602 Exam 1
Which of the following is an example of a vestigial organ? (a) A kiwi's wings (b) A whale's hind leg bones (c) A human tailbone (d) Both B and C (e) All of the above
E) A vestigial organ is a structure or organ that used to be functional in the ancestors of a species but over time have evolved to be useless. Therefore, a flightless bird doesn't actually need their wings, whale's don't have legs and don't need leg bones, and humans don't have tails but still have tailbones.
What is an evolutionary psychology perspective for why a person has a hobby of participating in a lot of athletic activities? (a) their parents were also athletic (b) athleticism was stressed by the person's elementary school (c) it was an adaptive trait for their ancestors (d) all of the above
C
What is an real world example of a vestigial organ... (a) Fish with wing muscles (b) Monkey with fin bones (c) Whale with hind leg bones (d) Humans with opposable thumbs (e) Birds with wings
C
What is conspicuous consumption? (a) Something animals use more than humans to attract mates (b) The biological characteristics used to attract a mate (c) Purchasing costly items to show status and wealth used to attract mates. (d) Behaviors that attract mates.
C
Which of the following was evidence that Darwin found in the Galapagos Islands that support his ideas about natural selection? (a) The tortoise on each island of the Galapagos had different types of shells (b) The finches on each island of the Galapagos had different beaks (c) Both a and b (d) None of the above
C
Which of these adaptations is not considered to be costly? (a) The human brain (b) Male peacock Feathers (c) Opposable thumbs (d) None of the above
C
Which of these is an example of coevolution? (a) The white peppered moth dying out after the Industrial Revolution (b) Finches on the Galapagos Islands developing different beaks (c) Prey species growing larger in response to predation pressures, and predators in turn getting larger (d) A peacock's bright feathers attracting a mate
C
hypothesized that organisms had a common ancestor, but had adapted to their particular environments and changed over time (a) Lamark (b) Douglas (c) Darwin (d) Wiss
C
What was the primary cause behind Darwin's finches developing into different subspecies? (a) Droughts (b) Competition for resources (c) Different microclimates of each island (d) Selective mating (e) None of the above
C) Each kind of finch has a different beak because natural selection has selected for the beak that optimizes the most abundant food source in the particular climate that the specific birds live in. Because each of the Galapagos islands had such different microclimates, the same finches were able to develop differently, making it a perfect location for Darwin to study natural selection without far travel.
DNA analysis of human evolution has shown that all humans originate from which continent? (a) Asia (b) South America (c) Europe (d) Africa
D
Darwin proposed that the finches on the Galapagos Islands came from one original species and diverged because of different environmental pressures. This is the idea of __________ (a) Sexual Selection (b) Costly Signaling (c) Coevolution (d) Common Ancestry
D
In the article studying the existence of conspicuous consumption among women, what did the term "power" represent? (a) How high up you were in your job. (b) An individual's superpowers. (c) They used power to equate the numbers that resulted from their study. (d) Power refers to the ability of a person to influence or prevent influence from others.
D
Regarding fear, system 1 is ___ while system 2 is ___. (a) slow; fast (b) evidence-based; unconscious (c) explicit; subliminal (d) automatic; logic-based
D
What animal and in which location did Darwin most notably notice evolution? (a) Flamingos, Aruba (b) Sloths, Costa Rica (c) Peacocks, Croatia (d) Finches, Galapagos (e) Fish, off the coast of Florida
D
What are some factors that come into play for mate selection? (a) Can provide abundant resources (b) Can protect offspring (c) Can devote, time, energy, and money in us (d) All of the above
D
What is an example of the costly signaling theory? (a) Bright feathers on a peacock (b) Larger sized claw on fiddler crab. (c) Young men engaging in risky and dangerous behaviors to impress women. (d) All of the above. (e) None of the above.
D
What is biological evidence that evolution is real? (a) People speak different languages (b) the existence of vestigial organs (c) Embryos from different creatures look really similar (d) B and C
D
According to Gardner, many of our fears are _________ when compared with the actual dangers we face. (a) Irrational (b) Rational
A
As one study from the Miller article illustrated, women were more attracted to men for their: (a) Good genes (b) Good resources (c) Good personality (d) None of the above
A
For natural selection to occur, there must be at least... (a) two varieties of a species. (b) two species in competition. (c) three variations of the same species. (d) one or more natural disaster like a drought or famine. (e) human influence on a small scale.
A
What are the two factors of sexual selection ? (a) Competition and Preference for Mate (b) Intrasexual Selection and Attraction (c) Both A & B (d) Competition, Preference, and Intrasexual Selection
A
What effect of adaptation permits us to adjust our sensitivity over a range of stimulus intensities we experience at different times? (a) range shifting (b) sensory adaptation (c) coevolution (d) focal vision
A
What is an example of a vestigial organ in humans? (a) wisdom teeth (b) small intestine (c) large intestine (d) opposable thumbs
A
What is one of Tinbergen's Levels of Explanation (a) Ultimate (b) Proximal (c) Naturalistic Fallacy (d) Explanations
A
What is the theory that states that those organisms best adapt to their environment have a better chance of surviving and reproducing? (a) Natural Selection (b) Evolution (c) Common Ancestry (d) Homologous Structures
A
What type of trait state depends on the summed effects of genes at several loci? (a) polygenic (b) codominance (c) independent assortment (d) discrete inheritance
A
Which fall under the two forms of sexual selection? (a) Competition for a mate (b) Short-term mating (c) Preferences for a mate (d) Both A and C
A
Which is the best definition of Evolution? (a) The theory that organisms today developed from more simple life forms and have changed over time. (b) Genetic variations are passed on through reproduction (c) The theory that states that organisms best adapted to their environment have a better chance of surviving and reproducing. (d) The theory that organisms can change their traits during their lifetime by use or disuse.
A
Which is NOT one of the six points to Darwin's key argument on evolution? (a) Natural populations grow exponentially (b) Many individuals do not leave as many offspring as they might (c) Because of heredity, offspring are like their parents (d) Survival of the fittest
D
Which of the following is NOT a tenet of Evolutionary Psychology (a) All behavior is a function of psychological mechanisms + input to those mechanisms (b) All psychological mechanisms, at some basic level, originate from evolutionary processes (c) Natural and sexual selection are the most important evolutionary processes responsible for creating psychological mechanisms (d) Evolved psychological mechanisms can not be described as information processing devices
D
Which of the following is not an example of a vestigial organ/structure? (a) Wings on a Kiwi bird (b) Hind leg bones on a whale (c) Appendix in a human (d Ears of a dog
D
Which of these are physical features of the Bonobo that differentiate them from the chimpanzee? (a) Long black hair that's parted down the middle (b) Small head (c) Elevated hips, leading to a more human-like posture (d) All of the above
D
Which of these is NOT evidence for evolution? (a) Embryo development (b) Fossils (c) Vestigial organs (d) Geographic location (e) Homologous structures
D
Which of the following is not categorized as evidence for evolution? (a) Common ancestry (b) Vestigial organs (c) Fossils (d) Opposable thumbs (e) Embryo development
D because all other answers were specific categories provided during lecture
Which is not a major key to natural selection? (a) inheritance (b) variation (c) differential reproduction (d) identical reproduction
D. Inheritance, variation, and differential reproductions are all features of natural selection. Identical reproduction is not a feature of natural selection and does not embody the terms 'natural'
Before Charles Darwin, people's views of evolution consisted of the belief that... (a) Earth was only a few thousand years old. (b) The planet had been the exact same throughout time. (c) All the species had been the same throughout time. (d) Organisms change traits via use or disuse. (e) All the above.
