Deck 14: Darwin and Evolution

Question 1

Lyell's Principles of Geology was the first text to give evidence that the Earth

A) was created a few thousand years ago.
B) did not change over time.
C) was actually much younger than previously believed.
D) was undergoing slow and continuous cycles of erosion and uplift.
E) was undergoing a different process compared to what occurred in the past.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

Prior to Darwin, people considered variation among individuals as "imperfections" that served no particular purpose.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Analogous structures are evidence of common ancestry.

Answer 3

False

Question 4

Which of the following is an example of artificial selection?

A) different breeds of dogs: poodle, basset hound, Chihuahua, Great Dane, etc.
B) different varieties of roses: yellow, pink, red, thornless, climbing, etc.
C) different types of tomatoes: roma, beefsteak, grape, cherry, etc.
D) different breeds of cats: Siamese, Persian, Himalayan, American shorthair, etc.
E) All of the above are examples of artificial selection.

Question 5

Lyell's theory of uniformitarianism stated that

A) new and different processes are continually shaping the Earth in new and different ways.
B) the processes that shape the Earth today are the same process that have always shaped the Earth.
C) the processes that shape the Earth occur at a constant rate.
D) the processes that shape the Earth slow down over time.
E) the processes that shape the Earth occur uniformly around the globe.

Question 6

The similarity of thefossil glyptodont to the living, modern armadillo is an example of comparative anatomy.

Question 7

Darwin's primary mission on the HMS Beagle was to

A) develop the theory of evolution.
B) observe natural selection in action.
C) gather data on geologic processes from around the world.
D) make contact with as many indigenous populations as possible.
E) to act as the ship's naturalist and expand the Navy's knowledge of natural resources around the world.

Question 8

Tortoises in the Galápagos possessed neck lengths unique to each island. Neck lengths appear to be an adaptation to which selective agent?

A) ease in finding pools of drinking water
B) type of vegetation available to eat
C) reproductive barriers used to produce offspring
D) defense against predators
E) male competition for females

Question 9

Bacteria that cause ear infections have increased their resistance to antibiotics over time. Which of the following is the selective agent?

A) bacteria
B) increased resistance
C) antibiotics
D) the human ear
E) the ear infection

Question 10

Which of the following concepts would have been supported by Charles Lyell?

A) that the Earth was only a few thousand years old
B) that the Earth and its organisms were divinely created
C) that the Earth and its organisms slowly changed through time
D) local catastrophes caused the extinction of many species
E) that species were "fixed"

Question 11

The theory of evolution is supported by multiple sources of evidence described by many different people, and by a variety of fields of study.

Question 12

Given the comparative study of embryology, it is concluded that genes controlling embryonic development are essentially the same.

Question 13

Critical to the theory of evolution, Darwin needed to include an idea that was not generally accepted by scientists or society at that time. That idea was that

A) catastrophism occurred at a uniform rate.
B) the inheritance of acquired characteristics was true.
C) the Earth must be very old.
D) uniformitarianism was false.
E) diversity of life was constant through time.

Question 14

Environmental catastrophes are a requirement of natural selection.

Question 15

The artificial selection of different breeds of dogs is an example of speciation.

Question 16

Although Lamarck hypothesized that adaptations to the environment did occur, he also believed that

A) mass extinctions did not occur.
B) offspring inherited characteristics that were acquired by their parents during their lifetime.
C) similar organisms do not share common ancestors.
D) humans descended from apes.
E) natural selection was the source of all diversity.

Question 17

Following Lamarck's ideas, if a person were to lose his arm in an accident, then that person's children would

A) inherit one arm.
B) inherit two arms.
C) inherit three arms.
D) inherit one arm that is larger and stronger than the parent's arm.
E) inherit two arms, each slightly smaller than the parent's single arm.

Question 18

Which of the following is an important characteristic of the Galápagos Islands in the context of Darwin's theory of evolution?

A) The islands were too far from mainland South America for most terrestrial plants and animals to colonize.
B) The organisms on the islands were different from those observed in South America.
C) The organisms on the islands were similar to those observed in South America.
D) The organisms on the islands varied from island to island.
E) All of the above answers are important characteristics.

Question 19

The sugar glider in Australia and the flying squirrel in North America are both small mammals with large expanses of loose skin between their forelimbs and hindlimbs, allowing them to glide from tree to tree within their respective forest habitats. These two species are not evolutionarily related but are very similar in their overall appearance. Darwin's explanation for their similarity is that

A) both are descendants from a recent common ancestor.
B) each have adapted in very similar ways to similar habitats.
C) the similarity of the two unrelated species is simply coincidence.
D) the two species were created to have similarities.
E) the two species must be related to possess such like qualities.

