BSC3016 Weeks 1-5 Review Questions

land plants share similarities to charophytes, but exhibit some distinct traits, such as "dependent" embryos that are retained within the female gametophyte. what change in the environment most likely led to these differences?

the move of photosynthetic organisms onto land created new challenges, such as risk of drying out (evaporative H2O loss)

which of the following is NOT a challenge faced by land plants in their invasion of land? a. high conc of CO2 in the air relative to H2O b. dispersal of offspring and gametes c. support of the plant body d. availability of water in the terrestrial environment

a. high concentration of CO2 in the air relative to water

which of the following best describes why bioprospecting is controversial? a. local communities may not benefit from the use of their local biodiversity b. most of the products from bioprospecting are useless c. species are frequently driven extinct by bioprospectors d. the environment can be badly damaged by waste from prospecting

a. local communities may not benefit from the use of their local biodiversity

you discover a new species of plant in the woods. after careful analysis, you learn the following: - it has flagellated sperm - it is homosporous - it has xylem and phloem - it does not have megaphylls given this information, you predict this organism is a ___. a. lycophyte b. gymnosperm c. bryophyte d. pterophyte

a. lycophyte

in nonvascular and seedless vascular plants, spores typically travel through the ___ in order to ___. the sperm of these organisms typically travel through ___ in order to ____.

air; disperse to new habitats. water; reach the archegonium

comparing members of the supergroups Excavata, Chromalveolata, and Rhizaria, which statement is FALSE? a. if we were to sample an organism from the Excavata group, it's likely this organism would lack mitochondria (or the mitochondria would be reduced) b. Rhizarians and diatoms are sister taxa because they both contain a shell or "test" c. diatoms and dinoflagellates, members of the supergroup Apicomplexans are important components of marine phytoplankton d. brown algae, unlike green or red algae, gained chloroplasts through secondary endosymbiosis

b. Rhizarians and diatoms are sister taxa because they both contain a shell or "test"

given what you know about alternation of generations in Archaeplastida, which of the following is TRUE? a. these organisms undergo mitosis and fertilization, but do not undergo meiosis b. gametophytes can produce gametes via mitosis c. organisms that undergo alternation of generations cycle between a haplontic and diplontic life cycle d. sporophytes are typically single celled and haploid

b. gametophytes can produce gametes via mitosis

imagine you are a scientist constructing a phylogeny. which of the following is NOT a step you might take in your research? a. construct nodes based on common ancestry and divergence events b. group organisms together based on convergent evolution and similar morphology c. construct a character matrix and identify derived character states d. identify homologous genes across species and check for similarities in nucleotide sequence

b. group group organisms together based on convergent evolution and similar morphology

embryophytes have uniquely derived traits that charophyte algae lack. which of the following is NOT an example of one of these traits? a. microsporangia b. haplontic and diplontic life cycles c. female archegonia d. regions of mitotic cell division at shoot tips

b. haplontic and diplontic life cycles

you and a friend are discussing evolution. your friend explains that they heard evolution is like a ladder, in which organisms higher up on the ladder are more evolved and more complex. they say that evolution is progressing towards better adapted organisms over time. you politely explain that this is, in fact, a misconception. which of the following is NOT an idea you could use to support your claim? a. evolution occurs by splitting; we can envision evolutionary relatedness as a branching tree, not a ladder b. living fossils are much better adapted to their environment than groups of diverse/changing organisms; this is evidence that organisms are not continually changing over evolutionary time c. it is true that organisms have, on average, evolved to become more complex. however, many organisms have lost complexity, such as highly specialized parasites d. selection can only act on existing variation, and cannot predict how variation in a trait may change over time

b. living fossils are much better adapted to their environment than groups of diverse/changing organisms; this is evidence that organisms are not continually changing over evolutionary time

which of the following plant evolutionary events characterizes the evolution of gymnosperms and angiosperms? a. origin of vascular tissue b. origin of seeds c. origin of chloroplasts d. origin of land plants

b. origin of seeds

which of the following is TRUE regarding SA:V ratio? a. fungi are compact organisms using internal structures to maximize SA:V b. small endothermic animals need a high metabolism to maintain body temperature c. the volume of an organism defines the organism's ability to supply its biological needs d. small organisms have a low SA:V ratio and therefore rarely overheat