E
Which is not evidence for evolution? (a) Fossils (b) Embryonic Development (c) Vestigial Organs (d) Common Ancestry (e) None of the above
E
Which of the following is not a critique of the Standard Social Science Model (SSSM)? (a) The SSSM misunderstands the nature of development. (b) One or a very limited amount of learning mechanisms account for all of human behavior. (c) The SSSM lacks an overarching theory of design. (d) Environmental effects cannot be explained by general laws of learning, because learning mechanisms tend to be specialized for specific kind of problems.
B. According to the SSSM, humans have only a few basic biological drives.
What is an example of another species equivalent to 'conspicuous consumption', which is seen in humans? (a) A peacock's feathers. (b) A spider's eighth eye. (c) A dog's tail. (d) A crab's claw.
*A. Something that a species has or does that isn't quite understood without science
True or False. According to Zhao et al., women who are of low-power partake in mate-guarding more than mate-attraction.
False: Women who are of low-power partake in mate-attraction more commonly than mate-guarding.
T/F: The two forms of sexual selection are competition for a mate and preferences for a mate.
T
T/F: The concept of Costly Signaling in Evolutionary Psychology is similar to that of Conspicuous Consumption.
T. Costly Signaling is a concept in Evolutionary Psychology where 'signals' to reproduce are a handicap between and across species. Conspicuous Consumption is similar since spending excess amount of money on brand name clothes to attract a mate is costly.
Which of the following is true of pre-Darwin beliefs about evolution? (a) Organisms could modify features over their lifetime and these acquired traits could be passed genetically to offspring (b) Organisms could modify features over their lifetime but these traits would not be passed genetically to their offspring (c) The ideas that perpetuated before Darwin's concept of evolution have been completely discredited (d) Both A and C (e) Both B and C
A) For instance, this belief, largely perpetuated by Lamark, was said to act on giraffe's necks. The giraffe's were able to grow longer necks by stretching to get to taller leaves, and through this growth, they were able to pass on the trait of longer necks to their offspring. In reality, the giraffe's with longer necks were simply surviving better due to the ability to get more food, thus they passed on their genes more. However, this theory is not completely discredited because there are certain traits that our own actions can cause to be expressed differently. For instance, skin tone due to melanin is very dependent on how much time a person spends outside in the sun. This is now known as the field of ethogenetics, and while it cannot pass on traits acquired over the lifetime to offspring, we do see variations of traits based on our own actions, thus not completely discrediting Lamark's ideas.
The theory of Natural Selection, used in the field of Evolutionary Psychology, is postulated by _______. (a) Charles Darwin (b) Charles Dandridge (c) William James (d) Henry James
A.
Which of the following is not one of Darwin's arguments? (a) Natural populations can grow linearly. (b) Natural populations are relatively stable. (c) Those best suited to their environment will have the most offspring. (d) Over many generations, natural selection builds individuals that are adapted to their environment.
A. Darwin argued that populations can grow exponentially, not linearly.
What is the following statement an example of? You do not have to teach a child to be scared of a snake, but you do have to teach it to be scared of guns. (a) Evolutionary psychology (b) Standard social science model (SSSM) (c) Costly signaling (d) The blank slate (e) Natural selection
A. Evolutionary psychology suggests that humans have evolved to be born with certain instincts. It would have been useful a long time ago to already know a snake is dangerous when approaching one for the first time. Humans have to be taught to be scared of a gun because have not been around very long at all.
Which of the following is absolutely necessary in order for natural selection to occur? (a) At least 2 varieties of a species. (b) Different ecosystems on a planet. (c) A very humid and hot climate in the jungle. (d) Predators.
A. In order for reproduction and the passing on of the most effective of genes, at least 2 different varieties of a species have to exist. Without this, the "best" traits would not be passed to offspring, which means the entire species as a whole would die out because of lack of fitness.
Which of these is an example of Intersexual selection? (a) A female peacock choosing a male peacock because of his brightly colored feathers. (b) Two lions fighting for access to viable females. (c) A boy wearing blue because it's he's crush's favorite color. (d) Both A & C
A. Intersexual selection occurs when members of one sex choose a mate based on preferences for particular qualities in that mate.
Natural selection plays a part in evolution. Which of the following is an example of natural selection? (a) Sexual selection (b) Financial selection (c) A&B (d) None of the above
A. Sexual selection favors traits that provide benefits in the mating context.
According to the Pagel article, what needs to be present for social learning to take place? (a) The ability to copy and imitate (b) The ability to speak (c) Interaction between two humans (d) The ability to listen (e) None of the above
A. The Pagel article states that the ability to copy and imitate needs to be present for social learning to take place.
Which of the following are tenants of the Standard Social Science Model (SSSM) that evolutionary psychologists take issue with? i. The mind is a blank slate and humans have very few innate instincts. ii. Behavior can be thought of as the result of an interaction between nature and nurture. iii. The mind functions as a general-purpose problem solver that enables us to take in many different types of input and produce many variations in behavioral output. iv. The SSSM overemphasizes the importance of biology in producing human behavioral differences. (a) i., iii. (b) i., ii., iv. (c) i., iv. (d) ii., iii.
A. The SSSM maintains that the mind is a blank slate at birth and experience alone shapes behavior. Evolutionary psychologist, however, argue that this cannot be the case and that our brains are, in many ways, primed to react with certain patterns of behavior. They use the example of language, which every infant is capable of learning easily, whereas infants are not equipped to handle other subjects, such as computer science. Evolutionary psychologists, not the SSSM proponents believe that behavior is a result of the interaction between nature and nurture, and that the SSSM draws a false dichotomy between the two. Statement iii. is a pillar of the SSSM that evolutionary psychologists take issue with because there is no evidence to support this claim; there is no general problem, and humans are equipped to respond with specificity and nuance to a variety of different situations. Statement iv. asserts that the SSSM overemphasizes biology's importance when, in fact, if does the very opposite; evolutionary psychologists argue that it is our biological makeup that allows us to think and behave in the ways that we do and that biology and psychology cannot be divorced from one another.
According to evolutionary psychology, why do women generally have more empathy than men? (a) The offspring of women who felt little or no empathy did not survive, thus their genes did not survive. The offspring of women who did feel empathy, on the other hand, survived and passed on their empathetic genes. (b) Women must be empathetic to be gatherers, while men did not need this trait to be hunters. (c) Women are not more empathetic than men. The opposite is true. (d) None of the above.
A. The offspring of women who felt little or no empathy did not survive, thus their genes did not survive. The offspring of women who did feel empathy, on the other hand, survived and passed on their empathetic genes.
Which of the following is the correct definition for conspicuous consumption? (a) Purchasing and displaying costly products to suggest wealth and social status (b) Seemingly useless or disadvantageous biological characteristics actually attract the opposite sex and thereby promote reproductive success (c) Individuals' ability to influence or prevent influence from others (d) Behavior directed toward attracting a desired mate.
