Ecology Smartwork Exam 1

Which of the following would be considered an organism?

a Lactobaccilus acidophilus bacterium in the human intestines

Which of the following would be considered an ecosystem level of study?

the plants, fungi, bacteria, animals (including zebra), nutrient cycles, climate patterns, and topography of the savanna

Which of the following is a naturalist approach to ecology?

patient observations of the wood grouse's (Tetrao urogallus) life history and mating behaviors

What is a response variable?

a variable that changes value due to a change in another variable impacting it

What is the difference between a conceptual and a mathematical model?

A conceptual model maps the relationships among various parts of a system under study, whereas a mathematical model is an equation that relates parts of a system using mathematical concepts

What are the two main steps in building a model?

Step 1. Become familiar with the problem at hand and formulate the question you are trying to answer, including designing research questions and experiments
Step 2. Identify specific aspects of the questions that are most relevant to the problem

Why is quantitative reasoning used in ecology?

Quantitative reasoning is a way for ecologists to process information related to quantities rather than qualities.

What is the use of a p-value?

A p-value is used to decide whether the null hypothesis is rejected or retained.

What are models?

Models are abstractions of reality and capture essential insight or generalizations about processes in nature.

Which of the following data collected might represent a normal distribution?

size of fish caught by anglers in Lake Ouachita over a weekend

What does it indicate when someone says that the test of the difference between the means of two groups is statistically significant?

It indicates that the difference between the means of the two groups is greater than what might be expected to happen by chance alone.

What is a null hypothesis?

a statement claiming that variation in the data sampled is due to a random chance and not caused by the explanatory variable

What is a standard deviation?

It is a measure of the average distance of all the points from the mean value.

What spheres of the Earth encompasses all of the living organisms and their environments?

biosphere

Which is, collectively, the largest biome on Earth?

deep pelagic ocean

Identify which pairing of mutation and definition is correct.

A neutral mutation has little to no impact on traits.

At time 0, the frequency of A1 in a population is 25%, A2 is 35%, and A3 is 40%. If, after several generations, the frequency of A1 is now 37%, A2 is now 23%, and A3 is still 40%, what is most likely to have occurred in response to environmental pressures?

natural selection

How is evolution defined?

a change in allele frequencies in a population over time

Which of the following is the correct hierarchy of genes, populations, species, and individuals?

Genes < Individuals < Populations < Species

If the energy gained by a particularly elusive prey is 753 kcal, and the cost to find, obtain, and eat that prey is 967 kcal, what should the predator do?

do not persue the prey

Which of the following is an example of behavior for plants?

 the bending of a new plant shoot toward a light source

What is the goal of optimization in organisms?

 increased fitness

If the energy gained by a particularly elusive prey is 753 kcal, and the cost to find, obtain, and eat that prey is 967 kcal, what should the predator do?

Do not pursue that prey item.

An Alternative hypothesis does what?

states that the variation in the sampled data is related to the explanatory variable

What is the difference between a variable and a parameter?

Variables are the quantities that change according to a different conditions, whereas a parameter is normally a constant

What is the use of a p-value?

A p-value is used to decide whether the null hypothesis is rejected or retained

How are C4 and CAM plants similar?

They both initially fix carbon into a four-carbon molecule. They fix carbon twice

in the mathematical model for the principle of allocation, what does the E-respiration represent?

The total energy devoted to all metabolic activities

Which of he following photosynthetic pathways works best at high CO2 concentration?

C3 photosynthesis