Deck 2: Why Is Evolution Important to Anthropologists

Question 1

Evolution is defined as

A) descent with modification.
B) natural selection plus random access.
C) the process of change over time.
D) material evidence.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

A single hierarchy of all organisms, each differing slightly from the ones above it and below it was known as

A) the Great Chain of Being.
B) binomial nomenclature.
C) essentialism.
D) catastrophism.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

A system of biological classification is called a

A) great chain of being.
B) genus.
C) taxonomy.
D) plenitude.

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The level of the Linnaean taxonomy in which different species are grouped together on the basis of their similarities to one another is called a

A) category.
B) class.
C) taxon.
D) genus.

Question 5

The notion that natural disasters, such as floods, are responsible for the extinction of species, which are then replaced by new species is known as

A) religion.
B) essentialism.
C) gradualism.
D) catastrophism.

Question 6

The idea of the inheritance of acquired characters holds that

A) the physical result of the use or disuse of organs could be passed from one generation to the next.
B) the environment does not allow for certain accidentally acquired characteristics to be passed from one generation to the next.
C) as a species adapts to an environment, changes in gene frequency are passed to the next generation.
D) only those characteristics that are acquired may be inherited.

Question 7

The theory of common ancestry holds that

A) no species is ranked higher than any other in the taxonomy.
B) similar species are descended from a common ancestor.
C) similar species are able to interbreed.
D) all species reproduce in a similar ("common") way.

Question 8

Darwin's theory that the "fitter" survive and reproduce more offspring, who then inherit the traits that made their parents "fitter" is called

A) mixed reproduction.
B) survival of the fittest.
C) heredity.
D) natural selection.

Question 9

The measure of an organism's ability to compete in the struggle for existence is known as

A) fitness.
B) adaptation.
C) the phenotype.
D) aptation.

Question 10

The shaping of useful features of an organism by natural selection for the function they now perform is

A) aptation.
B) adaptation.
C) exaptation.
D) reconciliation.

Question 11

In Mendelian genetics, those genetic characteristics that are expressed in an organism are said to be

A) dominant.
B) genetic.
C) homozygous.
D) recessive.

Question 12

A fertilized egg that has received a different form of a specific gene from each parent is called

A) homozygous.
B) heterozygous.
C) allele-identical.
D) chromosomal.

Question 13

In genetics, the phenomenon known as crossing over occurs when

A) two chromosomes are passed on together.
B) part of a chromosome breaks off and reattaches itself to a different chromosome.
C) two genes near each other on the same chromosome have an effect on a trait.
D) there is discontinuous variation.

Question 14

The principle of Mendelian inheritance in which an individual gets one gene for each trait from each parent is the principle of

A) inheritance.
B) genetics.
C) segregation.
D) independent assortment.

Question 15

The principal of Mendelian inheritance in which each pair of chromosomes separates independently of every other pair when egg and sperm are formed is the principle of

A) inheritance.
B) genetics.
C) segregation.
D) independent assortment.

Question 16

All the different forms that a particular gene might take are known as

A) alleles.
B) chromosomes.
C) particles.
D) variants.

Question 17

The form of cell division in which each newly formed daughter cell takes one full set of paired chromosomes is called

A) meiosis.
B) mitosis.
C) natural selection.
D) sexual transmission.

Question 18

The situation in which two or more genes are responsible for producing a single trait is called

A) linkage.
B) polygeny.
C) polyzygous.
D) pleiotropy.

Question 19

Mutations that neither help nor harm an organism are called

A) allele mutations.
B) neutral mutations.
C) regulatory mutations.
D) value-free mutations.

Question 20

The sum total of all the genetic information about an organism, carried on the chromosomes in the cell nucleus is called the

A) genotype.
B) genome.
C) phenotype.
D) locus.

Question 21

The genetic information about particular biological traits encoded in an organism's DNA is called the

A) genotype.
B) infrabar.
C) phenotype.
D) ultrabar.

Question 22

The observable, measurable outward characteristics of an organism are called the

A) genotype.
B) infrabar.
C) phenotype.
D) ultrabar.

Question 23

The way people struggle, often against great odds, to exercise some control over their lives is known as

A) human agency.
B) natural selection.
C) niche construction.
D) race memory.

Question 24

Evolutionary theory is based on a set of

A) testable hypotheses.
B) scientists' opinions about different species.
C) assumptions about when life began.
D) observations of the natural world.

Question 25

The claim that "living species can change over time and give rise to new kinds of organisms, with the result that all organisms ultimately share a common ancestry" is central to which theory?

A) Genetic transformational theory
B) Evolutionary theory
C) Intelligent design
D) Prehistoric positional theory

Question 26

Material evidence for evolutionary theory came from the study of living organisms and the fossil record.

Question 27

That view that every "natural kind" of living thing is characterized by an unchanging core of features and separated from all other natural kinds by a sharp break is

A) essentialism.
B) catastrophism.
C) uniformitarianism.
D) natural selection.

Question 28

For modern biologists, a species is defined as

A) a reproductive community that occupies a specific niche.
B) a set of related individuals.
C) a general category of organisms that closely resemble one another.
D) the organisms that live in a specific niche.

