Question 1

Carolus Linnaeus believed that species remained fixed in the form in which they had been created. Linnaeus would have been uncomfortable with ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  a hierarchical classification scheme 
B)  taxonomy 
C)  phylogenies 
D)  nested, increasingly inclusive categories of organisms 
A)  a hierarchical classification scheme 
B)  taxonomy 
C)  phylogenies 
D)  nested, increasingly inclusive categories of organisms

Question 2

The question refers to the following table, which compares the percent sequence homology of four different parts (two introns and two exons) of a gene that is found in five different eukaryotic species. Each part is numbered to indicate its distance from the promoter (for example, Intron I is the one closest to the promoter). The data reported for species A were obtained by comparing DNA from one member of species A to another member of species A.
% Sequence Homology
 
Regarding these sequence homology data, the principle of maximum parsimony would be applicable in ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  distinguishing introns from exons 
B)  determining degree of sequence homology 
C)  selecting appropriate genes for comparison among species 
D)  inferring evolutionary relatedness from the number of sequence differences 
A)  distinguishing introns from exons 
B)  determining degree of sequence homology 
C)  selecting appropriate genes for comparison among species 
D)  inferring evolutionary relatedness from the number of sequence differences

Question 3

Based on this tree, which statement is correct?

Accepted Answer

A)  The human lineage is a basal taxon. 
B)  Salamanders are a sister group to the group containing lizards, goats, and humans. 
C)  Salamanders are as closely related to lizards as to humans. 
D)  Goats are more closely related to salamanders than to humans. 
A)  The human lineage is a basal taxon. 
B)  Salamanders are a sister group to the group containing lizards, goats, and humans. 
C)  Salamanders are as closely related to lizards as to humans. 
D)  Goats are more closely related to salamanders than to humans.

Question 4

Your professor wants you to construct a phylogenetic tree of orchids. She gives you tissue from seven orchid species and one lily. What is the most likely reason she gave you the lily?

Accepted Answer

A)  to serve as an outgroup 
B)  to see if the lily is a cryptic orchid species 
C)  to see if the lily and the orchids show all the same shared derived characters 
D)  to demonstrate likely homoplasies 
A)  to serve as an outgroup 
B)  to see if the lily is a cryptic orchid species 
C)  to see if the lily and the orchids show all the same shared derived characters 
D)  to demonstrate likely homoplasies

Question 5

Which of the following would, if it had acted upon a gene, prevent this gene from acting as a reliable molecular clock?

Accepted Answer

A)  neutral mutations 
B)  genetic drift 
C)  mutations within introns 
D)  natural selection 
A)  neutral mutations 
B)  genetic drift 
C)  mutations within introns 
D)  natural selection

Question 6

Use the figure to answer the following question.
 
If the figure is an accurate depiction of relatedness, then which of the following should be an accurate statement?

Accepted Answer

A)  If all species depicted here make up a taxon, this taxon is monophyletic. 
B)  The species present at position 4 is ancestral to species E, but not species D. 
C)  Species C is more closely related to species B than D is to B 
D)  The species present at position 3 is ancestral to C, D, and E. 
A)  If all species depicted here make up a taxon, this taxon is monophyletic. 
B)  The species present at position 4 is ancestral to species E, but not species D. 
C)  Species C is more closely related to species B than D is to B 
D)  The species present at position 3 is ancestral to C, D, and E.

Question 7

To apply the principle of maximum parsimony to construction of a phylogenetic tree, ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  choose the tree that assumes all evolutionary changes are equally probable 
B)  choose the tree in which the branch points are based on as many shared derived characters as possible 
C)  choose the tree that represents the fewest evolutionary changes, either in DNA sequences or morphology 
D)  choose the tree with the fewest branch points 
A)  choose the tree that assumes all evolutionary changes are equally probable 
B)  choose the tree in which the branch points are based on as many shared derived characters as possible 
C)  choose the tree that represents the fewest evolutionary changes, either in DNA sequences or morphology 
D)  choose the tree with the fewest branch points

Question 8

If additional DNA sequence evidence shows that yeast genes for synthesizing proteins are more similar to protein-synthesizing genes in bacteria than those in archaea, a modern systematist would ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  redraw the phylogeny to show eukaryotes sharing a more recent common ancestor with bacteria than archaea 
B)  redraw the phylogeny to show more recent common ancestry between archaea and yeast than between eukaryotes and archaea 
C)  retain the phylogeny that shows a more recent common ancestor between eukaryotes and archaea 
D)  retain the phylogeny that shows a more recent common ancestor between bacteria and archaea 
A)  redraw the phylogeny to show eukaryotes sharing a more recent common ancestor with bacteria than archaea 
B)  redraw the phylogeny to show more recent common ancestry between archaea and yeast than between eukaryotes and archaea 
C)  retain the phylogeny that shows a more recent common ancestor between eukaryotes and archaea 
D)  retain the phylogeny that shows a more recent common ancestor between bacteria and archaea

Question 9

Use the following information to answer the question.
 
