system?
A) Receiving, storing, and processing information regarding the internal and external
environments
B) Bringing about changes in physiology and/or behavior to promote homeostasis
C) Filtering the blood
D) Coordination of movement
E) Secreting plasma proteins
Answer: A, B, D, E
Section: 06.01; 06.15
Topic: General functions of the nervous system; Neural integration in the CNS
HAPS Topic: Module H01 General functions of the nervous system.
HAPS Outcome: H01.01 Describe the major functions of the nervous system.
50
110) During which of the following phases is K+ permeability greater than at rest?
A) During the after-hyperpolarization phase of an AP
B) During vesicular release of neurotransmitter from the presynaptic neuron
C) During the repolarizing phase of an AP
D) During the depolarizating phase of an AP
E) None of these, K+ permeability is greatest at rest
Answer: C
Section: 06.07
HAPS Outcome: H04.01 Define permeability.; H04.06d Describe the voltage-gated ion
channels that are essential for development of the action potential.; H04.07 Discuss the sequence
of events that must occur for an action potential to be generated.; H04.11 Interpret a graph
showing the voltage vs. time relationship of an action potential, and relate the terms depolarize,
repolarize, and hyperpolarize to the events of an action potential.
111) The heart is linked to the brain by neurons that belong to the
A) afferent division of the nervous system.
B) sympathetic nervous system.
C) parasympathetic nervous system.
D) somatic motor nervous system.
E) autonomic nervous system.
Answer: A, B, C, E
Section: 06.17
51
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must get the remaining gasoline and provisions. Our only hope of
reaching Spitzbergen lay in salvaging this fuel from the N 24. We cut
out one of the empty tanks, filled it from one of the fresh ones,
loaded it in our canoe, put the canoe on the sledge and started back.
And now we found that a large lead had opened up behind us, over
which we were barely able to get across ourselves, so we had to
leave the tank and supplies on the further side over night. The next
day the lead had closed again and Dietrichson and Omdal
succeeded in getting the gasoline over. The light sledge got slightly
broken among the rough hummocks, which was an additional
catastrophe, in view of the probability of having to walk to Greenland.
We now had 245 liters additional fuel,—1,500 liters altogether,—
or a margin of 300 liters on which to make Spitzbergen, provided we
could get off immediately.
On May 31st an inventory of our provisions showed that we had
on hand:
285 half-pound cakes of pemmican,

300 cakes of chocolate,
3 ordinary cracker-tins of oatmeal biscuits,
3 20-lb. sacks of powdered milk,
3 sausages, 12 lbs. each,
42 condensed milk tins of Horlick’s Malted Milk Tablets,
liters of kerosene for our Primus stove (we later used
25 motor fuel for cooking).
Our observations for Latitude and Longitude this day showed our
position to be 87.32 N. and 7.30 W. It meant that the whole pack had
been steadily drifting southeast since our arrival. It was at least some
consolation to know that we were slowly but surely drifting south,
where we knew there was game. How we should have liked to have
had that seal we saw the first day! We had seen no life of any
description since, neither in the water nor in the air, not even a track
on the snow to show that there was another living thing in these
latitudes but ourselves. It is a land of misery and death.
With a view to working the longest possible time in an attempt to
get the N 25 clear, and at the same time have sufficient provisions
left with which to reach Greenland, Captain Amundsen felt that it was
necessary to cut down our daily rations to 300 grams per man, or
just one half pound per man per day. This amounted to one-half the
ration that Peary fed his dogs a day on his journey to the Pole. By
thus reducing our rations, he figured that our provisions would last
for two months longer.
Captain Amundsen now set June 15th as the date upon which a
definite decision must be arrived at. On that date something must be
done; so a vote was taken, each man having the option of either
starting on foot for Greenland on that date, or else sticking by the
plane with the hope of open water coming while watching the food
dwindle. There was much divided opinion. It seemed absurd to
consider starting out on a long tramp when right by our side was 640
horsepower lying idle, which could take us back to civilization within
eight hours. Captain Amundsen was for staying by the plane. He
said that with the coming of summer the leads would open. Riiser-
Larsen said he would start walking on June 15th. Feucht said he
would not walk a foot and that he would stick by the motors. Omdal
said he would do what the majority did, and I said I would prefer to
wait until June 14th before making a decision.
