BIO 206 FINAL EXAM WITH CORRECT ACTUAL QUESTIONS AND
CORRECTLY WELL DEFINED ANSWERS LATEST ALREADY
GRADED A+
What are the characteristics that make an idea scientific? - ANSWER-sexual selection: selection on traits
associated with mating
intrasexual selection: competition for access to mates (between members of one sex)
intersexual selection: exercising choice of potential mates (members of one sex towards the other)
What does it mean to say an idea refers to the supernatural? Why is it important that a scientific idea
make reference to "natural law"? How does assessment of the meaning of empirical evidence differ from
a belief system? - ANSWER-the supernatural is something that cannot be tested or proved false, such as
ghosts or god
a scientific idea needs to make reference to natural law b/c natural law has evidence to back it up or
whatever and is legitimate
empirical evidence is measured; it is actually evidence
a belief system is choosing to have faith in something with no particular reason to do so
If we define "proof" as something being irrevocably true, has always been true, and will always be true,
why is that inconsistent with our definition of science? - ANSWER-science needs to be falsifiable so if it is
always irrevocably true it cannot be falsifiable
,If an idea is not falsifiable, why can it not be rejected as not true? - ANSWER-the word falsifiable means
being able to made false, aka not true
if you can't say something is false you can't say it's not true
From the perspective of scientists, what is the difference between a hypothesis and a theory? -
ANSWER-a hypothesis is a tentative explanation for a natural phenomenon made to be tested and a
theory is a well-tested well-substantiated unifying explanation for a large set of verified observations or
measurements
What is a general definition of evolution? - ANSWER-evolution is the change in alleles of a population
over generations
Describe how artificial selection serves as evidence for the principle underlying evolution by natural
selection. - ANSWER-artificial selection is when humans choose a trait (such as extra milk production in
cows) and breed only those individuals with the trait
this results in more offspring having the desired trait
when a trait results in an individual being able to reproduce more, the trait then shows itself in more
offspring
How does the experiment on selection for running speed in mice serve as indirect evidence for evolution
by natural selection (Fig. 2.3, this is redundant with question 2 above)? What does the effect of Ritalin on
the running speed in mice suggest about the genetic/evolutionary relationship between humans and
mice? - ANSWER-when only the fast mice were bred the mouse babies got faster (trait selected was
more popular in offspring)
,ritalin affected mice in the same way it affects humans, suggesting that there are similar pathways in the
human and mouse brain due to relation
Describe how vestigial structures provide evidence for evolution (i.e., common ancestry among taxa).
Describe three apparent examples of vestigial structures. - ANSWER-vestigial structures are structures
that serve no purpose but still exist
for example whales have vestigial femurs
they don't nerdfed femurs but the femur remains because whales evolved from creatures that once had
femurs
other vestigial structures include human olfactory receptors and flightless birds
Define what "transitional forms" are and how they provide evidence for Darwin's idea that organisms
share common ancestry? Give two examples of transitional forms. - ANSWER-transitional forms are
species that share characteristics of two major taxa
this shows how animals come from a common ancestor allowing one taxa to develop from another
(missing links)
one example is tiktaalik and another example is egg laying mammals
Explain the experiments with the bacteriophage Φ6, and explain how the results provide evidence that
natural selection can result in new species. - ANSWER-bacteria that affects one genus
evolves to infect another species too
then evolves to only infect that other species
these bitches different!
