Download Evolution Study Guide

Evolution Study Guide
The evolution test is mostly essay questions. Write the answers to these
questions on a separate sheet of paper and use them to quiz yourself. If you
can answer them all well, you will do a great job on the test.
1. Who was Charles Darwin, and what is he famous for?
2. What was Darwin doing when he came up with his ideas?
3. Who was Malthus, and what did he write about?
4. How did his writing influence Charles Darwin?
5. Who was Charles Lyell, and what did he write about?
6. How did his work influence Darwin?
7. What do scientists mean when they talk about “variation” in a species?
8. How is variation important in evolution?
9. How does the environment affect evolution?
10. Explain what artificial selection is.
11. Explain what natural selection is.
12. How is variation important in evolution?
13. How does the environment affect evolution?
14. What is an adaptation?
15. Why are adaptations important to the theory of evolution?
16. What is antibiotic resistance?
17. What causes antibiotic resistance?
18. What can be done to prevent antibiotic resistance?
19. How is antibiotic resistance an example of evolution?
20. What is geographic isolation?
21. What is another name for geographic isolation?
22. How can geographic isolation lead to new species forming?
23. What is reproductive isolation?
24. How can reproductive isolation lead to new species forming?
25. What is radioactive dating?
26. What is a half-life?
27. How do scientists use half-lives to figure out how old something is?
28. What are fossils?
29. What is the fossil record?
30. How is the fossil record useful in the study of evolution?
31. List the four main eras in the fossil record, and describe the main characteristics
of each.
32. What are homologous structures?
33. Why are homologous structures considered evidence of evolution?
34. What are analogous structures?
35. What are vestigial structures?
36. Why are vestigial structures considered evidence of evolution?
37. How does DNA provide evidence of evolution?
39. What is embryology?
40. How does embryology provide evidence of evolution?