My own mind was pretty well made up that if I ever succeeded in
traveling 100 miles towards Greenland on foot, I would be doing well.
Yet sitting down by the plane and watching the last of the food go
was a thing that ran counter to my every impulse. I agreed with
Captain Amundsen that I should much prefer to “finish it” on my feet.
I think that all really believed that in our worn-out condition, carrying
thirty pounds on our backs and dragging a canvas canoe along with
which to cross open leads, none of us would be able to reach the
Greenland coast.
Most of our doubt regarding the tramp to Greenland, of course,
came from our not knowing just how far the bad country that we
were in extended. Climb up as high as we could, we were never able
to see the end of it. Whether it extended to Greenland or not was the
question, and that was what made it so hard for us to decide what
course to take.
After our evening cup of chocolate Captain Amundsen and I
generally would put on our skis and take a few turns around the ice
floe we were on before turning into our sleeping-bags. I usually
asked him on these occasions what he thought of the situation. His
reply was that things looked pretty bad, but he was quick to add that
it had always been his experience in life that when things were
blackest, there was generally light ahead.
On May 31st there was eight inches of ice in the lead on the far
side of the floe we were on. We decided to try a take-off on this new
ice. From our ice-cake down into the lead there was a six-foot drop,
so that it was necessary to construct a slip upon which to get our
plane down into the lead. We built this slip in accordance with
standard road-making principles—first heavy blocks of ice, then
filling in on top with smaller pieces, and then tiny lumps and loose
snow, on top of which we spread a layer of loose snow which froze
into a smooth surface. It took us two days to build this slip and to
level off the ice ahead for 500 meters.
At this time we had established regular nightly patrols, each man
taking his turn at patrolling all night around and around the ice floe,
on his skis, looking for open water. The mental strain during this
period was terrific, for we never knew when the cake we were on
might break beneath us.
On June 2nd, at 5 p.m., we decided that our slip was worthy a
trial. We started up the motors and taxied across the floe and down
the slip, but we had built our slip too steep, and, therefore, not
having enough speed, the plane simply sagged through the ice and
for 1,000 meters we merely plowed through it. We shut off the
motors and prepared to spend the night in the lead.
At midnight I was awakened by Captain Amundsen yelling that
the plane was being crushed. I could plainly hear the pressure
against the metal sides. We lost no time in getting everything out
onto some solid ice near by, and by working the plane up and down
permitted the incoming ice to close in beneath her from both sides. It
was a narrow escape. We had expected the plane to be crushed like
an eggshell. Riiser-Larsen’s only comment after the screwing
stopped was, “Another chapter to be added to our book!” Before
morning our first heavy fog set in. The Arctic summer was upon us.
From then on the fog hung like a pall over us and for the remainder
of our stay in the Arctic we were never free from it, although we were
always able to see the rim of the sun through it and knew that above
it the sky was clear and the sun shining brightly, but we could not
rise into it. With the coming of the fogs the temperature rose to
freezing.
We were gradually working our way over towards where the
N 24 was lying. During the day we would level off a new course, but
there was not sufficient wind in which to rise, and as usual our
heavily loaded plane broke through the thin ice,—
“Trailing like a wounded duck, working out her soul.

Felt her lift and felt her sag, betted when she’d break;
Wondered every time she raced if she’d stand the shock.”
The N 25 started leaking so badly from the pressure she

received the other night that Captain Amundsen and I were obliged
to pitch our tent on the floe upon which the N 24 was resting. We
were wondering how much more she could stand. N 24 still lay with
her nose on the ice floe, as we left her, but she had now listed
sideways, so that the tip of one wing was firmly imbedded in the
freshly frozen ice around her. During the past few days the ice had
been freezing in from both sides, forming a long, narrow lane in front
of N 24, but parts of this lane have bent into a curve. It was a narrow,
crooked passage, but Riiser-Larsen felt that it offered one more
opportunity for a take-off. He taxied N 25 forward, narrowly escaping
an accident. As he slowed up to negotiate the curve, the nose broke
through the ice with the reduced speed. The plane suddenly stopped
and lifted its tail into the air. We jumped out and hacked away the ice
until the plane settled on an even keel. We dared not remain where
we were because the main body of the pack was fast closing in upon
us from both sides.
