Question 1

List five mechanisms by which gene frequencies in a population can be altered. Describe each briefly.

Accepted Answer

Gene frequencies can be altered by mutat

Question 2

One solution to the problem of species extinction is captive breeding in zoos and gardens. What are some of the problems associated with this solution?

Accepted Answer

The resulting population, beca

Question 3

The term "natural selection" is not interchangeable with the term "evolution" because:

Accepted Answer

A)  natural selection is just a theory, whereas evolution has been proven. 
B)  a population may evolve in ways other than through natural selection. 
C)  Darwin coined the term "natural selection," but not "evolution." 
D)  natural selection does not always lead to evolution. 
A)  natural selection is just a theory, whereas evolution has been proven. 
B)  a population may evolve in ways other than through natural selection. 
C)  Darwin coined the term "natural selection," but not "evolution." 
D)  natural selection does not always lead to evolution.

Question 4

Which of these humans is the "fittest" as far as natural selection is concerned?

Accepted Answer

A)  a person with seven children who is killed in an automobile accident at age 40 
B)  a person who lives to the age of 105 and has two children 
C)  a person who lives to the age of 110 and has no children 
D)  a very popular film star who is still alive, is very rich, and has three children from three spouses 
A)  a person with seven children who is killed in an automobile accident at age 40 
B)  a person who lives to the age of 105 and has two children 
C)  a person who lives to the age of 110 and has no children 
D)  a very popular film star who is still alive, is very rich, and has three children from three spouses

Question 5

Refer to the scenario below, and then answer the following question(s).
Two European men and two Polynesian women settled on a previously uninhabited tropical island. All four of the settlers have brown eyes, a dominant trait, but one of the Europeans is heterozygous and carries the recessive gene for blue eyes.
-No new settlers arrive, and nobody leaves the island. After a few generations, the percentage of blue-eyed individuals increases from the original zero to 25 percent. This is probably due to which of the following factors?

Accepted Answer

A)  genetic drift 
B)  mutation 
C)  gene flow 
A)  genetic drift 
B)  mutation 
C)  gene flow

Question 6

Organisms that can interbreed with each other in nature but are genetically isolated from all other organisms are a:

Accepted Answer

A)  genus. 
B)  clone. 
C)  species. 
D)  family. 
A)  genus. 
B)  clone. 
C)  species. 
D)  family.

Question 7

Even though in a similar habitat, a founder population that breaks away from the parent population may become very different because of:

Accepted Answer

A)  mutation. 
B)  genetic drift. 
C)  natural selection. 
D)  the bottleneck effect. 
A)  mutation. 
B)  genetic drift. 
C)  natural selection. 
D)  the bottleneck effect.

Question 8

The only known population of a reptile species lives on an African mountain. The population is relatively large, but no close relatives of this species are known. Suppose you could stop all mutations within the population and all emigration out of this population. Which statement best describes the probable future of this population?

Accepted Answer

A)  The population will decline and become extinct after a few generations because of excessive inbreeding. 
B)  Evolution will continue as natural selection acts on the genetic variability that exists in the population. 
C)  Although the population will cease to change, it may survive for as long as the environment remains constant. 
D)  Genetic drift will cause major evolutionary changes in the population. 
A)  The population will decline and become extinct after a few generations because of excessive inbreeding. 
B)  Evolution will continue as natural selection acts on the genetic variability that exists in the population. 
C)  Although the population will cease to change, it may survive for as long as the environment remains constant. 
D)  Genetic drift will cause major evolutionary changes in the population.

Question 9

The genetic makeup of any organism is its ________, which determines the physical characteristics called its ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  genotype; alleles 
B)  gene pool; alleles 
C)  phenotype; genotype 
D)  genotype; phenotype 
A)  genotype; alleles 
B)  gene pool; alleles 
C)  phenotype; genotype 
D)  genotype; phenotype

Question 10

A population is:

Accepted Answer

A)  a group of organisms that can successfully interbreed in nature but do not interbreed with other such groups. 
B)  all the members of a species that live in a defined geographic region at the same time. 
C)  all the different species that live in a defined geographic area at the same time. 
D)  a group of different species that share common features. 
A)  a group of organisms that can successfully interbreed in nature but do not interbreed with other such groups. 
B)  all the members of a species that live in a defined geographic region at the same time. 
C)  all the different species that live in a defined geographic area at the same time. 
D)  a group of different species that share common features.

Exam 17: The Means of Evolution: Microevolution

List five mechanisms by which gene frequencies in a population can be altered. Describe each briefly.

One solution to the problem of species extinction is captive breeding in zoos and gardens. What are some of the problems associated with this solution?

The term "natural selection" is not interchangeable with the term "evolution" because:

Which of these humans is the "fittest" as far as natural selection is concerned?

Organisms that can interbreed with each other in nature but are genetically isolated from all other organisms are a:

Even though in a similar habitat, a founder population that breaks away from the parent population may become very different because of:

The genetic makeup of any organism is its ________, which determines the physical characteristics called its ________.

A population is:

Science As a Way of Learning: a Guide to the Natural World

Fundamental Building Blocks: Chemistry, Water, and Ph

Lifes Components: Biological Molecules

Lifes Home: the Cell

Lifes Border: the Plasma Membrane

Lifes Mainspring: an Introduction to Energy

Vital Harvest: Deriving Energy From Food

The Green Worlds Gift: Photosynthesis

The Links in Lifes Chain: Genetics and Cell Division

Preparing for Sexual Reproduction: Meiosis

The First Geneticist: Mendel and His Discoveries

Units of Heredity: Chromosomes and Inheritance

Passing on Lifes Information: Dna Structure and Replication

How Proteins Are Made: Genetic Transcription, Translation, and Regulation

The Future Isnt What It Used to Be: Biotechnology

An Introduction to Evolution: Charles Darwin, Evolutionary Thought, and the Evidence for Evolution

The Outcomes of Evolution: Macroevolution

A Slow Unfolding: the History of Life on Earth

Arriving Late, Traveling Far: the Evolution of Human Beings

Viruses, Bacteria, Archaea, and Protists: the Diversity of Life 1

Fungi : the Diversity of Life 2

Animals: the Diversity of Life 3

Plants: the Diversity of Life 4

The Angiosperms: Form and Function in Flowering Plants

Body Support and Movement: the Integumentary, Skeletal, and Muscular Systems

Communication and Control 1: the Nervous System

Communication and Control 2: the Endocrine System

Defending the Body: the Immune System

Transport and Exchange 1: Blood and Breath

Transport and Exchange 2: Digestion, Nutrition, and Elimination

An Amazingly Detailed Script: Animal Development

How the Baby Came to Be: Human Reproduction

An Interactive Living World 1: Populations in Ecology

An Interactive Living World 2: Communities in Ecology

An Interactive Living World 3: Ecosystems and Biomes

Filters

The genetic makeup of any organism is its , which determines the physical characteristics called its .