Biology 111: Exam 2 Quiz Questions (Birdsong)

Once large organic polymers formed on earth, what was the next step needed to proceed towards the formation of living things?

Formation of a boundary surrounding the cell

What event in the earth's history coincided with the Cambrian explosion of animal diversity?

Increased levels of atmospheric oxygen

What new property of living things during the Proterozoic era lead to the development of organelles?

Ability to invaginate the plasma membrane

Which of these hypotheses for the origin of life is not easily testable in a lab?

Extraterrestrial hypothesis

Which type of cell differentiation is controlled by unequal distribution of maternal cytoplasmic factors as the embryo's cells are dividing?

Autonomous specification

From what tissue layer of the developing embryo does the epithelium lining the stomach originate?

Endoderm

From what tissue layer of a developing embryo does the nervous tissue arise?

Ectoderm

During which stage of embryonic development does the neural tube form?

Neurulation

During which stage of embryonic development do the three tissue layers spread through the embryo?

Gastrulation

During which stage in development do segments form along the neural tube?

Neurulation

Which of these fossils are most likely to be found easily?

Huge, bony stegosaurus

How does the future spinal cord form in developing human embryos?

Ectoderm above the notochord thickens and folds together

Which of these organisms has incomplete cleavage of cells between the animal and vegetal poles during early development?

Chickens

During fertilization, how are multiple sperm first prevented from fertilizing one egg?

The egg cell membrane depolarizes, blocking sperm from bonding

What was the era in which dinosaurs dominated the Earth?

The Mesozoic era

How does the theory of endosymbiosis explain the evolution of cellular organelles?

An ancient archaeon engulfed a bacterium that began living symbiotically with its host

What organisms first appeared during the Proterozoic era?

Multicellular eukaryotes

Which of these is NOT an important factor that determines the likelihood of a fossil being found?

Skill of the excavator

Which of these molecules is best able to preserve genetic information due to its stable structure?

DNA

Which statement about human evolution is TRUE?

Several hominid species existed at the same time, but only Homo sapiens survived

Which was the first molecule to arise in protobionts that could store genetic information?

RNA

Which type of cell differentiation is controlled by cell to cell contact and secreted molecules?

Conditional specification

During which developmental stage does the fertilized egg become a blastocyst?

Cleavage

In the reducing atmosphere hypothesis for the origin of life, which of these was NOT important to the formation of the first living things?

Oxygen

Which is a key feature of ALL hominin species?

Bipedalism

From what tissue layer of a developing embryo does the muscle tissue arise?

Mesoderm

What did the Bartel and Szostak experiments on the chemical evolution of RNA show?

RNA strains with mutations that give them more enzymatic activity will become more common over time

Green beetles becoming more common than brown beetles in a lush green environment would be an example of what kind of natural selection?

Directional selection

Which of these statements about evolution is NOT true?

Traits acquired during an animal's lifetime pass to its offspring

Which of these phenomena has the weakest effect on whether a population stays at Hardy Weinberg equilibrium?

Mutation

Which of these phenomena has the strongest effect on whether a large population stays at Hardy Weinberg equilibrium?

Natural selection

Which of these would be an example of intrasexual selection at work?

Male moose using huge antlers to fight each other

What conclusion did Darwin come to from the evidence that populations varied, that variation was heritable, and that it could help some individuals out compete others?

Natural selection

Why is evolution still considered a theory?

All knowledge in science is tentative

How does radiometric dating help paleontologists estimate the age of a fossil?

By comparing the ratio of carbon 12 to carbon 14 isotopes in a fossil

What is the likelihood that a particular genotype will contribute to the gene pool of future generations?

Fitness

If there is a coastal swamp with saltwater seeping into some areas and salt tolerance becomes more common in individuals of a grass species just in those areas, that would be an example of what kind of natural selection?

Diversifying selection

Why are some strains of S. aureus now resistant to antibiotics?

Bacteria with a mutation that made them resistant survived and reproduced, while others without it, died without reproducing.

Which of these conditions would prevent a population from being at Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (not evolving) for a particular trait?

Gene flow

If a population is at Hardy Weinberg equilibrium and 1% of the population has sickle cell anemia (q=.1), and 81% of the population does not carry the trait at all (p=.9), then what percent of the population are heterozygous?

18%

Which of these would be an example of adaptive natural selection in action?

Change in beak size in a finch population affected by periodic drought & S. Aureus developing resistance to antibiotics

Giant anteaters and echidnas both developing long snouts and sticky tongues to eat insects would be an example of what?

Convergent evolution

In Uganda 2% of the population have sickle cell anemia (q=.14). If 52% of the population does not carry the trait (p=.72), then what percent of the population would you predict are heterozygous?

20%

Which is an example of molecular homology demonstrating all life's descent from a common ancestor?

