Deck 1: The Nature of Science and the Characteristics of Life

Question 1

Living cells are separated from the outside environment by a flexible

A) nucleus.
B) plasma membrane.
C) cell wall.
D) DNA circle.

Answer 1

B

Question 2

Which of the following questions could NOT be used to develop a testable hypothesis?

A) Does exposure to secondhand smoke affect the probability of developing lung cancer?
B) Do organic vegetables contain harmful substances?
C) Should everyone drink bottled water only?
D) Does a can of vegetable juice contain more salt than the same size can of iced tea?

Answer 2

C

Question 3

A medical diagnosis is a(n)

A) observation.
B) experiment.
C) theory.
D) hypothesis.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which of the following characteristics is NOT shared by all living organisms?

A) They make their own energy.
B) They grow and develop.
C) They evolve over time.
D) They are composed of one or more cells.

Question 5

Which of the following organisms has a reproductive strategy that does NOT depend on eggs and sperm?

A) a grasshopper
B) a black widow spider
C) a turtle
D) a bacterium

Question 6

Which of the following statements about the scientific method is true?

A) After a hypothesis has been proposed, it can never be challenged.
B) A valid scientific hypothesis is self-evident and does not need to be tested by experimentation.
C) The scientific method can help people make informed medical and environmental decisions.
D) If they are properly designed, experiments always prove hypotheses to be wrong.

Question 7

Some questions fall outside the realm of science.Which of the following questions could NOT be answered using the scientific method?

A) What is the function of the appendix in the human body?
B) Why is it unethical to test newly developed drugs in animals?
C) Why do smokers develop lung cancer more frequently than nonsmokers?
D) Why is it so difficult to quit smoking?

Question 8

A scientist named Dr.Burkholder hypothesized that the dinoflagellate Pfiesteria was associated with the massive die-offs of fish in North Carolina rivers.Subsequent observations supported her hypothesis.Which of the following observations would support that hypothesis?

A) Pfiesteria was shown to be capable of living within the climatic ranges of North Carolina.
B) A predicted increase in Pfiesteria populations coincided with a fish die-off.
C) New observations revealed that Pfiesteria could kill laboratory fish.
D) A virulent toxin was isolated from Pfiesteria cultures grown in the laboratory.

Question 9

Which of the following organisms might harvest energy from iron,a nonliving part of the environment?

A) a human
B) a cricket
C) a bacterium
D) a goat

Question 10

Which of the following activities is an example of an experiment?

A) reading a blood pressure gauge
B) examining an X-ray
C) taking prescription medicine
D) making a medical diagnosis

Question 11

Developing a scientific understanding of a natural phenomenon typically begins by

A) making a prediction.
B) testing a hypothesis.
C) proving an answer.
D) making an observation.

Question 12

Which of the following actions is an example of conducting an experiment?

A) calling a telephone number
B) comparing prices of computers
C) checking your midterm grades online
D) predicting the outcome of a basketball game

Question 13

After it has been supported by a predictable experimental outcome,a scientific hypothesis

A) is never reexamined.
B) still cannot be considered to have been proven true.
C) can be used to predict the outcome of all future similar events.
D) is elevated to the status of theory.

Question 14

DNA is one of the features common to all known forms of life.Which of the following statements about DNA is true?

A) It forms the protective outer membrane of cells.
B) It is expressly produced for reproduction and is found only in eggs and sperm.
C) It is the blueprint that guides the growth, development, behavior, and reproduction of all organisms.
D) Its absence in viruses is the basis for classifying them as nonliving.

Question 15

The basic unit of life is the

A) cell.
B) organ.
C) organelle.
D) tissue.

Question 16

The scientific method cannot be used to evaluate untestable hypotheses.Which of the following types of questions are untestable?

A) questions about topics other than the natural world
B) questions about the events that immediately followed the origin of the universe
C) questions about the behavior of plants and animals
D) questions whose possible answers are socially controversial

Question 17

Although the idea seems contradictory,science cannot prove a hypothesis to be true.Why?

