Exam 1: Evolution, the Themes of Biology, and Scientific Inquiry

The following experiment is used for the following question. A researcher discovered a species of moth that lays its eggs on oak trees. Eggs are laid at two distinct times of the year: early in spring when the oak trees are flowering and in midsummer when flowering is past. Caterpillars from eggs that hatch in spring feed on oak flowers and look like oak flowers, but caterpillars that hatch in summer feed on oak leaves and look like oak twigs. How does the same population of moths produce such different-looking caterpillars on the same trees? To answer this question, the biologist caught many female moths from the same population and collected their eggs. He put at least one egg from each female into eight identical cups. The eggs hatched, and at least two larvae from each female were maintained in one of the four temperature and light conditions listed below. Temperature Day Length Springlike Springlike Springlike Summerlike Summerlike springlike Summerlike summerlike In each of the four environments, one of the caterpillars was fed oak flowers, the other oak leaves. Thus, there were a total of eight treatment groups (4 environments × 2 diets). Recall that in the experiment, caterpillars born in the spring looked like flowers, and caterpillars born in the summer looked like twigs. What is the most likely selective advantage for this difference in body shape?

Cotton-topped tamarins are small primates with tufts of long white hair on their heads. While studying these creatures, you notice that males with longer hair get more opportunities to mate and father more offspring. To test the hypothesis that having longer hair is adaptive in these males, you should ________.

Which of the following statements best distinguishes hypotheses from theories in science?

A friend of yours calls to say that his car would not start this morning. He asks for your help. You say that you think the battery must be dead. If so, then jump-starting the car from a good battery will solve the problem. In doing so, you are ________.

The process by which the information in a gene directs the synthesis of a protein is called ________.

Use the following figure to answer the question. The phylogenetic tree ________.

Why is a scientific topic best discussed by people of varying points of view, from different subdisciplines, and representing diverse cultures?

The following experiment is used for the following question. A researcher discovered a species of moth that lays its eggs on oak trees. Eggs are laid at two distinct times of the year: early in spring when the oak trees are flowering and in midsummer when flowering is past. Caterpillars from eggs that hatch in spring feed on oak flowers and look like oak flowers, but caterpillars that hatch in summer feed on oak leaves and look like oak twigs. How does the same population of moths produce such different-looking caterpillars on the same trees? To answer this question, the biologist caught many female moths from the same population and collected their eggs. He put at least one egg from each female into eight identical cups. The eggs hatched, and at least two larvae from each female were maintained in one of the four temperature and light conditions listed below. Temperature Day Length Springlike Springlike Springlike Summerlike Summerlike springlike Summerlike summerlike In each of the four environments, one of the caterpillars was fed oak flowers, the other oak leaves. Thus, there were a total of eight treatment groups (4 environments × 2 diets). In every case, caterpillars that feed on oak flowers look like oak flowers. In every case, caterpillars that were raised on oak leaves looked like twigs. These results support which of the following hypotheses?

Use the following information when answering the following question. In 1668, Francesco Redi performed a series of experiments on spontaneous generation. He began by putting similar pieces of meat into eight identical jars. Four jars were left open to the air, and four were sealed. He then did the same experiment with one variation: Instead of sealing four of the jars completely, he covered them with gauze (the gauze excluded the flies while allowing the meat to be exposed to air). In both experiments, he monitored the jars and recorded whether or not maggots (young flies)appeared in the meat. What hypothesis was being tested in the initial experiment with open versus sealed jars?

Which of these provides evidence of the common ancestry of all life?

Which of the following best describes a model organism?