Biology Exam #1 (2015)

Frage 1 von 44

1

The pitcher plant and Venus' flytrap use leaves to trap and digest insects. The cactus plant's leaves are modified into small spines, which reduce water loss and can protect the plant from plant-eaters. These 3 leaf types have different shapes and functions, but are derived from a common ancestral form. Therefore these 3 leaf types are _____________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

atavisms
analogous structures
homologous structures
uniformitarian structures

Erklärung

Frage 2 von 44

1

Studies of birth weight in humans have provided good examples of selection. Babies that are heavier or lighter than average did not survive as well as babies of average weight. Human birth weight is therefore an example of ____________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

directonial selection
stabilizing selection
artificial selection
an atavism

Erklärung

Frage 3 von 44

1

The structural similarities between the flipper of a dolphin and the arm of a human suggest that ______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

early humans lived in the oceans
humans and dolphins have a common ancestor
dolphins are older than humans
dolphins evolved from early humans

Erklärung

Frage 4 von 44

1

Cliff swallows in Nebraska, depend on insects for their livelihood. Severe cold snaps totally devastated the population. When scientists analyzed all the dead birds, they determined that birds with a small wing span and asymmetrical wing shapes were disproportionately represented in the dead birds. Surviving birds were larger and more symmetrical. The type of natural selection for size and symmetry is ________________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

stabilizing selection
disruptive selection
directional selection
atavistic

Erklärung

Frage 5 von 44

1

In the Scrub Jay, older siblings usually remain near the nest and assis their parents in raising a new crop of young. This behavior promotes the reproduction of their own alleles, which are present in the new crop of young birds. This behavior is an example of ______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

reciprocal altruism
kin selection
atavism
exaptation

Erklärung

Frage 6 von 44

1

DNA changes over time. From generation to generation, both genetic and epigenetic changes occur and are passed on. Therefore, according to the "left wall of minimal complexity" hypothesis shown below

Wähle eine der folgenden:

natural selection can act only existing traits
natural selection acts on the phenotype
natural selection can not plan ahead for changes that will occur in the environment in the future
evolution can produce greater and greater complexity but cannot produce more and more simplicity

Erklärung

Frage 7 von 44

1

Which one of the following statements is false with regard to natural selection?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

natural selection leads to adaptive evolutionary change
natural selection directs evolution by preserving traits acquired during an individual's lifetime
natural selection acts to preserve traits that increase survival and reproduction, and to eliminate traits that decrease survival and reproduction
natural selection depends on the genetic variability in a population, which arises through mutations

Erklärung

Frage 8 von 44

1

"Gradually, the gene pool changes in favor of the two extreme spine number types. __________________ works against those phenotypes that fall into the midrange of values."

What term is missing in the preceding sentence?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

stabilizing selection
disruptive selection
directional selection
diversifying selection
two answers are correct

Erklärung

Frage 9 von 44

1

Biologists studied a population of lizards. They found that small lizards had trouble defending their territories and that large lizards were more likely than small or medium lizards to be preyed upon by owls. Which of the following graphs represents the most likely distribution for body size in this lizard population?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

A
B
C
D

Erklärung

Frage 10 von 44

1

Fish embryos, human embryos, and chicken embryos all have pharyngeal arches (gill slits/pharyngeal pouches) and a post-anal tail. What best explains these similarities?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

common biological needs of the adults
inheritance of acquired characteristics
descent from the same ancestor
convergent evolution
extinction of transitional species

Erklärung

Frage 11 von 44

1

The wings and body of this speckled emperor moth mimic the face of an animal. If a bird is sneaking up on this moth and is about to eat it, this mimicry of a possible predator that might eat the bird will startle the bird, and might give the moth a fraction of a second in which to escape. This mimicry is an example of a __________________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

homology
vestigial structure
example of kin selection
adaptation

Erklärung

Frage 12 von 44

1

In a certain insect species, body color varies from very light gray to very dark gray. These insects are eaten by birds that find their prey by sight. A brush fire occurs, blackening the ground where one population of this insect species lives. Which of the following is most likely to occur over the next few years?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

The body color in the population will mutate to become black
The percentage of very dark gray individuals will increase
The distribution of body color in the population will not change
The very light gray individuals will learn how to reproduce at a later age
The individual insects will mutate to become fire-resistant

Erklärung

Frage 13 von 44

1

In order for the label "natural selection" to be correct for the illustration, there is a necessary condition that must be present in "1": ___________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

competition
limited resources
population with varied inherited traits
population that is reproducing sexually
population that is undergoing competition while reproducing sexually

