Questions 1- 6

Michael: To review for the test, we need to go over the last lecture on learning. Emily, what is associative learning?

Emily: Well, the ability to understand time sequences is an important part of learning. Time sequences would include, night follows day, B follows A, or winter follows fall. Associative learning involves the association of time sequences. An example of associative learning is classical conditioning.

Michael: And classical conditioning is the form of learning in which two stimuli are associated so that the first evokes the response that normally follows the second. The first studies done with classical conditioning were performed by Ivan Pavlov, a Russian physiologist. Pavlov noticed that the dogs in his laboratory salivated not only when they ate their food, but also before they had taken a bite. Pavlov discovered that if he rang a bell before he let the dogs eat, eventually the dogs would start salivating as soon as they heard the bell. As soon as the dogs heard the bell, they began to act like a dog about to be fed.

Emily: Because the dogs' salivation is reflexive, Pavlov decided to analyze how the dogs learned to associate the bell with being fed. He learned that an insignificant stimulus (the bell) became very significant to the dogs. This was very interesting to Pavlov since this reflex had to be learned by the dogs. He called the dogs' response to the bell a "conditioned response."

Michael: What is interesting is that researchers have continued Pavlov's experiments with classical conditioning using other subjects such as people. They discovered humans are conditioned to very similar methods. For example, after a sound was continually combined with eating potato chips, college students came to salivate in reaction to the sound alone. Researchers have learned that many different organisms can be conditioned to respond to practically any stimuli-such as lights, sounds or tastes.

Emily: An interesting theory is that many of our emotional reactions may be due to classical conditioning. For instance, a car accident can cause one to fear driving or even cars in general. Movies also use conditioned stimuli such as darkness or eerie music to arouse the conditioned response of fear.

Michael: Classical conditioning can also be used to reverse habits or fears. One example of this is a method used to stop children from bed wetting. The child sleeps on a pad that buzzes loudly the moment it detects moisture. The loud buzzer awakes the child who then goes to the restroom. Soon, just the pressure of the child's full bladder is associated with the loud buzzer which awakens the child to use the restroom. Although the full bladder occurs naturally, it is the buzzer that teaches the child to wake up.

Emily: Since the early studies of Pavlov, researchers have continued to use the techniques of classical conditioning for both learning and unlearning certain behaviors or fears.

Professor: Usually, artists did not find fame until after their death. This was not the case, however, for Bartolome Esteban Murillo. Murillo , who lived from 1618-1682, painted in the Spanish Baroque style. His native Seville was an important religious center and recognized Murrillo as a great artist while he was only in his early twenties. Ashley, why did Murrillo become famous?

Ashley: He quickly became renowned for his religious theme paintings which were popular with the art buying public. Ecce Homo, also known as Suffering Christ, is a great example of Murillo's work. He often chose models he felt had empathetic faces for his paintings. For example, you can practically feel the emotion in Christ's face in Ecce Homo.

Professor: Matthew, what else could you tell us about Murrillo's life?

Matthew: Murillo was an important figure in Seville, and was appointed the first president of the Academy of Art. He continued to be revered after his death from a fall while painting in 1682.

Some other paintings by Murillo include Beggar Boys Throwing Dice, The Pie Eater, and The Madonna.

Professor: Another Spanish Baroque artist, Francisco de Zurbaran, lived from 1598-1664. He also spent most of his life in Seville. Jessica, from the readings in our textbook, what could you tell the class about them?

Jessica: Zurbaran was employed as a court painter for King Philip IV. He was commissioned to decorate the Kings Palace in Madrid in 1630, which was an honor.

Jacob: Although Zurbaran painted many things such as still life and historical scenes, most of his work was also religious. An example of his religious art is the painting , St Francis of Assisi. According to legend, St Francis was observed standing upright in his tomb after his death. Zurbaran attempted to capture the fact that it is a corpse by painting a somewhat frightening face. The eyes are staring upward and the lips are parted. St. Francis is depicted wearing a brown habit worn by Franciscan Monks and by the stigmata over the heart.

Professor: Both Bartolome Esteban Murillo and Francisco de Zurbaran are considered great Spanish Baroque artists. In our next class, we will be looking at modern day artists of our time.

Anthony: The lecture on psychological disorders was interesting.

Kayla: I was particularly interested in the part where the professor talked about eating disorders.

Anthony: I was alarmed to hear that the number of American girls developing an eating disorder is increasing. Some physiologists believe this is because of society's constant advertisements that feature girls with unnaturally slim bodies. Because girls strongly relate their self worth to their attractiveness, many adolescents are unhappy with their weight. This can lead to anorexia nervosa or bulimia nervosa.

