Ch 14 quiz – Flashcards with Answers

Flashcard maker : Karen Combs
The primitive Earth atmosphere is hypothesized to have consisted mostly of _____.
hydrogen, methane, ammonia, and water vapor
Since the 1950s, experiments have been conducted that lead scientists to conclude that life may have originated ________.
in small pools of water where amino acids could be concentrated
Scientists agree that two developments must have occurred for life to come into being: the formation of simple organic molecules important to life and _____.
organization of molecules into complex organic molecules
Before biogenesis became an accepted cornerstone of biology, it was widely accepted that _____________.
living things could arise spontaneously from other living things
Humans are thought to have evolved during the _____ Era.
Cenozoic
The Geologic Time Scale begins at the formation of Earth approximately _____ years ago.
4.6 billion
Which of the following statements are true about fossils?
all of these.
Which of the following fossils are not found in sedimentary rock?
frozen mammoths
While looking for fossils on an eroded hillside, you discover fossil coral and fish in one layer. In a layer just above, you find the fossil imprint of a fern frond and some fossil moss. Assuming the rock has not been disturbed, which of the following is the most probable conclusion?
a sea had been replaced by land in ancient times
Entire organisms, with even their most delicate parts intact, have been found preserved in __________.
amber and ice
According to one theory, the first prokaryotes probably obtained their food __________.
by consuming organic molecules available in their environment
Which group of organisms is believed to have been the earliest to evolve?
Cyanobacteria
A theory concerning the origin of life states that Earth’s ancient atmosphere contained _______.
water vapor, methane, and ammonia
Which fact is the basis for using the fossil record as evidence that evolution has taken place?
In undisturbed layers of rock strata, the older fossils are found in the deeper layers.
A clear fish imprint in a rock indicates that the rock is probably ___________.
Sedimentary
Urey and Miller subjected water, ammonia, methane, and hydrogen to heating and electricity in an attempt to _________.
find out whether the conditions of ancient Earth could have formed complex organic compounds
Which event contributed most directly to the evidence of aerobic organisms?
the presence of organisms able to carry on photosynthesis
Species A & B share similarities in DNA Sequences. What would this suggest about their evolutionary relationship?
Species A and B share a recent common ancestor
Structures called __________, capable of growth and metabolism, have been produced in the laboratory. Structures like these may have eventually evolved into heterotrophic prokaryotes.
protocells
Organisms known as ____________ are chemosynthetic autotrophs that survive in harsh conditions where there is little sunlight or oxygen.
archaebacteria
The ancient belief that nonliving materials could be transformed into living organisms was referred to as ________________.
Spontaneous generation
The idea that life arises only from life is referred to as ___________.
biogenesis
The different species of Hawaiian Honeycreepers shown all descended from a single species of North American bird. They now have different beaks, eat different foods, sing different songs, and live in different environments on the islands. Which factor probably contributed most to the development of these different species?
Geographic Isolation
During the industrial revolution, there were two variations of English Peppered Moths, those with light color and those with dark color. The soot from the factories covered the trees. Data was collected to measure the percentage of each type of moth in the area. It was noted that the percentage of dark-colored moths increased over time, while the percentage of light colored moths decreased. What is the likely explanation for this change?
The presence of the dark colored variation increased the likelihood for the survival of the English Peppered Moths.
A researcher sprays a new pesticide on thousands of insects of the same species that live in a large field. A few of the insects survive. What can be concluded by the researcher?
The species of insects will likely become resistant to the pesticide
Hawaiian honeycreepers are a small group of birds with similar body shape and size. However, they vary greatly in color and beak shape. Each species occupies its own niche and is adapted to the foods available in its niche. The evolution from a common ancestor to a variety of species is an example of ___________.
divergent evolution
The flying squirrel of North America closely resembles the flying phalanger of Australia. They are similar in size and have long bushy tails and skin folds that allow them to glide through the air. The squirrel is a placental mammal, while the phalanger is a marsupial. These close resemblances, even though genetically and geographically separated by great distances, can best be explained by _________.
convergent evolution
Within a decade of the introduction of a new insecticide, nearly all of the descendents of the target pests were immune to the usual-sized dose. The most likely explanation for this immunity to the insecticide is that ______.
it selected random mutations that were present in the insect population and that provided immunity to the insecticide
Mutations such as polyploidy and crossing over provide the genetic basis for ___________.
evolution
Structures that have a similar evolutionary origin and structure but are adapted for different purposes, such as a bat wing and a human arm, are called ________.
homologous structures
Natural selection can best be defined as the _________.