A) All true hypotheses will be rejected by the scientific method because they can be proven false.
B) Future experiments or discoveries may provide data that refute the hypothesis.
C) Science is a human endeavor, and like all human endeavors, it is limited by human understanding.
D) The scientific method is limited to examination of the natural world.

Question 18

Which of the following observations strengthens the hypothesis that a common ancestor gave rise to all living organisms?

A) Almost all cells in all living organisms use DNA to direct their structure, function, and behavior.
B) All living organisms use energy acquired directly from the environment or from other organisms.
C) All living organisms sense their environment and respond to it.
D) Each type of living organism adheres to the general principles of the biological hierarchy.

Question 19

When you call a telephone number,you are

A) making an observation.
B) testing a hypothesis by conducting an experiment.
C) constructing a theory, which can then be tested.
D) testing a theory.

Question 20

Consider each of the following true statements; which statement supports the theory that all living organisms descended from one common ancestor?

A) Bacteria have a cell wall outside the plasma membrane.
B) Offspring resemble their parents.
C) All living organisms use DNA as their hereditary material.
D) Some organisms are consumers, whereas others are producers.

Question 21

Groups of different species that live and interact in a given area are referred to as a

A) biosphere.
B) population.
C) community.
D) habitat.

Question 22

Mediterranean gardeners' repeated replanting of seeds from wild mustard plants that showed unusually prolific flower bud and flower growth led to the creation of what modern cruciferous plants?

A) turnips and kohlrabi
B) kale and cabbage
C) cauliflower and kale
D) broccoli and cauliflower

Question 23

Which of the following statements does NOT describe a characteristic of living organisms?

A) All living organisms require energy.
B) All living organisms consume other living things to obtain their energy.
C) All living organisms can sense their environment and respond to it.
D) All living organisms reproduce.

Question 24

A group of interbreeding organisms whose offspring are themselves fertile is defined as a

A) web.
B) biome.
C) unit.
D) species.

Question 25

In which of the following foods would the energy content be most directly connected to solar energy?

A) an apple
B) a hamburger
C) a slice of pizza
D) a grilled cheese sandwich

Question 26

More than one adaptive trait in the pronghorn has been influenced by the presence of predators; in addition to its great speed,the pronghorn also has

A) a four-chambered stomach.
B) strong teeth.
C) camouflage coloration.
D) hollow hair.

Question 27

All living organisms share a unity in their characteristics because they

A) are all multicellular.
B) are all producers.
C) have been stable and unchanging throughout time.
D) descended from a common ancestor.

Question 28

Which of the following groups of organisms is NOT included in the domain Eukarya?

A) Protista
B) Archaea
C) Fungi
D) Plantae

Question 29

Homeostasis is the ability to detect and correct disturbances that develop within an organism.Which of the following things is NOT regulated by homeostasis?

A) hunger
B) thirst
C) external temperature
D) exhalation

Question 30

Which of the following sequences correctly represents the biological hierarchy of a multicellular organism?

A) cells → tissues → organs → organ systems → individual
B) tissues → organs → organ systems → cells → individual
C) individual → organs → cells → organ systems → tissues
D) organ systems → organs → tissues → cells → individual

Question 31

Biologists hypothesize that the now-extinct American cheetah provided the selection pressure that led to the swiftness of the pronghorn.Which of the following statements is the most likely prediction of how pronghorn speed might change in the next few thousand years?

A) Pronghorns will continue to become even faster; it is always better to run as fast as possible.
B) Pronghorns will become slower as individuals divert energy and resources away from running and toward other features that improve their fitness to survive.
C) Pronghorns will maintain their speed; once a characteristic is developed, it is always retained.
D) Pronghorns will maintain their speed because predators such as cougars, wolves, and coyotes, will remove slower individuals.

