A molecular clock is used to measure:
A)the age of an individual
B)the relative evolutionary distance between species
C)the rate of mutation in an individual
D)the rate of mutation in a population

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

A molecular clock is a method used to estimate the time of divergence between two species by comparing the differences in their DNA sequences. These differences are assumed to accumulate at a constant rate over time, providing a measurement of their relative evolutionary distance. Therefore, the best choice is B, the relative evolutionary distance between species. The molecular clock is not used to measure the age of an individual (A) or the rate of mutation in an individual (C) or population (D).

A Molecular Clock Is Used to Measure