At two o’clock the next morning we commenced work on an
extension of our previous course and continued on throughout the
day and on into the following night. It was a tremendous task, as the
ice was covered with tightly frozen lumps, old pressure-ridges of
uptilted ice cakes. Hacking away with our short-handled pocket-ax
and ice anchor was such back-breaking work that we were
compelled to work on our knees most of the time. The sweat was
rolling down my face and blurred my snow-glasses, so that I was
compelled to take them off for a couple of hours. I paid the penalty
by becoming snow-blind in one eye. Dietrichson was not so
fortunate. He was badly attacked in both eyes, and had to lie in the
tent in his sleeping-bag for two days with his eyes bandaged and
suffering acutely from the intense inflammation.
We awoke on the morning of June 5th, tired and stiff, to look
upon the level track we had so frantically labored to prepare, but saw
in its place a jumbled mass of upturned ice blocks. With the
destruction of our fourth course our position was now desperate. But
we would hang on till the 15th, when the vital decision would have to
be made as to whether or not we should abandon N 25 and make for
the Greenland coast while there were yet sufficient provisions left.
But we had come here on wings, and I know we all felt only wings
could take us back to civilization. If we could only find a floe of
sufficient area from which to take off. That was our difficulty.
In the early morning of June 6th Riiser-Larsen and Omdal
started out into the heavy fog with the grim determination of men
who find themselves in desperate straits, to search for what seemed
to us all the unattainable. We saw no more of them till evening. Out
of the fog they came, and we knew by their faces, before they
uttered a word, that they had good news. Yes, they had found a floe!
They had been searching through the fog, stumbling through the
rough country. Suddenly the sun broke through and lit up one end of
a floe, as Riiser-Larsen puts it, which became our salvation. It was a
half mile off, and it would be necessary to build a slip to get out of
the lead and bridge two ice cakes before reaching the desired floe.
The main body of the pack was now only ten yards away.
Immediately behind the N 25 a huge ice wall was advancing slowly,
inch by inch, and fifteen minutes after we started the motors the solid
ice closed in over the spot where our plane had lain. We were saved.
We worked our way slowly up to where we meant to build the
slip, using a saw to cut out the ice ahead where it was too heavy for
the plane to break through. After six hours of steady toil we had
constructed our slip and had the plane safe up on floe No. 1. That
night of June 6th we slept well, after the extra cup of chocolate that
was allowed us to celebrate our narrow escape.
The next morning began the most stupendous task we had yet
undertaken: cutting a passage through a huge pressure-ridge,—an
ice wall fifteen feet thick which separated floe No. 1 from floe No. 2,
—and then bridging between floe No. 1 and floe No. 2 two chasms
fifteen feet wide and ten feet deep, separating the two floes from one
another. In our weakened condition this was a hard task, but we
finished it by the end of the second day. Crossing the bridges
between the floes was exciting work. The sustaining capacity of such
ice blocks as we could manage to transport and lay in the water
could not be great. The heavier blocks which we used for a
foundation were floated into place in the sea and left to freeze—as
we hoped they would—into a solid mass during the night. When the
time came, we must cross at full speed, if we were not to sink into
the sea, and then instantly stop on the other side, because we had
taken no time to level ahead, so great was our fear that the ice floes
might drift apart during the operation of bridging. We made the
passages safely and were at last upon the big floe. In order to take
advantage of the south wind, which had continued to blow ever since
the day of our landing, we leveled a course across the shortest
diameter of this cake, which offered only 300 meters for a take-off.
But before we completed our work the wind died down. Nevertheless
we made a try, but merely bumped over it and stopped just short of
the open lead ahead. Our prospects did not look good. The southerly
winds had made the deep snow soft and soggy. But it was a relief to
know that we were out of the leads, with our plane safe from the
screwing of the pack-ice.
It was June 9th, and now began the long grind of constructing a
course upon which our final hopes must rest. If we failed there was
nothing left. My diary shows the following entry for June 10th:—“The
days go by. For the first time I am beginning to wonder if we must
make the great sacrifice for our great adventure. The future looks so
hopeless. Summer is on. The snows are getting too soft to travel
over and the leads won’t open in this continually shifting ice.”
Riiser-Larsen looked the ground over and decided that we must
remove the two and a half feet of snow right down to the solid ice
and level a track twelve meters wide and four hundred meters long.
It was a heartbreaking task to remove this wet summer snow with
only our clumsy wooden shovels. It must be thrown clear an
additional six meters to either side, so as not to interfere with the
wing stretch. After but a few shovelfuls we stood weak and panting
gazing disheartened at the labor ahead.
