Deck 14: Modern Human Biology: Patterns of Variation

Question 1

The frequencies of the A, B and O alleles

A)are the same in all populations.
B)vary between populations.
C)are definitely NOT affected by natural selection.
D)have never been measured for different populations.
E)are definitely NOT affected by genetic drift.

Answer 1

vary between populations.

Question 2

Some atypical frequencies of HLA alleles of certain populations in Australia and New Guinea is likely due to

A)genetic drift.
B)copy number variants.
C)founder effect.
D)SNPs.
E)eugenics.

Answer 2

founder effect.

Question 3

The philosophy of "race improvement" through the forced sterilization of some groups and the encouraged reproduction of others is termed

A)eugenics.
B)genetics.
C)monogenism.
D)polygenism.
E)polytheism

Answer 3

eugenics.

Question 4

The ________ system is involved in the immune response.

A)Xg
B)Rh
C)MN
D)ABO
E)HLA

Question 5

The false belief that there is a relationship between physical traits and certain behavioral traits such as intelligence and morals is called

A)eugenics.
B)monogenism.
C)polygenism.
D)biological determinism.
E)homeostasis.

Question 6

A polytypic species

A)is one that has no phenotypic variability.
B)has never been observed in nature.
C)is one composed of local populations that differ from one another with regard to the expression of NO MORE THAN three traits.
D)is one composed of local populations that differ from one another with regard to the expression of ONE OR MORE traits.
E)is the result of inbreeding.

Question 7

Current evidence suggests that certain HLA antigens appear to function to

A)resist malaria.
B)cause sickle-cell anemia.
C)cause malaria.
D)cause HIV.
E)cause hepatitis B.

Question 8

The eugenics movement

A)formed the basis for notions of racial purity in Nazi Germany.
B)was popular throughout the 1990s.
C)is now a credited view of racial purity.
D)was promoted by Eugene O'Neill.
E)is a popular dance style.

Question 9

The frequency of the O allele is almost 100 percent in

A)Northern Europeans.
B)Chinese.
C)Eurasians.
D)African blacks.
E)South American Indians.

Question 10

Which of the following is a polymorphic trait in most human populations?

A)ABO blood type
B)ADN macrosatellites
C)PNS
D)DHL
E)HTC

Question 11

Concerning deterministic views, evolutionary biologist _____________remarked that "all American culture heroes embraced racial attitudes that would embarrass public-school mythmakers."

A)Benjamin Franklin
B)Thomas Jefferson
C)Charles Darwin
D)Peter Grant
E)Stephen J. Gould

Question 12

The characteristics that have traditionally been used to define races

A)are the product of Mendelian inheritance.
B)easily draw distinct boundaries between populations.
C)do not vary within groups.
D)are polygenic.
E)can easily be altered

Question 13

A balanced polymorphism discussed in the text is

A)lactose intolerance.
B)the A, B, and O alleles.
C)the HbS allele.
D)malaria.
E)dengue.

Question 14

The person responsible for popularizing eugenics among nineteenth-century Europeans was

A)Charles Darwin.
B)Georges Cuvier.
C)Charles Lyell.
D)Francis Galton.
E)Thomas Jefferson.

Question 15

The modern biological usage of the term race

A)has precise definitions agreed upon by all anthropologists.
B)refers to the geographically patterned phenotypic variation within a species.
C)refers only to skin color.
D)refers only to I.Q.
E)refers to a person's nationality.

Question 16

The application of evolutionary principles to the study of human variation

A)reinforced traditional views of races as fixed biological entities that do not change.
B)allowed scientists to ignore the adaptive significance of most traits.
C)allowed scientists to divide the human species precisely into well-defined races.
D)helped replace earlier views based solely on observed phenotypes.
E)has been of little value for understanding human variation.

Question 17

Racial traits aren't the only phenotypic expressions that contribute to social identity. __________ are also critically important.

A)Skin and eyes color
B)Hair and nose
C)ABO blood and sickle cell type
D)Height and weight
E)Sex and age

Question 18

The first scientific attempt to classify humans based on biological variation was by

A)Christopher Columbus.
B)the ancient Egyptians.
C)J. F. Blumenbach.
D)C. Linnaeus.
E)Chaka Zulu.

Question 19

The term ________ was proposed in the early 1950s to avoid the more emotionally charged term race .