b. small endothermic animals need a high metabolism to maintain body temperature

imagine you are taking a walk in the woods and come across the large, flat leaves of a species of water lily (a type of plant). which of the following is an accurate conclusion you could make about this organism's metabolic strategies? a. most of the structures the plant uses to obtain energy are compacted inside its reproductive structures (flowers) b. these large, flat leaves increase SA for photosynthesis c. its leaves provide the plant with an advantage: it's easy to move away if environmental conditions become poor d. the plant's large, flat leaves result in a very low SA:V ratio

b. these large, flat leaves increase SA for photosynthesis

Aristotle described the diversity of life using a human-centric approach, in which organisms were organized in a linear fashion moving from less to more complex. which of the following is NOT a way that other scholars differed from this approach? a. Charles Darwin described the evolution of life as a branching, changing tree b. Carl Woese separated prokaryotes into two domains Bacteria and Archaea based on molecular data and homology c. Carl Linnaeus proposed natural selection as a mechanism for evolution d. Robert Whittaker proposed five kingdoms of life, including protists (which was paraphyletic!)

c. Carl Linnaeus proposed natural selection as a mechanism for evolution

which step of pseudo-sexual reproduction in ciliates (ex: Paramecium) most closely represents fertilization? a. distribution of 4 macronuclei to daughter cells via binary fission b. exchange of micronuclei between 2 individual Paramecium c. fusion of 2 haploid micronuclei to form a diploid micronucleus d. production of 4 haploid micronuclei from a diploid micronucleus via meiosis

c. fusion of 2 haploid micronuclei to form a diploid micronucleus

which of the following changes to the moss life cycle would make this process similar to the life cycle of a fern? a. produce spores through mitosis b. increase the size and complexity of the gametophyte c. increase the size and complexity of the sporophyte d. produce gametes directly through meiosis

c. increase the size and complexity of the sporophyte

you find a small haploid plant growing on the trunk of a tree. it is composed of short stems covered with leaf-like structures. at the top of some of the stems are tiny stalked capsules filled with diploid spores. you identify this organism as a: a. hornwort b. whiskfern c. moss d. lycophyte

c. moss

which is NOT an event that occurred in the evolution and diversification of land plants? a. lycophytes and pterophytes evolved 400-450 MYA and grew into the Carboniferous forests b. embryophytes diverged from charophyte algae and transitioned onto land c. plants with sporophyte-dominant life cycles were quickly replaced by gametophyte-dominant plants around 500 MYA d. the origin of protected, dormant, and nutrient-supplied embryos evolved about 300 MYA and allowed plants to occupy dried habitats

c. plants with sporophyte-dominant life cycles were quickly replaced by gametophyte-dominant plants around 500 MYA

imagine you discover a new type of organism and run some tests to determine whether it is colonial or truly multicellular: - the cells were attached to each other when you found the organism - you tried to isolate some of the cells from the organism. These cells were capable of surviving on their own. - under the microscope, each cell of the organism looks similar; no groups of cells seem to perform any specific functions. do you think this organism is colonial or truly multicellular?

colonial, similar to Volvox

you develop a time travel machine and go back into the past. you find yourself standing on the shore of the ocean. there is no life on land. however, there is multicellular life in the ocean; all these organisms are small and lack hard structures. which of the following times are you most likely visiting? a. about 150 million years ago b. about 50 million years ago c. about 3 billion years ago d. about 1 billion years ago

d. about 1 billion years ago

you discover a new plant species and want to identify its reproductive characteristics using the information below: - individuals contain both sperm and egg producing organs. - these organs are present in individuals at the same time. - individuals are able to mate with each other, but can also undergo self-fertilization if needed. these organisms are: a. anisogamous, dioecious hermaphrodites, capable of only outcrossing b. isogamous, sequential hermaphrodites, capable of selfing and outcrossing c. isogamous, dioecious hermaphrodites, capable of only selfing d. anisogamous, simultaneous hermaphrodites capable of selfing and outcrossing

d. anisogamous, simultaneous hermaphrodites capable of selfing and outcrossing

imagine you are comparing samples of brown, red, and green algae. which of the following is NOT a way you could organize these organisms based on their morphology and biology? a. red and brown algae are primarily marine and multicellular, while green algae can live in freshwater and exhibits diverse morphology b. while they may have different photosynthetic pigments, all three of these organisms can undergo photosynthesis c. red and green algae are both members of Archaeplastida, while brown algae is a member of Chromalveolata. d. brown algae's plastids arose via primary endosymbiosis, while the plastids in red and green algae arose via secondary endosymbiosis

