Which of the following type of drugs slows down the central nervous system?
C) Depressant
The most common penalty for a first-time conviction of DUI nor DWI is
D) Driver's license suspension
What advice sould you give a social drinker planning to drive?
A) Appoint a designated driver
The ____ law makes it illegal for persons under the age of 21 to drive with any measurable amount of alcohol in the blood.
Zero-tolerance
In the process of ____, young people help other young people make decisions.
Peer education
A person who decides ahead of time not to drink and is appointed to drive others who do drink is known as a ____.
Designated driver
How does alcohol affect mental and physical abilities needed for driving?
Alcohol acts on the central nervous system like an anesthetic, slowing the activity of the brain.
Decreases the ability to reason clearly and make sound judgements.
Give individuals a euphoric state of mind causing them to take chances they normally would not take.
Lessens the ability to correctly interpret what he or she sees.
Distorts vision and reduces the effectiveness of the driver's orderly visual search pattern.
Causes you to fixate in a stare
Inhibitions, the inner forces of personalty that restrain or hold back one's impulsive behavior, are weaken.
The area of the brain that controls muscular movements, reflexes, and balance begins to slow down.
Brain takes longer to process the information and react to the danger.
Slows reflexes and reaction time.
Muscular coordination becomes slow and clumsy causeing a driver to oversteer, brake late, or accelerate suddenly.
Impairs visual acuity, peripheral vision, night vision, color vision, and depth perception.
A person's ability to focus becomes fuzzy and unclear.
Pupils do ot become small rapidly as the bright light approach, and they are slow to open after the bright lights pass causing the driver to be blinded temporarily and may continue to have blurred vision for some time after meeting each vehicle.
Coordination of images becones impaired. (Starts to see double.)
Impairs depth perception; the driver will misjudge the distance of oncoming or cross-traffic vehicles.
Cannot determine the speed or distance accurately of others and their own.
Peripheral vision is narrowed.
Speech pattern may become slurred and fuzzy, and spoken sentences may fail to convey meaning.
Becomes more and more talkative with language that becomes less and less meaningful.
Breathing and heartbeat can become impaired.
What is blood-alcohol concentration?
The amount of alcohol in the blood.
What factors affect blood-alcohol concentration and how do they work?
Amount of alcohol consumed: The more a person drinks, the higher the BAC.
Amount of time over which a given amount of alcohol is consumed: A person's BAC rises more rapidly if only short periods of time elapse between drinks.
Person's body weight: If other factors are equal, a heavier person may be affected less by the same amount of alcohol than a lighter person would be.
What are five myths about the use of alcohol and what is the truth about each myth?
I can sober up by drinking black coffee, taking a cold shower, or doing exercises. The truth is that these activities do not reduce the BAC. The person may seem more alert, but the BAC is not reduced.
One little drink won't hurt me. The truth is that taking one drink can make it easier to take the second and third drinks.
I will not be affected because I am only drinking beer. The truth is that a 12-ounce can of beer contains as much alcohol as an average cocktail.
I can drive better after a few drinks. The truth is that your driving abilities are diminshed, not improved.
A young person cannot become a problem drinker. The truth is that some young people become problem drinkers even as teens.
How do purchasing over-the-counter medicine and perscription medicine differ?
Purchasing over-the-counter medicine are drugs that can be obtained legally without a doctor's prescription. A prescription medicine is a drug that is only legal when ordered by a doctor.
How do depressants, stimulants, and hallucinogenic drugs affect a driver?
Depressants: Slows down, or depress, the central nervous system. Causes the driver to become very relaxed, to lose inhibitions, and have difficulties identifying, predicting, deciding, and executing. (Ex: Alcohol.)
Stimulants: Speeds up, or stimulate, the central nervous system. Gets a feeling of high energy and alertness, but it soon wears off and the person becomes very tired very quickly. (Ex: Amphetamines.)
Hallucinogens: Unpredictible mind-altering drugs that can alter personality and cause panic or terror as they distort a person's sense of direction, distance, and time. (Ex: Marijuana.)
What is the effect of combining alcohol with other drugs?
If a person uses alcohol while taking an antihistamine for a cold, the nervous system can be slowed down much more than by using either drug alone.
When other drugs are combined with alcohol, the effects of both drugs can be multipled, rather than just added together. (Known as a synergistic effect.)
What is the implied-consent law?
Implied consent means that anyone who receives a driver's license automatically consents to be tested for BAC and other drugs if stopped for suspicion of drug use while driving. If the driver does not cooperate with the officer and refuses to be tested for BAC, that driver's license can be suspended.
What are zero-tolerance levels of intoxication and how can these levels be measured?
Most states have set zero-tolerance BAC at 0.00 or to 0.01 percent. Some states use a 0.01 or 0.02 BAC to define zero tolerance to allow for variations in alcohol testing instruments. These levels can be measured by using an intoxilyzer, which is the breath-test machine, and field sobriety tests, which includes a series of on-the-spot, roadside tests that help an officer detect driver impairment.
What should a driver do when stopped by a police officer?
If you see flashing lights of a police vehicle, slow your vehicle until you are sure the officer is signaling for you.
Pull over to he right and stop in a safe place. (You might need to pull into a parking ot or side street to be out of the way of moving traffic.)
Keep your hands visible as the officer approaches.
Stay in your vehicle and follow the instructions the officer gives you.
You will be required to show your driver's license and may have to show your certificate of insurance.
How might peer pressure affect one's decision about drinking and driving?
Positively: Talking a friend out of drinking alcoholic beverages at a party or refusing to ride with someone who has been drinking and driving.
Negatively: When people tell others that they can drive safely after drinking.
What are five steps involved in making a responsible decision?
Know when a decision is needed.
Consider the choices.
Consider the consequences and ask yourself these questions: Is it legal? Is it safe? What would my parents and other family members think? Does it show respect for myself and others?
Decide which choice is best.
Evaluate your decision to know if it was a responsible decision.
What is peer education?
Peer education is a process in which young people help other young people make decisions and determine goals.
Why should everyone share the responsibility of preventing friends from drinking and driving?
Because responsible drivers decide not to become a part f the problem by contributing to the situation.