A. The other answers are various definitions of terms in the Mating Goals article.
Dewaal suggests that the ability to inflict pain on another comes from understanding how another will feel as a result of the pain. This thought process uses... (a) Theory of Mind (b) Hierarchy of Structure (c) Natural Selection (d) Costly Signaling
A. Theory of Mind. In order to understand one will feel the pain you intend to inflict, Theory of Mind enables the thinker to understand that another entity has thoughts and feelings not already understood by the thinkers mind.
Sexual selection is defined as (a) preference by one sex for certain characteristics in individuals of the other sex (b) Survival of the offspring based on genetic disposition of its parents (c) organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring (d) Attraction to the other sex based on personality and actions
A. attraction based on outer characteristics
What is one proposed reason for males being more violent across species? (a) Intrasexual competition (b) Throughout history, males in any given species have had to be more violent in order to provide (c) Being violent increases their appeal to possible mates (d) They aren't actually violent across species
A. because being attracted to the opposite sex and having to beat out the competition causes males to be violent. Even if there is an equal number of females in a population, they are pregnant some of the time and are therefore unavailable for mating. For this reason, males must compete.
How are the theories of evolution and natural selection connected? (a) Natural selection leads to evolution. (b) Evolution leads to natural selection. (c) Natural selection disproved evolution. (d) They are not connected at all.
A. because natural selection states that those best suited to an environment survive which will lead to evolution when those creatures mate.
According to readings, what is the most important sense humans have? (a) Taste (b) Pain (c) Hearing (d) Touch (e) Sight
A. so animals are able to detect chemicals within foods. This way they know what is safe to eat.
5. Why is it that some humans are lactose intolerance? (a) Milk was unsafe for us to drink for a long time, so some of us developed a defense mechanism to combat it. (b) Actually, it's strange for us to drink milk so late in life, and lactose intolerance is pretty normal. (c) Random coincidence (d) None of the Above
B
Evolution is the theory that... (a) organisms today developed from more complex life forms and have changed over time (b) organisms today developed from more simple life forms and have changed over time (c) organisms today have always been the exact same throughout time (d) modern humans used to be monkeys (e) organisms today can change their traits during their lifetime by use or disuse
B
Evolution means ______. (a) Progress (b) Change (c) Adaptation (d) None of the above
B
In the field of evolutionary psychology, the theory of natural selection was proposed by _____________. (a) Wilhem Wundt (b) Charles Darwin (c) Sigmund Freud (d) Ivan Pavlov
B
There are two types of peppered moths: a lightly colored and a darkly colored. Due to the environment changing during the Industrial Revolution, all the trees' bark became dark. According to natural selection, which type of peppered moth would be more likely to survive and pass their genes? (a) Light-colored moths (b) Dark-colored moths (c) Both would have an equal likelihood of surviving and mating. (d) Both are unlikely to survive.
B
What is Evolution? (a) Growing over time (b) The theory that organisms today developed from more simple life forms and have changed (evolved) over time (c) The process of being developed (d) none of the above
B
What is a measure of the extent to which differences in a trait are caused by genetic differences? (a) discrete traits (b) heritability (c) environmental variation (d) frequency-dependent selection
B
Which is an example of a vestigial organ? (a) Tadpole tail (b) Human tailbone (c) Shark fins (d) Penguin wings
B
Which of the following has to do the most with consciousness? (a) Sensation (b) Perception (c) Both A & B (d) None of the above
B
Which of the following is most likely driven by the "gut"? (a) cars (b) tigers (c) GMOs (d) germs (e) all of the above
B
Which of the senses are suggested to be the most important occurring to the Chapter 4 reading? (a) Vision (b) The chemical senses (taste and smell) (c) Hearing (d) Pain
B
Which one of these is an example of costly signaling (a) Eating an apple for breakfast (b) Wearing high heels to impress others (c) Painting alone (d) Going to the doctor
B
Why is it so challenging to find something that makes humans unique from all other species? (a) It isn't. We are completely different from all other species. (b) All species began from one single ancestor, so we each have very similar characteristics. (c) It is difficult because humans are much more complex than every other species. (d) Humans developed from a different ancestor than every other species.
B
Which of the following is NOT a factor that prevents selection from reducing to a single favorable allele? (a) Environmental Variation- different environments making different features favorable (b) Selective Mating- specific traits being more attractive to the opposite gender (c) Heterozygote Superiority- heterozygotes sometimes having more advantages than homozygotes (d) Frequency dependent selection- fitness depending on how common a phenotype is in the population (e) Mutation- new alleles arising through random mutation
B) Selective mating, certain traits being more favorable to the opposite gender (ex. a bird's song being more complex, a peacock's feathers being bright) would encourage selection for one specific trait, which would encourage reducing the allele to a single favorable one (barring complications from costly signaling). The other choices are talked about in Chapter 1 G&McB.
Which of the following traits of adaptation describes a trait that would increase the fitness of neighbors but decrease the fitness of yourself? (a) Selfish trait (b) Altruistic trait (c) Cooperative trait (d) Spiteful trait (e) None of the above
B) Selfish- increase your own fitness while decreasing neighbors, altruistic- increase neighbor's fitness while decreasing your own, cooperative- increase both your own and your neighbor's fitness, spiteful- decreasing both your own and your neighbor's fitness. Traits explained more in G&McB chapter 2.
Which is a core tenant of Evolutionary Psychology? (a) All behavior is a function of psychological mechanisms + output to those mechanisms (b) All psychological mechanisms, at some basic level, originate from evolutionary processes (c) Natural and sexual selection are the least important evolutionary processes responsible for creating psychological mechanisms (d) Evolved psychological mechanisms are nonfunctional: designed to solve statistically recurrent adaptive problems
B. All the other answer choices have been modified to make it wrong.
People are often more afraid of flying than driving, even though there is a higher likelihood of an accident to occur in motor vehicles. This is due to? (a) Consistency heuristic (b) Availability Heuristic (c) Common sense (d) Contagion heuristic
B. Availability Heuristic - a mental shortcut that relies on immediate examples that come to a given person's mind when evaluating a specific topic, concept, method or decision a mental shortcut that relies on immediate examples that come to a given person's mind when evaluating a specific topic, concept, method or decision. Airplane disasters more reported on the news, more likely to remember this instead of car disasters, which is less reported in national media.
How, in general, do the rate of reproduction of a species correspond to its rate of evolution? (a) The rate of evolution is directly proportional to the rate of reproduction (b) The rate of evolution is inversely proportional to the rate of reproduction (c) The rate of evolution increases over time for all animals (d) The rate of evolution decreases over time for all animals (e) There is no relationship between rate of reproduction and rate of evolution
B. Because a slower rate of reproduction would lead to less genetic mutation and "shuffling" over time, a longer rate of reproduction prevents this mutation from occurring, while a shorter rate of reproduction allows it to occur more quickly.
Parent 1 has brown eyes, but is also a carrier of blue eyes. Parent 2 has blue eye. Brown eyes (B) are a dominant trait and blue eyes (b) are recessive. What is the percentage of their child being heterozygous? (a)25% (b) 50% (c) 75% (d) 0%
B. Because parent 1 is heterozygous and parent 2 is homozygous recessive, the dominant trait in parent 1 will allow their child to have a 50% chance of being heterozygous.
