Deck 16: How Evolution Works

Question 1

A hurricane could cause genetic drift by

A) increasing the mutation rate of a population.
B) randomly killing more males than females in a population.
C) randomly killing more individuals of one genotype than another in a population.
D) relocating a population to a different habitat.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Natural selection

A) is the principle cause of extinctions.
B) is the principal cause of evolutionary change.
C) occurs only in gametes.
D) cannot occur without genetic drift.

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Evolution can be described as

A) predesigned change in the genetic characteristics of a population of organisms over time.
B) sudden shifts in the genetic characteristics of an individual in a population.
C) a change in the genetic characteristics of a population of organisms over time.
D) isolation of populations due to geologic forces.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Evolutionary changes occur when _______ acts upon populations containing individuals with genetic differences.

A) continental drift
B) natural selection
C) weather
D) mutation

Question 5

During a windstorm, a tree falls on the population of wildflowers shown in the figure below. Most of the flowers die (as indicated by the tombstones in the second row). The survivors go on to reproduce.
What will the next generation of this wildflower population look like?

A) Half of the flowers will be gray and the other half will be white.
B) All of the flowers will be white.
C) All of the flowers will be gray.
D) Three quarters of the flowers will be gray and
One quarter will be white.

Question 6

Convergent evolution produces

A) genetic drift.
B) lines of common descent.
C) homologous characteristics.
D) analogous characteristics.

Question 7

The main conclusion Darwin reached after his return from the Galápagos Islands was that

A) animals from the Galápagos are like those from China.
B) the animals living on the Galápagos were common in England.
C) animals do not evolve over time.
D) species of animals change over time.

Question 8

Convergent evolution occurs when natural selection causes distantly related organisms to

A) evolve into the same species despite the fact that they are members of separate populations.
B) merge into one continuous population because of reversals in continental drift.
C) evolve both analogous and homologous characteristics.
D) evolve similar structures in response to similar environmental challenges.

Question 9

A population of mice lives along a river. Some mice cross the river to establish a new population. Eventually, due to genetic changes, these two groups of mice can no longer interbreed. This is an example of

A) speciation.
B) genetic drift.
C) artificial selection.
D) creationism.

Question 10

Two different species may have similar features because of

A) genetic drift.
B) the fossil record.
C) artificial selection.
D) descent from a common ancestor.

Question 11

Biological evolution can be defined as

A) the process of direct observation.
B) adaptations to common descent.
C) the unchanging nature of life on Earth.
D) the change in a population's genetic characteristics over time.

Question 12

Which of the following is not likely to contribute to evolution within a population?

A) mutation
B) natural selection
C) genetic drift
D) unchanging environment

Question 13

Peppered moths are generally light in color and blend into the trunks of the trees they live on. Populations of peppered moths found in areas where soot has blackened the tree trunks are dark in color. This example demonstrates

A) artificial selection.
B) natural selection.
C) genetic drift.
D) vestigial coloration.

Question 14

Natural selection tends to

A) increase the frequency of characteristics that enhance survival and reproduction.
B) decrease the number of individuals in any given population.
C) lead to an increase in genetic drift.
D) decrease the likelihood of adaptation.

Question 15

For a population to evolve, there must be genetic differences between organisms in that population. These differences arise by

A) mutation.
B) a change in an organism's behavior.
C) natural selection.
D) common descent.

Question 16

Genetic drift refers to ______ events that affect the survival and reproduction of individuals in a population.

A) chance
B) predictable
C) cryptic
D) geological

Question 17

One of the reasons scientists have had so much difficulty finding a cure for HIV/AIDS is that the HIV virus is quick to evolve resistance to the drugs used to treat it. What is the most likely mechanism for this type of evolution?

A) Certain versions of the virus are slower to die in the presence of a drug than others. Those viruses may survive drug treatment and pass their genes to their offspring.
B) Every time an HIV drug it taken, it randomly kills off most but not all virus particles. Those that survive repopulate the body of their host.
C) Although all copies of a particular strain of the HIV virus are identical, some are better at "hiding" in regions of the body that drugs cannot reach, and those viruses "teach" their offspring where to hide.
D) Some versions of the HIV virus produce chemicals that break down the drugs before they can harm the virus.

Question 18

Certain weeds have become resistant to the pesticides that were used to kill them. Which of the following choices is the best explanation for this phenomenon?

A) The weeds have become different species.
B) The pesticides evolved so that they are no longer useful against the weeds.
C) Continental drift caused the evolution of weed resistance in the pesticide.
D) Natural selection acted on the genetic variability present in the weeds' genomes.

