Biology 100 B: Final Exam Review Questions and Self-Test Questions

Which of the following isn't true about the Cell Theory?

The Cell Theory singlehandedly unlocked the secrets of life.

What is the first step in engineering a bacterial cell to make large quantities of a human protein such as insulin?

Use a restriction endonuclease to cut DNA from a human cell into small fragments.

If a comet struck the surface of the Earth killing most of the mammals, it is possible that reptiles might fill the opened environmental niches by evolving into a number of closely related organisms with different traits related to their new niches. This is an example of __________.

adaptive radiation

The alteration in allelic frequencies that results from chance variation in survival and/or reproductive success is called __________.

genetic drift

Kingdoms are divided into __________ and __________.

phyla, divisions

Bacteria are particularly good choices for DNA experiments because __________.

they can double their numbers every 20 minutes

Characteristics of living organisms

-acquire and use energy -contain a genetic program -respond to environmental changes -composed of one or more cells

What structures below are totally or partially composed of microtubules?

-cilia -flagellae -basal bodies -cytoskeleton

What is the product of anaerobic respiration in animals?

-lactic acid -ATP

What is responsible for producing a significant amount of the oxygen found in the atmosphere?

-photosynthesis -cyanobacteria

Which of the arrangements below is the correct hierarchy for the cells of a multicellular organism from the largest to the smallest unit?

1. Individuals 2. Organ systems 3. Organs 4. Tissues 5. Cells

What is the largest number of alleles for a particular gene that is normally carried by an organism?

2

An organism has 42 chromosomes. How many linkage groups does it have?

21

Whose theory that geologic changes take place extremely slowly influenced Darwin's development of the theory of evolution by natural selection?

Charles Lyell

__________ evolved the ability to harness the energy contained in certain inorganic chemicals found in or near the ocean. They also used this energy to produce chemicals that stored the energy they had acquired.

Chemoautotrophs

Which statement below is consistent with the First Law of Thermodynamics?

Energy can neither be created nor destroyed.

Which of the following would not be a role of the genetic material?

It must be low in molecular weight.

"Populations have the ability to increase exponentially."

Populations have the potential for unlimited growth. Populations experiencing exponential growth increase in number at a set rate every generation. This generally results in rapid increases in such a population.

Which of the following best describes a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)?

SNPs are places in the genome where different nucleotides occupy the same position in different individuals.

Distinguish between the theory of evolution and the theory of natural selection.

The theory of evolution states that species have the capacity to and have changed into new species. The theory of natural selection provides a mechanism whereby evolution occurred. It says that variations within a species that are not favorable tend not to survive and are not passed to succeeding generations. Thus, the characteristics of a species change and can, if carried far enough, result in a new species.

Which of the following is not evidence that viruses arose in the course of evolution as bits of DNA or RNA that escaped from chromosomes of living organisms?

Viruses, when dried, can be used to form crystals.

Which group of scientists ascribed evolution to sudden changes occurring as a result of mutations?

experimentalists

When is it thought that the world's population will level off?

in the 21st century

A decrease in learning time as a result of learning experiences in different situations is referred to as __________.

learning set

A vehicle for carrying foreign DNA into a host bacterium is called a(n) __________.

plasmid vector

A cell that responds to a particular hormone is called a(n) __________ cell.

target

The science of describing, classifying, and organizing organisms according to their similarities and differences is __________.

taxonomy

To what part of an mRNA is the anticodon of a tRNA complementary?

the codon

Where in chloroplasts are the photosynthetic pigments located?

thylakoids

A long-term goal of the Human Genome Project is __________.

to understand all the genes and how they work together

Some genes are capable of moving from one chromosomal locus to another. There is evidence this has happened a number of times over the course of evolution. What are such genes called?

transposons

In order for a population to remain relatively constant and thus stable, what must happen?

Births should match deaths.

If populations have the ability to increase exponentially, why are they typically constant in size?

Factors within the environment, such as available space, available food, predators, disease and the like, limit population growth.

How have fossils contributed to our understanding of evolution?

Fossils provide evidence that life on earth has changed. Some fossils, such as those of horses, suggest a linear progress from ancient to modern species. Other fossil evidence contributed to the theory of punctuated equilibrium.

By what mechanism does glucose enter the cell?

facilitated diffusion

Which pathway is known as the anaerobic pathway of cellular respiration?

glycolysis

Which word below describes an organism that has two genetic factors identical for a particular trait?

homozygous

What is one lesson we cannot learn from the fully sequenced human genome?

how an individual's genetic information should be used

What is the name for a cluster of genes in a bacterium that includes protein coding genes and all of the regulatory DNA involved in controlling their expression?

operon

Some critics of biotechnology are concerned about __________.

our right to interfere with species that have evolved over billions of years

What plants did Mendel use to discover his laws of inheritance?

peas

The phenomenon whereby a single gene affects two or more traits is __________.

pleiotropy

What's considered to be the beginning of modern biology?

Darwin's On the Origin of Species

Cells that have stopped dividing are said to be in what stage of the cell cycle?

G0

What's the central proposition of the theory of evolution?

All living things are descended from common ancestors and that they can change and give rise to new species.

