exam1 practice questions, Manson

Question 1

original definition of evolution by Darwin

Answer 1

descent with modification

Question 2

the key observation that explains a unifying theory of life

Answer 2

many basic characteristics are shared by all living things

Question 3

the person that the ideas of scala naturae are based upon

Answer 3

Aristotle

Question 4

the theory of the origin of plants and animals when Darwin voyaged on the HMS Beagle

Answer 4

various species were created by divine intervention a few thousand years before

Question 5

Carolus Linnaeus

Answer 5

founded the binomial classification system and thought that resemblances among different species reflected the pattern of their creation

Question 6

the idea Curvier proposed

Answer 6

catastrophism (extinctions are a common occurence)

Question 7

the idea of Lyell

Answer 7

uniformitarianism (changes in the earth have happened before and will happen again)

Question 8

Darwin’s 2 observations that founded the basis of his theory on natural selection

Answer 8

organisms within a population vary AND all populations produce more offspring than the environment can support (competition for survival)

Question 9

the idea of Malthus (economist)

Answer 9

organisms have the capacity to product more offspring than the environment can support

Question 10

the smallest unit that can evolve

Answer 10

a population

Question 11

the pattern that homologous characteristics form on an evolutionary tree

Answer 11

a nested pattern

Question 12

evidence for the hypothesis that all organisms are descended from a single common ancestor

Answer 12

all known organisms translate genetic information to produce protein molecules by the same genetic code

Question 13

the evidence from molecular biology that support the theory of evolution

Answer 13

closely related organisms have more similar DNA and proteins than more distantly related organisms

Question 14

the observation Darwin made about species on islands

Answer 14

the species are often closely related to species from the nearest mainland or neighboring islands

Question 15

the implications of describing evolution as a scientific theory (it is one btw)

Answer 15

it’s a broad model that’s supported by many observations and much experimental evidence

Question 16

in the context of populations, the definition of evolution

Answer 16

evolution is a change in a population’s allele frequencies over generations

Question 17

the things allele frequencies can be altered by

Answer 17

natural selection, gene flow, and genetic drift

Question 18

the mechanism that can form entirely new alleles

Answer 18

mutation

Question 19

the type of mutation that plays the most important role in increasing the number of genes in the gene pool

Answer 19

duplication

Question 20

the importance of neutral variation in evolution

Answer 20

neutral variation increases genetic variation, allowing a population to carry more alleles that may help it respond to environmental change

Question 21

what the 1 represents in the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium

Answer 21

the sum of the frequencies of the genotypes for a particular gene locus

Question 22

the set of conditions required for Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium

Answer 22

random mating, no natural selection, and a large population

Question 23

the most accurate measure of an organism’s fitness

Answer 23

how many fertile offspring it produces

Question 24

the myrtle warbler and Audubon’s warbler used to be identified as different species that lived side by side in parts of their ranges. but recent books have identified them as eastern and western forms of a single species. what is this an example of?

Answer 24

successful interbreeding and the production of fertile offspring

Question 24

when gene flow between 2 populations exist, the potential for what exists?

Answer 24

speciation

Question 25

at which point in the adaptation of a population is it clear that speciation has occurred?

Answer 25

gene pool changes establish reproductive barriers between 2 populations

Question 26

what prezygotic barriers prevent

Answer 26

the fertilization of gametes from members of closely related species

Question 27

the reproductive barrier that prevents individuals of closely related species from copulating successfully

Answer 27

mechanical isolation

Question 28

the condition necessary for speciation to occur

Answer 28

reproductive isolation

Question 29

the evolutionary mechanism that doesn't contribute to the process of allopatric speciation

Answer 29

gene flow

Question 30

a new species is produced by allopolyploidy from 2 parental species that are 2n=4 and 2n=8. how many chromosomes are expected in the somatic cells of the new species

Answer 30

12 (n=2, n=4, 2+4=6, 2n=12)

Question 31

the reason why a new species can arise in a single generation

Answer 31

a change in the chromosome number that creates a reproductive barrier

Question 32

factors tending to lead to reinforcement in hybrid zones

Answer 32

hybrid breakdown, reduced hybrid fertility and viability, and sexual selection

Question 33

the tempo of evolution according to the punctuated equilibrium model of evolution

