Biology Midterm Exam

first step in sci. Inquiry (method), leads to the other steps in scientific method. Examp: quest. & obser. to hypoth to theory to exper to gather data to analyze to reflect

Why does all of science start with questions & observations?

testable, observable, limited to natural world, open to change, biased, based on experiments

Name 5 characteristics that represents 'Science is..'

- science is ever changing / - new data & information gathered

Why does science have to be 'open to change?'

- scientific studies can always be disproved w/ more data & evidence / - science tries to disprove concepts instead of proving them

Why do we try not to use the term 'prove' with scientific studies?

- ppl born w/ bias / - experiences give bias / - ppl are biased even if they don't realize it / Examp: 20 degrees outside is cold, not a fact but my opinion

Why is science 'biased?'

based on belief, fair, certain, based on proof, able to solve all problems

Name 5 characteristics that science 'Is not..'

fair for one person can not be fair for another

Examp: I get icecream and my sister doesn't, so its fair for me but not my sister

What was science not 'fair?'

- to understand and explain how the natural world works and how it became the way it is using natural experiences

What is the intended goal of science?

Qual- no \#'s, subjective, objective / Quan- numerically given, graphs

What is the difference between qualitative & quantitive data?

1. the physical universe is real. / 2. humans are capable of understanding the physical universe. / 3. Natural processes are sufficient to explain natural phenomena or events. / 4. Nature operates uniformly (consistently the same).

What are the 4 assumptions that science is based upon?

- only way to understand the natural world

Why does science have to be based on our sensory experiences?

- tech, data, evidence, theories

What determines our level of current understanding in science?

- not to take things for granted, ask questions, observe, learn

Why does Mr. McGreevy not want you to be an ignorant human being, and how does one defeat this?

taste, scent, sight, hearing, touch

Which 5 senses can be fooled by illusions?

consistent, observable, natural, predictable, testable, tentative (explanation can be modified) *If all of those are true, then it is scientific.*

What are the 6 components defined by CONPTT used to determine if something is scientific or not

Proto: new science, observations/predictions currently limited by knoweldge or technology. Examp; fringe science (cloning) / Pseudo: false science, advertised as scientific, but is not. Examp; Psysics, telepathy

What is the difference between a protoscience and a pseudoscience?

Hypothesis: a testable prediction based on facts. / Theory: a well-tested explanation that unifies a broad range of observations. / Law: a statement that describes the behavior of something w/ in the natural world under specific conditions.

What is the difference between a hypothesis, theory, and a law?

- similar & less complicated; few assumptions - has more lines of evidence in its favor - confirmed by many independent tests

What are 3 things that make one theory better than another?

Independent (cause); modified variable, changed by the experiment

Dependent (effect); responding variable, changes as a result of the change in the independent variable (dependent depends on Independent)

What is the difference between the independent and dependent variables?

- to make sure experiment is accurate and get accurate results / - to see what was affected or changed in the experiment

What is it important to have a good, controlled experiment in science?

Variable; stay the same during experiments, kept constant in each trial. Experiment; usually includes one independent, one dependent, and many controlled variables.

What is the difference between a controlled variable & a controlled experiment?

How can you relate the Rock Pocket Mouse Activity to what we have studied in this chapter?

Because of how genes looked in genetic evolution & natural selection in a real life scenario. This also gives a realistic idea of gene shuffling between parents & their offspring.

Why does sexual reproduction make an organism more advantageous than those that do not?

An organisms' genes will live on to be more present in the population & offers more variation in the population.

Can you give any examples of a sexual selection process that humans would exhibit?

Shown in personal & stereotypical preferences in a partner. For example, a woman avoiding having sex with short men

Why (or why not) do humans demonstrate random mating?

They do not because we (generally) choose who we have sex with, versus having sex with whoever.

Why did Darwin have trouble with explaining the traits that are used for sexual attraction & natural selection?

In some cases those traits made one less suited to their environment but more likely to get a mate, which didn't make sense to him.

Why is it that we say you can observe natural selection occurring in the environment, but most likely never see evolution take place?