Question 19

Flounder (a type of fish) generally match the color of the sandy bottoms they inhabit. Their color allows them to hide from other organisms that might eat them. This is an example of

A) speciation.
B) adaptation.
C) continental drift.
D) guided mutation.

Question 20

A species of cave beetle that lives in total darkness is blind but has remnants of what looks like eyes. These "eyes" are

A) vestigial.
B) homologous.
C) analogous.
D) convergent.

Question 21

Some finches on the Galápagos Islands eat insects, an unusual food for finches to eat. These finches

A) could not survive if they were moved from their island.
B) learned their habits from local birds.
C) switched to insects because they tasted better than their usual food.
D) fill roles that birds other than finches would fill in other places.

Question 22

The Lycopodium plant evolved before the breakup of Pangaea. Sequoia trees evolved after Pangaea split into separate land masses. Which plant would you expect to have the widest distribution across the modern continents?

A) Lycopodium
B) sequoia trees
C) Both should be equally distributed.
D) Both should be extinct.

Question 23

The fact that small, nonfunctioning hind legs are found in the skeletons of many snakes suggests that snakes

A) are in the process of evolving legs.
B) evolved from organisms with legs.
C) are really populations of lizards with severe mutation in limb development.
D) evolved from eels (snake-like fish).

Question 24

Humans simulate the process of natural selection when they use _______ to develop new varieties of crop plants that better meet the needs of farmers.

A) artificial selection
B) cytochrome c
C) habitat changes
D) continental drift

Question 25

Evolutionary changes on a small scale are called ______________.

Question 26

The fossil record

A) proves that all known species of organisms appeared at the same time.
B) contains strong evidence that major new groups of organisms arose from previously existing organisms.
C) indicates that humans date back as far as the first indications of life.
D) has often been artificially created by evolutionary biologists.

Question 27

Evolution is

A) not supported by scientific evidence.
B) strongly supported by scientific evidence.
C) not supported by the fossil record.
D) too obscure to study.

Question 28

Pangaea is

A) the process of continental drift.
B) the combined fossil record of ancient species.
C) an ancient, giant continent.
D) the result of natural selection.

Question 29

Which of the following is not evidence of evolution?

A) The percentage of squirrels with black fur in a population increases from 1 to 25 percent over the course of 50 years.
B) A fossil is found of a small dinosaur with bird-like feathers on its body.
C) Bacteria undergo mutation at a faster rate than humans do.
D) Humans have created more than 400 varieties of dogs by using selective breeding processes.

Question 30

In the figure below, the region indicated by the arrow is the only modern-day location of the freshwater lungfish. Fossils of the ancestors of the lungfish, however, have been found all over the world (dots throughout map).
What does the distribution of these fossils indicate?

A) When Pangaea separated to form our continents, the living ancestors of the lungfish were separated. When they died, some of them formed fossils in their new lands.
B) The same species of lungfish evolved on all of Earth's major landmasses after continental drift had stopped.
C) The ancestors of the lungfish existed on Pangaea. After they died, some were fossilized. Their fossils were separated by continental drift.
D) Lungfish were much more successful in the climates of North America than they were in the climates of South America.

Question 31

Which of the following is not homologous to any of the others?

A) the wing of a bat
B) the flipper of a whale
C) the leg of a grasshopper
D) the arm of a human

Question 32

The wings of a bird and the wings of a bat both form from the front appendages (arms).The bird wing is covered by feathers and the bat wing consist of a thin layer of skin stretched between the "finger" bones. Are the wings of the bird and bat homologous or analogous?

A) homologous since they evolved from the same body part
B) analogous: birds' flight requires feathers and bats use skin; both are wings, but they evolved differently
C) both: homologous in that they both evolved from a front appendage, but analogous in that they evolved differently
D) neither since birds and bats do not share a recent common ancestor

Question 33

An example of evolution that has been readily observed is

A) a chameleon changing colors as it moves from a leaf of one color to a leaf of another color.
B) increased resistance of bacteria to an antibiotic that is used to kill them.
C) chimpanzees learning sign language.
D) humans teaching dogs to obey certain commands.

Question 34

Human and fish embryos share a number of features. Why is this?

A) Humans and fish share a common ancestor.
B) Embryos of all organisms, plant and animal, look alike.
C) Mutations in human and fish embryos have caused them to look alike.
D) Humans and fish have exactly the same genes, but as they develop, different genes are turned on in fish than in humans.

Question 35

Which of the following statements regarding the evolutionary history of an organism is false?