Survival and reproduction of the organisms that are genetically best adapted to the environment
A pattern of evolution that results when two unrelated species began to appear similar because of environmental conditions is ______.
convergent evolution
The average individuals of a population are favored in _____ selection.
stabilizing
In _____ selection, individuals with both extreme forms of a trait are at a selective advantage.
disruptive
______ selection favors one extreme form of a trait in a population.
directional
What is the movement of genes into and out of a gene pool called?
migration
Which of the following lines of evidence for evolution is indirect?
fossils
Which answer BEST shows an animal’s adaption to the tropical rain forest?
camouflage in a tree frog
The variations needed for the origin of structural and physiological adaptions to occur are provided by __________.
mutations
A mechanism of Darwin’s proposed theory is _______.
all of these
The founder of modern evolution theory is considered to be_______.
Charles Darwin
Mutations occur because of _______.
the introduction of new variations through mistakes in DNA replication
Upon close examination of the skeleton of an adult python, a pelvic girdle and leg bones can be observed. These features are an example of ________.
vestigial structures
Which combination of characteristics in a population would provide the greatest potential for evolutionary change?
small population, many mutations
The theory of continental drift hypothesizes that Africa and South America slowly drifted apart after once being a single landmass. The monkeys on the two continents, although similar, show numerous genetic differences. Which factor is probably the most important in maintaining these differences
geographic isolation
Which of the following is not a factor that causes changes in the frequency of homozygous and heterozygous individuals in population?
random mating
When checking the shell color for a species of snail found only in a remote area seldom visited by humans, scientists discovered the distribution of individuals that is shown in the graph in Figure 15-1. Based on the information shown in the graph, the snail population is undergoing_____.
directional selection
The evolution of an ancestral species into an array of species that occupy different niches is called ___________.
divergent evolution
Any structure that is reduced in function in a living organism but may have been used in an ancestor is known as a(n) _________.
vestigial structure
The concept that evolution occurs over long periods of stability that are interrupted by geologically brief periods of change is known as ___________.
punctuated equilibrium
_________________ is a mechanism for change in a population in which organism with favorable variations live, reproduce, and pass on their favorable traits.
Natural Selection
The alteration of allelic frequencies by chance processes is known as _______________.
genetic drift
The _______________ is the percentage of a particular allele in a population.
allelic frequency
The total number of genes present in a population is the _____________.
gene pool
A variety of structural adaptions called __________ provides protection for an organism by copying the appearance of another species
mimicry
A structural adaption enabling an organism to blend in with its environment is _____________-.
camouflage
_______________________ is a technique in which the breeder selects particular traits.
Artificial selection
The skeleton of the hominid nicknamed \”Lucy\” gave anthropologists evidence that _________.
upright walking evolved before large brains
The anthropologists who discovered the skull of Homo habilis were ____________.
Cro-Magnon
Primates evolved approximately _________.
65 million years ago
Evidence for the determination of bipedal locomotion in a n animal could be found by an example of the ______.
pelvis
Some primate skeletons were located in a cave in association with these things: a variety of stone tools, the charred bones of some animals they had cooked and eaten, and numerous paintings on the walls. Carbon-14 dating techniques determined that the bones and other artifacts were about 35,000 years old. The skeletal remains probably belonged to ___________.
Cro-Magnons
Based on the fossil record, it ahs been determined that the earliest primates probably lived in the __________.
forests
Most early hominid fossils have been found in _______.
Arica
The earliest primate identifiable from the fossil record is _________.
Purgatorius
The first hominids to make and use simple stone tools were ___________.
Homo habilis
Which factor may have played a large role in human evolution?
Climate changes that caused existing primates to search for new food sources
Which is the oldest hominid species to be unearthed?