One problem was how to taxi our plane through the wet snow
and get it headed in the right direction. We dug down to the blue ice,
and now we were confronted with a new difficulty. The moist fog,
which came over us immediately, melted the ice as soon as it was
exposed. We found that by working our skis underneath the plane
we were able finally to get her to turn, but after splitting a pair of skis
we decided to take no more chances that way. In desperation we
now tried stamping down the snow with our feet and found that it
served the purpose admirably. By the end of our first day of
shoveling down to the blue ice, we had succeeded in clearing a
distance of only forty meters, while with the new method we were
able to make one hundred meters per day. We adopted a regular
system in stamping down this snow. Each man marked out a square
of his own, and it was up to him to stamp down every inch in this
area. We figured that at this rate we would have completed our
course in five days.
During the first day’s work we saw our first sign of animal life
since the seal popped his head up out of the lead where we first
landed. Somebody looked up from his work of shoveling snow to see
a little auk flying through the fog overhead. It came out of the north
and was headed northwest. Next day two weary geese flopped down
beside the plane. They must have thought that dark object looming
up through the fog in all that expanse of desolate white looked
friendly. They seemed an easy mark for Dietrichson, but the rich
prize was too much for his nerves and he missed. The two geese ran
over the snow a long distance as if they did not seem anxious to take
wing again. They too came from the north and disappeared into the
northwest. We wondered if there could be land in that direction. It
was an interesting speculation.
On the 14th our course was finished. Then Riiser-Larsen paced
it again and was surprised to find that instead of four hundred meters
it was five hundred. When he informed Amundsen of this fact, the
Captain was quick to remark that one million dollars couldn’t buy that
extra hundred meters from him, and we all agreed that it was
priceless. And so it proved to be.
ELLSWORTH, AMUNDSEN, LARSEN AND FEUCHT WITH THE IMPLEMENTS

WITH WHICH THEY MOVED 300 TONS OF ICE
On the evening of the 14th, after our chocolate, and with a
southerly wind still blowing—this was a tail-wind on this course and
of no help to us—we decided to make a try. But we only bumped
along and the plane made no effort to rise. What we needed to get
off with was a speed of 100 kilometers per hour. During all our
previous attempts to take off, forty kilometers had been the best we
could do. On this trial we got up to sixty, and Riiser-Larsen was
hopeful. It was characteristic of the man to turn in his seat as we
jumped out and remark to me: “I hope you are not disappointed,
Ellsworth. We’ll do better next time.” That calm, dispassionate man
was ever the embodiment of hope.
LINCOLN ELLSWORTH AFTER THE TRIP
That night it was my watch all night. Around and around the ice-
cake I shuffled, with my feet thrust loosely into the ski straps and a
rifle slung over my shoulder, on the alert for open water. Then, too,
we were always afraid that the ice-cake might break beneath us. It
was badly crevassed in places. Many times during that night, on my
patrol, I watched Riiser-Larsen draw himself up out of the manhole in
the top of the plane to see how the wind was blowing. During the
night the wind had shifted from the south and in the morning a light
breeze was blowing from the north. This was the second time during
our twenty-five days in the ice that the wind had blown from the
north. We had landed with a north wind—but were we to get away
with a north wind? That was the question. The temperature during
the night was -1.5° c. and the snow surface was crisp and hard in the
morning. We now were forced to dump everything that we could
spare. We left one of our canvas canoes, rifles, cameras, field-
glasses; we even discarded sealskin parkas and heavy ski-boots,
replacing them with moccasins. All we dare retain was half of our
provisions, one canvas canoe, a shotgun and one hundred rounds of
ammunition.
Then we all climbed into the plane and Riiser-Larsen started up.
Dietrichson was to navigate. The plane began to move! After
bumping for four hundred meters the plane actually lifted in the last
hundred meters. When I could feel the plane lifting beneath me I was
happy, but we had had so many cruel disappointments during the
past twenty-five days that our minds were in a state where we could
feel neither great elation nor great suffering. Captain Amundsen had
taken his seat beside Riiser-Larsen, and I got into the tail.
