Brandon Munoz Escarcega
PSYC 2120 3N0 202030
09/05/2020
Key Terms and Concepts: Chapters 2 & 3
1. Natural selection is the evolutionary process by which those individuals of a species that are
best adapted are the ones that survive and leave the most fit offspring.
Natural selection is the evolutionary mechanism by which the better suited individuals from a
population survive and abandon the better descendants.
Evolutionary psychology allows us to value the point of view and knowledge of each subject
from how someone with a certain level of development perceives the world. The usefulness of
this is wide, since thanks to the understanding of these factors we can adjust education, jobs
or services offered to different sectors of the population taking into account their needs.
2. Genes are segments of DNA that contain the code for a specific protein whose function is
performed in one or more types of cells in the body. Chromosomes are structures inside cells
that contain a person's genes. DNA is the genetic material of the cell, which is found in the
chromosomes, which in turn, are contained in the nucleus of the cell and the mitochondria.
Except for some cells (e.g., sperm, egg, and red blood cells), the nucleus of a normal cell
contains 23 pairs of chromosomes. A chromosome contains many genes. A gene is a segment
of DNA that provides the code to synthesize a protein.
A chromosome is made up of a very long strand of DNA that contains many genes (hundreds
of thousands). The genes on each chromosome are arranged in a particular sequence, and each
gene has a particular location on the chromosome (called a locus). In addition to DNA, the
chromosomes contain other chemicals that influence the way genes work. The nucleus of
each normal human cell contains 23 pairs of chromosomes, with a total of 46 chromosomes,
except in some cells such as sperm, eggs or erythrocytes. Normally, each pair is composed of
one chromosome from the mother and one from the father.
3. The genotype is the genetic code of the cells of an organism, which determines the
characteristics of an individual. The phenotype is the feature that we can observe, either as a
physical characteristic or as a behavior.
The dominant phenotype is the member of an allelic pair that manifests itself in a given
phenotype, whether it is found in a double dose, because it has received a copy from each
parent (homozygous combination); as well as being found in a single dose because only one
of the parents contributed the dominant allele to its gamete (heterozygosis). The dominant
genes and phenotypes are the ones that predominate, like the brown eyes, instead of the green
or blue ones, for example if we contemplate the color of a flower and it turns out that the
allele that gives it the red color is dominant, even though the flower has another allele that
determines other colors, the flower will be red.
The recessive genotype applies to the member of an allelic pair that cannot manifest when the
dominant allele is present. For this allele to manifest in the phenotype, the organism must
have two copies of the allele, one from each progeny.
The alleles that determine the recessive genotype need to be alone to be able to express
themselves, for example, if we study the same flower as the previous example, the white color
is a recessive phenotype of the flower, to find a white flower it must have only the alleles that
determine its white color.
Brandon Munoz Escarcega
PSYC 2120 3N0 202030
09/05/2020
4. Germinal stage: this is when the zygote undergoes rapid cell division and implants in the
wall of the uterus. It corresponds to the period between fertilization and two weeks.
Embryonic stage: the fetus organs begin to form rapidly, there is a danger that it will not
implant correctly in the uterus and the mother begins to have the characteristic symptoms of
pregnancy such as nausea, mood swings and tiredness, it occurs between the second and
eighth week.
Fetal stage: the bones are formed, the growth of the fetus is accelerated and it has more
movement.
Psychoactive drugs Psychoactive drugs act on the nervous system to alter states of
consciousness, modify perceptions, and change moods. Examples include caffeine,
alcohol,and nicotine, as well as illicit drugs such as cocaine, marijuana, and heroin, all this
can affect the baby.
5. Organogenesis is the set of changes that allow the embryonic layers (ectoderm, mesoderm
and endoderm) to be transformed into the different organs that make up an organism, This
occurs between the third and eighth week of development. In this stage (3rd week), first the
passage from bilaminar to trilaminar (gastrulation) embryo takes place; giving rise to the
ectoderm, mesoderm and embryonic endoderm. These in turn, in the following weeks, will
differentiate and specialize giving rise to the different organs of the body, whose outlines will
be formed before the third month of gestation (fetal period). Organogenesis is important
because this is the period that corresponds to the most delicate stage and in which external
influences will produce the greatest adverse consequences, by conditioning the good
development of the various organs of the human body.
6. The process of birth takes place in three steps. The first step of the three is the longest.
Uterine contractions occur at a distance of 15-20 minutes and continue for up to a minute.
These contractions allow the cervix of the woman to extend and expand. The contractions
come more together after two to five minutes as the first stage continues. Its strength is
increasing. In order for the infant to pass from the uterus to the birth canal, contractures
extend about 10 centimeters (4) "toward the end of the first delivery process. The first stage
lasts on average 6-12 hours for a woman with her first child, which usually is much shorter
for subsequent infants. The second birth stage begins as the baby's head and the birth canal
begin to pass into the cervix. It stops once the baby falls out of the mother's body altogether.
The mother has trouble pushing the baby away from her body at any contraction. The
contractions start about every minute and last for the minutes when the child's head is beyond
the body of the mother. Usually this stage lasts about 45 minutes to an hour. The third step of
birth is the removal and evacuation of placenta, umbilical cord and other membranes. The
shortest of the three stages of life is this last step.