Applying the principle of parsimony to the trait "ability to fly," which of the two phylogenetic trees is better?

Accepted Answer

A)  Tree 1 
B)  Tree 2 
C)  Both trees are equally parsimonious. 
D)  Since the trees show different evolutionary relationships, you cannot determine which is more parsimonious. 
A)  Tree 1 
B)  Tree 2 
C)  Both trees are equally parsimonious. 
D)  Since the trees show different evolutionary relationships, you cannot determine which is more parsimonious.

Question 10

Some beetles and flies have antler-like structures on their heads, much like male deer. The existence of antlers in beetle, fly, and deer species with strong male-male competition is an example of ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  convergent evolution 
B)  similarity due to shared ancestry 
C)  homology 
D)  parsimony 
A)  convergent evolution 
B)  similarity due to shared ancestry 
C)  homology 
D)  parsimony

Question 11

The following question refers to this phylogenetic tree, depicting the origins of life and the three domains. Horizontal lines indicate instances of gene or genome transfer.
 
A possible phylogenetic tree for the three domains of life.
Which of these processes can be included among those responsible for the horizontal components of the figure?

Accepted Answer

A)  endosymbiosis 
B)  mitosis 
C)  binary fission 
D)  point mutations 
A)  endosymbiosis 
B)  mitosis 
C)  binary fission 
D)  point mutations

Question 12

The most important feature that permits a gene to act as a molecular clock is ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  a large number of base pairs 
B)  being acted upon by natural selection 
C)  a reliable average rate of mutation 
D)  a recent origin by a gene-duplication event 
A)  a large number of base pairs 
B)  being acted upon by natural selection 
C)  a reliable average rate of mutation 
D)  a recent origin by a gene-duplication event

Question 13

Which of the following pairs are the best examples of homologous structures?

Accepted Answer

A)  eyelessness in the Australian mole and eyelessness in the North American mole 
B)  owl wing and hornet wing 
C)  bat wing and bird wing 
D)  bones in the bat wing and bones in the human forelimb 
A)  eyelessness in the Australian mole and eyelessness in the North American mole 
B)  owl wing and hornet wing 
C)  bat wing and bird wing 
D)  bones in the bat wing and bones in the human forelimb

Question 14

The common ancestors of birds and mammals were very early (stem) reptiles, which almost certainly possessed three-chambered hearts (two atria, one ventricle). Birds and mammals, however, are alike in having four-chambered hearts (two atria, two ventricles). The four-chambered hearts of birds and mammals are best described as ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  structural homologies 
B)  vestiges 
C)  structural analogies 
D)  the result of shared ancestry 
A)  structural homologies 
B)  vestiges 
C)  structural analogies 
D)  the result of shared ancestry

Question 15

The importance of computers and of computer software to modern systematics s is most closely linked to advances in ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  light microscopy 
B)  radiometric dating 
C)  fossil discovery techniques 
D)  molecular genetics 
A)  light microscopy 
B)  radiometric dating 
C)  fossil discovery techniques 
D)  molecular genetics

Question 16

Which of the following items is most likely to form a simple linear relationship with the number of gene-duplication events, when placed as the label on the vertical axis of the following graph?

Accepted Answer

A)  number of mitochondria 
B)  number of cells/organism 
C)  genome size 
D)  phenotypic complexity 
A)  number of mitochondria 
B)  number of cells/organism 
C)  genome size 
D)  phenotypic complexity

Question 17

Given that phylogenies are based on shared derived characteristics, which of the following traits is useful in generating a phylogeny of species W, X, Y, and Z?

Accepted Answer

A)  Trait 1 
B)  Trait 2 
C)  Trait 3 
D)  Traits 1, 2, and 3 
A)  Trait 1 
B)  Trait 2 
C)  Trait 3 
D)  Traits 1, 2, and 3

Question 18

The following question refers to the following phylogenetic trees.

Which tree depicts the microsporidians as a sister group of the ascomycetes?

Accepted Answer

A)  I 
B)  II 
C)  III 
D)  IV 
A)  I 
B)  II 
C)  III 
D)  IV

Question 19

Which statement represents the best explanation for the observation that the nuclear DNA of wolves and domestic dogs has a very high degree of sequence homology? Dogs and wolves ________.

