Portage learning BIOD 121 Final Actual Exam
1. Prior to the publication of Charles Darwin's book, On the Origin of Species, what was
the prevailing public consensus regarding species evolution?
a. That species evolved by means of natural selection
b. That species evolved through physical changes that led to success
c. That species were modified over time, but did not change into new species
d. That species were permanent and unchanging - ANSWERd. That species were
permanent and unchanging
2. What contribution did Charles Lyell make?
a. He provided the first evidence that the Earth is much older than was previously
thought
b. He found some bird specimens on the Galapagos Islands
c. He suggested that life evolves through physical changes within the life span of an
organism
d. He found some fossils of extinct species - ANSWERa. He provided the first
evidence that the Earth is much older than was previously thought
3. What prompted Darwin to publish his book decades after he began writing it?
a. A colleague (Alfred Wallace) was about to publish a similar manuscript
b. After years of searching, he finally found a publisher willing to accept it
c. He had completed the last of his experiments
d. He had returned from his voyage around the world - ANSWERa. A colleague
(Alfred Wallace) was about to publish a similar manuscript
4. Which two observations led Darwin to conclude that there is competition for survival?
a. Fossils and mutations
b. Gene and allele differences in organisms
c. Natural selection and descent with modification
d. Overproduction and limited resources - ANSWERd. Overproduction and limited
resources
5. Individuals with variations that make them best suited to their environment will, on
average, be more likely to .
a. Survive and reproduce
b. Evolve
c. Be larger
d. Change over time - ANSWERa. Survive and reproduce
,6. Before Darwin published his work, Lamarck and others had suggested mechanisms
for evolution. By what means did Darwin propose species evolved over time?
a. Survival of the strongest
b. Natural selection
c. Passing on acquired traits
d. Overproduction of young - ANSWERb. Natural selection
7. Natural selection acts on , and evolve.
a. Populations; individuals
b. Individuals; individuals
c. Individuals; populations
d. Populations; populations - ANSWERc. Individuals; populations
8. Can you inherit physical traits that your parents acquired during their lifetime?
a. No
b. Yes
c. Only if it improves survivability
d. Only if it improves reproductive success - ANSWERa. No
9. A weed that exhibits resistance to an herbicide .
a. Is less likely to pass on the gene to the next generation
b. Developed the resistance in response to the herbicide
c. Mutated when exposed to the herbicide
d. Inherited the gene that made it resistant to the herbicide - ANSWERd. Inherited the
gene that made it resistant to the herbicide
10. Evolution can be best defined as .
a. Always taking a very long time to occur
b. Change in allele frequency in a population
c. The production of new species
d. Not involving humans - ANSWERb. Change in allele frequency in a population
11. Which of the following is evidence for evolution?
a. Cells with common features and chemically similar DNA
b. Mosquitoes becoming resistant to pesticides
c. Bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics over time
d. All are evidence for evolution - ANSWERd. All are evidence for evolution
12. What is radiometric dating?
a. The process of determining the age of the fossils using radio waves
b. The process of determining the age of the fossils from radioactive isotopes
c. The mineralization process by which living things are turned into fossils
d. The process of determining the age of the fossils based on which layer in the rock it
is found - ANSWERb. The process of determining the age of the fossils from
radioactive isotopes
, 13. The older fossils are typically found in the sediments.
a. Lower
b. Finer
c. Upper
d. Coarser - ANSWERa. Lower
d. Coarser
14. Which of the following are considered to be fossils?
a. Footprints or other impressions preserved in stone
b. Animals frozen in ice or preserved in amber
c. Mineralized bones
d. All of these - ANSWERd. All of these
15. What is the name for the study of geographic distribution of species?
a. Biogeography
b. Systematics
c. Ecology
d. Taxonomy - ANSWERa. Biogeography
16. Comparing the body structures of organisms to find evidence of a shared
evolutionary history is called .
a. Analogous reconstruction
b. Relativistic physiology
c. Out grouping
d. Comparative anatomy - ANSWERd. Comparative anatomy
17. Comparing DNA and protein sequences to find evidence of a shared evolutionary
history is called .
a. Proteomics
b. Genomics
c. Differential relatedness
d. Bioinformatics - ANSWERd. Bioinformatics
18. If two organisms of different species share more similar DNA sequences with each
other than with other species, we can conclude that .
a. These two species are not closely related
b. These two species happen to share similar DNA by chance
c. These two species are very closely related
d. These is no relationship between similar DNA and how closely related organisms are
- ANSWERc. These two species are very closely related
19. Human embryos have a developmental stage during which they have a tail and
pharyngeal pouches (those pouches develop into gills in fish). How can we explain
characteristics of human embryos?