Which of these is the correct reason that Darwin hypothesized that organisms were different from one another? (a) Climate change. (b) Different microclimates. (c) Every single animal on earth is a separate species from one another. (d) All of the above
B. Darwin saw that the Galapagos Islands had very different microclimates from each other, like different terrain, plants and trees, food options, etc., and that these differences caused different traits in the animals to surface in order for them to survive.
Which pair of comparisons most closely matches Gardner's description of System One and System Two (a) System One: Feeling as System Two: Instinct (b) System One: Feeling as System Two: Logic (c) System One: Instinct as System Two: Fear (d) System One: Feeling as System Two: Intuition
B. Gardner describes System One as fast and instinctual; it produces a feeling about a situation for reasons that be immediately subconscious. System Two is described as producing a slower reaction that relies on logic to regulate how we behave in a given situation. So, the correct answer is "b.".
Jean Pierre Lamarck believed which of the following? (a) Natural selection leads to evolution (b) Animals can change their traits throughout their lifetime (c) The changes animals undergo throughout their life do not get passed onto offspring (d) Humans are done evolving
B. He believed organisms can change their traits through use and disuse, and these changes are then passed onto offspring to ultimately change the species as a whole.
Which of the following would speed up the rate of evolution if increased? (best answer) (a) rainfall (b) reproductive rates (c) environmental research (d) cross-species breeding
B. Increasing the rate at which species reproduce also increases the rate at which favorable traits get passed from one generation to the next. Cross-species breeding typically results in sterile offspring.
Which of these is an example of Intrasexual selection? (a) A male peacock attracting a female peacock with his brightly colored feathers. (b) Two lions fighting for access to viable females. (c) A boy wearing blue because it's he's crush's favorite color. (d) None of the Above
B. Intrasexual selection occurs when members of the same sex compete with each other for access to members of the opposite sex.
It was originally theorized that evolutionary changes took place over periods of hundreds of years, there is now evidence that it happens ______________ (a) Much Slower (b) Much Quicker (c) As Originally Expected (d) A Constant Rate
B. Much Quicker. Evolutionary changes can be see in short periods of time with organisms that have a shorter life span than humans, for example, New York City sewer rats.
Researchers in the 1990s asked people about their concern for nine risks. What did the researchers find about people's perception of risk compared to actual risk? (a) When considering actual risk, people are accurate judges of perceived risk. (b) People's perceived risk was unrelated to actual risk. (c) People's perceived risk was strongly correlated to actual risk. (d) People's perceived risk had a strong inverse relationship to actual risk.
B. People's perceived risk was unrelated to actual risk. According to Gardner's chapter on fear, George Loewenstein and Jane Mather found that there was no relationship between perceived an actual risk (page 10).
According to Gardner, we have two systems of thinking. What are they and how do they work? (a) Reasoning System works fast and the Gut/Feeling system also works fast (b) Reasoning System works slow and the Gut/Feeling system works fast (c) Reasoning System works fast and the Gut/Feeling system works slow (d) Reasoning System works slow and the Gut/Feeling system also works slow
B. Reasoning system works slow and the Gut/Feeling system works fast. This is because the reason system tends to be evidence or language based while feelings are unconscious, super fast, based on intuitions, snap decisions, based on availability heuristics.
Which of the following is not one of the key human traits we want to signal to people? (a) Health (b) Style (c) Attractiveness (d) Intelligence
B. Style is not one of the key human traits, although health, attractiveness, and intelligence - along with fitness, fertility, youth, and personality traits - all are.
Natural selection can also be described as "survival of the fittest", but this phrase is often misunderstood. "Survival of the fittest," when properly interpreted, means _____. (a) survival of the biggest and strongest of a species (b) survival of those best fit to their environment (c) survival of those best matching the others in their species (d) none of the above
B. Survival of those best fit to their environment. Natural selection is the selection of those individuals which have the best chance of surviving and reproducing in their given environment.
While in the jungle, a researcher discovers two clans of baboons. He observes that both within and between clans, violence occurs very rarely. Instead, the baboons live life relatively peaceful. This behavior best describes which prolific thinker's hypothesis? (a) Darwin (b) Rousseau (c) Hobbes (d) Lamarck
B. This question deals specifically with a main assumption of group behavior, which rules out both Darwin and Lamarck who dealt with the process of evolution/selection. Hobbes, while thinking about behavior, believed that violence is a natural status of the homo genetic line, to which baboons would also be attributed.
What did Jean Pierre Lamark believe about evolution? (a) His thoughts aligned with Darwin (b) That organisms can change their traits during their lifetime by use or disuse. (c) Traits are randomly distributed in organisms (d) New traits form during the lifespan of individual organisms.
B. This was Lamarck's hypothesis on evolution.
Which of these was not a type of Darwin's finches? (a) Large ground finch (b) Dull-beaked ground finch (c) Woodpecker finch (d) Medium ground finch
B. While the others are all types of Darwin's finches, along with many other types, the dull-beaked ground finch does not exist. However, there is a sharp-beaked ground finch.
Why would we have allergies? (a) Allergies help to clean out the air pollution that results from industrialization (b) Our immune systems haven't needed to adjust because we have adapted to environments that are too clean (c) Allergies continue to be beneficial to the human population (d) Having allergies is actually an adaptation to our changes environment
B. because the hygiene hypothesis basically says that our immune systems have no need to adapt to allergies because they are not detrimental. We continue to have them because our environments are too clean, making our immune system having to work a little less than it might have thousands of years ago.
Which of the following statements are not a part of the standard social science model? (a) Psychology is a social science. (b) The mind is modular. (c) There is no need to consider the role of evolution. (d) Culture and experience create wide variation in human behavior. (e) None of the above
B. because the mind being modular is a part of evolutionary psychology. In evolutionary psychology, there is belief that humans have adapted and are born with certain instincts, but in the SSSM there is the belief that learning can explain anything.
Blank State is the idea that (a) Humans are born with innate language (b) Humans absorb and learn from the environment (c) Personalities are predetermined (d) All of the above
B. blank state is the idea that when humans are born, they start learning and absorbing from environment, develop personality and knowledge -- not innate
Which of the following aligns with Charles Darwin's theory of natural selection? (a) survival of the biggest and strongest (b) organisms best adapted to their environment have a better chance of surviving and reproducing (c) organisms can change during their lifetime and these changes are passed on to their offspring (d) all of the above (e) none of the above
B. organisms best adapted to their environment have a better chance of surviving and reproducing
What is the main purpose of perception according to evolutionary psychology? (a) to gain knowledge of our surroundings (b) to guide action (c) to see other people (d) to make up for other senses that aren't as keen
B. the main purpose of perception is to guide our actions. We have eyes that perceive objects so that we can move accordingly. Animals that cannot move have no need for a costly organ to take in visual information.
Human nature: (a) Is infinitely variable (b) Does not vary (c) Is not infinitely variable (d) None of the above
C
In Zhao et al. (2017) about conspicuous consumption, which of the following statement is correct according to the study? (a) Participants of the study agreed that an ordinary brand would attract a mate just as well as a luxury brand. (b) Men use conspicuous consumption for mate guarding, whereas women use it for mate attraction. (c) High power women tend to compare themselves to other women, whereas low power women tend to only compare to themselves. (d) All of the above.