d. brown algae's plastids arose via primary endosymbiosis, while the plastids in red and green algae arose via secondary endosymbiosis

you are on a field trip with you biology class. you collect a water sample from a pond and take it back to the lab. under the microscope, you notice that the sample contains many green cells that swim using flagella. you ask your classmate what kind of organisms these are. they tell you its a member of Excavata. given this, you know this organism is _____ and contains chloroplasts from _____. a. paramecium; primary endosymbiosis b. dinoflagellates; secondary endosymbiosis c. green algae; primary endosymbiosis d. euglena; secondary endosymbiosis

d. euglena; secondary endosymbiosis

which group of organisms gained chloroplasts via primary endosymbiosis? a. brown algae b. diatoms c. Euglena d. red algae

d. red algae

which of the following is NOT a characteristic of all embryophytes? a. apical meristems b. gametangia c. dependent embryos d. alternation of generations e. vascular tissue f. walled sporangia

e. vascular tissue

an example of a homosporous plant is a _____, characterized by ____

fern; spores produce a gametophyte that contains both archegonia and antheridia

monophyletic

group that contains a common ancestor and its descendants

polyphletic

group that contains descendants but lacks all common ancestors

paraphyletic

group that does not contain all of the common ancestor's descendants

an example of a heterosporous plant is a _____, characterized by _____

gymnosperm; spores that only produce either a male or female gametophyte

the dominant stage in the bryophyte life cycle is _____ and the dominant stage in the seedless vascular life cycle is ____

haploid; diploid

what is a statement that BEST describes trends in complexity and size of gametophytes and sporophytes throughout plant evolution?

in bryophytes, the haploid multicellular organism is the dominant stage. however, the gametophyte is significantly reduced in vascular plants.

thinking back to pseudo-sexual reproduction in ciliates (ex: Paramecium), while there are no "true" gametes in this life cycle, we could argue that these organisms are ___ and ___

isogamous; outcrossing

your friend points out the "Spanish moss" on an oak tree as you pass by. how would you explain to your friend that this is not technically a moss?

mosses are small herbaceous plants that live in moist, cool environments. the dominant phase in mosses is typically a green, leafy gametophyte and is not a flowering plant

imagine you travel to a tropical forest. you find an insect on the porch of your cabin. is this insect likely to be officially listed as an endangered or threatened species? why or why not?

no, it is not likely because there is very little data on most insects

the group "green algae" (which includes chlorophytes, charophytes, and their common ancestor) is ___

paraphyletic

imagine you were studying succession on a small plot of land. you create a controlled burn on the land, returning the ground back to bare rock and some soil with poor nutrition. what would you predict to occur?

pioneer species such as bryophytes would likely populate the area first. they help create soil for other plants, and can colonize bare rocks.

which sporophyte exhibits the following characteristics? - grows out of a monecious gametophyte - eventually grows into a larger sporophyte that produces sori - is the dominant multicellular stage of the life cycle

pterophyes (larger than lycophytes, with megaphyll leaves; seedless vascular plants that are not monophyletic; more conspicuous and diverse) - ferns - horsetails - whisk ferns - also more species and larger species during the Carboniferous era

primary endosymbiosis refers to ______, while secondary endosymbiosis describes ______

the evolution of mitochondria and chloroplasts; eukaryotes engulfing photosynthetic algae

imagine you are swimming in a freshwater lake. you collect some samples of a green, multicellular organism and take them back to your lab. after studying the organism, you learn the following: - it is a multicellular, eukaryotic, photosynthetic autotroph - its chloroplasts arose via primary endosymbiosis - its cells do not contain phragmoplasts during cellular division - it is colonial given this information, which is the most likely conclusion you can draw regarding its evolutionary history?

this organism is most likely a chlorophyte

imagine you are collecting data on a newly discovered eukaryote species. you have discovered the following: - individual organisms contain both ovaries and testes, and are capable of producing both sperm and eggs - these organisms spend the majority of their life cycle as multicellular diploid organisms; only eggs and sperm are haploid given this information, which of the following is an accurate conclusion you could make?

this organism's gametes are likely to be anisogamous

you are a scientist studying a group of crabs that are only found very deep in the ocean. you set out to gather data characterizing the diversity of these crabs. which of the following is the most practical way to gather this data?

visit a digital database of museum specimens with images of the specimens and location data

is Archaeplastida considered a monophyletic group?

yes; this group contains a photosynthetic common ancestor and all of its descendants, including green and red algae and land plants