For two hours we had to fly through the thick fog, being unable
either to get above or below it. During all this time we flew slowly,
with a magnetic compass, a thing heretofore considered to be an
impossibility in the Arctic. Dietrichson dropped down for drift
observations as frequently as possible. The fogs hung so low that we
were compelled to fly close to the ice, at one time skimming over it at
a height of but one hundred feet. Finally we were able to rise above
the fog and were again able to use our “Sun Compass.”
Southward we flew! Homeward we flew! One hour—two hours—
four, six hours. Then Feucht yelled back to me in the tail, “Land!” I
replied, “Spitzbergen?”—“No Spitzbergen, no Spitzbergen!” yells
back Feucht in his broken English. So I made up my mind that it
must be Franz-Josefs-Land. Anyway, it was land, and that meant
everything!
Our rationing regulations were now off, and we all started to
munch chocolate and biscuits.
For an hour Riiser-Larsen had noticed that the stabilization
rudders were becoming more and more difficult to operate. Finally
they failed to work completely and we were forced down on the open
sea, just after having safely passed the edge of the Polar pack. We
landed in the sea, after flying just eight hours, with barely ninety liters
of gasoline in our tanks, one half hour’s fuel supply. The sea was
rough, and we were forced to go below and cover up the man-holes,
for the waves broke over the plane.
I had eaten seven cakes of chocolate when Feucht yelled, “Land
ahead!” But I was now desperately ill and cared little what land it was
so long as it was just land. After thirty-five minutes of taxi-ing through
the rough sea, we reached the coast.
In we came—“in the wash of the wind-whipped tide.”
“Overloaded, undermanned, meant to founder, we

Euchred God Almighty’s storm, bluffed the Eternal Sea!”
How good the solid land looked! We threw ourselves down on a

large rock, face upward to the sun, till we remembered that we had
better take an observation and know for sure where we were.
It seems remarkable, when I think about it now, how many
narrow escapes we really had. Again and again it looked like either
life or death, but something always just turned up to help us out.
Captain Amundsen’s answer was, “You can call it luck if you want,
but I don’t believe it.”
We got out our sextant and found that one of our position lines
cut through the latitude of Spitzbergen. While we were waiting to
take our second observation for an intersection, three hours later,
some one yelled, “A sail!”—and there, heading out to sea, was a little
sealer. We shouted after them and put up our flag, but they did not
see us, and so we jumped into our plane and with what fuel we had
left taxied out to them. They were after a wounded walrus that they
had shot seven times in the head, otherwise they would have been
gone long before. They were overjoyed to see us. We tried to tow
the plane, but there was too much headwind, so we beached her in
Brandy Bay, North Cape, North-East-Land, Spitzbergen, one
hundred miles east of our starting point at King’s Bay.
We slept continuously during the three days in the sealer, only
waking to devour the delicious seal meat steaks smothered in onions
and the eider-duck egg omelets prepared for us.
The homage that was accorded us upon our return to civilization
will ever remain the most cherished memory of our trip. We took
steamer from King’s Bay for Norway on June 25th, after putting our
plane on board, and nine days later arrived at Horten, the Norwegian
Naval Base, not far from Oslo.
On July 5th, with the stage all set, we flew N 25 into Oslo. It was
difficult to realize that we were in the same plane that had so
recently been battling in the midst of the Arctic ice. Good old N 25!
We dropped down into the Fjord amid a pandemonium of frantically
shrieking river craft and taxied on through the wildly waving and
cheering throngs, past thirteen fully manned British battleships, and
as I listened to the booming of the salute from the Fort and looked
ahead at the great silent expectant mass of humanity that waited to
greet us, I was overcome with emotion and the tears rolled down my
face. At that moment I felt paid in full for all that I had gone through.
Part III
THE NAVIGATOR’S TASK
By Lieut. Hjalmar Riiser-Larsen

THE NAVIGATOR’S TASK
“The Air Club has fixed up contracts with the publishers of
several countries for a book of at least seventy thousand words.
Therefore you must write several thousand. Come and stay with me so
that you can work in peace.” Such were Amundsen’s orders
immediately we stepped ashore in Oslo.
The manuscript of the entire 70,000 words should be delivered by
the 10th of August. In view of the big task of arranging charts and
pictorial matter, there would not be much time to spare, so we had to
get down to it as quickly as possible.
There were also many other things to be done in the meantime.