Question 32

Which of the following statements about how organisms obtain energy is true?

A) Producers obtain their energy from other organisms.
B) Producers represent the final energy transfer in the sequence of energy transfers between the environment and living organisms.
C) Consumers obtain their energy from other organisms.
D) Consumers represent the initial energy transfer in the sequence of energy transfers between the environment and living organisms.

Question 33

In the following list,the best evidence for evolution is

A) predators culling the very young, very old, and diseased individuals in a prey population.
B) the adaptive traits that almost all living organisms display.
C) the changes in the overall genetic characteristics of a group of organisms.
D) the existence in the ocean of organisms like whales and seals whose ancestors used to live on land.

Question 34

Modern life often masks the struggles that have characterized human life through much of its history.In the past,human survival was critically dependent on our ability to

A) run faster than most human predators.
B) solve complex problems.
C) hear sounds at much lower intensities than other animals.
D) sense a wider range of smells than other animals.

Question 35

All animals have the capacity to sense their environment and respond to it.Which of the following statements is an example of this process?

A) Humans can see better than any other animal.
B) Humans can hear better than any other animal.
C) Humans have a better sense of smell than any other animal.
D) Although humans are not the fastest or strongest animal, they have a set of sensory adaptations that are entirely compatible with human biology and environment.

Question 36

Which of the following groups of organisms is NOT included in the domain Eukarya?

A) Protista
B) Prokaryotes
C) Fungi
D) Animalia

Question 37

Charles Darwin introduced the concept of adaptation,which he defined as features that

A) help organisms survive and reproduce.
B) enable organisms to resist the pressures of evolutionary change.
C) enable organisms to change their environment in ways that best ensure continued survival.
D) enable organisms to alter their DNA in a selective fashion.

Question 38

Multicellular organisms are constructed from many types of specialized cells.Why might having specialized cells be more advantageous than being a single-celled organism?

A) Specialized cells can do a given job better than general-purpose cells can.
B) Specialized cells can survive independently of the organism.
C) Nonspecialized cells do not live as long as specialized cells.
D) Nonspecialized cells are unable to stick together to make up a multicellular organism.

Question 39

Viruses cannot reproduce on their own; they do so by taking over the machinery that exists in the cells of the organisms they invade,whether those organisms are bacteria,plants,or animals.Vaccinations can provide lifelong protection against some diseases,but flu vaccines are rarely effective against the next year's flu virus.Which of the following statements is most likely to explain this fact?

A) Viruses are not alive.
B) Viruses can evolve quickly.
C) A virus can change its cell membranes to block the action of the vaccine.
D) Viruses can develop into immune bacteria that neutralize the action of the vaccine.

Question 40

An organ is defined as a body structure composed of two or more

A) molecules.
B) cells.
C) tissues.
D) organ systems.

Question 41

When compared with natural systems,a college campus-including its facilities-is most similar to a(n)

A) ecosystem.
B) community.
C) biome.
D) population.

Question 42

Microbiologists quickly responded to the paper by Dr.Wolfe-Simon in which she claimed to have discovered bacteria that were using arsenic to construct their DNA.One of the most challenging criticisms was that she and her colleagues

A) were unable to account for arsenic's toxicity to other organisms.
B) published the paper before going through the conventional peer review process.
C) had an inadequate protocol for eliminating all phosphorus from the test tubes that contained the bacteria.
D) lacked comparative information about closely related bacteria within the Halomonadaceae family.

Question 43

Which of the following features is LEAST likely to be used to define a biome?

A) shared physical characteristics
B) the presence or absence of humans
C) a distinctive community of organisms
D) the climate

Question 44

Plants and animals need a variety of resources to carry out and maintain life processes; the most important of these resources is ________.

Question 45

New medications undergo extensive human testing before receiving FDA approval.These tests represent an experiment,and the variations in the dosage given to test participants represents the ________.

Question 46

The scientific method begins with ________.