C
What are different versions of the same gene? (a) genome (b) loci (c) alleles (d) diploid cells
C
Mendel's model of heredity did NOT posit which of the following? (a) Each normal adult carries a pair of genes for each trait. (b) Pairs of genes can influence each other's expression. (c) Genes can dilute or be reduced when combined with particles (genes) of the mate. (d) Only 1 of a parent's pair of genes, for each trait, are passed on when breeding. (e) All of the above are true
C, Mendel's model of heredity posited 4 things. (1) stuff of heredity consists of particles that retain their integrity and are NOT diluted/reduced when combined with particles of the mate; (2) each normal adult carries a pair of genes for each trait; (3) when breeding, each parent gives only 1 of its pair of genes for each trait; (4) pairs of genes can influence each other's expression without diluting/changing each other permanently.
Which of the following is not needed for natural selection to occur? (a) The trait must be hereditary. (b) There must be at least two varieties in a species. (c) The trait cannot be costly. (d) There must be a change in the environment. (e) All of the above are needed.
C. A trait can still be selected natural even if it is costly. For example, peacocks have bright feathers. Peacocks show off their bright tail feathers to attract a mate, but a predator is more likely to see them. For natural selection to occur there must be a change in the environment because if there wasn't, there would be no need to adapt to a change. There must also be two varieties in a species because if there is only one, there would not be another trait to selection. Lastly, the trait must be hereditary. If a trait can be learned, there would be no reason to select a mate with that trait because the offspring could just learn it.
Why is an eye a good example of cumulative evolution? (a) The eye must have taken little adaptation and evolved quickly over time. (b) The eye allows for sight; the most important sense. (c) The eye must have been built on many adaptations and evolved slowly over time. (d) None of the above.
C. According to Chapter 2, the vertebrae eye is so complex, that it almost certainly did not appear after a random mutation. Instead, it is more likely that the eye build on small changes over time depending on how those changes increased an organisms chances of survival in an environment. The accumulation of these adaptations is why the eye is a good example of cumulative evolution.
Coevolution refers to _______, and an example of how it impacts the senses is ______? (a) Two species following a similar evolutionary path; whales and dolphins evolving from land dwelling mammals to water dwelling mammals. (b) A species that needs the help of another species in order to survive; hyena's relying on lions to kill prey, so they can scavenge. (c) Two species impacting each other's course of evolution; bats using sonar to track moths and moths having the ability to hear the ultrasound waves to avoid the bats. (d) None of the above.
C. According to GMC Chapter 4, coevolution is when "two or more species influence the course of each other's evolution" (95). Furthermore, the chapter provides the example of bats using sonar and moths who are predators for bats developing better hearing to defend against the use of ultrasound.
Which of the following statements is correct regarding lactose intolerance? (a) All humans are lactose intolerant (b) After infancy, humans are no longer able to tolerate and digest lactose. (c) Up until a few thousand years ago, as a human grew from a child into an adult, the enzyme that breaks down and digests lactase would "turn off," and cause them to be lactose intolerant. (d) Lactose intolerance has proven to be unfavorable, and humans that cannot digest lactose are dying off at alarming rates due to lack of nutrition.
C. Although many adult humans today can digest lactase, this was not always the case.
What were the 3 Assumptions of Standard Social Science Model? (a) Blank Slate, Nature/Nurture Dichotomy, General-Purpose Learning Mechanism (b) Blank Slate, The Irrelevance of Biology, Blanket Learning (c) Blank Slate, The Irrelevance of Biology, General-Purpose Learning Mechanism (d) Blanket Learning, Nature/Nurture Dichotomy, General-Purpose Learning Mechanism
C. As noted in Chapter 1, the three assumptions were Blank Slate, The Irrelevance of Biology, General-Purpose Learning Mechanism.
For natural selection to occur there must be (a) Two separate organisms (b) A costly expenditure (c) At least two varieties of a species (d) A shared environment
C. At least two varieties of a species. This can be seen in organisms such as the peppered mouth or Darwin's finches.
According to the Miller article ("Spent"), humans spend money to signal to others information about themselves. What are some possible reasons to explain why humans do this? (a) Much of what people do is for other people (possibly not even consciously). (b) Status is a big deal to people, especially if others are aware of their status. (c) Both statements are possible reasons. (d) Neither statements are possible reasons.
C. Both of these reasons were reasons discussed in class that can be used to explain why humans may spend money to signal information about themselves.
Which of the following is NOT an observation made by Darwin to support his theory of natural selection? (a) Fossil records (b) Common ancestry (c) Differing skeletal structures (d) Embryonic development (e) Vestigial organs
C. Darwin found homologous bone structures in many animals that had adapted to their environments, such as the bat's wing, the human hand, and the whale fin.
Darwin used the finches of the Galapagos Islands to show his theory of natural selection. How did the finches help him come to some key conclusions? (a) They had offspring that differed in species. (b) Each bird on the island had a different color coat. (c) Depending on which area of the islands that the finches resided in, they would begin to naturally select which birds were more successful where. Thus, many species of finch developed. (d) The finches went extinct due to their inability to survive the harsh temperatures of the Galapagos Islands.
C. Darwin's different species of finches developed various beaks to suit the food available in that area of the island.
EEA refers to: (a) The environment humans live in today (b) The most prominent evolutionary research association (c) The period that hunters and gatherers lived in (d) The universality of the human environment in terms of the adaptations seen
C. EEA, or the environment of evolutionary adaptedness, refers to the period in which humans were hunters and gatherers
Which of these is correct about our understanding of the timing of evolution currently? (a) Evolutionary changes are occurring at the rate of over thousands of years. (b) Evolutionary changes are occurring every single day. (c) Evolutionary changes are dependent on the rate of reproduction and environmental adaptation. (d) None of the above.
C. Evolutionary changes can differ based on how fast the species reproduces and how well they adapt to their environment. Fruit flies, for example, will carry out much faster evolutionary changes than dogs, because they reproduce extremely quickly. The changes and mutations in the gene makeup takes effect after passing on the genes to offspring.
According to evolutionary psychology, the research of _____ is incorrect. (a) Darwin (b) Freud (c) Skinner (d) Zimbardo
C. Evolutionary psychology suggests that Skinner is wrong about the way that we learn.
Which of the following best describes the hygiene hypothesis as discussed in class? (a) A very increased amount of bathing is now being considered necessary in order to find a mate to reproduce with. (b) Humans are now the best versions of Homo sapiens because we utilize the best hygiene. (c) Allergies are becoming more prominent because our immune systems aren't as robust due to our obsession with cleanliness. (d) Our current society is bad because we love hygiene so much; instead, we should cut down the amount of baths we take and how much we brush our teeth and avoid any kind of added scents.
C. Humans in developed countries often bathe frequently and utilize hand sanitizer and other substances in order to rid themselves of 99% of germs, making their immune system extremely sensitive, and this could lead to the development of allergies
What is an example of intrasexual competition? (a) Songbird attracting a female with his song. (b) Man courting a female through dating app. (c) Two male elk fighting for dominance to win over female. (d) All of the above. (e) None of the above.
