Senses and Responses

An eagle on a tree branch sees an injured squirrel 50 meters away on the ground. The eagle then flies from the tree to prey on the injured squirrel. Which of the following best describes what happened with the eagle before it started to fly toward the squirrel?

• The sense received from the squirrel went directly to the eagle's eyes to its muscles.

• The eagle was born with the ability to prey on squirrels, so no brain activity was required.

• The eagle's brain recognized the squirrel as prey.

• The sight of the squirrel came only from the eagle's memory, which stimulated the muscles to move

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-8

John enjoys kayaking in the river by his house and has learned how to dodge the rocks in his path. To dodge the rocks, John changes the direction of the kayak by changing the position of his oars in the water. Which of these correctly describes how John directs his kayak through the river?

• John’s eyes send a message directly to his arms to change the position of the oars.

• John’s brain sends a message to his eyes, and his eyes pass this message to his arms to change the position of the oars

• John’s arms send a message directly to his brain to change the position of the oars.

• John’s eyes send a message to his brain, and his brain uses this information to send a message to his arms to change the position of the oars.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-8

An octopus uses its eyes to see a predator near it in the water. The octopus feels scared. It releases a colored liquid into the water. This allows the octopus to hide from the predator and get away. Which of these describes the octopus receiving information from its senses?

• The octopus is able to get away from the predator.

• The octopus releases a colored liquid into the water.

• The octopus uses its eyes to see a predator near it in the water.

• The octopus feels scared.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-8

Kate’s father gave her a set of plastic building blocks as a gift. She spent a long time making different shapes using the blocks. One day at Kate's school, the teacher asked the class to make a robot using the same plastic building blocks. Kate was the first student to finish making the robot. How was Kate able to complete her robot so quickly?

• Kate knew how to build robots out of the blocks since birth. Therefore, she could build a robot quickly.

• Kate's brain stored the ways to make the different shapes with the blocks as memories. These memories helped her build a robot quickly.

• Kate took less time to learn how to use the blocks than other students. Therefore, she could build a robot quickly.

• Kate's hands stored the way to make the different shapes with the blocks as memories. These memories helped her build a robot quickly.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-8

When Jack was learning how to drive, he was taught about basic traffic rules. On the day of his driving test, he saw a traffic signal that turned from green to red. As soon as it turned red, Jack quickly applied the brakes. Which of these best explains Jack’s behavior? *

• Jack's eyes saw the light turn red and sent a message to his brain, which then sent a message to his leg muscles to apply the brakes.

• Jack’s brain understood when the light turned red and sent a message to his leg muscles to apply the brakes.

• Jack's eyes saw the light turn red and sent a message directly to his leg muscles to apply the brakes.

• Jack’s brain understood when the light turned red and sent a message to his eyes, which then sent it to his leg muscles to apply the brakes.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-8

A bird ate a monarch butterfly one time and did not like the taste. The next time the bird was hungry and saw a monarch butterfly, it did not attack to prey on it. Which of the following best describes why the bird did not attack the butterfly?

• A. The bird began learning about the butterfly when it saw it the second time.

• The taste of the butterfly and the sight of the butterfly were stored by the bird as memories.

• The bird reacted to the butterfly without using its brain.

• The bird did not recognize the butterfly.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-8

The spined prickly pear is a cactus that has large spines and can at times cause pain to the mouth and eyes of deer that try to eat it. A young deer tries to nibble on a prickly pear, but it feels pain in its tongue and mouth when doing so. It decides not to eat the prickly pear. A few days later, the deer returns but ignores the prickly pear. Which of the following most likely caused the deer to ignore the prickly pear?

• The pain from eating the prickly pear was stored in the deer’s memory.

• The deer thought the prickly pear did not having enough nutrients.

• The pain from eating the prickly pear was learned by the deer when it viewed it the second time.

• The deer thought the prickly pear was an organism that could help the deer.

William loves muffins. One day, when he came back from school, he found that the kitchen was filled with the smell of some fresh muffins that his mother had bought at a bakery. As soon as he smelled the muffins, his mouth began watering. Why did his mouth water?

• William’s brain sent a signal directly to his mouth, causing his mouth to water.

• William's nose sent a signal directly to his mouth to begin watering.

• William's nose sent a signal to his brain, which then sent a signal to his mouth that made it water.

• William’s brain sent a signal to his nose, which then sent a signal to his mouth to begin watering.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-8

Sam loved eating the cookies that his mom made. His mom offered him some more, but he refused to eat them. Which of these best explains Sam’s behavior?

• Sam’s mouth sent a message to his brain, which then sent a message to his stomach to stop digesting the cookies.

• Sam’s mouth sent a message to his stomach, which then sent a message to his stomach to stop digesting the cookies.

• Sam’s stomach sent a message to his brain, which made him stop feeling hungry.

• Sam’s stomach sent a message to his mouth, which made the cookies taste bad.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-8

A father bought a new singing toy for his baby girl. When a button was pressed on the toy, a song began to play and the baby smiled. What movement caused the baby’s behavior?

• The baby’s ears sent a message directly to her facial muscles, causing her to smile.

• The baby’s ears sent a message to her brain, which then sent a message to her facial muscles, causing her to smile.

• The baby’s eyes sent a message to her brain, which then sent a message to her facial muscles, causing her to smile.

• The baby’s eyes sent a message directly to her facial muscles, causing her to smile.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-8