Accepted Answer

A)  have very similar morphologies 
B)  belong to the same order 
C)  are both members of the order Carnivora 
D)  share a very recent common ancestor 
A)  have very similar morphologies 
B)  belong to the same order 
C)  are both members of the order Carnivora 
D)  share a very recent common ancestor

Question 20

The term convergent evolution is most applicable to which of the following features?

Accepted Answer

A)  the legless condition found in various lineages of extant lizards 
B)  the five-digit condition of human hands and bat wings 
C)  the fur that covers Australian moles and North American moles 
D)  the bones of bat forelimbs and the bones of bird forelimbs 
A)  the legless condition found in various lineages of extant lizards 
B)  the five-digit condition of human hands and bat wings 
C)  the fur that covers Australian moles and North American moles 
D)  the bones of bat forelimbs and the bones of bird forelimbs

Exam 26: Phylogeny and the Tree of Life

Carolus Linnaeus believed that species remained fixed in the form in which they had been created. Linnaeus would have been uncomfortable with ________.

Based on this tree, which statement is correct?

Your professor wants you to construct a phylogenetic tree of orchids. She gives you tissue from seven orchid species and one lily. What is the most likely reason she gave you the lily?

Which of the following would, if it had acted upon a gene, prevent this gene from acting as a reliable molecular clock?

Use the figure to answer the following question. If the figure is an accurate depiction of relatedness, then which of the following should be an accurate statement?

To apply the principle of maximum parsimony to construction of a phylogenetic tree, ________.

If additional DNA sequence evidence shows that yeast genes for synthesizing proteins are more similar to protein-synthesizing genes in bacteria than those in archaea, a modern systematist would ________.

Use the following information to answer the question. Applying the principle of parsimony to the trait "ability to fly," which of the two phylogenetic trees is better?

Some beetles and flies have antler-like structures on their heads, much like male deer. The existence of antlers in beetle, fly, and deer species with strong male-male competition is an example of ________.

The most important feature that permits a gene to act as a molecular clock is ________.

Which of the following pairs are the best examples of homologous structures?

The importance of computers and of computer software to modern systematics s is most closely linked to advances in ________.

Which of the following items is most likely to form a simple linear relationship with the number of gene-duplication events, when placed as the label on the vertical axis of the following graph?

Given that phylogenies are based on shared derived characteristics, which of the following traits is useful in generating a phylogeny of species W, X, Y, and Z?

The following question refers to the following phylogenetic trees. Which tree depicts the microsporidians as a sister group of the ascomycetes?

Which statement represents the best explanation for the observation that the nuclear DNA of wolves and domestic dogs has a very high degree of sequence homology? Dogs and wolves ________.

The term convergent evolution is most applicable to which of the following features?

Evolution, the Themes of Biology, and Scientific Inquiry

The Chemical Context of Life

Water and Life

Carbon and the Molecular Diversity of Life

The Structure and Function of Large Biological Molecules

A Tour of the Cell

Membrane Structure and Function

An Introduction to Metabolism

Cellular Respiration and Fermentation

Photosynthesis

Cell Communication

The Cell Cycle

Meiosis and Sexual Life Cycles

Mendel and the Gene Idea

The Chromosomal Basis of Inheritance

The Molecular Basis of Inheritance

Gene Expression: From Gene to Protein

Regulation of Gene Expression

Viruses

DNA Tools and Biotechnology

Genomes and Their Evolution

Descent with Modification: A Darwinian View of Life

The Evolution of Populations

The Origin of Species

The History of Life on Earth

Bacteria and Archaea

Protists

Plant Diversity I: How Plants Colonized Land

Plant Diversity II: The Evolution of Seed Plants

Fungi

An Overview of Animal Diversity

An Introduction to Invertebrates

The Origin and Evolution of Vertebrates

Vascular Plant Structure, Growth, and Development

Resource Acquisition and Transport in Vascular Plants

Soil and Plant Nutrition

Angiosperm Reproduction and Biotechnology

Plant Responses to Internal and External Signals

Basic Principles of Animal Form and Function

Animal Nutrition

Circulation and Gas Exchange

The Immune System

Osmoregulation and Excretion

Hormones and the Endocrine System

Animal Reproduction

Animal Development

Neurons, Synapses, and Signaling

Nervous Systems

Sensory and Motor Mechanisms

Animal Behavior

An Introduction to Ecology and the Biosphere

Population Ecology

Community Ecology

Ecosystems and Restoration Ecology

Conservation Biology and Global Change

Filters