Read through the information below, and use what you learn to help you answer the next few questions!
As you've recently learned, our bodies monitor the pH of our blood to determine when to increase or decrease our breathing rate. Remember, the higher the concentration of CO2 in our blood, the lower the pH level of our blood (in other words, the more acidic it becomes).
Hyperventilation
This refers to rapid, deep breathing. When you hyperventilate, you exhale more CO2 than your body produces during that time. Because the hemoglobin throughout your blood is usually almost fully saturated (all holding as much oxygen as they can) at any given time point, the overall effect of hyperventilating means you sharply decrease the amount of CO2 in your blood without significantly changing the levels of O2 in your blood.
Hypoventilation
This refers to breathing less. The way we simulated this was to breath at a normal rate, but breath into a bag. By breathing in a bag, you are rebreathing air that has a much high concentration of CO2 and much lower concentration of O2 than the typical air you breathe. The result is a significant increase in the concentration of CO2 in your bloodstream.
Required
0.7 points
0.7
Question 1
1.
Hypoventilation leads to an overall __________ in blood carbon dioxide levels, resulting in an overall __________ in blood pH levels.
Hyperventilation leads to an overall __________ in blood carbon dioxide levels, resulting in an overall __________ in blood pH levels.
Based on what we learned, you would expect your body to want to increase your breathing rate if you blood has a __________ pH level.
Based on this information, the expected result for this breath-holding experiment should be that a person can hold their breath the longest after __________.
Required
0.5 points
0.5
Question 2
2.
Did you group's experimental results match these expected results?
Briefly summarize your group's results. Explain whether they match the expected results. Finally, describe specific sources of "error" in the experiment - why might some groups NOT get the expected results?
Your response should be 3-4 full sentences.
Required
0.5 points
0.5
Question 3
3.
The image below is a screenshot from a university's rec center website. It shows a specific section they've included in the "Aquatics" part of the site.
Why do you think they've chosen to create this "Breath-holding Policy", and why would official governing agencies have specific things to say about the dangers of breath-holding, as shown at the bottom of this screenshot?
Write at least 2-3 full sentences explaining both why someone might WANT to hyperventilate before participating in some sort of aquatic activity and why that would be dangerous.
Section 1: Somatosensory Investigation Team Experiment
Read through the information below, and use what you learn to help you answer the next few questions!
Your skin is packed with tiny sensors called touch receptors. These receptors are responsible for detecting pressure, texture, and other tactile sensations. When a touch receptor is stimulated, it generates a signal that is then transmitted to the nervous system via sensory neurons. However, these receptors aren't spread evenly across your body. Some areas have a much higher concentration, or density, of touch receptors compared to others.
Required
0.7 points
0.7
Question 4
4.
Use the information you just read, and the image below, to fill in each sentence:
This image is specifically showing that the __________ has a HIGHER density of touch receptors than the __________. If these two areas were tested using the two-point discrimination test, you would expect the __________ to be better at discriminating between two points touching that area versus one point touching that area.
Required
0.5 points
0.5
Question 5
5.
The graph below shows the results of a formal two-point discrimination test. This represents the expected results. The "two-point threshold" on the Y-axis is the minimum distance needed between two points for that part of the body to be able to feel those two points separately. In other words, the lower the "threshold", the HIGHER THE DENSITY OF TOUCH RECEPTORS in that area!
Did you group's experimental results match these expected results?
Briefly summarize your group's results. Explain whether they match the expected results. Finally, describe specific sources of "error" in the experiment - why might some groups NOT get the expected results?
Your response should be 3-4 full sentences.
Section 3: Reflex Arc Lab Team Experiment
Required
0.6 points
0.6
Question 6
6.
The test subject's leg kicking when you "hit" their knee represents a __________, while the test subject catching the ruler you dropped represents a __________.
Based on what we learned about typical reaction responses and reflex responses, you would expect the __________ to be faster, because __________.
Required
0.5 points
0.5
Question 7
7.
Did your group's results make sense, based on what you know about reactions and reflexes?
Briefly summarize your group's results. Explain whether they match what you would expect. Finally, describe specific sources of "error" in the experiment - why might some groups NOT get expected results?