, What are homologous traits? Describe morphological, developmental, and molecular homology and give
examples. Why are homologous traits relevant to the theory of evolution by natural selection? -
ANSWER-homologous traits are same structures in different morphologies in different taxa
morphological is physical traits (ie lizards and snakes are cold blooded)
developmental is patterns of development in related taxa show very similar structural morphology
molecular is how the same nucleotides code for the same amino acids
homologous traits provide evidence for genetic relationships between different species
Describe how processed pseudogenes provide evidence for the evolutionary relationships (common
ancestry) among tax. - ANSWER-pseudogenes are not selected for or against
so they will get passed on and will be shared between species with genetic relationships
How does radiometric dating work? What assumptions must one make when using radiometric dating to
estimate the age of an organism of geological structure? Why is radiometric dating important with regard
to evolutionary theory? - ANSWER-radiometric dating relies on measuring radioactivity
one must assume that there was a set daughter/mother relationship and that nothing has been added to
the substance since it was buried
radiometric dating is important because it allows us to make a fossil timeline that can be used to show
how species are related
How does the pattern of the relative complexity of fossils in different aged geological strata over the last
500+ million years (i.e., macroevolution) provide evidence for common ancestry among all taxa (i.e.,
CORRECTLY WELL DEFINED ANSWERS LATEST ALREADY
GRADED A+
What are the characteristics that make an idea scientific? - ANSWER-sexual selection: selection on traits
associated with mating
intrasexual selection: competition for access to mates (between members of one sex)
intersexual selection: exercising choice of potential mates (members of one sex towards the other)
What does it mean to say an idea refers to the supernatural? Why is it important that a scientific idea
make reference to "natural law"? How does assessment of the meaning of empirical evidence differ from
a belief system? - ANSWER-the supernatural is something that cannot be tested or proved false, such as
ghosts or god
a scientific idea needs to make reference to natural law b/c natural law has evidence to back it up or
whatever and is legitimate
empirical evidence is measured; it is actually evidence
a belief system is choosing to have faith in something with no particular reason to do so
If we define "proof" as something being irrevocably true, has always been true, and will always be true,
why is that inconsistent with our definition of science? - ANSWER-science needs to be falsifiable so if it is
always irrevocably true it cannot be falsifiable
,If an idea is not falsifiable, why can it not be rejected as not true? - ANSWER-the word falsifiable means
being able to made false, aka not true
if you can't say something is false you can't say it's not true
From the perspective of scientists, what is the difference between a hypothesis and a theory? -
ANSWER-a hypothesis is a tentative explanation for a natural phenomenon made to be tested and a
theory is a well-tested well-substantiated unifying explanation for a large set of verified observations or
measurements
What is a general definition of evolution? - ANSWER-evolution is the change in alleles of a population
over generations
Describe how artificial selection serves as evidence for the principle underlying evolution by natural
selection. - ANSWER-artificial selection is when humans choose a trait (such as extra milk production in
cows) and breed only those individuals with the trait
this results in more offspring having the desired trait
when a trait results in an individual being able to reproduce more, the trait then shows itself in more
offspring
How does the experiment on selection for running speed in mice serve as indirect evidence for evolution
by natural selection (Fig. 2.3, this is redundant with question 2 above)? What does the effect of Ritalin on
the running speed in mice suggest about the genetic/evolutionary relationship between humans and
mice? - ANSWER-when only the fast mice were bred the mouse babies got faster (trait selected was
more popular in offspring)
,ritalin affected mice in the same way it affects humans, suggesting that there are similar pathways in the
human and mouse brain due to relation
Describe how vestigial structures provide evidence for evolution (i.e., common ancestry among taxa).
Describe three apparent examples of vestigial structures. - ANSWER-vestigial structures are structures
that serve no purpose but still exist
for example whales have vestigial femurs
they don't nerdfed femurs but the femur remains because whales evolved from creatures that once had
femurs
other vestigial structures include human olfactory receptors and flightless birds
Define what "transitional forms" are and how they provide evidence for Darwin's idea that organisms
share common ancestry? Give two examples of transitional forms. - ANSWER-transitional forms are
species that share characteristics of two major taxa
this shows how animals come from a common ancestor allowing one taxa to develop from another
(missing links)
one example is tiktaalik and another example is egg laying mammals
Explain the experiments with the bacteriophage Φ6, and explain how the results provide evidence that
natural selection can result in new species. - ANSWER-bacteria that affects one genus
evolves to infect another species too
then evolves to only infect that other species
these bitches different!
, What are homologous traits? Describe morphological, developmental, and molecular homology and give
examples. Why are homologous traits relevant to the theory of evolution by natural selection? -
ANSWER-homologous traits are same structures in different morphologies in different taxa
morphological is physical traits (ie lizards and snakes are cold blooded)
developmental is patterns of development in related taxa show very similar structural morphology
molecular is how the same nucleotides code for the same amino acids
homologous traits provide evidence for genetic relationships between different species
Describe how processed pseudogenes provide evidence for the evolutionary relationships (common
ancestry) among tax. - ANSWER-pseudogenes are not selected for or against
so they will get passed on and will be shared between species with genetic relationships
How does radiometric dating work? What assumptions must one make when using radiometric dating to
estimate the age of an organism of geological structure? Why is radiometric dating important with regard
to evolutionary theory? - ANSWER-radiometric dating relies on measuring radioactivity
one must assume that there was a set daughter/mother relationship and that nothing has been added to
the substance since it was buried
radiometric dating is important because it allows us to make a fossil timeline that can be used to show
how species are related
How does the pattern of the relative complexity of fossils in different aged geological strata over the last
500+ million years (i.e., macroevolution) provide evidence for common ancestry among all taxa (i.e.,