a. Human embryos need a tail and gills to breathe during development in the placenta
b. Human embryos spend time in the water where tails and gills are useful
1. Prior to the publication of Charles Darwin's book, On the Origin of Species, what was
the prevailing public consensus regarding species evolution?
a. That species evolved by means of natural selection
b. That species evolved through physical changes that led to success
c. That species were modified over time, but did not change into new species
d. That species were permanent and unchanging - ANSWERd. That species were
permanent and unchanging
2. What contribution did Charles Lyell make?
a. He provided the first evidence that the Earth is much older than was previously
thought
b. He found some bird specimens on the Galapagos Islands
c. He suggested that life evolves through physical changes within the life span of an
organism
d. He found some fossils of extinct species - ANSWERa. He provided the first
evidence that the Earth is much older than was previously thought
3. What prompted Darwin to publish his book decades after he began writing it?
a. A colleague (Alfred Wallace) was about to publish a similar manuscript
b. After years of searching, he finally found a publisher willing to accept it
c. He had completed the last of his experiments
d. He had returned from his voyage around the world - ANSWERa. A colleague
(Alfred Wallace) was about to publish a similar manuscript
4. Which two observations led Darwin to conclude that there is competition for survival?
a. Fossils and mutations
b. Gene and allele differences in organisms
c. Natural selection and descent with modification
d. Overproduction and limited resources - ANSWERd. Overproduction and limited
resources
5. Individuals with variations that make them best suited to their environment will, on
average, be more likely to .
a. Survive and reproduce
b. Evolve
c. Be larger
d. Change over time - ANSWERa. Survive and reproduce
,6. Before Darwin published his work, Lamarck and others had suggested mechanisms
for evolution. By what means did Darwin propose species evolved over time?
a. Survival of the strongest
b. Natural selection
c. Passing on acquired traits
d. Overproduction of young - ANSWERb. Natural selection
7. Natural selection acts on , and evolve.
a. Populations; individuals
b. Individuals; individuals
c. Individuals; populations
d. Populations; populations - ANSWERc. Individuals; populations
8. Can you inherit physical traits that your parents acquired during their lifetime?
a. No
b. Yes
c. Only if it improves survivability
d. Only if it improves reproductive success - ANSWERa. No
9. A weed that exhibits resistance to an herbicide .
a. Is less likely to pass on the gene to the next generation
b. Developed the resistance in response to the herbicide
c. Mutated when exposed to the herbicide
d. Inherited the gene that made it resistant to the herbicide - ANSWERd. Inherited the
gene that made it resistant to the herbicide
10. Evolution can be best defined as .
a. Always taking a very long time to occur
b. Change in allele frequency in a population
c. The production of new species
d. Not involving humans - ANSWERb. Change in allele frequency in a population
11. Which of the following is evidence for evolution?
a. Cells with common features and chemically similar DNA
b. Mosquitoes becoming resistant to pesticides
c. Bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics over time
d. All are evidence for evolution - ANSWERd. All are evidence for evolution
12. What is radiometric dating?
a. The process of determining the age of the fossils using radio waves
b. The process of determining the age of the fossils from radioactive isotopes
c. The mineralization process by which living things are turned into fossils
d. The process of determining the age of the fossils based on which layer in the rock it
is found - ANSWERb. The process of determining the age of the fossils from
radioactive isotopes
, 13. The older fossils are typically found in the sediments.
a. Lower
b. Finer
c. Upper
d. Coarser - ANSWERa. Lower
d. Coarser
14. Which of the following are considered to be fossils?
a. Footprints or other impressions preserved in stone
b. Animals frozen in ice or preserved in amber
c. Mineralized bones
d. All of these - ANSWERd. All of these
15. What is the name for the study of geographic distribution of species?
a. Biogeography
b. Systematics
c. Ecology
d. Taxonomy - ANSWERa. Biogeography
16. Comparing the body structures of organisms to find evidence of a shared
evolutionary history is called .
a. Analogous reconstruction
b. Relativistic physiology
c. Out grouping
d. Comparative anatomy - ANSWERd. Comparative anatomy
17. Comparing DNA and protein sequences to find evidence of a shared evolutionary
history is called .
a. Proteomics
b. Genomics
c. Differential relatedness
d. Bioinformatics - ANSWERd. Bioinformatics
18. If two organisms of different species share more similar DNA sequences with each
other than with other species, we can conclude that .
a. These two species are not closely related
b. These two species happen to share similar DNA by chance
c. These two species are very closely related
d. These is no relationship between similar DNA and how closely related organisms are
- ANSWERc. These two species are very closely related
19. Human embryos have a developmental stage during which they have a tail and
pharyngeal pouches (those pouches develop into gills in fish). How can we explain
characteristics of human embryos?
a. Human embryos need a tail and gills to breathe during development in the placenta
b. Human embryos spend time in the water where tails and gills are useful
