Test Item File- Practice Test Bank - How Humans Evolved,Boyd,7e

Test Bank




CH) 1: Adaptation by Natural Selection



MCQS



1) Adaptations are defined as the_ components of an organism that

a) allow it to survive and reproduce) c) occur by random chance alone)

b) allow it to evolve more rapidly) d) absolutely never change)


ANSWER: A DIF: Medium REF: Explaining Adaptation Before Darwin

-: Describe why our modern understanding of the_ diversity of life is based on the_ ideas of Charles
Darwin) MSC: Remembering



2) Which of the_ following is an adaptation?

a) The_ human eye)

b) Design by a divine creator)

c) Both the_ human and the_ fish eye, but humans are better adapted to the_ir
environments than fish are to the_irs)

d) The_ Grand Canyon)


ANSWER: A DIF: Easy REF: Explaining Adaptation Before Darwin

-: Explain how natural selection can produce very complex adaptations like the_ human eye)

MSC: Applying



3) Influential nineteenth-century scientists like Charles Darwin concluded that the_ complex adaptations we see in
plants and animals are problematic and require a special explanation because

a) a divine creator designed the_m)

b) it is very unlikely that the_y arose by random chance alone)

c) the_y occur in most plants and animals)

d) the_y have no real function)
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ANSWER: B DIF: Easy REF: Explaining Adaptation Before Darwin

-: Describe why our modern understanding of the_ diversity of life is based on the_ ideas of Charles
Darwin) MSC: Understanding



4) Before Charles Darwin proposed his the_ory of natural selection by adaptation, many scholars argued that
adaptations are proof that

a) evolution is a process based on random chance alone)

b) because of the_ir ability to adapt quickly, humans are better than all othe_r
species)

c) God exists and designs all things to fit a specific purpose)

d) the_re is no way that God can exist)


ANSWER: C DIF: Easy REF: Explaining Adaptation Before Darwin

-: Describe why our modern understanding of the_ diversity of life is based on the_ ideas of Charles
Darwin) MSC: Remembering



5) Charles Darwin is known for his revolutionary argument that

a) plants and animals are not designed by God and do not change over time)

b) plants and animals change slowly over time)

c) fossil plants and animals changed, but existing plants and animals do not)

d) plants and animals are created by chance and the_n evolve through divine
intervention)


ANSWER: B DIF: Easy REF: Darwin’s The_ory of Adaptation

-: Describe why our modern understanding of the_ diversity of life is based on the_ ideas of Charles
Darwin) MSC: Remembering



6) The_ postulates that make up Darwin’s the_ory of adaptation include all of the_ following EXCEPT

a) any given environment can support only a certain number of individuals)

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b) variation affects the_ ability of individuals to survive and reproduce)

c) individuals always compete with each othe_r physically)

d) variation is passed from parents to offspring)


ANSWER: C DIF: Easy REF: Darwin’s The_ory of Adaptation

-: Describe why our modern understanding of the_ diversity of life is based on the_ ideas of Charles
Darwin) MSC: Remembering



7) For natural selection to occur, variation must exist) This is true because without variation

a) the_re is no way for change to occur between generations)

b) the_ one trait that exists is always advantageous, and change is not necessary)

c) the_re is no competition among individuals)

d) traits are never inherited by offspring)


ANSWER: A DIF: Hard REF: Darwin’s The_ory of Adaptation

-: Explain how competition, variation, and heritability lead to evolution by natural selection)

MSC: Understanding



8) Even though natural selection was named after the_ artificial selection that plant and animal breeders use, it
really refers to

a) the_ survival of the_ physically fit)

b) the_ reproduction of traits from generation to generation)

c) the_ selective retention of variation in a population)

d) the_ variable ability of species to survive and reproduce)


ANSWER: C DIF: Hard REF: Darwin’s The_ory of Adaptation

-: Explain how competition, variation, and heritability lead to evolution by natural selection)

MSC: Understanding



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9) During 1976 on the_ Galápagos Island of Daphne Major, Peter and Rosemary Grant found evidence of natural
selection by adaptation when the_y observed that

a) finches with shallow beaks were less likely to survive and reproduce than finches
with deep beaks)

b) finch beak size had no effect on survival rates)

c) many more small seeds were available for the_ finches to eat)

d) more finches with deep beaks died than finches with shallow beaks)


ANSWER: A DIF: Medium REF: Darwin’s The_ory of Adaptation

-: See why natural selection sometimes causes species to become better adapted to the_ir environments)
MSC: Applying



10) Natural selection acted on the_ medium ground finch on Daphne Major because

a) birds with medium beak sizes experienced higher mortality)

b) a drought changed the_ environment where the_ finches lived)

c) offspring of finches with small beaks did not survive the_ juvenile period)

d) the_ population reached equilibrium)


ANSWER: B DIF: Medium REF: Darwin’s The_ory of Adaptation

-: See why natural selection sometimes causes species to become better adapted to the_ir environments)
MSC: Applying



11) Which of the_ following is an example of directional selection?

a) Both small and large individuals survive)

b) Only large individuals survive)

c) The_ proportion of small and large individuals remains the_ same)

d) Neithe_r small nor large individuals survive)


ANSWER: B DIF: Easy REF: Darwin’s The_ory of Adaptation

-: Understand why natural selection can produce change or cause species to remain the_ same over time)
MSC: Applying
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