DNA transcription

Which of these statements about evolution is true?

Natural selection acts on individuals, but only populations evolve

Which of these conditions would a population need to be at Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (not evolving) for a particular trait?

Random mating

Which of these is an example of a founder effect affecting allele frequencies in a population?

Small population of finches flying to an empty island

In some reef fish being too small means not producing many eggs, but being too big means not being able to find a good hiding place that you can squeeze into to hide from predators. What type of natural selection would cause the fish population to shift toward a medium size between the two extremes?

Stabilizing

Fewer male White-tailed deer who grow big antlers at maturity are being born in Louisiana, how can you explain this?

Hunters are shooting more males with big antlers before they can mate.

Which of these would be an example of intersexual selection at work?

Brightly colored male birds dancing for females.

What is the movement of alleles between populations?

Gene-flow

In reality, 46% of the population of Uganda are heterozygous for sickle cell, a condition that causes them to be more resistant to malaria transmission without developing sickle cell anemia, what does that tell you about the status of this allele in the population?

Balancing selection is causing the heterozygote to remain common & The population is not in Hardy Weinberg equilibrium

Which of these is an example of a bottleneck affecting allele frequencies in a population?

Ivory poaching of African elephants

What would be an example of transitional form in evolutionary history?

Archaeopteryx (dinosaur with feathered legs)

Which of these provides evidence to support the theory of evolution?

The fossil record, anatomical homologies, and the geographic distribution of species (ALL OF THESE)

The forelimbs of humans, whales, and bats are derived from a common ancestor, with the same set of bones, but have different structures, what is this an example of?

Anatomical homology

What conclusion did Darwin come to from the observations that natural resources are limited, and populations tend to produce more offspring than the habitat can support?

Competition

During which stage in development do the heart and stomach fully develop?

Neurulation

In the below cladogram, what would be an example of a shared primitive characteristic (symplesiomorphy)? (see exam 2 quiz document for picture)

Reptiles and mammals both have skulls

Which of these lines of evidence are used by taxonomists to make phylogenetic trees?

The fossil record, DNA sequences & Morphological structures (All of these)

Which of these traditional taxons is no longer considered a valid clade because it doesn't include a single ancestor and all its descendant species?

Reptiles

What is horizontal gene transfer?

Transfer of gene between species

Which is the type of phylogenetic group that has a common ancestor and all of its descendants?

Monophyletic group

What is a species according to the Biological Species Concept?

A group of organisms that can breed and create fertile offspring

Which of these is correctly formatted scientific name for members of the human species

Homo sapiens (italicized)

In Diane Dodd's experiments on speciation in fruit flies, what is the factor that caused her fruit fly groups to no longer interbreed at normal rates once they were reunited?

They were separated and experienced different conditions for a few generations

One finch species evolving into many diverse new species in Hawaii would be an example of what process?

Adaptive radiation

A river slowly creates a canyon that chipmunk populations can't cross, and eventually the two groups become different species, what is this an example of?

Allopatric speciation

A diploid seed is fertilized by a diploid pollen and forms a viable plant species with a different chromosome number than the parent species, what is this an example of?

Sympatric speciation

What form of reproductive isolation keeps bird species who sing different songs from interbreeding?

Behavioral isolation

In the example of blackcap birds migrating shorter distances due to the availability of birdfeeders, the population is splitting into two groups, one that winters in Britain, and one that winters in Spain. The species flies back to Germany to breed, what form of reproductive isolation is keeping those groups from interbreeding when they return in the summer?

Temporal isolation

Which is the domain of living things that are characterized by cellular organelles?

Eukarya

What model of speciation is characterized by periods of stasis followed by bursts of speciation?

Punctuated equilibrium model

Which is the type of phylogenetic group that has a common ancestor but NOT all of its descendants?

Paraphyletic group

Which of these would slow down speciation in a population?

Hybrid zones

What form of reproductive isolation results in lions and tigers breeding in zoos to make ligers, who are infertile?

Reduced hybrid fertility

What form of reproductive isolation keeps sperm from fertilizing an egg?

Gametic isolation

What concept for the construction of cladograms favors the fewest genetic changes along the way to explain how species are related?

Parsimony

According to this phylogenetic tree for felines, which statement is true? (see exam 2 quiz document for picture)

Clouded leopards and lions are closely related

In the cladogram below, what would be an example of a shared derived characteristic (synapomorphy)? (see exam 2 quiz document for picture)

What is a species according to the Molecular Species Concept?

A group of organisms with similar genetic code

What can studying Hox genes tell taxonomists about how species evolved?

Some are shared (shared ancestor), but increasingly complex organisms have more Hox genes

Which of these statements about the above phylogenetic tree would be true? (see exam 2 quiz document for picture)

Cockroaches and termites are closely related