Answer 33

abrupt episodes of speciation among long periods of equilibrium (usually leading to extinction)

Question 34

the first things that must occur in order for speciation to occur

Answer 34

the interruption of gene flow between populations (they need to be reproductively isolated)

Question 35

the number of genes that must change in order to form a new species

Answer 35

no set number (genetic and environmental factors interact)

Question 36

the time interval between speciation events

Answer 36

depends on generation times, causes of speciation (reproductive isolation), environmental factors, and chance

Question 37

the usefulness of a four-stage hypothesis for the abiotic origin of life

Answer 37

it leads to predictions that can be tested

Question 38

the gas that early atmosphere Earth lacked

Answer 38

oxygen

Question 39

the gases scientists existed on early Earth's atmosphere

Answer 39

nitrogen, water, carbon dioxide, ammonia, methane, and hydrogen

Question 40

the Miller and Urey abiotic synthesis experiment

Answer 40

simple organic molecules can form spontaneously under conditions like those thought to prevail early in Earth's history

Question 41

the rudimentary qualities necessary for life that abiotically produced vesicles displayed

Answer 41

the ability to perform simple reproduction and metabolism

Question 42

the first self-replicating molecules

Answer 42

RNA

Question 43

the importance of ancient cyanobacteria to the history of life

Answer 43

they produced atmospheric oxygen

Question 44

the prokaryotic adaptation that occurred during the oxygen revolution and opened up the possibility for energy-demanding multicellular life-forms

Answer 44

cellular respiration

Question 45

the evidence that supports the hypothesis that mitochondria and plastids evolved from prokaryotic endosymbiosis

Answer 45

they have a single circular chromosome similar to bacterial chromosomes and their ribosomes are more like prokaryotic than eukaryotic ribosomes

Question 46

the 2 major problems that had to be solved before plants, animals, and fungi could fully move into terrestrial habitats

Answer 46

reproduction and prevention of dehydration

Question 47

how the breakup of Pangea affected evolution

Answer 47

the geographic isolation of populations that had previously coexisted led to speciation

Question 48

the events adaptive radiation are often seen after

Answer 48

major new evolutionary adaptations and mass extinctions

Question 49

how continental drift affects speciation

Answer 49

the joining of previously separated habitats can produce hybrid zones or establish competition between previously isolated populations, the breaking apart of landmasses promotes allopatric speciation, the climate change, the closing of an ocean basin can be a loss of habitat that wipes out species

Question 50

the gene whose mutations were responsible for many changes leading to the great diversity of life

Answer 50

developmental genes

Question 51

the things products of Hox genes provide

Answer 51

positional information in animal embroys

Question 52

the analytical approach to understanding the diversity and relatedness of extant and extinct organisms

Answer 52

systematics

Question 53

the focus of taxonomy

Answer 53

the classification of life-forms by their similarities and differences

Question 54

taxon

Answer 54

a formal grouping at any given level

Question 55

what a branch point in a phylogenetic tree represents

Answer 55

a point at which 2 evolutionary lineages split from a common ancestor

Question 56

what researchers use molecular homologies to reveal

Answer 56

the number of mutations in a particular sequence that occurred in each species since they diverged from a common ancestor

Question 57

the requirements of the most parsimonious tree

Answer 57

the fewest evolutionary events to have occurred in the form of shared derived characteristics

Question 58

what paralogous genes result from

Answer 58

gene duplication

Question 59

the evolutionary significance of paralogous genes

Answer 59

they increase the size of the genome and provide more opportunity for the evolution of novel characteristics

Question 60

the evolutionary significance of orthologous genes

Answer 60

the high percentage of orthologous genes found in vastly different organisms emphasizes the many biochemical and developmental pathways shared by all organisms

Question 61

an optimal way to get reliable results for an evolutionary clock

Answer 61

use as many genes as possible, sot that fluctuations in evolutionary rates will average out

Question 62

the basic assumption on which phylogenetic trees are based upon that has most likely been violated during the history of life

Answer 62

genes are passed vertically from one generation to the next