C. Intrasexual competition is between two of the same sex, so C is the only possible answer
Which is NOT an example of costly signaling theory? (a) Peacock's feathers to attract mates (b) Revving car and speeding to attract attention, especially females (c) A lion's mane (d) Hunting food to share and impress others
C. Lion's mane - there is no "cost" for lion to have the mane, it just shows that the lion is mature -- the mane itself wouldn't increase its likelihood to be spotted by a predator unlike a peacock
Which statement is correct? (a) Sexual selection is similar to natural selection. (b) Sexual selection is dissimilar to natural selection. (c) Sexual selection is a type of natural selection. (d) None of the above.
C. Mating behavior has evolved overtime in order to make a better investment in mate choice.
Which of the following is not true about genes? (a) Genes contain the information that codes for proteins. (b) Some genes come in variant forms called alleles. (c) Mendel's experiments showed that genes blend together when they are passed down to offspring. (d) Genes are organized onto chains called chromosomes.
C. Mendel's experiments with plants disproved the previous idea that genes were blended together in offspring.
In 3047 AD, an alien species called Glitterbeasts have been found and brought back to Earth. The male Glitterbeasts are distinctive for having asses which shimmer during mating season. In a scientific test, a male glitterbeast's ass was covered in yellow paint. Given what we know about mate selection, what is the most likely outcome of this action? (a) The glitterbeast will be attacked more often by competing mates (b) The glitterbeast will experience greater attention from females (c) The glitterbeast will be less likely to reproduce that mating season (d) The glitterbeast will produce offspring with yellow assed
C. Option D can be eliminated because it is an assumption of Lamarckism, and thus both incorrect and not relevant to mate selection processes. A makes little sense, as without a glittering ass other males will likely not view the subject as a mating threat. Option B also makes no sense, given that glittering occurs during mating season and is thus likely a positive attraciton mechanism. Thus, option C is the best option, as it suggests a positive correlation between glittering and mating success, and in turn a reversal of that correlation if glittering is removed.
Which of the following is NOT an example of costly signaling theory? (a) A woman wearing a tank top and skirt out in 40 degree weather (b) A person installing subwoofers in their car (c) Someone picking flowers for their loved one (d) Someone buying Gucci sunglasses
C. Picking flowers does not cost money and presumably not much time either, so it is not a form of costly signaling.
Which of the following pairs represents homologous structures? (a) Wings of a bat and wings of a butterfly (b) Human arms and legs (c) Wings of a bird and flippers of a whale (d) Snake tail and Lizard legs
C. The wings of a bird and the flippers of a whale are homologous pairs. They are different and serve different purposes, but they are similar in terms of structure.
Which of the following is not evidence for evolution? (a) Vestigial Organs (b) Homologous Structures (c) Theory of Mind (d) Common Ancestry
C. Theory of Mind. All of the other answers, along with embryo development and fossils, show common themes between various organisms that indicate evolution from a distant ancestor.
What did Darwin hypothesize about evolution? (a) Organisms have the same traits as their ancestors, regardless of what is necessary to survive. (b) That organisms can change their traits during their lifetime by use or disuse. (c) That organisms had a common ancestor but had adapted to their particular environments and changed over time. (d) Darwin didn't hypothesize about evolution.
C. This was Darwin's hypothesis on evolution.
Ron is very excited for his first day at his new school. His goal is to make new friends and even ~hopefully~ attract a love interest. Ron takes all of his lunch money that his mom gave him for the next month and buys some fancy clothes with it instead. Ron shows up to school in his fresh outfits and gets tons of friends because they all love this super fancy clothes. However, poor Ron has to eat granola bars all month because he can't actually buy any food. What idea in evolutionary psychology does this situation demonstrate? (a) Ron is not a smart man (b) This demonstrates the social learning theory, in which Ron got the that idea wearing nice clothes will help him make friends (c) This is the costly signaling theory at it's best (d) This is an example of intrasexual competition in which Ron must compete for a love interest
C. because the costly signaling theory in which an animal wants to signal something about themselves, even if creating this signal comes at a high cost. Ron basically has to starve for the next month so he could attract new friends. This is a huge social benefit for Ron but is costing him in nutrition.
Which of the following is an example of vestigial organs? (a) A human hand is similar to a bat wing (b) The leg of a dog and flipper of a dolphin have similar structure (c) Some flightless birds still have wings (d) The embryos of animals look similar
C. because the wings of flightless birds no longer have a useful function.
According to the Ted Talk we watched in class, what approach explains how our brain functions? (a) Freudian (b) Palvovian (c) Bayesian (d) Piagetian (e) Eriksonian
C. because we use our data (sensory input) and prior knowledge (memory) to shape our beliefs. The speaker also said this numerous times.
According to Jean Pierre Lamarck, organisms... (a) never changed. (b) evolved via natural selection. (c) changed during their lifetime by using or neglecting traits. (d) none of the above
C. change during their lifetime by using or neglecting traits. Lamarck believed that organisms can change their traits over the course of their lifetime by use or disuse and that they would then pass these traits onto their offspring causing a change in the species. While Lamarck was wrong, the recent study of epigenetic has shown that genes can in fact turn on/off during the life course.
According to the article, "Mating Goals Moderate Power's Effect on Conspicuous Consumption Among Women," the researchers found which of the following to be true? (a) Women do not associate conspicuous brands with higher success in mating goals compared to ordinary brands. (b) Women believe that ordinary brands will maximize their attractiveness and signal their partner's loyalty. (c) High power appears to increase conspicuous consumption among mate-guarding women. (d) Low power appears to increase conspicuous consumption among mate-guarding women.
C. the researchers found that high power increased the mate-guarding women's conspicuous consumption because they are more focused on other-comparison compared with low power women.
If we breed two heterozygous tall pea plants, how many generations of breeding would it take before a batch of all short offspring would be possible? a) one (b) two (c) three (d) four
C. three; the first cross would yield 3:1 heterozygous tall: homozygous short pea plants; the second cross yields 2:2 heterozygous tall: homozygous short pea palnts; the third cross could be between the two homozygous short pea plants from cross two, resulting in a third generation of entirely short plants. This could happen if being short became evolutionarily advantageous somehow and natural selection selected for the shortness gene.
The idea of "Survival of the fittest" requires what important modifications? (a) Reproduction, not just survival, is what makes a difference in evolution. (b) "Fittest" refers to the fit between the organism and the environment. (c) Life forms can be ordered in a ladder of complexity and sophistication. (d) A & B (e) B & C
D, Simply "survival of the fittest", is not an accurate summary of natural selection. When defining natural selection you must take into account that it is reproduction that makes a difference in evolution, not just an organism's survival. Also, one must define "fit" organisms as ones best able to cope with local environmental challenges. Thus, "fittest" refers to the fit between the organism and the environment.
What does sexual selection favor in the "fast sex" and "slow sex"? (a) It favors quality of matings in both the fast sex and slow sex. (b) It favors quantity of matings in the slow sex and quality of matings in the fast sex. (c) It favors quantity of matings in both the fast sex and slow sex. (d) It favors quantity of matings in the fast sex and quality of matings in the slow sex.
D, sexual selection favors QUANTITY of matings in the FAST sex because they need enough matings to realize their full reproductive potential. Sexual selection favors QUALITY of of matings in the SLOW sex because they need few matings to realize their reproductive potential; so, they hold out for the best possible matings.