The expedition’s cinema film had to be cut and run off—run off again,
and recut, as the cinema owners wanted to “fit in” three shows daily at
5 p.m., 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. It would take fifteen minutes to clear the
theater, to ventilate it, and let the next audience get seated, therefore
the run of the film must not exceed one hour and three-quarters. At first
it took two and a half hours even without the caption lines. Berge
continued cutting, and the film got shorter daily. The worst task was to
arrange the sequence of the scenes. They were far from being in
chronological order, but after a time it began to present a better picture
of the expedition’s course—a picture which gave a calm
straightforward story—a calendar of daily episodes. The caption lines,
too, required writing, as they could not create themselves.
While we were busy with all this work we had also to attend to the
returning of the expedition’s unused stores to the suppliers. Much of
this had been bought conditionally so that we could return everything
we had not used. The ever-helpful Omdal, who never seemed to have
enough to do, took charge of this part of the work. The more I left to
him the better pleased he was. I asked him often in those days if he
would not like to be released to go home. “So long as I can be of use
to the expedition there is no hurry,” was his reply. At last on August 1st
he set off to his home in Kristiansand, which he had been longing for.
But I am sure he would have been quite happy about it if I, even then,
had said to him that he could not get off.
That’s the sort of man Omdal is!
In the meantime the post-bag was filled with requests for
information regarding the instruments and other equipment we had
used on the trip. Lantern slides for lectures had to be got ready and
advertising matter sent to our business managers.
Thus the days passed and the dreadful 10th of August got nearer,
so threateningly that at last to-day I had to take the bull by the horns
and go to Amundsen for further particulars.
Now I sit here experiencing the same feelings as in my
schooldays, when I used to put off writing Norwegian composition so
long that I had to do it during the games’ interval.
The first thing I shall render an account of is—
Why We Chose the Dornier-Wal Type

As the expense of using airships was prohibitive, we could only
consider the employment of flying-machines. The choice of type
depended upon the idea we could form of the landing conditions
among the ice. The highest authority in the “world of polar-exploration,”
and many others who had hunted and fished Greenland’s east coast
for many years, all contended that there would be many suitable
landing places on the numerous big flat ice-floes, and also that we
should find water-lanes where the seaplanes could land. Some voices
were raised against these contentions but as they were only “voices”
we didn’t lay much weight on their opinion, though, as was proved
later, these latter were right,—but that is a different matter. We
regarded it at that time as certain that we should find plenty of big-
enough landing places. Accordingly we based our plans, on making an
expedition which could land to carry out observations and which would
be of considerably more value than an exploration expedition which
would only fly over the ice. An expedition thus equipped would be
safer, as a forced landing might have to be made at any time. We
decided therefore to use two machines, which would allow the
expedition to continue with one plane if the other had to make a forced
landing on account of irreparable engine trouble. In a forced landing,
too, the machine might be damaged, as there would not be the same
opportunity to find a suitable landing-place, as in the case of a
voluntary landing. It is also certain that it would double the chances of
reaching the goal ahead to set off with two machines rather than with
only one,—always, of course, banking on the probability of good
opportunities for landing being found.
On the other hand, if such opportunities for landing did not offer,
the use of two machines would halve the chances of success, as the
risk of engine trouble where two are concerned is naturally double
what it would be if only one machine were employed. The
arrangements, therefore, were, that both seaplanes’ crews should
keep together.
When we made our forced landing on the ice we were convinced
that there were no suitable landing places to be found up there, and in
consequence we decided that we would only use one seaplane for the
homeward flight. We spent some days at first getting both machines
ready for a start, because starting conditions were so difficult, that it
was an advantage to hold one machine in reserve in case the other
should get damaged in attempting to get away; but we discovered that
it would take the six of us to tackle the work in each case, so we chose
the machine which was in the best condition and therefore safest for
the homeward flight.
The reason why I have gone into so many details regarding this
side of our plans and our conduct of the expedition, is that we have
been publicly criticized “because we flew with two machines over a
stretch of territory that offered no landing possibilities, and thus we
took a double risk of engine trouble.” This is putting a wrong
construction on it. The reason that we continued our northward flight
after we had reached 83°, and, being free of the fog, saw that there
were only bad chances of landing, was because we naturally had a
goal to reach and we thought conditions would improve further north.
Back to the choice of type! In clear weather, especially in sunshine,
one can see from overhead unevennesses on a place, even when one
cannot be certain that all is clear, as the snow may have “covered-in”
some banks of drift-ice. If the weather is hazy, even a voluntary landing
is a matter of chance, for it is impossible to see even the biggest
undulations in the snow.
