Chapter 1 Quiz

. Many types of antibiotics that were highly effective a few decades ago are not nearly as effective in the present. Why might this be the case?

The use of penicillin declined when populations of the bread mold that produce it declined.

The initial successes were statistical anomalies and the result of random chance.

Bacteria inherit higher levels of resistance when it is needed.

Bacteria have evolved resistance to antibiotics, driven by natural selection.

Cheaper generic drugs entered the marketplace.

. Why is evolutionary biology one of the best paradigms in which to study the spread of viruses like Ebola into new populations and species?

Only evolutionary biologists understand the way that viruses can bypass the immune system.

Evolutionary biology does not concern itself with the ethics of medical research.

Evolutionary biologists work on understanding how populations (the viruses) adapt to new environments (the hosts).

Evolutionary biologists were already studying how diseases affect bats in central Africa.

Viruses are rarely transmitted between species.

. Which statement best characterizes the distinction between proximate and ultimate causes?

The reason for a behavior might change between the past and present.

A small organism needs less food and also is less obvious to predators.

Birds learn their songs from their parents, but need the correct singing apparatus to repeat them.

Fiddler crabs with large claws are better able to defeat rival males and are more attractive to females.

Food is eaten to satiate one's appetite but also to provide energy for metabolism.

. Biological evolution is defined as

change in the properties of organisms over the course of development.

directed change of organisms towards greater complexity.

the belief that each organism has an essence indicative of its design.

change in the properties of groups of organisms over the course of generations.

random mutations and natural selection.

. What is meant by "the theory of evolution"?

Evolution is well-supported by evidence and has survived repeated testing.

There is not enough evidence of evolution to consider it a fact, but it is compelling.

Evolution is a proven fact.

Scientists guess that evolution has occurred, but that idea is not yet supported by evidence.

Nonevolutionary explanations for organic diversity are just as plausible as explanations provided by evolutionary biology.

. Natural selection is only one of several possible mechanisms of evolution. Another mechanism is

intelligent design.

the Scala Naturae (chain of being).

translation of mRNA to a protein sequence.

genetic drift.

evolutionary stasis.

. Uniformitarianism allows evolutionary biology to be an experimental science. Which of the following is an example of uniformitarianism?

Members of a natural population of finches that deviate from the norm are identified as monstrosities.

Present observations of erosion on a streambank demonstrate how a canyon was formed.

When choosing between competing hypotheses without other evidence, the simplest explanation is usually the most likely.

The presence of a canyon is explained as having been generated from Noah's flood.

The development of a fish embryo shows how vertebrates evolved from simpler invertebrates.

. Which of these had the least influence on Darwin's work and writing?

Knowledge of inheritance, as discovered by Gregor Mendel.

His work as a naturalist aboard the h.m.s. Beagle.

His experience with medicine as a student and as the son of a physician.

The writings of Thomas Malthus on human populations and resources.

Correspondence with Alfred Russel Wallace and other naturalists of his time.

. What was the most important immediate outcome of Wallace's 1858 letter to Darwin, which included Wallace's ideas of natural selection?

Darwin was prompted to debate Wallace about the conflicts in their ideas.

Darwin was prompted to make his own research on the subject public.

Darwin abandoned work on his massive book, Natural Selection.

Wallace was justly recognized as a scientist of great importance in England.

Darwin was finally convinced that natural selection was the major force driving evolution.

. The two major themes of On the Origin of Species are

descent with modification and a variational theory of change.

descent with modification and a transformational theory of change.

essentialism and a variational theory of change.

essentialism and a transformational theory of change.

descent with modification and essentialism.

. Which of the following is not one of Darwin's theories?

Evolution (change over time)

Common descent

Change via saltations (extreme, sudden changes in an organism's traits)

Population change

Natural selection

. In the early twentieth century, many geneticists were at odds with evolutionary biologists. Why?

There was a lack of communication among scientists in continental Europe and North America.

Geneticists were unaware of research done by evolutionary biologists.

Evolutionary biologists were unaware of research done by geneticists.

Theories of orthogenesis led to a schism between the two camps.

Geneticists observed discrete effects of mutations, while Darwin suggested that evolution occurs via gradual changes.

. In the 1930s and 1940s the modern evolutionary synthesis occurred. Which of these was not a major outcome of the evolutionary synthesis?

The integration of genomics with evolutionary biology

Rejection of anti-Darwinian ideas like neo-Lamarckism, orthogenesis, and mutationism

Recognition of natural selection as the primary driver of evolution, along with important roles for genetic drift, gene flow, and sexual selection

The integration of genetics, systematics, and paleontology (connecting microevolution with macroevolution)

The development of a mathematical theory of population genetics

. Which of the following is one of the principles of evolution?

Mutation alone is sufficient to cause large allele frequency changes.

The genotype is the same as the phenotype.

Heritable variation can be maintained because of the particulate nature of genes.

Characteristics acquired during an organism's lifetime can be inherited.

Natural selection needs to be strong in order for substantial evolutionary change to take place.

. Which statement is true?

Natural selection acts on populations, not on individuals.

Mutations are the raw material for natural selection.

Evolutionary change occurs at the level of the individual.

Developmental change is a population-level process.

Species are simply those organisms that share similar phenotypes.

. Which modern development has the least potential to aid our understanding of macroevolution?

Studies of molecular evolution allow analysis of the history of changes in genes.

The field of evolutionary genomics has provided evidence that taxa share many genes.

Studies of embryonic development demonstrate how changing patterns of gene expression lead to reorganization of tissues in different taxa.

Phylogenetic techniques give new insight into patterns of diversification of organisms.

The neutral theory of molecular evolution, which argues that most changes to DNA sequences are neutral with respect to fitness.

. What is wrong with the following claim? "Lichens involve a symbiotic association between a fungus and alga. The purpose of algae is to provide nutrients to fungi."

The relationship between fungi and algae is not symbiotic.

The explanation is purpose-driven, as opposed to functional.

Lichens are not composed of fungi and algae.

The explanation is reductionistic.

The explanation is materialistic.

. Which of these is an example of the "naturalistic fallacy"?

Evolutionary science leaves no room for God, the creator.

Natural selection is the only mechanism for evolution recognized during Darwin's lifetime.

Evolution can be used to justify immoral behavior, violating natural law.

Science assumes that only natural causes operate and rejects supernatural intervention.

A literal reading of the bible is incompatible with modern knowledge of the natural sciences.

Chapter 1 Quiz

Quiz Content