weeks 4-6

Question 1

what is an SNP

Answer 1

single nucleotide polymorphism

Question 2

what is assortative mating and what are its implications

Answer 2

‘like mates with like’ - can result in inbreeding, reduces geneotypic diversity, increased homozygosity, however, with selection , it can be a driver of speciation

Question 3

what is disassortative mating

Answer 3

where ‘opposites attract’ - can increase genetic diversity and heterozygosity

Question 4

what is polyandry vs polygyny

Answer 4

polyandry is where a female mates with multiple males while polygyny is where a male mates with multiple females

Question 5

what is delta p (and how do you calculate it)

Answer 5

the change in f(A) (the frequency of an allele in the resident population after one generation of migration. = m (x-p) where x is f(a) of migrants, p is f(a) of residents. the new allele is equal to the original p, plus delta p.

Question 6

methods of speciation

Answer 6

pre-mating isolation (including geographical isolation and behavioural isolation), pre-zygotic isolation (including mating time differences and ecological differences) and post-zygotic isolation (production of inviable offspring)

Question 7

what is selective sweep

Answer 7

a rapid increase in the frequency of a favourable allele before recombination disrupts the region of DNA - a favourable trait will reduce the variation of neutral genes surrounding it

Question 8

what is phylogeography

Answer 8

considers geographic distributions through fossil records and other evidence

Question 9

why is food said to have negative entrophy

Answer 9

because while living organisms act like the “devil” in the entropy chamber example, using the ‘information’ of other molecules to control their movement to do work, they are not 100% efficient with this and therefore require energy - which comes from food (which therefore restores entropy)

Question 10

what is the basal metabolic rate

Answer 10

measures when the organism is not moving or digesting, in its thermoneutral zone, in its inactive phase, an adult, and not reproducing - minimal metabolic activity

Question 11

what is the standard metabolic rate

Answer 11

the measure of the baseline metabolic rates of a heterotherm, when it is not moving or digesting, at a known temperature, its inactive phase, an adult, not reproducing

Question 12

what is a homeotherm/endotherm

Answer 12

constant body temp (does not change with environment)

Question 13

what is resting metabolic rate

Answer 13

another form of the standard metabolic rate, however the organism doesn’t need to be an adult, in its inactive phase, or not reproducing - used in humans

Question 14

what is the field metabolic rate

Answer 14

measured for an organism in the wild, takes into account all the energy requirements of the organism when it is active, and can be measured with ‘double labelled water’ (inject with isotopic water, and take blood samples later to determine how much of the water has been metabolised)

Question 15

what is the thermoneutral zone of an organism

Answer 15

the temperature range where it does not need to expend energy to maintain body temp

Question 16

do smaller or larger animals have higher metabolic rate per body mass

Answer 16

smaller

Question 17

how to calculate metabolic rate

Answer 17

M = aW^b where W is body weight and b= 3/4

Question 18

what is the ontogeny of an organism

Answer 18

its origination and development and includes feeding, assimilation (digestion), growth, maintenance, development and reproduction

Question 19

what is Q10

Answer 19

the amount that the metabolic rate of an organism increases with a 10 degree temperature rise

Question 20

what are the hard vs soft temperature limits of an organism

Answer 20

hard are the temperatures that the organism will die at, while soft are where the organism will survive, but will be unable to produce offspring at a rate higher than the rate of death in the population

Question 21

what is poikilothermic

Answer 21

a organism that has a variable temperature (typically the same as the environment that they are in)

Question 22

what is torpor

Answer 22

how some mammals can drop their body temperature by slowing down their metabolic processes

Question 23

difference between a cue and a signal

Answer 23

a signal is deliberately produced to communicate to other organisms while a cue inadvertently provides it to the receiver

Question 24

batesian mimicry

Answer 24

where the mimic (organism) resembles a noxious or dangerous model and therefore avoids predation

Question 25

mullerian mimicry

Answer 25

where two or more species have similar antipredator traits and similar warming signals, but dont share an immediate common ancestor

Question 26

why are gametes in sexually reproducing organisms dimorphic

Answer 26

as if they had they had the same structures, ligands and receptors, then they would activate their own receptors

Question 27

what is facultative parthenogenesis

Answer 27

allows females to produce viable eggs irrespective of whether mating has taken place

Question 28

what is hermaphroditism

Answer 28

where an organism has complete or partial reproductive organs and produce gametes normally associated with both male and female sexes (meaning they just need to find another individual, not another individual of the opposite sex)

Question 29

what are eusocial insects

Answer 29

they take part in extremely cooperative care (care of the young involves more than just the mother)