BIO 182 Exam 1 – GCU | Evolution, Natural
Selection, Darwin & Genetic Variation|Verified
Questions Provided with A+ Graded Rationales
Latest Updated 2026
Bio 182 Exam 1 GCU
Who influenced Darwin's ideas
James Hutton and Charles Lyell: uniformitarianism
gradualism (uniformitarianism)
the idea that the earth has moved with a constant change across time; ex: the strata gradually
moved over time
Catastrophism
the idea that major events changed the species outcome; ex: large events occur that altered the
strata across time, it happened instantly instead of gradually
How does descent with modification explain the adaptations of organisms as well as the unity
and diversity of life?
Natural Selection
Natural Selection
A process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits tend to survive and reproduce at
higher rates than other individuals because of those traits.
Artificial Selection
Selection by humans for breeding of useful traits from the natural variation among different
organisms
Darwin observation #1
Members of a population often vary in their inherited traits
Darwin observation #2
All species can produce more offspring than the environment can support
, Darwin Inference #1
Individuals whose inherited traits give them a higher probability of survival tend to leave more
offspring than other individuals
Darwin Inference #2
This unequal ability of individuals to survive and reproduce will lead to the accumulation of
favorable traits in the population over generations
What role do individuals versus populations have in this process?
Individuals do not evolve, populations evolve over times.
List two direct observations of evolutionary change and explain.
1. Natural selection does not create anything new; it just selects and picks from the available
traits
2. The current local environment determines the traits
homologous structures
Structures in different species that are similar because of common ancestry.
Four sources of genetic variation.
mutation: a random change in the nucleotide sequence of DNA that can be both harmful and
beneficial.
Gene duplication: genes that are accidentally duplicated which increases genome size and is
usually less harmful
Sexual reproduction: Shifts allele into new combinations
Why is variation important?
makes evolution possible; without it there would be not multiply different traits to pick form
across time.; allows species to evolve across generations that would better suit for its
environment.
Five conditions for Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium
1. Very large populations
2. No emigration or immigration (gene flow)
3. No mutations
4. Random mating
5. No natural selection
Genetic Drift: Founder Effect
Selection, Darwin & Genetic Variation|Verified
Questions Provided with A+ Graded Rationales
Latest Updated 2026
Bio 182 Exam 1 GCU
Who influenced Darwin's ideas
James Hutton and Charles Lyell: uniformitarianism
gradualism (uniformitarianism)
the idea that the earth has moved with a constant change across time; ex: the strata gradually
moved over time
Catastrophism
the idea that major events changed the species outcome; ex: large events occur that altered the
strata across time, it happened instantly instead of gradually
How does descent with modification explain the adaptations of organisms as well as the unity
and diversity of life?
Natural Selection
Natural Selection
A process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits tend to survive and reproduce at
higher rates than other individuals because of those traits.
Artificial Selection
Selection by humans for breeding of useful traits from the natural variation among different
organisms
Darwin observation #1
Members of a population often vary in their inherited traits
Darwin observation #2
All species can produce more offspring than the environment can support
, Darwin Inference #1
Individuals whose inherited traits give them a higher probability of survival tend to leave more
offspring than other individuals
Darwin Inference #2
This unequal ability of individuals to survive and reproduce will lead to the accumulation of
favorable traits in the population over generations
What role do individuals versus populations have in this process?
Individuals do not evolve, populations evolve over times.
List two direct observations of evolutionary change and explain.
1. Natural selection does not create anything new; it just selects and picks from the available
traits
2. The current local environment determines the traits
homologous structures
Structures in different species that are similar because of common ancestry.
Four sources of genetic variation.
mutation: a random change in the nucleotide sequence of DNA that can be both harmful and
beneficial.
Gene duplication: genes that are accidentally duplicated which increases genome size and is
usually less harmful
Sexual reproduction: Shifts allele into new combinations
Why is variation important?
makes evolution possible; without it there would be not multiply different traits to pick form
across time.; allows species to evolve across generations that would better suit for its
environment.
Five conditions for Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium
1. Very large populations
2. No emigration or immigration (gene flow)
3. No mutations
4. Random mating
5. No natural selection
Genetic Drift: Founder Effect
