History and Nature of Science

Question 1

Select all of the following that are true about natural selection.

Answer 1

• reproductive success of individuals differs

- occurs due to variation in environmental factors

Question 2

Selection of dairy cows that produce more milk for human consumption is an example of ___ selection, and selection of light-colored moths over dark0colored moths by a bird predator is an example of ___ selection.

Answer 2

artificial; natural

Question 3

If humans are involved in perpetuating desired traits in organisms, the result is

Answer 3

artificial selection

Question 4

How did natural selection shape the evolution of finches on the Galapagos Islands?

Answer 4

Birds with different heritable differences were able to better survive and reproduce in different habitats.

Question 5

The shortened title of the book that Charles Darwin published in 1859 was

Answer 5

On the Origin of Species

Question 6

Charles Darwin’s book titled On the Origin of Species proposed ___ as an evolutionary mechanism.

Answer 6

natural selection

Question 7

Select observations and inferences that Charles Darwin made in support of natural selection.

Answer 7

• There is competition among individuals for limited resources.
• Some individuals survive due to their inherited characteristics, making them more likely to reproduce.
• Natural selection can change the characteristics of a population over many generations.
• Organisms are varied and some variations are inherited.
• More individuals are born than can survive to reproduce.

Question 8

The modern evolutionary synthesis connects natural selection and

Answer 8

genetic variation that arises by mutation

Question 9

The only way that new genetic variants arise is through ___, which is the raw material of evolution.

Answer 9

mutation

Question 10

What increases genetic variability within a species through shuffling and reshuffling of parental alleles to produce genetically different offspring?

Answer 10

sexual reproduction

Question 11

The entire collection of the genes and their alleles in a population is called the gene ___.

Answer 11

pool

Question 12

Buffon

Answer 12

Closely related species arise from a common ancestor and are changing.

Question 13

Lyell

Answer 13

Natural process are slow and steady, and the Earth is much older than 6,000 years.

Question 14

Darwin

Answer 14

Variation exists in a population and new species arise when natural selection acts on the variation.

Question 15

Lamarck

Answer 15

Repeated use of a body part increases an organism’s abilities, and this change during a lifetime passes to the next generation.

Question 16

___ is defined as a change in allele frequencies in a population over time.

Answer 16

Evolution

Question 17

Darwin reasoned that the variety of finch species found on the Galapagos Islands descended from a common ancestor. He used the phrase “descent with ___” to describe gradual genetic changes from the ancestral type.

Answer 17

modification

Question 18

Select all of the reasonings of Charles Darwin that were influenced by Thomas Malthus’s essay.

Answer 18

• More individuals are born into a population than the habitat can support.
• Some individuals in a population are better able to obtain resources than others.
• There is variation in a population.

Question 19

Changes in allele frequencies in a population or species that occur over a relatively short time rather than millions of years is an example of

Answer 19

microevolution

Question 20

To calculate an allele frequency, you should divide the number of copies of that allele by the

Answer 20

total number of alleles in the population

Question 21

Select the statements about Charles Darwin that are correct.

Answer 21

• Darwin studied similarities and differences among organisms and related them to geological observations.
• Darwin proposed that natural selection could give rise to new species over time.

Question 22

Inbreeding members of the same species compose a ___.

Answer 22

population

Question 23

The appearance of a new species of oak tree would be called a(n) ___ event.

Answer 23

macroevolutionary

Question 24

A(n) ___ does not evolve because alleles do not change; however, a(n) ___ can evolve because allele frequencies can change.

Answer 24

individual; population

Question 25

Charles Darwin consulted John Gould about the birds that he had collected on the Galapagos Islands. Gould identified 13 distinct types of finches based on the birds’

Answer 25

bills

Question 26

Descent with modification refers to

Answer 26

evolution

Question 27

Select all of the following that Charles Darwin observed during his voyage on the Beagle.

Answer 27

• forest plant fossils mixed in with ocean sediments
• land altered by forces, such as earthquakes and erosion
• plants and animals on the Galapagos Islands

Question 28

Fossils present in ___ layers of rock are older.

Answer 28

lower

Question 29

As evolutionary theory was being developed prior to the mid-1700s, what fossil evidence conflicted with the idea that the diversity of life was due to creation?

Answer 29

• Fossils showed that species were extinct.
• Different layers of rock contained different groups of fossilized organisms.
• Fossils depicted organisms never seen before.

Question 30

Select all the ideas that were considered fundamental principles in explaining the diversity of life before the late 1800s.

Answer 30

• Organisms arose by special creation and did not change.

- Members of a particular species are identical in form and capacity.

Question 31

Which two of the following was Charles Darwin not able to explain or understand with respect to his ideas on natural selection as a force of evolution?

Answer 31

• the source of variation within populations

- how heritable traits were passed from one generation to the next

Question 32

Select all the correct examples of artificial selection.

Answer 32

• Darwin raised and developed several breeds of pigeons using artificial selection.
• Broccoli, cauliflower, and kale were created by artificial selection of wild mustard.

Question 33

What did Darwin’s ideas suggest about humans, which was hard for some people at the time to accept?

Answer 33

Humans are just another species subject to natural selection.

Question 34

What scientist believed that an organism passed the abilities it increased during its lifetime to the next generation?

Answer 34

Lamarck

Question 35

On what islands did Darwin spend five weeks gathering observations that would later shape his ideas about natural selection and evolution?

Answer 35

Galapagos Islands

Question 36

Whose essay, describing how factors limit human population size, influenced Charles Darwin’s ideas about variation and survival among individuals in a population?

Answer 36

Thomas Malthus

Question 37

Independently of Charles Darwin, what other scientist proposed natural selection as a driving force for evolution?

Answer 37

Alfred Wallace

Question 38

Hawaiian honeycreepers are birds that are found on the Hawaiian Islands. These birds have a common ancestor and have developed a variety of adaptations to help them exploit the many resources on the islands. The diversity of honeycreepers is a result of

Answer 38

evolution

Question 39

In a population of 1,000 individuals with a gene that has two alleles, there are 2,000 alleles total for this gene. If there are 800 copies of allele a, what is the frequency of allele a in the population?

Answer 39

0.4

Question 40

Charles Darwin was the first to attempt to explain how the diversity of life arose.

Answer 40

False

Question 41

Gregor Mendel’s main contribution was to solve the puzzle of

Answer 41

how traits are inherited