Erklärung

Frage 14 von 44

1

Scientists measured the average body size in a bird population over time. One year, a period of cold weather killed many of the birds. A few generations later, the scientists observed that the average body size in the population was larger than it had been before the cold weather. The scientists concluded that the population had evolved through natural selection. Which one of the following would provide the best evidence to support the scientists' conclusion?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

the size of the bird eggs also increased over time
the birds with the largest body size were the males
the frequency of alleles for body size changed in the bird population
the number of birds in the population decreased slightly

Erklärung

Frage 15 von 44

1

Which of the following is an example of Darwinian competition?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

A
B
C
D
E

Erklärung

Frage 16 von 44

1

Darwin found several closely related species of this animal in the Galapagos Islands, and this discovery was eventually important to his thinking about evolution by means of natural selection.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

A
B
C

Erklärung

Frage 17 von 44

1

How were strata dated in Charles Darwin's lifetime?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

their position relative to each other
the minerals they contain
their color
their content of certain radioisotopes
their hardness

Erklärung

Frage 18 von 44

1

If 2 different species share a homologous structure, _______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

the structure has the same function in the two species
the structure must be almost identical in size and shape in the 2 species
the 2 species have a shared ancestor
the structure is an atavism
the structure is vestigial

Erklärung

Frage 19 von 44

1

The adaptive radiation of the dozen or so species of Darwin's Finches in the Galapagos Islands (and nearby Cocos Islands), as illustrated here, is an example of ___________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

disruptive selection
artificial selection
stabilizing selection
natural selection
more than one is correct

Erklärung

Frage 20 von 44

1

Comparison of the anatomy of vertebrae forelimbs was important for Charles Darwin because the bones supported the hypothesis of _________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

extinction
natural selection
the ancient age of Earth
descent with modification from shared ancestors
uniformitarianism

Erklärung

Frage 21 von 44

1

In humans, cheetahs, whales, and bats, the forelimbs contain the same bones in the same relative positions, but the functions of the forelimbs of these animals are different. We say that these forelimbs are homologous structures and that their structural similarity is caused by the fact that _____________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

bats gave rise to whales, which gave rise to cheetahs, which gave rise to humans
humans, cheetahs, whales, and bats all share the same ancestor
organisms having forelimbs have evolved independently from organisms lacking forelimbs at least 4 different times
they have different functions

Erklärung

Frage 22 von 44

1

In some burrowing snakes the eyes are completely hidden beneath the scales and are useless for vision. Ancestors of these species had normal eyes used for vision. The hidden eyes of burrowing snakes are _____________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

atavisms
species extinctions
analogies
vestigial structures

Erklärung

Frage 23 von 44

1

The peppered moths in populations in England range from light-colored to dark-colored. During the Industrial Revolution, dark soot covered trees. Air pollution killed the light-colored lichens that had grown on the trees. Peppered moth populations became predominantly dark-colored, because these dark-colored moths were better able to avoid predation: they were camouflaged on the dark trees. This change in population composition of the moths was an example of ___________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

natural selection
gene flow
induced mutation
genetic drift

Erklärung

Frage 24 von 44

1

The main sources of genetic variation among humans is _______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

new mutations that occurred in the preceding generation
genetic drift
the reshuffling of alleles in sexual reproduction
environmental effects

Erklärung

Frage 25 von 44

1

Why was the age of Earth important for Darwin's ideas about evolution?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

He understood that mutations accumulated slowly in populations because of the inherently slow rate of mutation of DNA
Darwin knew that the potential for overpopulation required enormous amounts of time for sexual reproduction to be expressed in the form of high numbers of individuals
Darwin thought that evolution was a very slow process; great amounts of time were required to produce the great diversity of life that exists
He knew that many years would be required for extinction to eliminate the majority of species that existed in the past

Erklärung

Frage 26 von 44

1

Every now and then, news reports announce a new antibiotic that bacteria cannot become resistant to. What is the best attitude of a scientist to have regarding this type of news report.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Bacteria will not be able to develop resistance to the new antibiotic
Bacteria will definitely develop resistance
Bacteria will probably develop resistance
There is no way to predict the probability of development of resistance

Erklärung

Frage 27 von 44

1

The Galapagos Islands are home to more than a dozen species of closely related finches, some found only on a single island. The most striking differences among them are _, which are __. Understanding this phenomenon was important for Charles Darwin's thinking about evolution and how evolution came about.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

their beaks/adapted for specific diets
the colors of their feathers/adapted for camouflage on sands of different colors
their body weights/the results of different caloric amounts of foods on the different islands
their body weights/the results of differences in the mineral composition of the foods on the different islands