Question 20

Wings of insects and birds are results of convergent evolution. This means that

A) insects must have evolved from birds.
B) these organisms share a recent common ancestor and so have similar adaptations.
C) these organisms have different adaptations to different environments.
D) insects and birds have each independently evolved structures that serve the same function (flight) but have done so in very different ways.
E) the insects and birds must be related to possess such similar qualities.

Question 21

Which type of snail would be best suited to hide from predators if this population existed in a variable (mixed patches of light and dark areas) environment?

A) The dark-colored snails would most easily hide from predators.
B) The light-colored snails would most easily hide from predators.
C) The multicolored (variable) snails would most easily hide from predators.
D) All snails would equally hide well from predators anywhere in the environment.
E) All snails would equally be obvious to predators anywhere in the environment.

Question 22

What do transitional fossils illustrate?

A) All life is related.
B) Shared ancestral traits.
C) Convergent evolution occurred in the ancient past.
D) Natural selection happened long ago just as it does today.
E) All transitional links are now extinct.

Question 23

Monkeys in the New World (the Americas) have prehensile tails, strong flexible tails that grip branches and operate much like another hand. Old World (Africa and Asia) monkeys do not have such a tail. The explanation for this is

A) monkeys in the Old World did not need a prehensile tail and therefore did not evolve one.
B) monkeys in the New World needed a prehensile tail and therefore evolved one.
C) the prehensile tail evolved in New World monkeys after the Americas separated from Africa and Asia.
D) the Americas are much older than Africa and Asia. There has not been enough time to evolve a prehensile tail in Africa and Asia.
E) a catastrophe occurred in the Old World that killed all prehensile tail monkeys leaving only non-prehensile tailed monkeys to survive.

Question 24

Interpreting this figure, which of the following is a similarity between Lamarck's proposal for evolution and Darwin's proposal?

A) Both scenarios begin with a population of giraffes that contains variation.
B) Both scenarios expose the giraffes to an environmental pressure (or challenge).
C) Both scenarios involve only an individual, not a population.
D) Both scenarios involve differential reproductive success.
E) Both scenarios involve giraffes of equal fitness.

Question 25

Natural selection results in

A) increased genetic variation.
B) a decreased population size.
C) an increase in population size.
D) offspring that are better adapted to their current environment.
E) offspring that are better adapted to a future environment.

Question 26

Which one of the following statements is true?

A) Organisms always evolve the characteristics they need to survive.
B) Some individuals within the population must die for natural selection to occur.
C) Darwin used molecular biology as evidence of evolution.
D) Natural selection can only work on variation that already exists.
E) Convergent evolution produces homologous structures.

Question 27

Why are Australian mammals all marsupial while mammals on other continents are mostly placental?

A) The marsupial anatomy is better adapted to the environments of Australia than is the anatomy of placental mammals.
B) The placental anatomy is better adapted to the environments of North and South America than is the anatomy of marsupial mammals.
C) When the continents separated from one another, marsupials in Australia did not have the placental competitors that were present in the Americas.
D) Marsupials outcompeted the placental mammals in Australia.
E) Australian mammals have a different common ancestor than mammals elsewhere in the world.

Question 28

Many people refer to Alfred Russel Wallace as the "father of biogeography." Which of the following contributions led Wallace to achieve this title?

A) Wallace described the idea of evolution at the same time as Darwin.
B) Wallace had traveled around the world and collected specimens.
C) Wallace coined the term "survival of the fittest."
D) Wallace described a sharp line dividing Australian species from Asian species.
E) Wallace prompted Darwin to publish the book On the Origin of Species.

Question 29

As you hike up a mountain, you realize that the plants and animals present at the base are not the same as those at the top. This observation is the basis of

A) natural selection.
B) biogeography.
C) comparative anatomy.
D) geology.
E) paleontology.

Question 30

The wing of a penguin and the wing of an eagle are

A) homologous structures.
B) analogous structures.
C) identical structures.
D) vestigial structures.
E) not comparable in any way.

Question 31

The molecule cytochrome c supports the theory of evolution as biochemical evidence. Which of the following is part of that evidence?

A) Cytochrome c has the same function in all organisms.
B) The genetic code for cytochrome c differs among species.
C) Cytochrome c is found in a variety of organisms from yeast to humans.
D) Cytochrome c plays a role critical to survival.
E) All of the above answers describe reasons why cytochrome c supports the theory of evolution.

Question 32

Many species of finches, tortoises, cacti, and iguanas are found on the Galápagos Islands and nowhere else in the world. Which physical attribute of these islands has played a role in permitting such unique life forms to evolve?

A) There is geographic isolation from mainland species.
B) Multiple islands exist.
C) The islands are small compared to the South American mainland.
D) Each island has its own unique environment.
E) All of the above answers describe physical attributes of the islands important in the evolution of unique life forms.

