LIFE 103 EXAM 1 CSU FINAL SCRIPT 2026
FULL SOLUTIONS AND CORRECT ANSWERS
GRADED A+
⩥ Taxonomy. Answer: Evolutionary classification
⩥ Linnaean system of classification (taxonomy). Answer: Domain>
Kingdom> Phylum> Class> Order> Family> Genus> Species
(Did King Phillip Come Over For Grandma's Soup)
[ex. Homo sapien](italicized)
⩥ Phylogeny relationships. Answer: Basal Group: Branch from oldest
common ancestor, no other branch from species.
Sister Taxa: Share common ancestor
⩥ Homologies. Answer: Comparing the structure of a body part or cell
to infer a evolutionary relationship
[Morphological and molecular homologies]
(ex. Bones in a human hand to the bones in the fin of a whale)
⩥ Anology. Answer: Same function but with different structures between
two species.
(ex. bird wings and butterfly wings)
,⩥ Cladistics. Answer: Using shared characteristics of species to group
into a heirarchy
⩥ Maximum Parsimony (Cladistics). Answer: Simplest explanation
(fewest evolutionary events)
⩥ Maximum Likelihood (Cladistics). Answer: Uses DNA sequencing.
uses probability for different types of mutations to form the most likely
phylogenetic tree
⩥ Assumptions about Cladistics. Answer: Characteristics of lineages
change over time
Any combination of groups shares a common ancestor
Bifurcating pattern of descent
⩥ Molecular clock. Answer: Allows us to estimate time since common
ancestor.
Needs a fossil record or sample of estimated AVERAGE rate of
mutation accumulation to calibrate the molecular clock.
⩥ Prokaryotes. Answer:
, ⩥ Horizontal Gene Transfer(HGT). Answer: The movement of genes
among individuals (same generation)
⩥ How does Horizontal Gene Transfer work. Answer: 1.
Transformation: uptake of foreign DNA
2. Transaction: Phages carry prokaryotic genes between cells; inject
genes from donor into recipient.
3. Conjugation: DNA transferred between two cells that are temporarily
joined (antibiotic resistance)
⩥ Prokaryotic lineage evolution and genetic diversity. Answer: Genetic
Recombination (HGT)
rapid reproduction and mutation
⩥ Protists (Protista). Answer: Membrane bound organelles
Well developed cytoskeleton
(Animals, Fungi, Plants, Protists)
⩥ Porifera. Answer: Basal group of animals
FULL SOLUTIONS AND CORRECT ANSWERS
GRADED A+
⩥ Taxonomy. Answer: Evolutionary classification
⩥ Linnaean system of classification (taxonomy). Answer: Domain>
Kingdom> Phylum> Class> Order> Family> Genus> Species
(Did King Phillip Come Over For Grandma's Soup)
[ex. Homo sapien](italicized)
⩥ Phylogeny relationships. Answer: Basal Group: Branch from oldest
common ancestor, no other branch from species.
Sister Taxa: Share common ancestor
⩥ Homologies. Answer: Comparing the structure of a body part or cell
to infer a evolutionary relationship
[Morphological and molecular homologies]
(ex. Bones in a human hand to the bones in the fin of a whale)
⩥ Anology. Answer: Same function but with different structures between
two species.
(ex. bird wings and butterfly wings)
,⩥ Cladistics. Answer: Using shared characteristics of species to group
into a heirarchy
⩥ Maximum Parsimony (Cladistics). Answer: Simplest explanation
(fewest evolutionary events)
⩥ Maximum Likelihood (Cladistics). Answer: Uses DNA sequencing.
uses probability for different types of mutations to form the most likely
phylogenetic tree
⩥ Assumptions about Cladistics. Answer: Characteristics of lineages
change over time
Any combination of groups shares a common ancestor
Bifurcating pattern of descent
⩥ Molecular clock. Answer: Allows us to estimate time since common
ancestor.
Needs a fossil record or sample of estimated AVERAGE rate of
mutation accumulation to calibrate the molecular clock.
⩥ Prokaryotes. Answer:
, ⩥ Horizontal Gene Transfer(HGT). Answer: The movement of genes
among individuals (same generation)
⩥ How does Horizontal Gene Transfer work. Answer: 1.
Transformation: uptake of foreign DNA
2. Transaction: Phages carry prokaryotic genes between cells; inject
genes from donor into recipient.
3. Conjugation: DNA transferred between two cells that are temporarily
joined (antibiotic resistance)
⩥ Prokaryotic lineage evolution and genetic diversity. Answer: Genetic
Recombination (HGT)
rapid reproduction and mutation
⩥ Protists (Protista). Answer: Membrane bound organelles
Well developed cytoskeleton
(Animals, Fungi, Plants, Protists)
⩥ Porifera. Answer: Basal group of animals
