Deck 16: The Evolutionary History of Life on Earth

Question 1

The broadest divisions on the geologic timescale are

A)centuries.
B)epochs.
C)millennia.
D)eras.
E)periods.

Answer 1

D
Explanation: The timescale divides the history of Earth into eras,then periods,and then epochs.The three eras (the Paleozoic,the Mesozoic,and the Cenozoic eras)span the greatest amounts of time,and the epochs have the shortest time frames.

Question 2

The theory that explains the movement of the Earth's crust is referred to as

A)convergent movement.
B)plate tectonics.
C)divergent movement.
D)the transformation theory.
E)continental spreading.

Answer 2

B
Explanation: The theory that explains the movement of the Earth's crust is referred to as plate tectonics.

Question 3

In which epoch do we currently live?

A)the Pleistocene
B)the Miocene
C)the Mesozoic
D)the Pliocene
E)the Holocene

Answer 3

E
Explanation: The Holocene is the "Age of Homo sapiens"--modern humans.

Question 4

Which of the following geologic time periods ended with most life forms surviving to the next period?

A)Triassic
B)Ordovician
C)Permian
D)Carboniferous
E)Devonian

Question 5

You are a paleontologist studying the part of the geologic timescale known as the Devonian.Based on your studies,which group of animals made its first appearance on land during this time?

A)birds
B)mammals
C)reptiles
D)fish
E)amphibians

Question 6

The place where two plates meet and scrape past one another is referred to as

A)an ocean ridge.
B)a convective zone.
C)a subduction zone.
D)a continental ridge.
E)a transform boundary.

Question 7

During the Permian,the continents joined to form one supercontinent called

A)LaurasiA.
B)Eurasia.
C)Gondwana.
D)Euafrica.
E)Pangaea.

Question 8

A paleontologist is studying strata of rock and discovers one of the first mammal fossils ever found.Based on this information,you would conclude that the rock stratum is from which time?

A)the Cenozoic
B)the Permian
C)the Devonian
D)the Mesozoic
E)the Cretaceous

Question 9

If you were studying the shortest geologic timeframe,you would be studying which of the following?

A)strata
B)epochs
C)strata
D)eras
E)periods

Question 10

Fish appeared in the fossil record during the

A)Devonian.
B)Mesozoic.
C)JurassiC.
D)Ordovician.
E)Tertiary.

Question 11

The total disappearance of a species or a higher group is referred to as extinction.

Question 12

Most of what we know about extinct organisms is gained by examining

A)DNA.
B)proteins.
C)DNA and proteins combined.
D)RNA.
E)fossils.

Question 13

The first reptiles appeared in the fossil record during which stretch of geologic time?

A)Carboniferous
B)Ordovician
C)Precambrian
D)Paleozoic
E)Cretaceous

Question 14

If you were studying the process when one plate sinks into the mantle and is destroyed,you would be studying

A)an ocean ridge.
B)a convective zone.
C)a subduction zone.
D)a continental ridge.
E)a transform boundary.

Question 15

If you were a biologist studying the part of the geologic timescale where protists evolved and diversified and soft-bodied invertebrates made their first appearance,you would be studying the

A)Carboniferous.
B)Ordovician.
C)Precambrian.
D)Paleozoic.
E)Cretaceous.

Question 16

If you were writing a paper on the person who first proposed that the continents moved,you would be writing a paper on which scientist?

A)Wegener
B)Darwin
C)Wallace
D)Malthus
E)Alvarez

Question 17

Which of the following is an era in the geologic timescale?

A)Mesozoic
B)Jurassic
C)Permian
D)Tertiary
E)Cambrian

Question 18

During which span of geologic time did the dinosaurs appear and flourish?

A)Tertiary
B)Permian
C)Mesozoic
D)Carboniferous
E)Cenozoic

Question 19

Dinosaurs are thought to have gone extinct when?

A)at the end of the Jurassic
B)at the end of the Cretaceous
C)at the end of the Carboniferous
D)at the end of the Tertiary
E)at the end of the Silurian

Question 20

Current research indicates that dinosaurs are closely related to which of the following animal groups?

A)mammals
B)birds
C)reptiles
D)amphibians
E)fish

Question 21

Which of the following levels of taxonomy is the most inclusive?

A)genus
B)class
C)species
D)order
E)phylum

Question 22

If you are studying structures which are related to others through common descent,you would be studying

A)analogous structures.
B)parallel structures.
C)convergent structures.
D)derived structures.
E)homologous structures.

Question 23

A character similarity that stems from having a common ancestor is referred to as

A)analogous.
B)parallel.
C)convergent.
D)homologous.
E)divergent.

Question 24

Characteristics which are shared by new groups of organisms,as well as a common ancestor,are referred to as

A)parallel characters.
B)ancestor characters.
C)convergent characters.
D)analogous characters.
E)derived characters.

Question 25

There can only be one species within a genus.

Question 26

Which of the following is an ancestral characteristic for all placental mammals?

