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GCSE Science Edexcel 2016 Onwards > Biology - Topic 4 - Natural Selection and Genetic Modification > Flashcards

Biology - Topic 4 - Natural Selection and Genetic Modification Flashcards

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1
Q

What is this a definition of: ‘A group of organisms that can reproduce with one another, producing offspring that can also reproduce’?

A

species

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2
Q

What is the scientific name for the modern human species?

A

Homo sapiens

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3
Q

From what type of creature are modern humans thought to have evolved?

A

apes

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4
Q

What are the remains of organisms that have been turned into rock called?

A

fossils

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5
Q

Sedimentary rock exists in layers, one of top of another. Which layers are the youngest?

A

upper (top) layers

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6
Q

Which substance did early human-like animals make tools out of?

A

wood, stone

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7
Q

Why do we only find the stone tools now?

A

the wooden ones have rotted away

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8
Q

Which of these three species is most closely related to modern humans and how can you tell:
Homo habilis
Australopithecus afarensis
Ardipithecus ramidus ?

A

Homo habilis, because the first word of its scientific name is the same as that of modern humans.

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9
Q

On which continent are the oldest human-like fossils found?

A

Africa

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10
Q

What is this a definition of: ‘A gradual change in the characteristics of a species over time’?

A

evolution

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11
Q

Where does the evidence come from that humans evolved?

A

fossils, stone tools

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12
Q

Over how many years can scientists trace human evolution?

A

4-5 million years

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13
Q

Name one trend that has occurred in the bodies of human-like species as they have evolved over millions of years.

A

walking upright, feet with short toes, larger brains, flatter faces, taller skulls, etc.

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14
Q

What are the differences in characteristics between two organisms called?

A

variation

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15
Q

Suggest one reason why polar bears are better adapted than black bears to living in the Arctic.

A

they are white and so can avoid being seen against the snow by their prey

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16
Q

What is the name of the scientist who is most well known for developing a theory about evolution?

A

Charles Darwin

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17
Q

Some scientists think that a species called Homo heidelbergensis evolved into both Homo neanderthalensis and Homo sapiens. What is a species that evolves into two species like this called?

A

common ancestor

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18
Q

What do we call the system of scientific naming for organisms?

A

binomial system

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19
Q

Suggest the environmental change that resulted in the evolution of African elephants’ large ears

A

increase in temperature

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20
Q

Suggest the environmental change that resulted in the evolution of woolly mammoths’ hairiness

A

decrease in temperature

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21
Q

A certain population of animals evolved long legs over a long period of time. Is this more likely to be due to an increase or decrease in the number of predators?

A

increase

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22
Q

What process does Darwin’s theory use to explain how evolution occurs?

A

natural selection

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23
Q

The binomial name for the African bush elephant is Loxodonta africana. What genus does it belong to?

A

Loxodonta

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24
Q

What is the name of the other person who came up with the idea of evolution by natural selection at the same time as Darwin?

A

Alfred Russel Wallace

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25
Q

Suggest one way in which the limbs of gorillas, whales and bats are similar.

A

They all have five fingers; they all have a pentadactyl structure

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26
Q

What is the name of the type of limb that humans have?

A

pentadactyl

27
Q

Which of these organisms does not have a pentadactyl limb: dog, penguin, frog, fly?

A

fly

28
Q

How many ‘fingers’ does a pentadactyl limb have?

A

five

29
Q

How did Darwin and Wallace work together to tell other scientists about their ideas?

A

they published a scientific paper

30
Q

One branch of biology that has developed thanks to Darwin and Wallace’s theory is the study of genes. What is this branch of biology called?

A

genetics

31
Q

Elephants belong to the animal kingdom. What other kingdoms are there?

A

plants, fungi, protists/protoctists, bacteria (prokaryotes)

32
Q

State one way in which the cells of bacteria are different to those of animals, plants, fungi and protists.

A

They have no nucleus/mitochondria/organelles. They have plasmids. They don’t have chromosomes (instead they have a loop of chromosomal DNA).

33
Q

Cattle, wheat and mushrooms are all farmed. What kingdoms do they belong to?

A

cattle – animals; wheat – plants; mushrooms – fungi

34
Q

The scientific name for cattle is Bos taurus. What genus do they belong to?

A

Bos

35
Q

What domain do Bos mutus (wild yaks) and Bos taurus (cattle) belong to?

A

Eukarya

36
Q

What are the features of the Eukarya domain?

A

They have nuclei/mitochondria in their cells.

37
Q

Name the other two domains.

A

Bacteria, Archaea.

38
Q

The three-domain system was developed because while Archaea looked like bacteria/ prokaryotes they had other characteristics more like plants and animals. What were these other characteristics?

A

They have genes containing unused sections of DNA.

39
Q

There are about 800 different types of farm cattle that all belong to the same species. What is the name for different types of the same species of animal?

A

breeds

40
Q

What is the name for different types of the same species of plant?

A

varieties

41
Q

Which term describes a group of similar cells that together carry out a particular function?

A

tissue

42
Q

Does asexual reproduction produce offspring that are genetically different or identical?

A

identical

43
Q

Which form of reproduction happens when you take cuttings of a plant to make new plants?

A

asexual reproduction

44
Q

What is the name of the process in which individuals are chosen to be bred together in order to develop a new breed or variety with useful characteristics?

A

selective breeding

45
Q

Which process inserts a gene for a particular characteristic into another organism so that it produces that characteristic?

A

genetic engineering / modification

46
Q

Which term means to grow new cells or tissues from tiny pieces of plant or animal tissue?

A

tissue culture

47
Q

What term describes humans choosing certain organisms because they have useful characteristics?

A

artificial selection

48
Q

Give an example of a species of animal that has been produced by selective breeding.

A

dogs, cows, sheep etc

49
Q

What word describes all the DNA in an organism?

A

genome

50
Q

What three-letter abbreviation is given to organisms that have been genetically engineered?

A

GMO

51
Q

What word describes the amount of useful product that can be obtained from a farmed plant or animal?

A

yield

52
Q

Suggest a characteristic that would be useful in a new variety of lettuce.

A

e.g. better taste, quicker growing, greater yield, disease resistance

53
Q

Suggest a characteristic that would be useful in a new breed of sheep.

A

e.g. leaner meat, quicker growing, greater yield, disease resistance, ability to withstand certain conditions, more wool

54
Q

What name is given to the small circles of genetic material in a bacterium that are separate from the bacterial chromosome?

A

plasmids

55
Q

Which term describes bacteria that are no longer affected by antibiotics?

A

resistant

56
Q

Why are organisms genetically modified?

A

to produce a new useful characteristic

57
Q

Why can a gene from one kind of organism produce the characteristic it codes for in a different organism?

A

Genes work in the same way in all organisms

58
Q

What do we call a diagram of the feeding relationships of many organisms that live in an area?

A

food web

59
Q

What do producer organisms do that consumers do not?

A

make their own food

60
Q

Which process do plants use to transfer energy from light to sugars in their cells?

A

photosynthesis

61
Q

What are crop plants?

A

plants grown to give useful product, e.g. food

62
Q

How does the Bt gene from Bacillus thuringiensis make GM plants resistant to caterpillars?

A

It produces Bt toxin, which kills caterpillars.

63
Q

What term describes growing crops and rearing animals for useful products?

A

agriculture

64
Q

Why are fertilisers used on crops?

A

so they grow well/to increase yield

GCSE Science Edexcel 2016 Onwards (11 decks)

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