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Evolution Practice Questions

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1 Explain how the LUCA principle helps to explain the universal nature of the genetic code.

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2 What is an adaptation?

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3 Explain how competition can help drive the process of evolution.

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4 Suppose you are studying a population of bacteria in a lab. Some of the bacteria are born with a mutation that provides them resistance to

• antibiotics. Explain how competition in this

population can lead to evolution and make a prediction of how this evolution will occur.

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5 Pick an animal and provide an example of an adaptation that makes it more fit for its environment.

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6 Explain why competition exists between individuals in a population, or between individuals of different species.

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7 Explain the relationship between the genetic code and the origin of evolutionary adaptations.

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8 Explain the error in Lamarck’s theory of Inheritance of Acquired Characteristics.

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9 What is epigenetics?

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10 Explain why the Galapagos Islands proved to be an integral part of Darwin’s voyage.

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11 What distinguishing feature exists between finches of the Galapagos Islands? What environmental factor creates these differences?

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12 Suppose you are studying big cats around the

• world. How can you use their physical structures

to study evolutionary relationships? What is the term for this process?

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13 Using Darwinian terminology, explain why a bird would possess wings that are too small to allow it to fly.

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14 Explain why, at one point in our embryonic development, human beings have gill slits.

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15 According to Darwin’s theory of natural selection, what will happen to the frequency of an allele that allows an organism to successfully compete for resources in a population?

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16 Why is rRNA an especially useful tool when analyzing evolutionary relationships between

• rganisms?

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17 ‘Modern Synthesis’ combines the original work of what two revolutionary scientists?

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18 Explain how epigenetics proves that at least some

• f Lamarck’s theory was accurate.

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19 Pick one of the organisms Darwin studied in the Galapagos and explain how it helped him to develop his theory of evolution.

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20 How is comparative anatomy useful in determining evolutionary relationships?

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21 What is the evolutionary term used to describe the similarity between the structure of a bat wing and a human arm? How is this used to explain evolution?

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22 Provide an example of a vestigial structure in the human body. Explain, evolutionarily, why this structure exists.

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23 Explain, in evolutionary terms, why a fish, pig, chicken and human are virtually indistinguishable during their early developmental stages? What is the study of this process called?

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24 Scientists during Darwin’s era discovered that the Earth was many millions of years old (not a few thousand, as previously though) and that the Earth is constantly changing. How did this influence the development of Darwin’s theory?

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25 Briefly summarize the theory of natural selection.

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26 What role might fossils have played in the development of Darwin’s theory?

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27 Suppose humans share roughly 98% of our DNA with chimpanzees, 92% with mice and 44% with fruit flies. How would you use this information to help determine evolutionary relationships?

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28 What is speciation?

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29 Which traits in an environment would tend to be favored in stabilizing selection?

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30 Would more diversity exist in an environment that favors directional selection or disruptive selection?

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31 Suppose two species of plants are physically capable of interbreeding and their gametes are compatible, yet interbreeding cannot occur. Suggest a hypothesis for how this situation could arise.

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32 What is the difference between directional selection and stabilizing selection?

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33 Explain how the process of behavioral isolation can lead to speciation.

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34 What is temporal isolation?

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35 Suppose you are working as a caretaker at a zoo that has successfully bred a zebra with a giraffe, but the offspring itself is unable to reproduce. Provide an explanation to zookeepers to potentially explain this scenario.

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36 Suppose you are studying two populations of foxes that are of the same species, but have become geographically isolated due to

• deforestation. Over a decade, you suspect that

the two populations may have evolved into separate species. Explain how you could determine whether this is true.

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37 Is a group of sparrows and blue jays living in the same forest an example of a population? Why or why not?

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38 Scientists often refer to a population that exhibits a high level of genetic variability as being ‘elastic’ or ‘flexible.’ Explain why these terms are used in this context.

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39 Can the Hardy-Weinberg Equation be used to analyze multiple populations at one time? Why or why not?