A)having a tail
B)walking on four legs
C)giving birth to live young
D)having antlers
E)having thumbs

Question 27

The evolutionary history of a group of organisms is referred to as

A)analogy.
B)phylogeny.
C)taxonomy.
D)homology.
E)cladology.

Question 28

Small neutral changes in nucleic acids which accumulate at a fairly constant rate can be used as a _________________ to determine when two species diverged from a common ancestor.

A)cladistic clock
B)molecular clock
C)phylogenetic clock
D)convergent clock
E)parallel clock

Question 29

If you were making a diagram which indicates common ancestors and lines of decent or lineages,you would be making

A)a phylogenetic tree.
B)a homology tree.
C)a convergent tree.
D)an analogy tree.
E)a parallel treE.

Question 30

If you wanted to study the diversity of organisms at all levels of biological organization,you would study what?

A)homology
B)speciation
C)systematics
D)analogy
E)taxonomy

Question 31

From the most general to the most specific,what is the correct order in the hierarchy of taxa?

A)kingdom,class,phylum,order,genus,family,species
B)kingdom,phylum,class,order,family,genus,species
C)kingdom,order,class,phylum,family,genus,species
D)species,genus,family,class,order,phylum,kingdom
E)species,genus,family,order,class,phylum,kingdom

Question 32

A biologist is studying species which gave rise to two groups of new species,which would best be called

A)a convergent ancestor.
B)an analogous ancestor.
C)a common ancestor.
D)a homologous ancestor.
E)a parallel ancestor.

Question 33

Which of the following taxonomic levels is least inclusive?

A)phylum
B)class
C)family
D)genus
E)order

Question 34

When two or more related lineages acquire a similar characteristic which is not found in a common ancestor these structures are said to be

A)parallel.
B)homologous.
C)divergent.
D)analogous.
E)cladistic.

Question 35

Based on the work of Louis and Walter Alvarez,which factor most likely caused the extinction of the dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous?

A)climate change
B)volcanic activity
C)meteorite impact
D)massive mudslides
E)early human activity

Question 36

Characteristics which appear in some new groups but not in all new groups are referred to as

A)parallel characters.
B)ancestor characters.
C)convergent characters.
D)analogous characters.
E)derived characters.

Question 37

Which feature is not considered in taxonomic classification?

A)extinction
B)structure
C)reproduction
D)behavior
E)molecular comparison

Question 38

If you were making a diagram to show relationships between different organisms which relied on examining shared derived characteristics you would be making

A)a phylogram.
B)a divergent character tree.
C)an ancestral character tree.
D)a cladogram.
E)a homologous charter treE.

Question 39

A domain is an evolutionary branch which includes the common ancestor and all descendent species.

Question 40

A biologist is studying structures which have the same function but do not share a common ancestry,which are called

A)homologous structures.
B)parallel structures.
C)analogous structures.
D)divergent structures.
E)cladistic structures.

Question 41

What could be a consequence of a dramatic increase in global carbon dioxide levels?

A)a bolide
B)continental drift
C)mass extinction
D)an increase in biological diversity
E)plate subduction

Question 42

What is the best explanation for why the coastlines of some continents today are mirror images of one another?

A)subduction
B)continental drift
C)transformation
D)phylogeny
E)extinction

Question 43

You discover a large,green,multicellular,autotrophic organism living on the bank of a creek.Upon microscopic examination,you find that the cells contain nuclei and other membranous organelles.How would you classify this organism?

A)Domain Eukarya
B)Domain Bacteria
C)Domain Archaea
D)Kingdom Fungi
E)Kingdom Protista

Question 44

Which answer choice is mismatched between geologic period and event?

A)Carboniferous--coal-forming forests
B)Jurassic--flowering plants appear
C)Ordovician--nonvascular plants appear on land
D)Devonian--first seed plants appear
E)Cambrian--humans influence plant life

Question 45

You are a biologist studying unicellular prokaryotes in very hot pools of water.In which of the following groups would you most likely place these organisms?

A)Archaea
B)protists
C)fungi
D)Bacteria
E)plants

Question 46

Organisms are placed into the domain of Eukarya for what reason?

A)They are unicellular.
B)They have a nucleus.
C)They are multicellular.
D)They are autotrophs.
E)They are heterotrophs.

Question 47

The geologic timescale could not have been established as a means of describing the history of life on Earth without the

A)continental drift.
B)transduction.
C)subduction.
D)fossil recorD.
E)mass extinctions.

Question 48

If you were using traditional evolutionary systematics to classify organisms you would use which of the following?

A)DNA analysis
B)shared derived characteristics
C)protein analysis
D)molecular clocks
E)structural data

Question 49

Which of the following would not be placed in the Domain Eukarya?

A)Protists
B)Fungi
C)Animals
D)Bacteria
E)Plants

Question 50

Dr.Carl Woese used which of the following to devise the three-domain classification system?

A)DNA
B)molecular clocks
C)rRNA
D)structural analysis
E)protein analysis