Natural selection happens in less than a lifetime due to dramatic changes in an environment. Evolution takes multiple lifetimes to occur due to the entire population slowly showing changes in traits & you also can't see the "moment" organisms in a population stop mating & reproducing

List some examples of things that could cause genetic drift to occur.

migration to a new area (population split up randomly), blizzards, severe droughts, volcanoes, continental drift, hurricanes, earthquakes

What type of natural selection has occurred here?

disruptive selection

Which phenotypes are selected against?

the average ones are now selected against

Which phenotypes have higher fitness?

the ones that used to be less average (the dips) that are now peaks/the average

If natural selection continues this way, what may eventually happen to the population?

the organisms at either end of the curve may split into two different species

Any change in the relative frequency of alleles in a population

evolution (modern synthesis [this is not interchangeable with evolution, just goes along with it])

A gene pool consists of all the genes in a(n)

population

The main sources of genetic variation are gene shuffling and

mutation

A random change in allele frequency is called

genetic drift

When birds cannot interbreed because they have different mating songs, they are characterized by \_______ isolation

behavioral

A situation in which allele frequencies change as a result of the migration of a small subgroup of a population is known as the

Founder Effect

Two related species that live in the same area but mate during different seasons are separated by \______ isolation

temporal

When are two species said to be reproductively isolated?

once they are separated AKA once they stop mating & reproducing & having fertile offspring

Describe geographic isolation

populations are separated physically (land-wise), causing two separate gene pools to form & natural selection to work differently

Describe behavioral isolation

two populations are capable of reproducing but don't (sexual selection)

Describe temporal isolation

two or more species reproduce at different times - "Sympatric Speciation"

Give a number (1 = first through 6 = last) to tell when changes in the gene pool occurred in the speciation of the Galápagos

3

Give a number (1 = first through 6 = last) to tell when continued evolution occurred in the speciation of the Galápagos

6

Give a number (1 = first through 6 = last) to tell when the founders arrival occurred in the speciation of the Galápagos

1

Give a number (1 = first through 6 = last) to tell when reproductive isolation occurred in the speciation of the Galápagos

4

Give a number (1 = first through 6 = last) to tell when the separation of populations occurred in the speciation of the Galápagos

2

Give a number (1 = first through 6 = last) to tell when ecological competition occurred in the speciation of the Galápagos

5

Describe a situation that would result in the sudden geographic isolation of a few members of a population.

a human travels to where a group of chipmunks live, and take a small portion of them back to where the human originally resided (ie. Ohio to Maine)

Suggest one reason that natural selection on the Galápagos Islands produced species that were quite different from the ancestor species on the mainland.

environments on the islands were different from that on the mainland so the populations that went to said islands ended up evolving over time, causing them to be better suited to their environments, making them slightly to vastly different from their original population (due to slightly different environments)

What are the five conditions that need to be met to reach genetic equilibrium?

Random mating, LARGE population, no migration, no mutations, no natural selection

Describe the first condition needed to be met to reach genetic equilibrium: Random mating.

each individual has an equal chance of passing on genes

Describe the second condition needed to be met to reach genetic equilibrium: LARGE population.

genetic drift has less effect on large populations/laws of probability are easy to maintain

Describe the third condition needed to be met to reach genetic equilibrium: no migration amongst the population.

gene pool must be kept together & separate from other gene pools

Describe the fourth condition needed to be met to reach genetic equilibrium: no mutations.

these cause new alleles, changing allele frequencies

Describe the fifth condition needed to be met to reach genetic equilibrium: no natural selection takes place.

all genes must have an equal chance at survival; no selective pressure

Describe sex in the animal world.

mainly done for the purpose of reproducing, aggressive in competition, uses monogamy to ensure that one will always have a mate to reproduce with.

Describe sex in the human world.

mainly done for the purpose of pleasure, less aggressive & more deceitful in competition, monogamy for romantic love instead of reproduction

What determines the role of male or female in all species that reproduce sexually?

whatever is most beneficial to the population, roles are not unchanging.

When looking at the types of selection that occur to traits in populations that are not single-gene traits (polygenic), which is usually the way selection occurs in nature? Explain why.

stabilizing selection - generally remains the same, the middle part of the curve just gets steeper; middle part is the average; this change in the environment (and in graph) is less dramatic than the other two, so it happens more often

In the Rock Pocket mouse video, what was the significance of studying dark mice from DIFFERENT lava flow areas?

to see how the two different mice populations have two different mutations but similar/same coloring b/c of natural selection

Define emigration.

movement out of a population

Define immigration.

movement into a population

Define selective pressure.

effects of natural selection on a gene or a mutation of a gene

Define evolutionary fitness

an organism's success in passing genes to the next generation

Define evolutionary adaptation

any genetically controlled anatomical, physiological, or behavioral trait that increases as organism's ability to pass its gene

Define modern synthesis

evolution is any change in relative frequency of alleles in a population

what are dominant & recessive classified as

single-gene traits

Define directional selection

individuals at one end of the curve have higher fitness than individuals in the middle or at the other end; causes the range of variations to shift due to some organisms fail to survive & reproduce, while others succeed