Question 29

Lamarkian evolution is also known as

A) variational evolution.
B) transformational evolution.
C) evolution by descent.
D) notional selection.

Question 30

Darwin's innovation in defining the species was to emphasize

A) what members of a species have in common.
B) the connections of species to other species.
C) how individual members of a species differ.
D) the survival potential of the species.

Question 31

In Darwinian terms, who are the fit?

A) The most powerful
B) Those who survive
C) Those who reproduce and replace themselves
D) Those who cooperate with others

Question 32

Mendelian inheritance is

A) blending, multiple-particle
B) blending, single-particle
C) nonblending, multi-particle
D) nonblending, single-particle

Question 33

In modern terms, Mendel's principle of segregation holds that

A) plants are able to pass genetic information from one generation to the other without sexual reproduction.
B) there are two chromosomes for each physical trait.
C) an individual receives one chromosome of each pair of chromosomes from each parent.
D) the genes controlling related traits are next to each other on chromosomes.

Question 34

Natural selection acts on

A) mutations.
B) the needs of a species.
C) randomly produced variation.
D) the sex cells.

Question 35

Chromosomes are made up of strands of

A) deoxyribonucleic acid.
B) guanine.
C) cytosine.
D) ribonucleic acid.

Question 36

The biochemical structure for transmitting genetic information regarding the construction and development of a particular organism is

A) adenine.
B) DNA.
C) MFT.
D) RNA.

Question 37

When an organism actively perturbs the environment in ways that modify the selection pressures experienced by subsequent generations of organisms, it is said to be engaged in

A) genetic drift.
B) gene flow.
C) natural selection.
D) niche construction.

Question 38

The panda's elongated wrist bone or "thumb" would be explained by Lamarck's theory in which of the following ways?

A) Some pandas acquired "thumbs" through strenuous activity and then produced offspring with the same characteristic.
B) Some pandas had "thumbs" of different lengths, and in a new environment, those with longer "thumbs" were better able to survive and produce offspring.
C) Some pandas acquired "thumbs" through strenuous activity and were better able to survive.
D) Some pandas had longer "thumbs" and were able to produce offspring.

Question 39

The panda's elongated wrist bone or "thumb" would be explained by Darwin's theory in which of the following ways?

A) Some pandas acquired "thumbs" through strenuous activity and then produced offspring with the same characteristic.
B) Some pandas had "thumbs" of different lengths, and in a new environment, those with longer "thumbs" were better able to survive and produce offspring.
C) Some pandas acquired "thumbs" through strenuous activity and were better able to survive.
D) Some pandas had longer "thumbs" and were able to produce offspring.

Question 40

Which of the following is NOT an element of Darwin's theory of evolution by natural selection?

A) Crossing-over
B) Natural selection
C) Struggle for existence
D) Variation

Question 41

Homozygous: heterozygous::

A) same:different
B) fertilized:unfertilized
C) genetics:heredity
D) genes:alleles

Question 42

In the ABO series of human blood types, people have only one kind of blood type, either A, B, AB, or O. This illustrates what kind of variation?

A) Continuous
B) Contingent
C) Discontinuous
D) Genetic

Question 43

Polygeny:pleiotropy::

A) homozygous:heterozygous
B) one:many
C) many and one:one and many
D) blood type:skin color

Question 44

The realization of a is called the .

A) genotype; phenotype
B) phenotype; genotype
C) phenotype; norm of reaction
D) genotype; norm of reaction

Question 45

At 6,000 calories a day, a person with genotype X will weigh 285 lbs with much energy and high cholesterol levels. At 3,500 calories a day, the person will weigh 200 lbs with much energy and slightly elevated cholesterol levels. At 1,800 calories a day, the person will weigh 175 lbs with little energy and low cholesterol levels. These are examples of that genotype's

A) adaptive capacities.
B) environment.
C) norm of reaction.
D) This has nothing to do with the genotype..

Question 46

The way in which genotype and environment interact to produce a phenotype is measured by the

A) overall size of the organism.
B) phenotypic index.
C) norm of reaction.
D) principle of independent assortment.

Question 47

Because evolution typically occurs over a long period of time, there is substantial material evidence to substantiate it as a viable theory.

Question 48

According to Lamarck, all organisms have two attributes: the ability to physically adapt to their environments, and the capacity to activate this ability when necessary.

Question 49

Compare and contrast the positions of catastrophism and uniformitarianism.

Question 50

How would a scholar following the work of Lamarck explain the evolution of the elephant's trunk? How would a Darwinian explain it?

Question 51

Describe the premise that Darwinian evolution by natural selection is a phenomenon that affects populations of organisms. Why is this important? What are the implications?

Question 52

Describe three sources of material evidence for evolution and how these sources of evidence create a complete picture for explaining change over time.

Question 53

What is the significance of variation in evolution by natural selection? Be sure to illustrate your answer with specific examples.

Question 54

What is the significance for human beings of the facts that different genotypes can produce the same phenotypes in some environments and that the same genotype can produce different phenotypes in different environments?