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CLEP Biology: Principles Of Evolution

Subjects : clep, science, biology
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. The mutation may be harmful (resulting in a reduced probability of survival for the organism involved) - ____________ (it might also do its intended job better) or merely neutral (no effect at all).






2. In general if two genes have an almost identical DNA sequence - it is likely that they are ____________.






3. A Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium provides a ___________ by which to judge whether evolution has occurred.






4. _____________ can occur randomly - from radiation damage (impact with high energy g-rays or cosmic rays) - from exposure to chemical agents called mutagens - or simply by error in the DNA replication process.






5. Jean Baptiste de Lamarck (1744-1829) developed one of the first theories on how species changed. Lamarck - in 1809 - concluded that organisms of higher complexity had __________ from preexisting - less complex organisms.






6. _____________ struggle takes place between the individuals of the same species.






7. Homology has to be distinguished from ___________; for instance - the wings of insects and the wings of birds are analogous but not homologous.






8. ____________ organs are formed on the same basic plan though they may be modified variously to perform different functions. They must have a common ancestral structure which gave rise to different modifications.






9. In the 1680s Ariaantje and Gerrit Jansz emigrated from Holland to South Africa - one of them bringing along an allele for the mild metabolic disease porphyria. Today more than 30000 South Africans carry this allele and - in every case examined - can






10. A ___________ can be defined as one or more populations of interbreeding organisms that are reproductively isolated in nature from all other organisms.






11. Homo erectus was the first hominid to use ___________ - and have social structures for food gathering.






12. The highest category in the Linnaean system of classification is the __________. At this level - organisms are distinguished on the basis of cellular organization and methods of nutrition.






13. Charles Darwin published a book The Origin of Species in the year 1859. He proposed that the new species came about by a process called ___________ __________.






14. Heritable variations are called _____________ variations. Such variations arising from changes in DNA are passed on within families and to the offspring from the parents.






15. In species which reproduce _____________ - extinction of a species is generally inevitable when there is only one individual of that species left - or only individuals of a single sex.






16. If a population began with a few individuals - one or more of whom carried a particular allele - that allele may come to be represented in many of the descendants. This is known as ____________.






17. Because organisms are continually tested by their changing ______________ - their forms change to suit new conditions.






18. Homology is also seen in the structure of eye - brain - joint appendages of arthropods - etc. It is thus evidence for ____________.






19. _____________ is the end of a particular evolutionary line - the end of a species - a family - or a larger group of organisms.






20. __________ are the remains of organisms that lived in the past.






21. _________ evidence shows that the horse has undergone considerable evolutionary change over a period of 60 million years.






22. Biodiversity crashes during ________ extinctions. This has been a powerful force in evolution - wiping the slate clean of up to 96% of all species - and providing the survivors with a world full of opportunities into which they can diversify.






23. Scientific classification sorts living organisms by _________ levels of classification - kingdom; phylum; class; order; family; genus; and species.






24. _______________ is that branch of biology dealing with the identification and naming of organisms.






25. About 1.8 million years ago - early Homo gave rise to _______ ________ - the species thought to have been ancestral to our own.






26. Humans who have produced offspring that successfully live in a ________ environment tend to be broader and smaller in stature while hotter environments are occupied by thinner taller humans.






27. The early stages of development of the ___________ of fish - salamander - tortoise - hen and man show remarkable similarity.






28. A ____________ tree is a graphical means to depict the evolutionary relationships of a group of organisms.






29. Animals and plants show variations in physical structure. Some of these variations are simply caused by external conditions (environmental) - such as accidents - temperature - food abundance - etc.. ___________ variations have no effect on evolution






30. The only kingdom which consists of prokaryotes is the __________ kingdom.






31. The study of ____________ ____________ supports the claim of a common origin of organisms.






32. Extinctions - mostly at the level of species - have been occurring constantly at a low 'background rate' - usually matched by the rate at which new species appear - with the result that ____________ is constantly increasing.






33. Members of the phylum _____________ have soft - unsegmented bodies that are usually - but not always - enclosed in hard shells.






34. At the molecular level - life's ability to reproduce begins with the replication of ____________ - during which two new spirals are created that are exact replicas of the original molecule.






35. The ____________ mammals occupy Australia - and differ from placental mammals because they bear their young inside a pouch (instead of a placenta).






36. Linnaeus placed all monkeys and apes along with humans into the order _________






37. As the finch population began to flourish in these advantageous conditions - ______________ competition became a factor - and resources on the islands were squeezed and could not sustain the population of the finches for long.






38. About 2 million years ago - two groups developed: the australopithecines - generally smaller brained and not users of tools; and the line that led to genus _________ - larger brained and makers and users of tools.






39. Mammals developed from primitive mammal-like reptiles during the __________ Period - some 200-245 million years ago.






40. Darwin reported that all organisms tend to _____________ in a geometric ratio provided there are no environmental checks. Even slow breeding animals like the elephant may theoretically give rise to 19 million descendants in a period of 750 years.






41. The Linnaean system uses two Latin name categories - ________ and species - to designate each type of organism.






42. All organisms are placed into one of five kingdoms: Monera - Protista - ________ - Plantae - Animalia.






43. The __________ kingdom consists of one-celled organisms as well - but differs from the Monera kingdom in that it consists of eukaryotes.






44. Except for the tail fins - whales greatly resemble fish in outline - but are instead descended from four-legged land ___________.






45. Some important structural changes during the evolution of horse are: Increase in size from 11' (Eohippus) to about 60' (Equus) - and ___________ of the head and neck so as that it can reach the ground.






46. Despite their image as brutish simpletons - _____________were the first humans to bury their dead with artifacts - indicating abstract thought - perhaps a belief in an after-life.






47. Insect ____________ is also an example of convergent evolution - as for example when an edible (palatable) butterfly develops a color pattern similar to a relatively unrelated inedible (unpalatable) butterfly - and by so doing escapes being eaten.






48. The _______-_________ Law states that an equilibrium of allele frequencies in a gene pool remains in effect in each succeeding generation of a sexually reproducing population if five conditions are met.






49. Such a dual level designation is referred to as a _________ nomenclature.






50. As populations diverge - they form similar but related species. When are two populations new species? When populations no longer _____________ they are thought to be separate species.