Which of these is NOT a discovery that Charles Darwin made on his Voyage of the Beagle to the Galapagos Islands? (a) The finches on each different island in the Galapagos had different types of beaks. (b) The tortoises had different shaped shells. (c) All the finches shared a common ancestor. (d) The differences in beak thickness in finches was a direct result of the acidity of the water source the finches were drinking from.
D. A-C were all discoveries that Darwin made, but D is incorrect. The differences in beak sizes was a result of adaptations to the different types of food on each island, not acidity.
Which of the following is not a criticism of the Standard Social Science Model? (a) The blank slate theory of the SSSM demonstrates the idea that the human mind lacks innate tendencies or inclinations. (b) The SSSM states that there are only one or few mechanisms for learning to explain human behavior. (c) The SSSM mistakenly creates a divide between nature and nurture. (d) There are no researchers who support the SSSM.
D. According to G&McB Ch. 1,"The SSSM has a long history that reaches back to the enlightenment philosophers long before the founding of psychology"
According to Gardner, Gut works _______ and is _______-based, while Head is ______ and ______-based. (a) slowly, language; quickly, emotion (b) quickly, language; slowly, emotion (c) slowly, emotion; quickly, language (d) quickly, emotion; slowly, language (e) None of the above
D. According to Gardner in Fear, Gut is what causes us to experience the quick and emotional responses we have to fear, which may have allowed us to survive in conditions where we must decide quickly whether to fight or flee, but Head is more logical and requires a longer processing time that often includes reasoning through options, either through discourse or an internal dialogue.
Which of the following is evidence for evolution? (a) Embryo Development (b) Fossils (c) Vestigial Organs (d) All of the above (e) None of the Above
D. All of the above. Similar embryo development among unrelated organisms, the discovery of fossils with similar structures to modern humans, and organs, such as the appendix, that we no longer have a known use for are all evidence that the modern human has evolved.
Which of these statements is not supported by the findings in reading group one's study on mating goals and power? (a) Women rated probability of success in mate-attracting and mate-guarding as higher when the conspicuous brand of clothing was worn. (b) Low power stimulates self-comparison among mate-attracting women. (c) High power stimulates other-comparison among mate-guarding women. (d) The main effect of power was significant such that the mating goals of the women did not matter.
D. All of the following are results of this paper's study (one and two) except D, which is a direct contradiction to the findings of the study. There was no main effect of power on women's conspicuous consumption, but there were interaction effects, which are described above (a., b., and c.).
Compare and contrast pre-Darwin beliefs to our current knowledge thanks to Darwin. (a) There are no differences, Darwin is fake. (b) Our pre-Darwin beliefs included that the earth was millions of years old, and we now know that it is only thousands of years old. (c) Our pre-Darwin beliefs included that the earth was thousands of years old, and we now know that it is millions of years old. (d) Our pre-Darwin beliefs included that the earth was thousands of years old, and we now know that it is billions of years old.
D. Before we knew much about earth, thanks to Charles Darwin, we believed that the earth was only thousands of years old, which is relatively knew. We now know, thanks to evolution and natural selection and the use of fossils, that the earth is actually billions of years old, much older than we thought.
Which of the following is an other-oriented reason for changing yourself? (a) Dying your hair because you've always wanted purple hair (b) Buying a better snowboard in order to get down the mountain faster and have more fun (c) Working out because you like how the endorphins make you feel (d) Buying a new bathing suit because everyone has a certain kind, and your friends won't let you go to the beach with them if you don't have it.
D. Buying a new bathing suit in order to fit in with others is an other-oriented reason for making a change. The other three answers all involve doing something purely for personal enjoyment rather than to gain any sort of social standing.
What does it mean when scientists use the term 'blank slate'? (a) The Earth began as a 'blank slate' and humans were the first to inhabit it. (b) The human mind remains a 'blank slate' throughout their whole life. (c) When a new species develops, they are a 'blank slate' without any influence from other species. (d) The human mind is a 'blank slate' at birth, experience writes on the slate, and association extracts and adds onto whatever trends there are in the record that experience leaves.
D. Cognitive scientists express this idea when referring to the human mind at birth.
Why is it thought that humans crave sugar now, even though the trait doesn't seem to be positive? (a) It is so good. (b) Sugar used to not be as widely found. (c) There must have been a need for this craving at some point in history. (d) B and C.
D. If we look back 100,000 years ago, the only thing that really had sugar in it was fruit, which is high in nutritional value.
T/F: Natural Selection shows that it is survival of the biggest and strongest.
F. It is survival of the best fit to the particular environment.
Why are vestigial organs evidence for evolution? (a) Vestigial organs only exist in species that have changed drastically overtime. (b) Vestigial organs are always more archaic than other organs found in the body. (c) Vestigial organs are consistent organs between organism's, which shows all organisms are ultimately related. (d) Vestigial organs are organs that organism's no longer need to function, so they must only exist now after being useful for an organism at a previous time in that organism's history.
D. Is the correct answer because not only do the other options not make sense but also vestigial organs are evidence that the organism required different organs in a past environment. These organs may be obsolete now, but they give researchers a window into past needs (EX. a whale's hip bone).
Order these events of human evolution from earliest to latest: Tools first being used, development of agriculture, transition to bipedalism, evolution of opposable thumbs (a) Tools, agriculture, bipedalism, thumbs (b) Agriculture, thumbs, tools, bipedalism (c) Thumbs, bipedalism, agriculture, tools (d) Thumbs, bipedalism, tools, agriculture
D. Knowing that primates today also have opposable thumbs, this must be the first development on the list. In order to develop tools, the hands must have been free, thus suggesting that bipedalism was the second development. In order to engage in agriculture, tools must have been developed prior.
What is genetic fallacy and where did it supposedly get its roots from? (a) The mistaken idea that evolved traits are inflexible/Darwin's research on finches (b) The mistaken idea that an evolutionary approach excuses many of the evils in society on the basis that they are natural/Darwin's research on finches (c)The mistaken idea that an evolutionary approach excuses many of the evils in society on the basis that they are natural/Mendel's research on peas (d)The mistaken idea that evolved traits are inflexible/Mendel's research on peas
D. Mendel succeeded on his research, because he intentionally chose traits that were unresponsive to the environment and was able to track the hereditary material due to the fact that it was fixed and finite.
Which of the following is a costly human signal? (a) Snake handling at a religious event (b) Voluntary blood donation (c) Motorcycle racing (d) All of the above
D. Snake handling has a high chance of getting venom in a human's blood system. Donating blood is less extreme than the others, but the risk of infection is there. Motorcycle racing can show that people can survive under dangerous scenarios, but an unfortunate accident could cost a life.
What were some of the findings from the article on conspicuous consumption? (a) Participants in the high power condition had increased conspicuous consumption for women engaging in mate-guarding. (b) More expensive brands were viewed as having a higher likelihood of success in mating goals than other, ordinary brands. (c) Power did not have a direct effect on conspicuous consumption. (d) Both A and B
D. The article explains both of these claims in the general discussion. Results from Study 1 suggest that women did in fact believe that one would be more likely to succeed in one's mating goals when flaunting a better brand of clothing. Additionally, Study 2 suggested that women in the high power condition had an increase interest in conspicuous consumption. 'C' is the direct opposite of what is mentioned in the discussion. Power does have a direct effect on conspicuous consumption.