Kayla: Anorexia nervosa is a pattern of self starvation and is most common among well educated girls who experience a lot of pressure to be thin. An anorexic girl weighs at least 15 percent less than her ideal weight, has an extreme fear of gaining weight, and has missed at least three consecutive menstrual periods. An anorexic person has protruding ribs and resembles a skeleton, yet usually denies being thin. They often have to be hospitalized for malnutrition and forced to eat. If left untreated, the person could starve to death or die from complications of malnutrition.

Anthony: Bulimia nervosa, on the other hand, is when a person consumes large amounts of food, but then induces vomiting or diarrhea in an attempt to avoid weight gain. Both kind of purges are dangerous and can cause damage to the digestive tract. Like anorexics, most bulimics are well educated females who are afraid of becoming overweight. But unlike anorexics, bulimics usually know their behavior is not normal and they often are ashamed and depressed after each incident.

Kayla: Social pressure is a major cause of developing these eating disorders; however, it is not the only one. Some victims may be starving themselves in an attempt to escape from a problem or bad family life. Another theory is the belief that these disorders can be inherited through family genes. Victims may have a predisposition to mood disorders which can be heightened by a dysfunctional family life.

Anthony: Whatever the cause, anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa are serious problems facing many adolescents. They are very dangerous life threatening disorders which usually intensify emotional instability. Often, the better self esteem sought by the victim is instead reduced.

Professor: Today we are going to talk about exercise. Of course, we all know that exercise makes us feel better, look better, and gives us energy. We are also going to discuss some other benefits of regular exercise.William, do you know why exercise is important?

William: A major benefit of exercise is a reduced risk of heart disease. About one of every two Americans die of cardiovascular disease. This alone is a great reason to exercise regularly. Exercise also reduces the risk of Diabetes, a disease in which there is high levels of blood sugar (glucose). Diabetes can cause health problems with the kidneys and also blindness. Type II diabetes which is adult onset diabetes, is reduced by regular exercise because it improves the regulation of blood glucose.

Mary: Another benefit of exercising is that it increases bone mass. It is important to keep healthy and strong bones because they provide movement and protect our internal organs. Osteoporosis is the loss of bone mass and strength which increases the risk of bone fractures. This is most common in elderly women. Research has shown that regular exercise increases bone mass and strength and prevents bone loss in the elderly and is used to treat osteoporotic patients. As we grow older, we gradually lose physical working capacity. We start to lose our ability to perform strenuous activities such as running or swimming. Research has also shown that regular exercise training can reduce the rate of decline in physical working capacity during aging. There is a natural decline of physical working capacity with age, but regular exercise can reduce this rate of decline.

Professor: And what does the research say about exercise? George...

George: Recent research has even shown that regular exercise and a healthy lifestyle can increase longevity. This means that those who exercise have a longer lifespan. The main reason for this is that people who exercise have a lower risk of heart attack and cancer.

Professor: There are five major components of health related physical fitness. They are 1) cardiovascular endurance 2) muscular strength 3) muscular endurance 4) flexibility 5) body composition. John, could you comment on these?

John: Cardiorespiratory endurance is the measure of the heart's ability to pump oxygen-rich blood to the working muscles during exercise. It is also the measure of the muscle's ability to use the oxygen to produce energy for exercising. In general, a high measure of cardiorespiratory endurance is the ability to perform about 60 minutes of vigorous exercise without too much fatigue.

Anna: Muscular strength is the ability of the muscle to create force. This is shown by how much weight can be lifted during one effort. This is important in sports such as track and field and football, as well as routine activities such as lifting groceries or moving furniture.

Elizabeth: Muscular Endurance, however, is the ability of the muscle to generate force over and over again. This would be a weight lifter performing multiple repetitions of a light weight. Many sports such as tennis as well as routine activities such as waxing a car require muscular endurance.

Professor: And what about flexibility?

John: Flexibility is the ability to move joints freely through their full range of motion. A flexible person can bend and twist his joints with ease. Athletes such as gymnasts and divers require a lot of flexibility. Flexibility is also beneficial in preventing injuries and reducing lower back pain.

Professor: And what is body composition?

William: Body Composition is the comparable amounts of fat and lean body tissue found in the body. Obesity would be a high percentage of body fat whereas a physically fit individual would have a low percentage of body fat. Lack of physical activity causes an increase in body fat. Conversely, regular exercise lead to a loss of body fat.

Professor: As you can see from our class discussion, regular exercise and a healthy lifestyle, leads to an improved quality of life.