A)populations
B)nationality
C)ethnicity
D)species
E)locality

Question 20

Categorizing people on the basis of skin color

A)is mostly a twentieth century phenomenon.
B)has been practiced only by Western Europeans.
C)is a valid approach to racial taxonomy.
D)has a long history and has been practiced by many peoples.
E)began with Christopher Columbus.

Question 21

A recent study called the 1000 Genomes Project identified between ________ gene variants associated with disease.

A)10 and 25
B)25 and 50
C)50 and 100
D)75 and 125
E)5 and 35

Question 22

Which of the following statements explains why a population must be infinitely large in order to be in genetic equilibrium?

A)There are no mutations in large populations.
B)Small populations have higher rates of mutation than do large populations.
C)Natural selection cannot act on large populations.
D)Mating must be random in large populations.
E)Large populations are less likely to have chance changes in allele frequencies.

Question 23

_______ is an example of biocultural evolution.

A)Variations in body mass index
B)The relationship between lactase deficiency and cultural practices
C)Variations in head shape
D)The worldwide distribution of ABO allele frequencies
E)Alcoholism

Question 24

Population geneticists use the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium equation to determine

A)whether evolution is occurring at all loci throughout the genome simultaneously.
B)whether evolution is occurring at a given locus.
C)the mode of inheritance of Mendelian traits.
D)whether a particular trait is polygenic.
E)whether a particular trait is polygamous.

Question 25

If mating is random, then

A)mate choice is based on social factors such as religion or level of education.
B)mate choice is biased.
C)mating is promiscuous.
D)any female has an equal chance of mating with any male.
E)mating must be monogamous.

Question 26

According to the Hardy-Weinberg genetic equilibrium formula, the value of p is the

A)frequency of dominant alleles.
B)frequency of recessive alleles.
C)total number of alleles.
D)total number of population genetics.
E)result of the Hardy-Weinberg problem.

Question 27

The areas in the DNA that contain repeated segments are

A)termed macrosatellites.
B)termed SNPs.
C)the basis for DNA fingerprinting.
D)SCM (self-cloning mechanisms).
E)unoriginal traits.

Question 28

According to the Hardy-Weinberg genetic equilibrium formula, the value of q is the

A)frequency of dominant alleles.
B)frequency of recessive alleles.
C)total number of alleles.
D)total number of population genetics.
E)result of the Hardy-Weinberg problem.

Question 29

Under idealized Hardy-Weinberg conditions, which of the following statements is FALSE?

A)No new alleles will be added to a population's gene pool.
B)No alleles will be removed from a population's gene pool.
C)There will be no change in allele frequencies in a population over time.
D)There are no molecular changes in the gametes.
E)Mutation rates will increase with each generation.

Question 30

According to the Hardy-Weinberg genetic equilibrium formula, if the frequency of q is 0.4, then the frequency of p in the population should be

A)1.0.
B)0.36.
C)0.16.
D)0.48.
E)0.6.

Question 31

Geographical, ecological, and social factors influence

A)solipsism.
B)celibacy.
C)DNA.
D)sexogamy.
E)mate choice.

Question 32

Using the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium formula, if p = 0.25, then q must equal ________.

A)0.50
B)0.25
C)0.35
D)0.60
E)0.75

Question 33

If the observed allele frequencies in a population differ significantly from those predicted by the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium theory, then

A)the population is in genetic equilibrium.
B)evolution is not occurring.
C)mutations have stopped occurring.
D)the population is a breeding isolate.
E)evolution is occurring.

Question 34

The Hardy-Weinberg genetic equilibrium formula assumes that

A)the population under study is infinitely large.
B)there is constant mutation of alleles in the population under study.
C)the population under study is very small.
D)natural selection is very active.
E)a great gene flow activity takes place.

Question 35

Which of the following is FALSE about lactose intolerance?

A)It results from the lack of lactase.
B)It has a genetic basis.
C)It is a good example of biocultural evolution.
D)It can be influenced by the environment.
E)It is a psychosomatic illness of the somatoform-disorder type.

Question 36

A group of interbreeding individuals that shares a common gene pool is a

A)group of species.
B)population.
C)polytypic species.
D)race.
E)clinal distribution.

