Biology - Topic 4 - Natural Selection and Genetic Modification Flashcards
What is this a definition of: ‘A group of organisms that can reproduce with one another, producing offspring that can also reproduce’?
species
What is the scientific name for the modern human species?
Homo sapiens
From what type of creature are modern humans thought to have evolved?
apes
What are the remains of organisms that have been turned into rock called?
fossils
Sedimentary rock exists in layers, one of top of another. Which layers are the youngest?
upper (top) layers
Which substance did early human-like animals make tools out of?
wood, stone
Why do we only find the stone tools now?
the wooden ones have rotted away
Which of these three species is most closely related to modern humans and how can you tell:
Homo habilis
Australopithecus afarensis
Ardipithecus ramidus ?
Homo habilis, because the first word of its scientific name is the same as that of modern humans.
On which continent are the oldest human-like fossils found?
Africa
What is this a definition of: ‘A gradual change in the characteristics of a species over time’?
evolution
Where does the evidence come from that humans evolved?
fossils, stone tools
Over how many years can scientists trace human evolution?
4-5 million years
Name one trend that has occurred in the bodies of human-like species as they have evolved over millions of years.
walking upright, feet with short toes, larger brains, flatter faces, taller skulls, etc.
What are the differences in characteristics between two organisms called?
variation
Suggest one reason why polar bears are better adapted than black bears to living in the Arctic.
they are white and so can avoid being seen against the snow by their prey
What is the name of the scientist who is most well known for developing a theory about evolution?
Charles Darwin
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?
common ancestor
What do we call the system of scientific naming for organisms?
binomial system
Suggest the environmental change that resulted in the evolution of African elephants’ large ears
increase in temperature
Suggest the environmental change that resulted in the evolution of woolly mammoths’ hairiness
decrease in temperature
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?
increase
What process does Darwin’s theory use to explain how evolution occurs?
natural selection
The binomial name for the African bush elephant is Loxodonta africana. What genus does it belong to?
Loxodonta
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?
Alfred Russel Wallace
Suggest one way in which the limbs of gorillas, whales and bats are similar.
They all have five fingers; they all have a pentadactyl structure
What is the name of the type of limb that humans have?
pentadactyl
Which of these organisms does not have a pentadactyl limb: dog, penguin, frog, fly?
fly
How many ‘fingers’ does a pentadactyl limb have?
five
How did Darwin and Wallace work together to tell other scientists about their ideas?
they published a scientific paper
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?
genetics
Elephants belong to the animal kingdom. What other kingdoms are there?
plants, fungi, protists/protoctists, bacteria (prokaryotes)
State one way in which the cells of bacteria are different to those of animals, plants, fungi and protists.
They have no nucleus/mitochondria/organelles. They have plasmids. They don’t have chromosomes (instead they have a loop of chromosomal DNA).
Cattle, wheat and mushrooms are all farmed. What kingdoms do they belong to?
cattle – animals; wheat – plants; mushrooms – fungi
The scientific name for cattle is Bos taurus. What genus do they belong to?
Bos
What domain do Bos mutus (wild yaks) and Bos taurus (cattle) belong to?
Eukarya
What are the features of the Eukarya domain?
They have nuclei/mitochondria in their cells.
Name the other two domains.
Bacteria, Archaea.
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?
They have genes containing unused sections of DNA.
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?
breeds
What is the name for different types of the same species of plant?
varieties
Which term describes a group of similar cells that together carry out a particular function?
tissue
Does asexual reproduction produce offspring that are genetically different or identical?
identical
Which form of reproduction happens when you take cuttings of a plant to make new plants?
asexual reproduction
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?
selective breeding
Which process inserts a gene for a particular characteristic into another organism so that it produces that characteristic?
genetic engineering / modification
Which term means to grow new cells or tissues from tiny pieces of plant or animal tissue?
tissue culture
What term describes humans choosing certain organisms because they have useful characteristics?
artificial selection
Give an example of a species of animal that has been produced by selective breeding.
dogs, cows, sheep etc
What word describes all the DNA in an organism?
genome
What three-letter abbreviation is given to organisms that have been genetically engineered?
GMO
What word describes the amount of useful product that can be obtained from a farmed plant or animal?
yield
Suggest a characteristic that would be useful in a new variety of lettuce.
e.g. better taste, quicker growing, greater yield, disease resistance
Suggest a characteristic that would be useful in a new breed of sheep.
e.g. leaner meat, quicker growing, greater yield, disease resistance, ability to withstand certain conditions, more wool
What name is given to the small circles of genetic material in a bacterium that are separate from the bacterial chromosome?
plasmids
Which term describes bacteria that are no longer affected by antibiotics?
resistant
Why are organisms genetically modified?
to produce a new useful characteristic
Why can a gene from one kind of organism produce the characteristic it codes for in a different organism?
Genes work in the same way in all organisms
What do we call a diagram of the feeding relationships of many organisms that live in an area?
food web
What do producer organisms do that consumers do not?
make their own food
Which process do plants use to transfer energy from light to sugars in their cells?
photosynthesis
What are crop plants?
plants grown to give useful product, e.g. food
How does the Bt gene from Bacillus thuringiensis make GM plants resistant to caterpillars?
It produces Bt toxin, which kills caterpillars.
What term describes growing crops and rearing animals for useful products?
agriculture
Why are fertilisers used on crops?
so they grow well/to increase yield