Australopithecus afarensis
Tailless primates that are most like humans are the _________.
apes
The jaw from the skull of the genus Homo and one from the genus Australopithecus are different, in that the jaw from the genus homo would ________.
be smaller with smaller teeth and not so much definition of tooth type
The skulls and pelvic bones of australopithecines have structures that appear __________ than those of chimpanzees and modern humans.
intermediate between
The major anatomical difference between hominids and the apes is that the foramen magnum is ________ in hominids.
located at the bottom of the skull
Japanese macaques are exceptional among the primates because they__________.
live outside the tropics
As primates evolved, the developed ________.
stereoscopic vision and rotating shoulder joints
Which of the following groups are representative of the first primates?
prosimians
Primates are adapted to live in trees because their eyes ________.
all of these
Evidence that Homo erectus was more intelligent than its predecessors would include _________.
tools such as hand axes that have been found near their fire pits
Lemurs and tarsiers are members of the primate group called _________.
prosimians
New World monkeys are said to have an extra hand, the _________,
prehensile tail
A distinctive characteristic of humans is ______ locomotion, the ability to walk on tow legs in an upright position.
bipedal
African skulls that show both humanlike and apelike characteristics are thought to be derived from early African primates and are collectively referred to as ________________.
australopithecine
A group of people called the _________ lived from 40 000 to 35 000 years ago, when they disappeared from the fossil record.
Cro-Magnons
Anthropologists propose that modern primates have evolved from two groups, the prosimians and the _______.
anthropoids
The ability to touch the thumb to the forefinger, permitting objects to be tightly grasped, is called ____________.
opposable thumb
Modern humans and humanlike fossils are classified as ______.
hominids
Homo sapiens may have first evolved by 400 000 years ago, and evidence from burial sites around 100 000 years ago indicates the use of communication by one group of people called the ______________.
Neanderthals
When organisms are classified within the same group, it can be assumed that they have a common phylogeny.
True
A dichotomous key is a step-by-step way to identify an organism using a series f paired descriptions.
True
In Aristotle’s system of classification, animals were classified on the basis of their size and structure.
False; where they lived
Organisms that are similar in structure and form and successfully reproduce among themselves belong to the same family.
False; species
In the name of the white oak, Quercus alba, Quercus is the species name.
False; genus
In a fan diagram, the closer a species is to the outer band, the earlier it appeared in geologic time.
False; later
The greater the number of taxa two organisms have in common, the more closely related they are.
True
A phylum is related to a class as a family is related to an order.
False; Genera
Linnaeus used similarities in structure to determine relationships among organisms.
True
Escherichia coli, a type of bacteria that lives in the small intestine, is classified in the Kingdom Protista.
False; Kingdom Eubacteria
The science of grouping and naming organism is ________.
taxonomy
A group of closely related plants is a ________.
division
The evolutionary history of a species is its __________.
phylogeny
A system for naming species in which two words are used to name an organism is ________.
binomial nomenclature
The method used to construct a hypothetical evolutionary tree is _________.
cladistics
A heterotrophic eukaryote associated with the decomposition of dead organisms is a(n) ________.
fungus
What is the difference between the full classification of organisms and their scientific names?
The full classification of organisms will include more categories of organisms than their scientific names.
The placing of information or objects into groups based on certain similarities is __________.
classification
Characteristics inherited through on ancestral line and no other are ________.
behavioral
Early people wanted to have a better understanding of nature. Early scientists used __________ to help with this understanding
classificaiton
The language used for scientific names is _______ because it does not change.
Latin
Aristotle classified plants into three groups based on _______ and _______.
size, structure
Aristotle classified animals according to their ____________.
environment
Early people classified plants based on whether or not they were ____________.
edible or toxic
Group of related genera
family
Group of related phyla
kingdom
Group of related orders
class
Eukaryote lacking complex organ systems
protist
Microscopic, single-celled prokaryotes
bacteria
Group of related classes
phylum
Group of related species
genus
Group of related families
order
A paleontologist is comparing the fossilized remains of 2 primates. Both animals had a prehensile tail. What can be concluded from this evidence?
They evolved from a common ancestor
Variation within species was important to the development of Darwin’s theory of evolution. Which statement does individual variation help explain?
Some organisms survive and reproduce better than others
Variety within a species is most likely to result from which situation?
Adaption to local environmental characteristics by isolated populations of the species
Which would be considered biochemical evidence of an evolutionary relationship?
presence of identical proteins
Which is the best evidence of an evolutionary relation between tow organisms?
similarity in DNA
Which cells in the chart below is a prokaryotic cell?
Cell C
An organism is eukaryotic, multicellular, heterotrophic, and has a cell wall. To which kingdom does it belong?
Fungi
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