Erklärung

Frage 28 von 44

1

The passage from Charles Darwin's "Origin of Species" read in discussion was _________________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

highly mathematical
filled with technical jargon from chemistry
accessible to any literate person
in Latin

Erklärung

Frage 29 von 44

1

We know that Darwin was greatly influenced by the geologist Lyell, and also by the 3 geology volumes that Lyell published. A major idea championed by Lyell and used by Darwin was that _____________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

plants and animals on islands are more similar to plants and animals on faraway islands than they are to species on nearby continental land masses
fossil species in lower strata are larger than fossil species in younger strata, because fossils in lower strata have been compressed by high pressure
plants at lower elevations are larger than plants at higher elevations
large changes can occur in nature by small changes occurring over a long period of time

Erklärung

Frage 30 von 44

1

The theory of blending inheritance ___________________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

did not mislead Charles Darwin because by the time he published the final edition of "The Origin of Species" he was able to incorporate Mendel's ideas of independent assortment and segregation
did not confuse Darwin because he used T.H. Morgan's discovery of mutations to explain the apparent contradictions of theory of blending inheritance
led to rapid acceptance of Darwin's theory of evolution by means of natural selection
delayed acceptance of Darwin's theory of evolution by means of natural selection

Erklärung

Frage 31 von 44

1

How can the Darwinian concept of descent with modification explain the evolution of such complex structures as the vertebrate eye?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Organisms have an intrinsic drive toward a particular phenotype; once a trend has started, organisms in each generation will strive to continue to improve within the constraints of that trend
According to the concept of exaptation, structures evolve in anticipation of future use, with natural selection predicting the future usefulness of a structure: the principle of prescience
complex structures do not evolve all at once, but in increments, with natural selection selecting for adaptive variants of the earlier versions
none are correct

Erklärung

Frage 32 von 44

1

It is incorrect to say "evolution inevitably leads to increased complexity." For example, there are many examples of organisms that are simpler (less complex) than their ancestors. Examples include _______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

most plants
many parasites
humans
most insects

Erklärung

Frage 33 von 44

1

In a famous experiment, Weismann cut off the tails of 1500 rats over 20 generations, and never got rats born without tails as a result of this mutilation. His experiment supports the conclusion that _______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

evolution by means of natural selection is an error
Lamarckism is an error
life cannot arise from non-life
transmutation does not occur in animals

Erklärung

Frage 34 von 44

1

In a population in which a trait is exposed to stabilizing selection over time, ______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

neither the average nor the variation for the trait changes
both the average value and the variation for the trait increase
the average value increases or decreases, and the variation for the trait decreases
the average value for the trait stays approximately the same, and the variation for the trait decreases

Erklärung

Frage 35 von 44

1

Charles Darwin's 4 Postulates can be summarized succinctly as __________________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

variation, inheritance, overpopulation, differential survival and reproduction
mutation, reproduction, competition, chance
stasis, recombination, antagonism, random survival and reproduction
plants, animals, microorganisms, protists

Erklärung

Frage 36 von 44

1

Which one of the following statements about human races is/are correct, according to what was taught in this course?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

genetic variation among individuals within each human race is far greater than the variation between races
it is possible for 2 people of different races to be more related genetically to each other than they are to some people from their own respective race
a "white" person from Denmark may be more similar genetically to a "black" person from Sudan than to another "white" dane.
all are correct
none are correct

Erklärung

Frage 37 von 44

1

Radiometric dating is sometimes wrong by _______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

1 or 2 percent
millions of years
billions of years
2 of the above are correct

Erklärung

Frage 38 von 44

1

Why is 14C never used to date the extinction of dinosaurs?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

anything containing that isotope would have rotted away long ago
the half life of that isotope is too short
the carbon atom is much smaller than the uranium atom
argon is a gas

Erklärung

Frage 39 von 44

1

Evolutionary biologists apply evolution theories to the study of religion and morals. As demonstrated in lecture, this application of evolution theories is especially likely to involve the _______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

controversy over whether or not microevolution can produce macroevolution
Lamarckism/neo-Lamarckism distinction
group selection/individual selection debate
genetics/epigenetics distinction

Erklärung

Frage 40 von 44

1

Is it possible for an individual to have a mutation that increases its relative fitness but does not result in an increase in the number of offspring the individual produces?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

yes, if the individual's environment remains constant, unchanged
yes, if the environment changes and individuals lacking the mutation reproduce less
yes, if the mutation has no effect on the individual's phenotype
no

