Download Sample Exam I Key

BIL 107 – Introduction to Evolution
Krempels - Spring 2010
EXAM I
Choose the BEST answer. Two points each.
1. The theory of evolution explains how life originated on the planet earth.
a. true
b. false
c. what?
Evolution is the process by which life changed once it originated, not
how it originated.
2. Which of the following best describes organic evolution?
a. inferior, primitive ancestors evolve into superior descendants over time
b. animals evolve structures because they need them to survive
c. ancestral species branch into new species over generations
d. evolution always makes organisms “better” than ancestors
e. extinct species become fossils, and extant species live forever.
3. In
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
science, a theory is
a random conjecture or guess
a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world
an educated guess
accepted as fact, and not open to debate
not subject to falsification
4. In the scientific community, which of the following is/are considered to be
hypothetical, and not an observable phenomenon?
a. that species have evolved from a simple ancestral organism
b. the mechanisms by which evolution occurs
c. microevolution happening in species today
d. all of the above
True or False. Choose “a” for true, or “b” for false for the following:
5. One of the greatest weaknesses of the fossil record as evidence for evolution is a
complete absence of transitional fossils showing an evolutionary progression from
ancestral forms to more modern forms. B - FALSE
6. Evolutionary biology is a “work in progress.” Research is ongoing to discover the
mechanisms by which species evolve. A – TRUE
7. The scientific community does not always agree on the details of evolutionary
theory, but is in basic agreement that evolution is an observable phenomenon.
A - TRUE
8. Evolution is not observable or testable. It is just something that scientists accept
on faith. B - FALSE
9. Darwin’s original ideas about evolution have stood the test of time, and have not
been modified at all in the years since his publication of On the Origin of Species.
B - FALSE
10. Social Darwinists believe that it is both good policy and morally right for society
to allow its weaker, “less fit “ members to fail and die. Such thinking is consistent
with Darwin’s theory of evolution by means of natural selection. B - FALSE
11. The many different religious views about creation are not scientifically
testable, and hence, do not belong in a science classroom. A - TRUE
Match the historical figure with his contribution to evolutionary theory.
a. Francesco Redi
b. Stanley Miller
c. Carl Linnaeus
e. Alfred Wallace
d. Anton van Leewenhoek
12. This Swedish botanist invented the classification system still used today.
c. Carl Linnaeus
13. With an elegantly simple experiment involving raw meat in uncovered
and covered jars, this Italian physician demonstrated that flies were not
spontaneously generated from rotten meat. a. Francesco Redi
14. This young scientist studying plants in Malaysia sent Darwin an original
manuscript that contained essentially the same ideas about evolution by
means of natural selection that Darwin had been working on for years.
e. Alfred Wallace
15. Thanks to this Dutch scientist, we can look through microscopes today
and see a vast world of diversity that was previously invisible to us.
d. Anton van Leewenhoek
16. This graduate student’s experimental apparatus, meant to simulate the
physical and chemical conditions of the ancient oceans, generated many of
the building blocks of life. b. Stanley Miller
17. In the apparatus in the last question, what highly reactive element was
missing, making the generation of biological molecules possible?
a. uranium
b. oxygen
c. carbon
d. hydrogen
e. air
A. Recall that French evolutionary biologist Jean Baptist Lamarck believed
that species evolved in response to “felt need,” and could pass on
characteristics acquired during their lives to their offspring.
B. In contrast, Charles Darwin proposed that species evolved by means of
natural selection.
Consider each hypothetical (i.e, not necessarily true) scenario in # 18 – 21.
If
If
If
If
it
it
it
it
is
is
is
is
more consistent with Lamarck’s idea, choose “a”.
more consistent with Darwin’s theory, choose “b”.
consistent with both theories, choose “c”.
not consistent with either theory, choose “d”.
18. In a population of zebras with some slow runners and some fast
runners, the faster zebras will be able to avoid being caught by predators,
and leave more (genetically faster) offspring than slower individuals.
B - Darwin
19. Antibiotics in hospitals cause bacteria to change and become resistant to
those antibiotics. A – Lamarck
(Antibiotics do not cause bacteria to change. The bacteria that
have pre-existing genetic resistance to the antibiotics will survive and
reproduce more than the ones susceptible to antibiotics.)
20. Modern giraffes have long necks because ancestral giraffes had to stretch
their necks to reach food during periods of drought. A – Lamarck
21. A village blacksmith spends his life developing big, strong muscles. The
villagers believe that the blacksmith’s sons will inherit the muscular build
their dad developed over a lifetime of slinging heavy metal. A – Lamarck
22. Which of the following radioactive isotopes would be likely to yield the
most accurate age of a relatively recently fossilized organism, such as a
Bog Person who died about 10,000 years ago?
a. carbon-14
c. rubidium-87
e. PG-13
b. uranium-235
d. Coca Cola Classic
23. If you translate the earth’s 4.5 billion year history into a metaphorical 24hour clock, how long has our own species, modern Homo sapiens, been
around?
a. 30 minutes
c. 5 minutes
e. we don’t exist.
b. 10 minutes
d. less than a minute
24. Which of the following would likely give you more information about the
behavior of an extinct animal, rather than just its appearance?
a. a fossil mold
c. a fossilized bone
e. a bit of preserved fur
b. a fossil cast
d. a coprolith (fossil poop)
25. Which of the following is LEAST likely to become a fossil?
a. a shrimp that died and was quickly buried in sediment
b. a dinosaur that died in a rainforest
c. a shelled marine snail
d. a live bird that was buried in a mudslide
e. a bit of dinosaur excrement left in the middle of a vast desert
26. Insects found fossilized in amber most likely died while they were
a. feeding on a tree
d. caught in a desert sandstorm
b. floating on a lake
e. parasitizing a larger animal
c. being washed downstream in a river
27. The fossilized remains of extinct organisms
a. provide physical evidence that life has evolved over time
b. provide a very complete record of evolutionary history
c. show that evolution always happens slowly, never in “leaps”
d. are very common: most dead organisms become fossils
e. all of the above are true
28. Which of the following best expresses the concept of natural selection?
a. “Old age and treachery will overcome youth and skill.”
b. “Whoever has the most babies wins.”
c. “Survival of the fittest”
d. “Buyer beware.”
e. “Abandon hope, all ye who enter here.”