Define stabilizing selection

individuals near the center of the curve have higher fitness than individuals at either end of the curve; center of the curve remains where it is but it gets narrower or steeper; organisms become more like the average

Define disruptive selection

Individuals at the upper & lower ends of the curve have higher fitness levels than individuals near the middle; intermediate type (average) is selected against; can cause a single curve to split into 2

Define genetic drift

random change in allele frequency

What is temporal isolation?

when two or more species reproduce at different times (have different mating seasons)

Why don't humans exhibit temporal isolation?

humans don't have designated mating times

How are the ideas of sexual selection and natural selection similar?

both determine the fitness of an organism, affect the relative frequency of a population, and are based on genetics (specifically phenotypes)

How are the ideas of sexual selection and natural selection different?

natural selection is affected by the environment/not chosen by an organism, sexual selection is affected by individual organisms/chosen by an organism (choice of mate), characteristics bad for an environment (natural selection) can be good for sexual selection (mating)

What is the difference in the role of female sex cell and the role of male sex cell in sexually reproducing organisms?

female sex cell is more costly & scarce, males produce so much sperm, no reason to be picky. more about competition, in an attempt to have as much reproduction as possible

In the video "On the Origin of Species: The Making of a Theory," what did we learn about Darwin's (1) desire to publish his work? Why was Wallace (2) in a better position to publish?

1 had a reputation, wealth, & family, 2 didn't, so 1 had to worry about being scrutinized while 2 had nothing to lose.

What is a theory?

a well supported idea w/lots of evidence to support it

Why is evolution a theory and not a fact?

fact = 100% true/cannot be disproven; evolution is not 100% true/absolute, it could still be disproven

What was the early belief about the age & formation of the Earth and its surfaces?

ppl thought the Earth was only a few thousand years old; its surface/organisms were divinely created (god) in their current form & surfaces could only change through major catastrophic events

What important finding does Hutton theorize?

natural geologic forces shaped the surface;layers of rock form slowly; rocks move upward by forced beneath the surface; rocks are affected by everyday events (rain, wind, heat, cold)

What is the importance of Lyell's work?

past events explained by observable processes (volcanism, erosion, earthquakes, etc.); geologic features can be build/eroded over long periods of time (uniformitarianism) - if this could all change slowly, life could too, introduced that the earth was really old

When studying rock layers and fossils present there, what kind of trends does one see?

older organisms further down; younger on top

What did Lamarck propose about living things & what two processes did he discuss controlling this idea?

organisms have innate tendencies towards perfection;change in environment creates NEED for change in organisms; all organisms descend from other living things

Describe an animal and a trait that it has in terms of Lamarckian evolution.

elephants have big ears b/c they needed to hear in the past; the fiddler crab has one big claw b/c it used that claw a lot in the past

What was Malthus' contribution to the idea of evolution?

if the human population continued to grow unchecked, there would be insufficient living space/food for everyone, leading to massive death

What was bizarre about the relationship of the work done by Wallace and the work done by Darwin?

they both had separate evidence/studied in diff. parts of the world, and yet both came to essentially the same final idea/conclusion

What is the difference between natural selection and evolution?

natural selection = how advantaged traits survive & reproduce more - mechanism for evolution - natural selection must happen for evolution (species change over time, leading to formation of a new species) to

What is artificial selection and what is an example of how it would occur?

human selected traits they found useful in animals and only bred animals w/those favorable traits; breeder breeds 2 of the fastest horses to get more fast horses

List the 4 parts to Darwin's evolution idea.

struggle for existence, fitness & adaptation, natural selection, descent w/modifications

Describe the 1st part to Darwin's evolution idea: struggle for existence

there are more organisms than could possibly survive; limited resources & competition lead to more death

Describe the 2nd part to Darwin's evolution idea: fitness & adaptation

allows organisms to be better suited to their environment/better able to survive; any characteristic that increases an organism's chance of survival - anatomical, physiological, behavioral

Describe the 3rd part to Darwin's evolution idea: natural selection

changes in the inherited characteristics of a POPULATION w/o human control or regulation

Describe the 4th part to Darwin's evolution idea: Descent w/modifications

species descend from other species in a slow manner; implies all organisms are related

Why does evolution only occur on populations, not individuals?

individuals can only adapt behaviorally, not evolve; evolution takes longer than the lifespan of a singular organism; evolution changes a whole species, and it can't do that based on an individual

What is the idea of "common descent?"

ALL living organisms are related to one another - organisms have common ancestors at some point in time