Question 1

In which region of the country is methamphetamine most likely to be used?

Accepted Answer

A)   the Mid-Atlantic region of NJ, NY, DE, MD, DC, and PA
B)   the New England states
C)   the South
D)   the West Coast states of CA, OR, and WA
E)   the Midwest D

Question 2

Spell out some differences between the use of amphetamine pills and tablets and the IV injection of methamphetamine.

Accepted Answer

Amphetamine pills and tablets are typically taken orally and are designed to release the drug slowly into the bloodstream. This results in a more gradual onset of effects and a longer duration of action. On the other hand, IV injection of methamphetamine delivers the drug directly into the bloodstream, leading to a rapid and intense onset of effects. This can increase the risk of overdose and other adverse effects. Additionally, the route of administration can also impact the potential for addiction and dependence, as IV use of methamphetamine may be more reinforcing and addictive compared to oral use of amphetamine pills and tablets. Overall, the differences in route of administration can significantly impact the pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, and potential risks associated with the use of these substances.

Question 3

For which of the following uses do many physicians today most frequently write legitimate prescriptions for amphetamine?

Accepted Answer

A)   students staying up all night to cram for an exam
B)   truck drivers staying up for several nights running to transport cargo cross-country
C)   athletes seeking alertness and quickness on the playing field
D)   as an antidepressant
E)   narcolepsy E

Question 4

Which of the following statements is true? The amphetamines and methamphetamine are in the top five drugs with respect to:

Accepted Answer

A)   death by overdose.
B)   brain damage.
C)   emergency room episodes.
D)   lung cancer.
E)   none of the above.

Question 5

The law penalizes, and public opinion condemns, crack cocaine possession, distribution, and sale more harshly than for powder cocaine. Is this fair? Does it make sense? Or is there some logic to it? Explain.

Accepted Answer

The answer of The law penalizes, and public opinion condemns,...

Question 6

Stimulants:

Accepted Answer

A)   speed up signals passing through the central nervous system (CNS) .
B)   slow down, retard, or obtund signals passing through the CNS.
C)   have no effect on the speed with which signals pass through the CNS.
D)   have an unknown-and unknowable-effect on the speed of signals passing through the CNS.
E)   none of the above.

Question 7

Summarize the effects of amphetamine, and supply at least one function or purpose that these drugs could help accomplish. In the United States at this time, would such instrumental use typically be legal or illegal? Why?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Summarize the effects of amphetamine, and supply...

Question 8

Why did a well-known pharmacologist refer to the recreational use of cocaine, crack cocaine, amphetamine, and methamphetamine as "the wild addictions"? Because, in comparison with all the other psychoactive substances, they:

Accepted Answer

A)   cause the most deaths by overdose.
B)   cause the greatest number of emergency department episodes.
C)   are the most reinforcing, generate the greatest immediate sensual appeal, and produce the most powerful psychological dependence.
D)   produce the most chronic or long-term medical harm in the greatest number of users.
E)   cause the greatest amount of brain damage.

Question 9

Spell out, with reference to the consumption of cocaine, how classic addiction, physical dependence, and behavioral dependence differ. Do the same with methamphetamine.

Accepted Answer

The answer of Spell out, with reference to the consumption...

Question 10

Compare expert opinion on the dangerousness of cocaine use over the past generation, or the past 30 years or so.

Accepted Answer

A)   In the more distant past, experts tended to underplay the dangerousness of cocaine use; today, they tend to exaggerate it.
B)   In the more distant past, experts tended to exaggerate the dangerousness of cocaine use; today, they tend to underplay it.
C)   Both in the distant past and today, experts underplay or underplayed the dangerousness of cocaine use.
D)   Both in the distant past and today, experts exaggerate or exaggerated the dangerousness of cocaine use.
E)   none of the above.

Question 11

The peak popularity of cocaine-when it was used most, according to surveys-for young adults and college students was during:

Accepted Answer

A)   the sixties.
B)   the late seventies to the mid-eighties.
C)   the nineties.
D)   the first half of the first decade of the twenty-first century.
E)   currently-that is, at the beginning of the second decade of the twenty-first century.

Question 12

During the past decade or so, the use of methamphetamine has:

Accepted Answer

A)   increased.
B)   decreased.
C)   remained stable.
D)   fluctuated wildly and randomly from year to year.
E)   remains unknown.

Question 13

What accounts for the media's exaggeration of the danger and threat of certain drugs at certain times-in the case of the discussions in this chapter that focused on methamphetamine beginning in the late 1980s and continuing, though unevenly, into the twenty-first century? What was it about meth that made it the "scary drug of the year"? Were any of these media dangers based on objective evidence? Or were they all so exaggerated as to be nearly entirely a fantasy? More generally, are drug scares really as objectively threatening as the claims, or were they fantasy creations of the press?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What accounts for the media's exaggeration of...

Question 14

Evidence indicates that the use of methamphetamine:

Accepted Answer

A)   is sweeping across the country like wildfire.
B)   is largely regionalized to the West Coast.
C)   remains confined to the South.
D)   is used exclusively in large cities.
E)   none of the above.

Question 15

Do the different data sources at our disposal say more or less the same thing with respect to stimulant use? Or does each paint a somewhat different portrait of drug use and abuse in the United States at a given time?

Accepted Answer

The answer of Do the different data sources at our...

Question 16

What is immediate sensual appeal, and what role does it play in the use and abuse of the stimulants, including cocaine?

Accepted Answer

The answer of What is immediate sensual appeal, and what...

Question 17

Since the late 1980s, according to the Monitoring the Future survey, the use of crack has:

Accepted Answer

A)   increased.
B)   decreased.
C)   remained stable.
D)   fluctuated wildly and erratically from year to year.
E)   remains unknown-and unknowable.

Question 18

Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde under the influence of which of the following drugs?

Accepted Answer

A)   amphetamine
B)   methamphetamine
C)   cocaine
D)   crack
E)   none of the above

Question 19

From the early 1970s to today, the number of prescriptions written for the amphetamines has:

Accepted Answer

A)   increased.
B)   decreased.
C)   remained stable.
D)   fluctuated wildly and randomly from year to year.
E)   remained unknown.

Question 20

Cocaine is a:

Accepted Answer

A)   Schedule I drug.
B)   Schedule II drug.
C)   Schedule III drug.
D)   Schedule IV drug.
E)   Schedule V drug.

Exam 8: Cocaine and the Amphetamines