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40 Identify three things that using the Hardy- Weinberg Equilibrium Equation can be used to determine about a population.

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41 Suppose you are studying a population in which 16% of the individuals are homozygous recessive (bb). Using the Hardy-Weinberg equation, what is the frequency of the recessive allele in the population?

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42 Referring to the question above, what is the frequency of heterozygous individuals in the population?

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43 Suppose you are studying a population of sunfish in which long dorsal fins (L) are completely dominant over short dorsal fins. You find that the population consists of exactly 30% short finned

• fish. Calculate the frequency of homozygous

dominant individuals in the population.

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44 Referring to question above, what is the frequency of the recessive allele in this population?

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45 Why is the Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium model more of a theoretical process than a truly concrete procedure?

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46 According to the requirements for Hardy- Weinberg Equilibrium, are humans evolving? Why or why not?

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47 What is the relationship that exists between genetic variability in a population and ability to respond to environmental changes?

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48 For what purpose do scientists utilize the Hardy- Weinberg Equation?

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49 What is the Hardy-Weinberg Equation?

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50 Suppose you are studying a population of squirrels in which gray hair is completely dominant over black hair. The frequency of homozygous dominant individuals in the population is 41%. What is the frequency of the dominant allele in the population?

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51 Referring to question #50, what is the frequency

• f heterozygous individuals in the population?

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52 Suppose a population contains 10% homozygous recessive individuals. Using the Hardy-Weinberg equation, what is the frequency of the dominant allele in this population?

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53 Identify three of the factors that need to be met in

• rder for the Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium

Equation to be effectively utilized.

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54 Utilizing the Hardy-Weinberg equation, how can scientists determine whether or not a population is evolving?

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55 What is genetic drift?

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56 Explain how genetic drift can reduce, or even eliminate variation from a population.

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57 Can genetic drift eliminate variation from a population where there was a consistently changing set of environmental conditions? Explain your answer.

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58 Suppose you are studying an isolated population

• f elk in Canada that is under intense hunting
• pressure. Provide an explanation from a genetic

standpoint why strict hunting regulations should be enacted for this area. Be sure to use appropriate vocabulary.

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59 What is the ‘Founder Effect?’

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60 Explain why it is important that populations maintain a certain degree of genetic diversity.

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61 Explain how is it possible that 99% of all species that have ever existed are now extinct.

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62 Using the finches of the Galapagos Islands, explain the process of adaptive radiation.

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63 Both cacti (North America) and a group of plants called euphorbs (Africa) have developed adaptations for surviving drought-like conditions, but they are not believed to be closely related. Explain how this could possibly occur and the name for the process.

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64 In western North America, there is a species of flowering plant that has an exceptionally long, deep flower, as well as a species of moth that has an exceptionally long tongue. Explain how evolutionary theory could likely explain the seemingly coincidental occurrence of these two species.

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65 Explain how a rapid environmental change could lead to punctuated equilibrium.

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66 Does genetic drift tend to have a more drastic impact on large or small populations? Explain your answer.

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67 What effect does a population bottleneck have on the genetic diversity of a population?

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68 Explain why a group that has endured a population bottleneck may be more vulnerable to disease in the future.

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69 Suppose you are a marine biologist working to repopulate the Atlantic bluefin tuna in the Gulf of Mexico after years of overfishing. Explain why it is important that you choose a genetically diverse group of tuna for your repopulation. If you failed to do this, what situation could possible occur?

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70 Using what you know about genetic diversity, explain why consanguineous marriages are frowned upon in most cultures.

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71 Explain how population bottleneck and founder effect may contribute to the extinction of a species.

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72 Is extinction a natural process? Explain your answer.

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73 What role does the environment play in the process of adaptive radiation?

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74 Why do you think it is important to study evolution?

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75 Suppose you are studying anteaters in Africa. You find that the anteaters have developed uniquely long noses and the ants in the area have developed larger jaws for digging deeper in the hard soil. Explain how the two adaptations could be related.

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76 What is the name of the process described in the above question?