Question 33

The presence of vestigial organs supports evidence of evolution because

A) the vestigial organ is unique to one species.
B) the vestigial organ is similar to a functional organ in a related species, having been passed down from a common ancestor.
C) both the vestigial organ and the functional organ perform the same function.
D) the vestigial organ could not have been passed down from an ancestor.
E) the vestigial organs represent variation in a species.

Question 34

When hiking high in the mountains, you find fossil marine shells lying about. This provides evidence that

A) someone brought the shells to the top of the mountain.
B) shelled marine animals live on the top of mountains.
C) very high ocean waves brought the shells to the top of the mountain.
D) the mountain top was once under the ocean and has been uplifted.
E) marine animals are not restricted to living in the ocean.

Question 35

What influence did the writings of Thomas Malthus have on Darwin's ideas of natural selection?

A) Malthus described the reproduction of elephants.
B) Malthus explained how variation was maintained within populations.
C) Malthus illustrated that some individuals possessed favorable traits while others did not.
D) Malthus wrote a detailed history of artificial selection examples.
E) Malthus proposedthat the human population grows faster than the food supply, meaning that death and famine are inevitable.

Question 36

Broccoli, kohlrabi, Brussels sprouts, Chinese cabbage, and cauliflower were all derived from the single wild species. This diversity is a result of

A) adaptation.
B) natural selection.
C) biogeography.
D) artificial selection.
E) speciation.

Question 37

In the context of natural selection, fitness refers to

A) the variation in traits within the population.
B) reproductive success.
C) mutations that benefit an organism's survival.
D) the physical health of an individual.
E) the physical health of a population.

Question 38

A finch population with heritable variation in beak size arrives on an island where only large seeds are available as a food source. Describe the process of natural selection that would follow.

A) Finches with smaller beaks would grow larger beaks so that they could eat the large seeds. All birds will reproduce and the frequency of large beaks within the population will increase.
B) Finches with larger beaks will more easily eat the large seeds and are thus more likely to survive and produce offspring with similarly large beaks. The frequency of large beaks within the population will increase.
C) All of the finches with small and medium beaks will soon die; all of the finches with large beaks will survive. The frequency of large beaks within the population will increase.
D) Finches with smaller beaks would grow larger beaks so that they could eat the large seeds. Only these birds that grew larger beaks will reproduce and the frequency of large beaks within the population will increase.
E) Finches with larger beaks will more easily eat the large seeds and not need to reproduce.

Question 39

Which of the following is a step specific to the process of artificial selection?

A) Members of a population possess heritable variations.
B) The population produces more offspring than the environment can support.
C) Individuals who have favorable traits survive and reproduce more than those individuals lacking such traits.
D) People select which individuals breed and which ones do not.
E) Over multiple generations of reproducing, a larger proportion of the population will have those favorable traits and thus adaptation has occurred.

Question 40

When comparing chick and pig embryos, the similar eyes, pharyngeal pouches, and postanal tails are evidence of

A) analogy.
B) convergent evolution.
C) common ancestry.
D) biogeography.
E) artificial selection.

Question 41

Refer to the figure shown here. Which of the following would have been a selective agent or pressure that could lead to the reduction in hindlimbs through time?

A) The animal's body size was too heavy to support the weight on land and hindlimbs were no longer useful.
B) More emphasis was placed on flexing the backbone than on paddling with hindlimbs for swimming.
C) Appendages cause resistance, or drag, when moving through water.
D) With the increased size of the tail and its use in swimming, the hindlimbs were not as necessary.
E) All of the above answers describe selective agents or pressures that could have led to the reduction in hind limbs over time.

Question 42

What characteristics of Archaeopteryx tell us that it is a link to reptiles and birds?

A) feathers
B) tail with vertebrae
C) teeth
D) teeth and a tail with vertebrae
E) feathers and teeth

Question 43

Which of the following information cannot be determined from the fossil record?

A) Geologic uplift has occurred.
B) Transitional fossils exist.
C) Diversity has changed through time.
D) Evidence of prior natural disasters/catastrophes exist.
E) Evidence of every species that ever existed.

Question 44

The fact that DNA is the molecule containing the genetic code for all life on Earth is a part of

A) comparative anatomical evidence.
B) comparative embryological evidence.
C) biochemical evidence.
D) biogeographical evidence.
E) evidence of artificial selection.

Question 45

Darwin and Wallace both concluded that species evolve through the process of natural selection. What similarexperiences and information helped them bothreach the same conclusion?

A) Both supported the ideas of Cuvier.
B) Both were familiar with the writings of Lyell.
C) Both traveled the world and collected specimens for museums in England.
D) Both were naturalists.
E) Both collected specimens from islands in the Malayan Archipelago.