Why is the SSSM not as applicable to evolutionary psychology as other sciences? (a) The idea of tabula rasa does not adequately explain human development (b) Evolutionary psychology is built on culture and experience rather than biology (c) Human are "pre-programmed" to learn language (d) Both A and C (e) A, B, and C
D. The idea of tabula rasa does not explain how, for instance, a baby can be afraid of snakes (dangerous and natural), but not guns (extremely dangerous and man-made) despite never having seen either one before. Additionally, young children who have not been exposed to language do not seem to be able to acquire this trait, suggesting a pre-programming of language acquisition.
What purpose does Theory of Mind serve with regards to language? (a) It helps you learn language (b) It's universal like language is (c) Language evolved through Theory of Mind (d) Without Theory of Mind, language would make no sense
D. Theory of Mind is vital for language because if you didn't know that other people could understand you when you talked, there would be no reason to communicate.
According to research performed by Zhao et al., which condition was predicted to be most successful by the women participating in the study? (a) Women attempting to attract a mate wearing an ordinary brand coat (b) Women attempting to attract a mate wearing a conspicuous brand coat (c) Women attempting to mate guard wearing an ordinary brand coat (d) Women attempting to mate guard wearing a conspicuous brand coat
D. This answer comes directly from the graph on page 4 of "Mating Goals Moderate Power's Effect on Conspicuous Consumption Among Women." The participants in the condition hearing a scenario about a woman in a situation where her relationship might be threatened predicted her to be most successful if wearing a conspicuous brand coat.
Which of these options would be the most likely long-term evolutionary effect of modern medicine's practice of c-section births? (a) Larger cranial size (b) Greater umbilical nutrition efficiency (c) Smaller female hip width (d) A and C
D. Throughout human history, natural selection has favored smaller heads for the easier ability to pass without complication during childbirth. Likewise, wider hips were more likely to result in childbirth without either the death of the child or the mother. Because c-sections remove the necessity of a vaginal birth, these factors would no longer be as highly selected for.
Natural Selection provided all of the following answers except? (a) Explained change over time (b) Explained the apparent purposive quality of component parts (c) United all species into one grand tree of descent (d) Explained the direct evolution of humans
D. While natural selection united all species, including humans, into one grand tree of descent, it did not directly explain the direct evolution of humans.
Suppose there once were these frogs living in a pink pond. The frogs were blue, pink, purple, or green. Because of predators eating the frogs that stick out in the pink pond, only pink frogs remain. Last week a hurricane came through and changed the color of the pond to blue. Will the frogs evolve? (a) No, because the color of the pond has nothing to do with the frogs. (b) Yes, because some start to turn blue again to match the pond. (c) No, because they will all be eaten by predators before they can reproduce. (d) No, because there are only pink frogs. (e) There is not enough information to answer the question.
D. because in order for evolution to occur, there must be at least two varieties of a species. Because the blue, green, and purple frogs died out and only pink frogs remain, there is no variation within the species.
What trait seems to reveal humans to be the more superior animal species? (a) Humans can copy and imitate the actions of others, otherwise referred to as social learning (b) Human embryos are far different and more complex than that of other animals (c) Human brains are larger in size than other animals (d) Humans have complex language
D. because though other animals species communicate, humans are the only species with complex language. Our embryos are actually incredibly similar to other animals, our brains are not larger in size, and other animals species are able to demonstrate the social learning theory.
Which of the following is not a monocular cue to depth? (a) shading (b) linear perspective (c) size (d) stereopsis
D. stereopsis is a binocular cue
What helped Darwin with his development of the idea of evolution (a) finch's wingspan (b) finch's feather color (c) Finch's song pitch (d) finch's beak size
D. the differing beak size of finches showed that those with the proper beak for the available food in each island was more likely to survive compared to the others
Which of the following is true about homology: (a) It refers to the fact that many animals have all the same muscle groups (b) It explains the biological basis for the existence of homosexual animals (c) It refers to the fact that the same structural elements are found in very different types of animals, all of which have the same function (d) It refers to the fact that the same structural elements are found in very different types of animals, some of which have different functions
D. the same structural elements in different creatures can have the same or very different functions
Why is the "The Great Chain of Being" a mistaken idea? (a) It implies that evolution proceeds in a linear fashion. (b) It implies that "higher" creatures are directly related to "lower" animals. (c) It implies progress. (d) It implies that "higher" creatures are better and more sophisticated than those below. (e) All of the above
E, "The Great Chain of Being" implies a linear progression of evolution, in which those "higher up" are more sophisticated organisms and that all these organisms, "higher" or "lower", are directly related to each other.
Which of the following, about "The Great Chain of Being", is true? (a) The idea that life forms can be ordered in a ladder of complexity and sophistication. (b) Sequence that rises from inanimate objects, to God (c) Humans are placed between animals and angels (d) A & B (e) All of the above
E, "The Great Chain of Being" is all of the above.
Which is not an example of costly signaling? (a) A crab with a big claw (b) A peacock's feathers (c) Buying a very expensive car (d) Drinking alcohol (e) All of these are examples of costly signaling
E. A crab's claw can attract a mate, but also slow it down when escaping a predator. A peacock's feathers can attract a mate, but also make it stand out to a predator. Buying an expensive car can serve as a status symbol, but it cost you a lot of money you could have spent on other things. Drinking alcohol can make you feel good and have fun, but impairs your coordination and decision making.
According to Pagel, what is the most important aspect of human evolution that led to our extremely high rate of technological advancement? (a) Genes that code for intelligence (b) Opposable thumbs (c) Genetic variation (d) Migration (e) Social learning
E. Social learning has allowed us to not only learn new things ourselves, but learn new things from others and improve upon their previous technological advancements.
Which of these homo species originated in Africa? (a) Homo habilis (b) Homo ergaster (c) Homo sapien (d) B and C (e) All of the above
E. Thus far, we have been able to trace the human lineage back to a deviation from modern primates some 5-7 million years ago. Modern humans left Africa some 80-100,000 years ago, and all major evidences for homo species have been dated prior to this.
Humans evolved in a different environment than that in which we currently live (Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness). What does this mean for humans today? (a) Humans are adapted to an environment that no longer exists. Some of our current adaptations, such as our preference for fatty/sweet foods, have led to things that harm us, such as obesity. (b) This means nothing for humans because we still have all of the adaptations that we acquired in the EEA, so we are well suited to survive anything. This has allowed us to currently be living our safest, longest, healthiest lives in all of human history. (c) Humans are still adapting as our environment changes. Future generations will have different traits than we do, but they may also face problems because the traits they develop will also be matched to an outdated environment. (d) a and b (e) a and c
E. a and c. The idea of the EEA means that the traits we currently have as humans evolved to fit an environment that we no longer live in. Therefore, c is also correct because it stands to reason that future humans will also have traits that no longer fit their environment, especially as environments change more rapidly.
What were some pre-Darwin beliefs? (a) Animals have common ancestors but different adaptations to environments. (b) The Earth was only a few 1000 years old. (c) The planet and the species inhabiting it have not changed since creation. (d) Organisms can change their traits during their lifetime (ex. Giraffe necks) (e) A, B, and C
E???
T/F: Conspicuous Consumption does not affect women in regard to mate-guarding and mate-attracting
F
T/F: The genetic code of all living things is the same.
True
True or False: Homologous structures arise from animals that evolved from a common ancestor
True