A) Predictions of evolutionary relatedness based on fossil records often agree with predictions based on continental drift.
B) Predictions of evolutionary relatedness based on fossil evidence often agree with those based on protein sequences.
C) Predictions of evolutionary relatedness based on DNA usually contradict those based on anatomical evidence.
D) Predictions based on DNA sequences provide the strongest evidence that two organisms are related.

Question 36

The diversity of life on Earth is a result of

A) continental drift.
B) Darwin's theories.
C) speciation.
D) common descent.

Question 37

How could the appearance of a version of the hunger hormone, ghrelin, which also stimulates the learning and memory centers of the brain, lead to natural selection?

A) Any individual with the "old" version of ghrelin dies so only those with the "new" version reproduce. The "old" version of the gene for ghrelin is removed from the population.
B) Throughout its life, an individual with the "new" version of ghrelin becomes better at finding food when hungry, and it teaches these skills to its offspring.
C) Individuals that are able to find more food have more resources and produce more offspring. As a result, the "new" version of ghrelin becomes more common in the population.
D) When faced with a period of extended drought, a large part of the human population died without regard to their genetic makeup. Many of the survivors happened to have the "new" version of ghrelin and therefore, the gene became more common in the population.

Question 38

The origin of numerous species of Galápagos finches from one original species is an example of

A) gene cascades.
B) mass extinctions.
C) adaptation and speciation.
D) genetic drift and emigration.

Question 39

When comparing certain amino acid sequences in the protein hemoglobin of humans to those of other animals, scientists found that baboons had seven different amino acids (than the human protein), dogs had ten different amino acids, gorillas had one different amino acid and lemurs had eight different amino acids. Which of these animals is most closely related to humans?

A) baboon
B) dog
C) lemur
D) gorilla

Question 40

Which of the following statements about evolution is true?

A) Evolution only results in the addition of traits to existing organisms.
B) Evolution only results in the loss of traits from existing organisms.
C) Evolution can result in the addition or loss of traits in existing organisms.
D) Evolution has nothing to do with the addition or loss of traits.

Question 41

Humans bred cows specialized for milk production by allowing female cows that produce large quantities of milk to mate only with male cows with mothers that also produced large quantities of milk, an example of _____________ selection.

Question 42

Examine the figure below.

According to this figure, the cytochrome c gene of a dog is most similar in sequence to that of a ___________.

Question 43

Vestigial organs have important functions in many organisms.

Question 44

Scientists disagree on whether evolution occurs.

Question 45

Evolutionary changes on a large scale are called ______________.

Question 46

A(n) _______ is a characteristic of an organism that improves the performance of that organism in its environment, thus improving its reproductive success.

Question 47

The fossils of organisms that existed when the continents were connected are distributed across _______ [more or fewer?] continents than the fossils of organisms that evolved after the continents separated.

Question 48

Nonheritable genetic changes can cause evolution within a population.

Question 49

Mutations occur _______ rather than in a predictable manner that ensures the survival of an individual.

Question 50

Heritable differences among individuals are generated by _______.

Question 51

Continental drift is the _______ of Earth's land masses through geologic time.

Question 52

Two hundred million years ago all of the continents were part of a single giant land mass called ______.

Question 53

Evolution can cause so many changes among individuals of two populations of the same species that eventually the members of the two populations are no longer able to _______ with each other, thus forming a new species.

Question 54

Individuals in a given population are genetically identical.

Question 55

Observations of changes over many generations in agricultural crops, such as wild mustard, provide evidence for evolution.

Question 56

_______ are the preserved remains of formerly living organisms.

Question 57

The result of _______ _______over evolutionary time spans is that individual organisms with a particular trait survive and reproduce at a higher rate than other individuals.

Question 58

In the phrase "survival of the fittest," the term "fittest" refers to the individual with the greatest physical strength.

Question 59

The proteins and DNA of organisms that share a recent common ancestor are _______ [more or less?] similar than the proteins and DNA of organisms that do not share a recent common ancestor.

Question 60

Individuals evolve, not populations.

Question 61

Scientists who believe in evolution are never religious.

Question 62

Continental drift predicts that the fossils of species that evolved after Pangaea split apart should be found on only one or a few present-day continents.

Question 63

Darwin's ideas on natural selection were accepted immediately, thus showing that correct ideas are recognized and accepted as soon as they are presented.

Question 64

Humans have a reduced tailbone and the muscles to move a tail. This evidence indicates that we descended from an ancestor that had a tail.

Question 65

Some whales have teeth as embryos but do not as adults. What is the most likely explanation of this phenomenon?