BIOB51 - REVIEW EXAM QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
WITH COMPLETE SOLUTIONS LATEST UPDATE GRADED
A++
T or F: Lamarck's hypothesis about the Evolution of Acquired traits did not
provide an explanation for Adaptation.
False. Proposed an idea, just a bad one.
Briefly outline one piece of evidence that environments have changed
substantially over time.
Many possibilities here.
One is: fossilized whales are found in the Sahara Dessert, this shows that this area was
once under water (from the Great Transformations video).
Whale femur (eventually became part of penile tissue)
Describe what this graph shows about beak length in soapberry bugs.
Beak length was more variable in the 1800 and early 1900's (ranging from about 5.5 to
9mm in size), than after about 1930 when variation decreased quite a bit. After this time,
the largest beaks were about 7.5mm and the average size would thus be lower.
What would you need to know to determine if evolution occurred in soapberry
bugs in Lake Wales?
Evolution is a change in allele frequencies for a given trait over time. To determine
whether the change in the frequency of smaller beak sizes is an evolutionary change, I
,would need to know whether the alleles that affect beak size had changed in frequency.
NOTE: the average beak size could also change due to environmental effects. For
example, the new fruit could affect developmental pathways in a way that leads to
smaller beaks (e.g., no change in alleles).
When distantly related taxa share similar traits, it is likely these traits are
(homologous OR homoplasious). This type of trait (is OR is not) useful in building
phylogenies.
When distantly related taxa share similar traits, it is likely these traits are homoplasious.
This type of trait is not useful in building phylogenies.
Extra notes: The wings of insects and birds are Homoplasies. These are traits that are
similar because of convergent evolution—the process by which similar traits arise in
response to similar types of selection in different taxa. This type of similar trait does
NOT reflect evolutionary relatedness because these different taxa evolved them
independently; they were not inherited from a common ancestor. Thus these traits are
not helpful in building phylogenies because they do not reflect relatedness.
Darwin: Individuals within populations are variable. Y or N?
Y
Darwin: The variations among individuals are not passed from parent to
offspring. Y or N?
The variations among individuals are not passed from parent to offspring. NO:
Although not all variations are passed on to offspring, some of them are. It is these
, inherited (heritable) traits that can be the focus of evolution by natural selection as
proposed by Darwin.
Darwin: Some individuals are better at surviving and reproducing. YES or NO
Y
D: Survival and reproduction are random processes. YES or NO
N; Survival and reproduction is more likely for organisms that have traits that allow them
to perform better than their competitors in a given habit. Thus, survival and reproductive
are not random.
In this study, researchers tested whether flowering time had evolved in response
to drought using seeds. To test their hypothesis, the researchers had to control
for at least one potentially confounding factor. What was the confounding factor,
and how did they control for it?
NOTE: Researchers had seeds from the original population and from the current
population (after the drought). They could grow the seeds and assess flowering
time to determine whether that had changed over time.
Answer: The seeds from the ancestral population (before
the drought) were older and had been stored for some time. If they found a difference, it
could have been caused by the age of these older seeds. To control for this, they raised
one generation from the ancestral and descendant seeds under common conditions,
then used the fresh seeds (produced in the same year) to raise plants and gather their
data.
WITH COMPLETE SOLUTIONS LATEST UPDATE GRADED
A++
T or F: Lamarck's hypothesis about the Evolution of Acquired traits did not
provide an explanation for Adaptation.
False. Proposed an idea, just a bad one.
Briefly outline one piece of evidence that environments have changed
substantially over time.
Many possibilities here.
One is: fossilized whales are found in the Sahara Dessert, this shows that this area was
once under water (from the Great Transformations video).
Whale femur (eventually became part of penile tissue)
Describe what this graph shows about beak length in soapberry bugs.
Beak length was more variable in the 1800 and early 1900's (ranging from about 5.5 to
9mm in size), than after about 1930 when variation decreased quite a bit. After this time,
the largest beaks were about 7.5mm and the average size would thus be lower.
What would you need to know to determine if evolution occurred in soapberry
bugs in Lake Wales?
Evolution is a change in allele frequencies for a given trait over time. To determine
whether the change in the frequency of smaller beak sizes is an evolutionary change, I
,would need to know whether the alleles that affect beak size had changed in frequency.
NOTE: the average beak size could also change due to environmental effects. For
example, the new fruit could affect developmental pathways in a way that leads to
smaller beaks (e.g., no change in alleles).
When distantly related taxa share similar traits, it is likely these traits are
(homologous OR homoplasious). This type of trait (is OR is not) useful in building
phylogenies.
When distantly related taxa share similar traits, it is likely these traits are homoplasious.
This type of trait is not useful in building phylogenies.
Extra notes: The wings of insects and birds are Homoplasies. These are traits that are
similar because of convergent evolution—the process by which similar traits arise in
response to similar types of selection in different taxa. This type of similar trait does
NOT reflect evolutionary relatedness because these different taxa evolved them
independently; they were not inherited from a common ancestor. Thus these traits are
not helpful in building phylogenies because they do not reflect relatedness.
Darwin: Individuals within populations are variable. Y or N?
Y
Darwin: The variations among individuals are not passed from parent to
offspring. Y or N?
The variations among individuals are not passed from parent to offspring. NO:
Although not all variations are passed on to offspring, some of them are. It is these
, inherited (heritable) traits that can be the focus of evolution by natural selection as
proposed by Darwin.
Darwin: Some individuals are better at surviving and reproducing. YES or NO
Y
D: Survival and reproduction are random processes. YES or NO
N; Survival and reproduction is more likely for organisms that have traits that allow them
to perform better than their competitors in a given habit. Thus, survival and reproductive
are not random.
In this study, researchers tested whether flowering time had evolved in response
to drought using seeds. To test their hypothesis, the researchers had to control
for at least one potentially confounding factor. What was the confounding factor,
and how did they control for it?
NOTE: Researchers had seeds from the original population and from the current
population (after the drought). They could grow the seeds and assess flowering
time to determine whether that had changed over time.
Answer: The seeds from the ancestral population (before
the drought) were older and had been stored for some time. If they found a difference, it
could have been caused by the age of these older seeds. To control for this, they raised
one generation from the ancestral and descendant seeds under common conditions,
then used the fresh seeds (produced in the same year) to raise plants and gather their
data.
