Exam 3 questions Flashcards
In which game are players strategies fixed?
- Hawk-Dove
- Tit for Tat
- Prisoner’s Dilemma
- Raider’s Dilemma
Hawk-Dove
A species interaction in which two organisms live in close association with each other is:
- Symbiosis
- Mutualism
- Cooperation
- Holobiont
Symbiosis
If you were playing Tit-for-Tat, and your partner cheated, what would be your next move and why?
- Betray, because you are “provocable”
- Betray, because you forgive
- Cooperate, because you forgive
- Cooperate, because you are “provocable”
Betray, because you are “provocable”
Calculate relatedness in a diploid system of an offspring to their paternal aunt:
- 0.050
- 0.250
- 0.125
- 0.350
0.250
Eusociality is always driven by a haplodiploid genetic system.
- True
- False
False
In a haplodiploid system, calculate the relatedness of a son to a maternal aunt.
- 0.25
- 0.375
- 0.5
- 0.75
0.375
If the Geographic Mosaic of Co-evolution is occurring, what would you expect to see when you looked at populations of two interacting species:
- All populations act as parasites at all times
- All populations are acting as mutualists at one point in time, and all populations are acting as parasites at the next point in time
- At any given point in time some populations are acting as mutualists, and some populations are acting as parasites
- All populations act as mutualists at all times
At any given point in time some populations are acting as mutualists, and some populations are acting as parasites
Co-evolution can be driven by:
- Antagonistic interactions
- Neutral interactions
- Both antagonistic and mutualistic interactions
- Mutualistic interactions
Both antagonistic and mutualistic interactions
In a haplodiploid system, calculate a) the relatedness of a maternal aunt (sister to the mother) to a focal daughter , b) the relatedness of a paternal aunt (sister to the father) to a focal daughter , and c) determine which aunt (answer maternal or paternal) is most likely to help raise the focal daughter .
A. 0.375 B. 0.25 C. Maternal
Is the following statement true or false about Evolutionary Stable Strategies (ESS)? ESS can be beaten when it is a common strategy and a new strategy enters the system.
- True
- False
False
When is Hamilton’s Rule NOT likely to be true?
- Relatedness is low
- Relatedness is high
- Costs of altruism to the altruist are low
- Benefits of altruism to the recipient are high
Relatedness is low
What type of mutualism do ectomycorrhizal fungi and plant roots have?
- Defensive mutualism
- Trophic mutualism
- Dispersive mutualism
Trophic mutualism
In game theory, which of the following makes the “prisoner’s dilemma” game different from the “hawk-dove” game?
- Identifies an optimal strategy
- Strategies are fixed
- Strategies are dynamic (not fixed)
Strategies are dynamic (not fixed)
True or False. HOX genes within a species rapidly acquire and fix mutations each generation to ensure the greatest phenotypic diversity and responsiveness to dynamic external conditions.
False
The characteristics identified in the figure are examples of
- homeotic transformations
- evo–devo.
- homeobox genes.
- ontogeny.
homeotic transformations.
According to the two major discoveries of evolutionary biology which of the following are true?
- Small genetic changes can have big phenotypic consequences
- Regulation of the expression of genes involved in development rarely affect phenotype
- Genetic changes that alter protein sequence(s) are generally beneficial
- Highly phenotypically distinct organisms show incredible levels of functional conservation in gene products that direct development
- None of the available answers
Small genetic changes can have big phenotypic consequences
Highly phenotypically distinct organisms show incredible levels of functional conservation in gene products that direct development
MADS-box genes affect
- segmentation in animals.
- lateral lines in fish.
- fruit fly development.
- plant leaves, roots, and flowers.
plant leaves, roots, and flowers.
Which of the following cell types would you expect to be totipotent?
- blood stem cells that can become various types of blood cells
- germ line cells
- embryonic cells early in development
- brain cells
embryonic cells early in development
Based on the Davidson and Erwin paper that we read in class, match the gene regulatory network component with the correct description A.) Kernals B.)Plug-Ins C.) Differentiation gene batteries
Small subcircuits of the GRN that have been repeatedly coopted to diverse developmental purposes.
evolutionarily inflexible subcircuits that perform essential upstream functions in building given body parts.
protein coding genes under common regulatory control, the products of which execute cell type-specific functions.
Kernels - evolutionarily inflexible subcircuits that perform essential upstream functions in building given body parts.
Plug-ins - Small subcircuits of the GRN that have been repeatedly coopted to diverse developmental purposes.
Differentiation gene batteries - protein coding genes under common regulatory control, the products of which execute cell type-specific functions.