29. Which of the following BEST describes pre-Darwinian thought?
a. About 99.9% of the species that ever existed are now extinct.
b. An extraordinary diversity of extinct species once inhabited earth.
c. Species evolve in response to environmental pressures.
d. Every species is a distinct, unchanging entity.
e. Older fossils are found in the deeper layers of sedimentary rock.
30. Charles Lyell’s contribution to the development of Darwin’s theory was
that the same natural processes operate in the universe and on earth now
have always operated in the past, and apply everywhere. This concept is
known as
a. natural theology
c. sedimentation
e. uniformitarianism
b. erosion
d. infinitism
31. Which of the following is TRUE of sedimentary rock?
a. older layers can never been seen at the surface of rock formations
b. fossils buried in sedimentary rock must be older than the rock.
c. deformed (folded, lifted, twisted, etc.) sedimentary rocks must be
younger than the event that deformed them
d. they usually form in places where there is little or no water
e. they are usually formed by volcanic activity
32. Which of the following two types of atoms must form the “backbone” of a
molecule for it to be considered organic?
a. oxygen and hydrogen
d. carbon and hydrogen
b. carbon and oxygen
e. oxygen and nitrogen
c. carbon and nitrogen
33. A living thing stops taking up radioactive carbon when it
a. reaches sexual maturity
c. dies
e. registers to vote
b. is born or hatched
d. eats
34. Ontogeny is an organism’s
a. evolutionary history
b. evolutionary behavior
c. extinct relatives
d. embryo development
e. radioactivity
Once again, let’s do some true or false. (#34-38) Choose “a” for true, “b” for false.
35. Evolutionary biologists have clearly shown that humans evolved from monkeys.
B - FALSE
36. Species sharing a recent common ancestor are likely to have similar ontogenies.
A - TRUE
37. Whales evolved directly from fish, and share no homologies with terrestrial
mammals. B - FALSE
38. The most recent common ancestor of a butterfly and a bat probably looked
something like a little, microscope embryo called a gastrula that’s little more
than a blob of cells with a mouth and gut. A - TRUE
39. A vestigial structure is one that is
a. required for an organism’s survival
d. maladaptive
b. analogous to a structure in a different species
e. adaptive
c. of marginal, if any, use to the organism in which It occurs
40. In at least some phase of your development, you and all vertebrates have
a. a tail posterior to the anus
d. a dorsal, hollow nerve cord
b. a vertebral column
e. all of the above
c. muscles arranged in segmental bundles
41. An adult animal that has the appearance of a juvenile form of a related species is
said to show
as compared to that other species.
a. analogy
c. heterochrony
e. adorableness
b. homology
d. paedomorphy
42. Which of the following is NOT found in every living thing on earth?
a. a nervous system
d. ability to react to the environment
b. organized structure (anatomy)
e. DNA
c. ability to reproduce
43. Homologies in which of the following are used by systematists to establish
evolutionary relationships?
a. morphology
c. ontogeny
e. all of the above
b. biochemistry
d. DNA sequences
Use the cladogram shown below to answer #44 – 47.
44. Given this cladogram, which of the following are most closely related?
a. owl monkey and macaque
b. gorilla and orangutan
c. owl monkey and orangutan
d. gibbon and macaque
e. human and chimpanzee
45. If this tree is correct, then the group called “great apes” is
a. monophyletic
c. extinct
e. likely to throw feces
b. polyphyletic
d. analogous
at you
46. If you created a taxon including only gibbons, gorillas, and owl monkeys,
that taxon would be considered
a. monophyletic
c. polyphyletic
e. stinky
b. an outgroup
d. scientifically valid
47. Which of the following is the outgroup used to establish the primitive
character states of traits in the other species on the tree?
a. human
c. chimpanzee
e. owl monkey
b. gibbon
d. gorilla
48. Organic evolution has never been observed in our lifetime. It has only
been inferred from fossils, homology, and other evidence.
a. true
b. false
49. Organic evolution is defined as change in
over time.
a. living populations
d. individual organisms
b. carbon-hydrogen molecules
e. the earth itself
c. green farming techniques over time
50. The Beagle was
a. the name of the ship on which Darwin sailed to the Galapagos
b. the main species Darwin studied in developing his theory
c. an atavistic wolf with paedomorphic traits who terrorized Ireland in 1850.
d. the main item on the menu on the Galapagos Islands
e. Darwin’s pet name for his wife.
BONUS QUESTIONS! No penalty for guessing wrong, but an extra two
points for each one you get right.
51. Sunday, September 19 was a very special day for many people who have
hope of bringing peace to the world, because it was
a. International Release a Dove Day
b. International Macaroni Arts and Crafts Day
c. International Talk Like a Pirate Day
d. International Soup Kitchen Day
e. International Eat a Road Kill Day
52. Which of the following scientists first made popular the notion that the
universe was biiiillllllions and biiiillllions of years old?
a. Richard Dawkins
c. Thomas Malthus
e. Yoda
b. Stephen Jay Gould
d. Carl Sagan