Question 47

To survive,living organisms must be able to sense and respond to both their internal and external ________.

Question 48

Biology is the scientific study of ________.

Question 49

Using a process called photosynthesis,plants make energy-rich substances by using the energy contained in ________.

Question 50

A group of organisms can develop new characteristics over time through the process of ________.

Question 51

Which of the following statements is NOT a reason why humans are the most difficult organism to study?

A) For ethical reasons, an ideal experimental design may not be allowed to be performed with human subjects.
B) Some types of double-blind experiments cannot be performed with human subjects.
C) Long-term (longitudinal) studies may involve inaccurate reporting by the participants.
D) Longitudinal studies of human subjects can be very expensive.

Question 52

The discovery that bacteria living in Mono Lake may have replaced the phosphorus in certain biomolecules with ________ has challenged long-held assumptions about the chemical nature of life.

Question 53

Which of the following ecological features would NOT be considered a component of an ecosystem?

A) an individual
B) a community
C) a population
D) a biome

Question 54

In the scientific method,observations are most often followed by ________ and then ________.

Question 55

The observation that polar ice floes are thinning or melting much earlier each spring than they did 20 years ago is an example of a scientific ________.

Question 56

Scientists can propose testable predictions after first developing a(n)________.

Question 57

The directions for the specific genetic characteristics in all living things are functionally organized into discrete segments called genes; these genes are composed of ________.

Question 58

Experimentation is the primary means that verifies or refutes the ________ made by a hypothesis.

Question 59

The genetic material used for reproduction by organisms that are conventionally considered to be living is ________.

Question 60

Which of the following statements about the biological hierarchy is true?

A) Ecosystems are composed of one or more biomes.
B) Communities are composed of one or more ecosystems.
C) The biosphere includes all life forms and the places where they live.
D) The biosphere is an intermediate classification that falls between ecosystems and biomes.

Question 61

Because the California sea lions that live along the Pacific Coast freely migrate and regularly interbreed with one another,biologists classify this group as a ________.

Question 62

The term autotroph can be interchanged with the term producer; both terms refer to organisms that obtain energy from the nonliving part of their environment.

Question 63

When experimental data verify a prediction,the hypothesis is considered proven.

Question 64

New cells are created when existing cells divide; immediately after division,every cell of every known living organism will contain DNA.

Question 65

Hypotheses can be supported or rejected by experiments or,in some instances,by new observations.

Question 66

The organs that constitute an organ system often work cooperatively to maintain homeostasis.

Question 67

Some clinical trials of high doses of nutrients that were thought to be cancer fighters have been shut down prematurely because they drove up cancer rates.

Question 68

Some bacteria can sense direction using magnetic particles in their cells.

Question 69

DNA is an example of the molecular level of biological organization.

Question 70

The brain is considered an organ because it is constructed from nerve cells.

Question 71

Phosphorus is considered to be an essential element for life; if the bacteria found in Mono Lake actually incorporate arsenic into their DNA,this assessment will need to be reevaluated.

Question 72

One of the largest long-term clinical trials in the United States,which encompassed about 14,000 male physicians ages 50 and older,found that the incidence of cancer could be decreased by 8 percent by taking a common combination of essential ________ and ________ daily,compared with taking a placebo.

Question 73

Because polar bears are white,they are difficult to see as they stalk seals; their white fur is an example of an adaptation.

Question 74

All living organisms sense their environment and respond to it.

Question 75

Organisms that are classified as consumers capture their energy directly from the sun.

Question 76

A molecule is constructed when two or more atoms become bonded to each other.

Question 77

A good hypothesis is easy to prove.

Question 78

Advantageous genetic features that evolve over time and help an organism survive or reproduce are called ________.

Question 79

A scientific hypothesis must be testable; if it isn't,science cannot evaluate it.

Question 80

Living organisms are intimately connected to the environments in which they live; this connection is called a biome,and a forest is a good example.