Erklärung

Frage 41 von 44

1

Paleobiologist George Simpson's famous analogy of ____________ is a hat containing several sets of the 26 letters of the English alphabet written on slips of paper, on letter per slip of paper. If you were to draw out letters at random, chances are poor that they would sell C, A, and T in that order. But if each time you picked a slip, you threw it away if it was not C, A, or T and returned it to the hat if it was one of those 3 letters, soon you would have mostly Cs, As, and Ts in the hat. Your chances of pulling C-A-T (in that order) would keep improving, until eventually you would draw them in the proper order

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Lamarckism
exaptation
evolution by means of natural selection

Erklärung

Frage 42 von 44

1

According to ______________, the natural habits of a creature would inevitably lead to a modification of its anatomical structure. By wading in shallow water, a bird would stretch its legs in order to keep its body above the surface, and automatically acquire longer legs. Once this addition was acquired, it would be passed on to the next generation. The lack of use of a structure would automatically lead to its shrinkage, and this too would be inherited by the successors.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Mendel
Lyell
Lamarck

Erklärung

Frage 43 von 44

1

Which one is Dobzhansky's famous and controversial quotation about evolution that is so popular among scientists?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

"Darwin was right, we'll probably figure it out in a couple million years"
"The theory of evolution by cumulative natural selection is the only theory we know of that is in principle capable of explaining the existence of organized complexity"
"Natural selection teaches use that there are many ways to die, far fewer ways to live"
"Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution"

Erklärung

Frage 44 von 44

1

There are many different parent-daughter combinations of isotopes that can be used for radiometric dating. Also, different radioisotopes decay in different ways: alpha particles, beta particles, gamma rays, etc. When the same specimen is tested using different parent-daughter combinations of isotopes, including those which decay in different ways, the results are the same. This supports _____________

Wähle eine der folgenden:

uniformitarianism as applied to the constancy of half-lives
exaptation regarding different sources of energy, whether particles or rays
the hypothesis that macroevolution can produce microevolution
the hypothesis that daughter isotopes have 2 and only 2 parents

	Erstellt von Haley Kim vor etwa 8 Jahre

Bachelors Biology (Exam #1) Quiz am Biology Exam #1 (2015), erstellt von Haley Kim am 24/04/2016.

Biology Exam #1 (2015)

Frage 1 von 44

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 2 von 44

Studies of birth weight in humans have provided good examples of selection. Babies that are heavier or lighter than average did not survive as well as babies of average weight. Human birth weight is therefore an example of ____________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 3 von 44

The structural similarities between the flipper of a dolphin and the arm of a human suggest that ______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 4 von 44

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 5 von 44

In the Scrub Jay, older siblings usually remain near the nest and assis their parents in raising a new crop of young. This behavior promotes the reproduction of their own alleles, which are present in the new crop of young birds. This behavior is an example of ______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 6 von 44

DNA changes over time. From generation to generation, both genetic and epigenetic changes occur and are passed on. Therefore, according to the "left wall of minimal complexity" hypothesis shown below

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 7 von 44

Which one of the following statements is false with regard to natural selection?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 8 von 44

"Gradually, the gene pool changes in favor of the two extreme spine number types. __________________ works against those phenotypes that fall into the midrange of values." What term is missing in the preceding sentence?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 9 von 44

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 10 von 44

Fish embryos, human embryos, and chicken embryos all have pharyngeal arches (gill slits/pharyngeal pouches) and a post-anal tail. What best explains these similarities?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 11 von 44

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 12 von 44

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 13 von 44

In order for the label "natural selection" to be correct for the illustration, there is a necessary condition that must be present in "1": ___________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 14 von 44

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 15 von 44

Which of the following is an example of Darwinian competition?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 16 von 44

Darwin found several closely related species of this animal in the Galapagos Islands, and this discovery was eventually important to his thinking about evolution by means of natural selection.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 17 von 44

How were strata dated in Charles Darwin's lifetime?

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 18 von 44

If 2 different species share a homologous structure, _______________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 19 von 44

The adaptive radiation of the dozen or so species of Darwin's Finches in the Galapagos Islands (and nearby Cocos Islands), as illustrated here, is an example of ___________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 20 von 44

Comparison of the anatomy of vertebrae forelimbs was important for Charles Darwin because the bones supported the hypothesis of _________.

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 21 von 44

Wähle eine der folgenden:

Erklärung

Frage 22 von 44

"Gradually, the gene pool changes in favor of the two extreme spine number types. __________________ works against those phenotypes that fall into the midrange of values."

What term is missing in the preceding sentence?