Question 37

According to the population geneticist R. D. Lewontin,

A)human races have specific genetic markers.
B)about 94 percent of human genetic variation is found WITHIN major population groups.
C)geographical and local races account for about 85 percent of human variation.
D)there's no biological value in the further study of geographical populations.
E)there is great biological value in the study of floating populations.

Question 38

Endogamy refers to

A)mating outside of a group.
B)marrying but not mating inside of a group.
C)advantageous traits that evolve in a population over time.
D)disadvantageous traits that evolve in a population over time.
E)marrying/mating within the group.

Question 39

The gene pool concept

A)refers to the total complement of genes shared by non-reproductive members of a population.
B)is no longer used by modern anthropologists.
C)refers to the total complement of genes shared by reproductive members of a population.
D)refers to the total complement of mutations shared by reproductive members of a population.
E)refers to any type of genetic mutation.

Question 40

In the Hardy-Weinberg genetic equilibrium formula, p is the

A)frequency of the recessive allele.
B)mutation rate.
C)frequency of heterozygotes.
D)frequency of the dominant allele.
E)frequency of the dormant allele.

Question 41

What does it mean when one states that humans are members of the same polytypic species?

Question 42

Describe the various meanings the word race has had since the 1500s.

Question 43

The risk of genetic defects among the offspring of first-cousin marriages is no higher than that of the general population.

Question 44

The term ethnicity was originally proposed in order to avoid the emotional baggage associated with the term race .

Question 45

What polymorphisms exist at the DNA level?

Question 46

Contrast the concept of race as it is currently employed with racism.

Question 47

Evidence has suggested a simple dominant mode of inheritance for lactase persistence in adults.

Question 48

Biocultural evolution influences the ways in which humans adapt to environmental challenges.

Question 49

Single nucleotide changes or point mutations never occur in non-protein-coding portions of DNA.

Question 50

Explain the concept of biological determinism and how it can lead to such things as slavery and eugenics.

Question 51

Breeding isolates are groups that are clearly separated geographically and/or socially from other breeding groups.

Question 52

The term race currently has only biological connotations and is without any social significance.

Question 53

John Blumenbach was the first European scientist to classify humans into races.

Question 54

A genetic trait is considered a polymorphism if the locus governing that trait has two or more alleles.

Question 55

If the expected frequencies of genotypes calculated from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium formula do NOT differ significantly from those measured in the population being studied, then evolution is clearly occurring.

Question 56

Lactose intolerance, which involves an individual's ability to digest milk, is another example of human biocultural evolution.

Question 57

Forensic anthropologists must deal with the race concept because they are asked by law enforcement agencies to identify an individual's race from skeletal remains.

Question 58

Francis Galton, Darwin's cousin, originated the eugenics approach to "race improvement."

Question 59

The ABO alleles have no variance among humans.

Question 60

Inbreeding is a form of random mating.

Question 61

How are the concepts of population, gene pool, and breeding isolates related to each other?

Question 62

What have population geneticists discovered about human polymorphisms of the DNA?

Question 63

The frequency of the recessive allele in a population is 0.4 and the observed genotypic frequencies are 0.75 for the homozygous dominants, 0.15 for the heterozygotes, and 0.1 for homozygous recessives.  Is this population evolving?  Show your work.

Question 64

Define the term race . How does the modern use of race differ from the nineteenth-century use of race?

Question 65

Describe the benefits of incest avoidance among vertebrates.

Question 66

Describe the new findings through DNA analysis about ancient human migrations.

Question 67

Describe the philosophy of racial purity during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

Question 68

Explain why sickle-cell anemia has recently become an important genetic factor in human populations.

Question 69

Use your knowledge of genetics to explain why inbreeding tends to increase homozygosity.

Question 70

Explain how the evolutionary interactions affect the frequency of the sickle-cell allele.

Question 71

What is the physiological mechanism of lactose intolerance?  Why is the ability to digest milk sugars an example of biocultural evolution?

Question 72

Write the equation for the Hardy-Weinberg theory of genetic equilibrium and list four of the five assumptions that must be met in an idealized population at equilibrium.

Question 73

Describe the term "breeding isolates" and give an example.

Question 74

Describe the genetic polymorphisms used to study human variation

Question 75

If the frequency of the recessive allele in a population is 0.3, what is the frequency of the dominant allele?  Now, use the Hardy-Weinberg formula to calculate the expected genotypic frequencies.