There are three kinds of under-carriages to choose from—skis,
floats, or flying boats. If one has chosen skis or floats, and should
strike against a projection with them, tearing off the under part, the
machine will turn over, and a continuation of the flight with the same
machine will be impossible.
A flying boat on the contrary has fewer sidewise projections (which
means that it would be less exposed to the danger of being damaged
by unevennesses) and, furthermore, it will not capsize so quickly. If
one has also ordered it of durable aluminium it will afford the uttermost
safety. Where a big strain would tear the bottom of a wooden boat
(making reparation impossible or at least very difficult in the conditions
prevailing up there) under the same strain durable aluminium would
only suffer some denting which could be straightened out again if it
proved sufficient to hinder progress. Aluminium does not break easily.
There were also other reasons that counted in making the choice
of a type of boat. Should one have the intention of rising from deep
snow, the burden (of the boat or the machine’s under-carriage) lying on
the snow must not be greater than a certain weight on the flat, namely,
600 kilograms per square meter.
As our machine would average a weight of six tons it was a simple
matter to calculate that we must lie on an area of at least ten square
yards, and even then it would be bearing the maximum weight. Thus, a
ski-attachment would be particularly heavy, and the floats would have
to be unnecessarily large if the bottom’s lines were to satisfy the
seamanlike desire “to rise from the water.”
After making these calculations we were never in doubt, but
decided that we should choose a flying boat built of durable aluminium.
With regard to ski-machines, we should gain a further advantage in
being able to land in, or rise from, possible water-lanes, while in a
wooden boat a collision with ice in the water-lanes presented a smaller
risk.
The point now was to find the right dur-aluminium boat as Dornier
was not the only builder of such boats. If one wishes to rise from loose
snow it is not only the flat-weight which counts, but it is distinctly
necessary that the bottom lines of the boat must be so designed that
no power shall be lost by the unnecessary pushing aside of snow
when gliding forward. There was thus only one type of boat which
satisfied our demands and that was Dornier-Wal.
Dornier-Wal has furthermore a distinct advantage which we first
became aware of up in the ice regions. It has not got wing-floats to
afford the necessary stability on the water, but for this purpose—as
shown in the illustration—has attached at each side of the propeller a
big “flyndre.” During our start from the water-lane the boat sank
through the new ice and a part of the weight fell on the “flyndres.” In
this way we were able to go to the assistance of N 25 in the capacity of
an ice-breaker and help it out of several critical situations. Had there
been floats on the wings, too great a weight would naturally have fallen
on these, and we should have been unable to avoid damage.
From the above it can be seen that there was nothing else for it but
to choose Dornier-Wal for our flight even though it might have been
handicapped by certain failings. I cannot at present mention one single
failing, but it had numerous advantages. The best of these in my
estimation is the fact that it is fitted with Rolls-Royce twin-engines
(Eagle IX). I should scarcely have agreed to undertake a flight of this
kind without a Rolls-Royce. It is not a matter of “chance” that made
Dornier fix Rolls-Royce engines to his Wal type: it would have been
bad policy to put anything but the very best engines in a flying-machine
of the “Wal’s” high standard.
CAPTAIN ROALD AMUNDSEN, JUST BEFORE THE TAKE-OFF FROM
SPITZBERGEN
It will also be noticed from the illustrations that the “Wal” is fitted
with two engines and that these are placed immediately behind each
other—one pulls and one pushes—thus the aft propeller turns
contrariwise to the fore propeller, each rotating in its own way. The
wonderfully effective qualities which are thus attained, in conjunction
with the suitable lines and ingenious “wing-frontage,” make it possible
for a weight equal to that of the machine itself to be lifted. As we
started from King’s Bay we had a load of 3,100 kilograms, while the
“Wal” itself weighs 3,300 kilograms—yet the machine rose with such
ease from the ice that I am sure we could have taken an additional 200
kilograms on board. This very fact seemed most apparent during the
hardships we underwent in the ice regions, when we thought longingly
of how many boxes of biscuits or how much tobacco we might safely
have brought with us. We always closed these ruminations by a
unanimous agreement that it was a good thing we had carried no more

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Vanders Human Physiology The

Mechanisms of Body Function 15th

Vanders Human Physiology The Mechanisms of Body

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