Based on the Davidson and Erwin paper that we read in class, is it true that the most frequent and least constrained kinds of change will occur in the peripheral regions of the “gene regulatory netowrk” (i.e., within differentiation gene batteries themselves and the apparatus that controls their deployment)?
- True
- False
True
Evolution of Darwin’s finches and their beaks
Date:February 11, 2015
Source:Uppsala University
Darwin’s finches are a classical example of an adaptive radiation. Their common ancestor arrived on the Galapagos about two million years ago. During the time that has passed the Darwin’s finches have evolved into 15 recognized species differing in body size, beak shape, song and feeding behaviour. Changes in the size and form of the beak have enabled different species to utilize different food resources such us insects, seeds, nectar from cactus flowers as well as blood from iguanas, all driven by Darwinian selection.
“We have now sequenced 120 birds including all known species of Darwin’s finches, as well as two closely related species in order to study their evolutionary history,” explains Sangeet Lamichhaney PhD student and shared first author on the paper. Multiple individuals of each species were analyzed and for some species birds from up to six different islands were sampled to study variation within and between islands.
One important insight was that gene flow between species has played a prominent role throughout the evolutionary history of the Darwin’s finches. The scientists could even trace clear signs of hybridization between a warbler finch and the common ancestor of tree and ground finches that must have occurred about a million year ago.
The most striking phenotypic diversity among the Darwin’s finches is the variation in the size and shape of the beaks. Charles Darwin was struck by this biological diversity, and compared it with the variety he was accustomed to among European birds such as the hawfinch, the chaffinch and warblers, as documented in his book “The Voyage of The Beagle.” The team investigated the genetic basis for variation in beak shape by comparing two species with blunt beaks and two species with pointed beaks. Fifteen regions of the genome stood out as being very different in this contrast, and as many as six of these contained genes that previously have been associated with craniofacial and/or beak development.
“The most exciting and significant finding was that genetic variation in the ALX1 gene is associated with variation in beak shape not only between species of Darwin’s finches but also among individuals of one of them, the medium ground finch,” explains Leif Andersson, Uppsala University, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences and Texas A&M University, who led the study.
“This is a very exciting discovery for us since we have previously shown that beak shape in the medium ground finch has undergone a rapid evolution in response to environmental changes. Now we know that hybridization mixes the different variants of an important gene, ALX1,” says Rosemary Grant.
The ALX1 gene codes for a transcription factor with a crucial role for normal craniofacial development in vertebrates, and mutations that inactivate this gene cause severe birth defects including frontonasal dysplasia in humans.
“This is an interesting example where mild mutations in a gene that is critical for normal development leads to phenotypic evolution,” comments Leif Andersson.
“I would not be surprised if it turns out that mutations with minor or minute effects on ALX1 function or expression contribute to the bewildering facial diversity among humans,” says Leif Andersson.
- Polymorphisms in ALX1 giving rise to adaptive beak morphologies have occurred prior to the emergence of reproductive isolating mechanisms
- Gene duplication in ALX1 resulted in an expansion of the gene regulatory network involved in beak morphologies
- ALX1 is a likely a ‘kernel’-level component of the gene regulatory network involved in beak morphology
- ALX1 is likely present in all finches
Polymorphisms in ALX1 giving rise to adaptive beak morphologies have occurred prior to the emergence of reproductive isolating mechanisms
ALX1 is likely present in all finches
Which of the following is not true about the field of Evo Devo (aka Evolutionary Developmental Biology)
- Evo devo has discovered extensive similarities in gene regulation among distantly related species with fundamentally different body plans
- Evo Devo utilizes a population genetic approach to studying evolution
- Evo Devo investigates the evolution of the genetic machinery of development
- A large part of Evo Devo research is focused on the evolution of genetic toolkits
Evo Devo utilizes a population genetic approach to studying evolution
True or False: Modern evolutionary biologists still accept Haeckel’s “Biogenetic Law” from the mid-1800s that claims developing animal embryos undergo a chronological replay of their species’ past evolutionary forms (ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny) and that evolution only occurs on features that manifest in the later developmental stages.
False
In the field of Evo Devo, biologists have discovered strong conservation of gene order and coding DNA sequence in certain gene families involved in development (e.g., HOX genes) among widely divergent taxonomic groups (e.g., fishes vs. birds). The conservation of these genes is due to which of the following:.
- strong pleiotropic effects associated with changes in these developmental genes
- weak pleiotropic effects associated with changes in these developmental genes
- no pleiotropic effects associated with changes in these developmental genes
strong pleiotropic effects associated with changes in these developmental genes