Which branch of science is the youngest?

biology

Dolphins, sharks and the extinct icthyosaurs all exhibit streamlined shapes that help them move smoothly through the water. Such similar forms in distantly related organisms that live in similar environments is an example of __________ evolution.

convergent

You are studying three organisms that occupy the same habitat. They look very much alike but are clearly members of different, unrelated species. This is an example of __________.

convergent evolution

What is the major mechanism by which single-celled and smaller multicelled organisms obtain oxygen and get rid of carbon dioxide?

diffusion

What is another name for the sudden appearance of a new allele? Darwin called it a sport of nature.

mutation

Two populations of the same species of squirrels occupy the same range that includes a forest. One of the groups spends all of its time in oak trees, and the other spends its time in pine trees. Over a long period of time, the two populations evolve into two different species. This is an example of __________ speciation?

sympatric

Which of the following words is most closely associated with the word "hypothesis?"

testable

Pasteur's experiments using flasks with S-shaped necks proved __________.

that bacteria do not grow spontaneously in a rich nutrient broth but grow only when they are introduced through an opening in the flask

Continuous variation in a trait's __________.

usually determined by two or more genes and usually a result of polygenic inheritance

Chromatin is composed of what substances?

-DNA -RNA -protein

What's an example of divergent evolution?

-Darwin's finches -adaptive radiation

Whose letter to Darwin in 1858 describing a similar mechanism of evolution prompted Darwin to publish at long last his theory of evolution?

Alfred Russell Wallace

Explain the statement "natural resources are limited" and how it's important to the theory of evolution.

As populations increase, more and more individuals depend on and need to exploit fewer and fewer of the limited existing resources. This results in competition for those limited resources. Those individuals who are better equipped by their traits to compete better for those limited resources will be more likely to survive and reproduce and send the genes coding for their traits into the next generation. This is natural selection, the essence of evolution.

How were the conclusions of Darwin and Wallace different from other biologists who preceded them?

Other investigators had already recognized that evolution occurs. Darwin and Wallace were the first to formulate coherently a theory for which evidence had been growing for some time and that explained the mechanism that drove the evolution that others had already recognized. Their conclusions were based on their observations. They proposed that natural selection explained how the process of change seen in evolution occurred. They defined natural selection as differential survival and reproduction of individuals with certain, advantageous characteristics. Darwin and Wallace came up with a mechanism that could drive evolution and provided evidence, especially Darwin, to support their proposal.

What technological development had to occur before the cellular nature of life could be appreciated?

The microscope had to be developed.

The tendency of living organisms to maintain constant internal conditions within rather narrow limits is called __________.

homeostasis

The unique network of chemical reactions in the cell's referred to as __________.

metabolism

Of what are the spindle fibers composed?

microtubules

What kind of cell is found in multicellular organisms?

eukaryotic

Which type of RNA possesses an anticodon?

tRNA

What is used effectively today to insert very large segments of DNA into a bacterial host?

a cosmid

An example of a cloning vector is __________.

a genetically engineered plasmid

Variable number tandem repeats (VNTR)

a noncoding, core sequence of DNA that is repeated up to hundred of thousands of times, side by side

Genetic drift invariably results in a loss of __________.

genetic variation

Which of the following is indirect evidence in support of the theory of evolution?

-improvement of domesticated animals and plants by breeding individuals with desired traits -the fossil record that shows a clear relationship between living and extinct animals -homologous structures in different organisms that are dissimilar in form and function but that have underlying structural similarities -analogous structures that have similar form and function but that differ structurally

The concept of ecosystems recognizes that __________.

-organisms interact with each other and their environment -changes in any part of a biological community or physical environment can alter other parts -is one of the youngest of biology's major ideas -is the backbone of the study of ecology

For what kinds of things do organisms compete?

-space -food -mates -general resources

Which of the following is involved in cell division?

-the disappearance of the nuclear envelope -the reappearance of the nuclear envelope -chromosome condensation -changes in the cytoskeleton

What is another name for DNA sequences that move from place to place in the genome on the same chromosome or on a different one altogether?

-transposable genetic elements -transposon

An organism contains 18 chromosomes in its gamete. How many chromosomes would there be in one non-gametic cell?

36

Wild type fruit flies have broad, straight wings and pale-colored bodies with dark transverse stripes. Some fruit flies mutant for the wing size trait have vestigial wings, an allele that is recessive to the wild type allele. Ebony body color is recessive to the normal pale, striped body color. Two flies heterozygous for both traits mentioned above are mated. What proportion of their offspring will exhibit the dominant phenotype for both traits?

9/16

Which of the following is not a cost of territoriality?

an increase in the spread of disease

In what process and stage do homologous chromosomes separate?

anaphase I of meiosis

A change in chromosome number involving only a single chromosome or single homologous pair is called _________.

aneuploidy

The __________ are the __________ reproductive part of the flower.

anthers, male

Gametophytes __________.

are haploid and produce gametes

What is the most common form of reproduction?

asexual reproduction

What kind of bonds hold the paired bases in a DNA double helix together?

hydrogen

What is the mechanism of the change in species?

natural selection

The idea of evolution __________ Darwin.

preceded

Which of the following eukaryotic organelles doesn't function to compartmentalize the cell?

ribosomes

The specialized reproductive cells of an organism may be called __________.

sperm, eggs, and gametes

According to the Second Law of Thermodynamics, energy will __________ become more randomly distributed during a process.

spontaneously

What word describes a population in which the birth and death rates balance each other and when emigration and immigration rates balance each other?

stable