Test Bank
to accompany
Life: The Science of Biology, Tenth Edition
Sadava • Hillis • Heller • Berenbaum
Chapter 21: Mechanisms of Evolution
TEST FILE QUESTIONS
(By Norman Johnson)
Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following statements about the 1918–19 influenza pandemic is false?
a. Compared with most flu viruses, the virus of the pandemic hit young adults particularly
hard.
b. There were more deaths from this virus than there were combat deaths in World War I.
c. The virus often triggered an especially intense reaction in the immune system.
d. The virus was the product of evolution.
e. All of the above are true; none is false.
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 21.0 Chapter Introduction
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
2. Suppose you are the lead researcher in an influenza lab and your team has uncovered
four strains that have evolved changes from last year’s influenza virus. Strain A has
evolved four changes in its surface proteins and three changes in its interior proteins.
Strain B has evolved two changes in its surface proteins and seven changes in its interior
proteins. Strain C has evolved six changes in its surface proteins and none in its interior
proteins. Strain D has evolved only a single change in its surface proteins and none in its
interior proteins. Assuming that all other factors are equal, which of these strains is most
likely to be infectious?
a. Strain A
b. Strain B
c. Strain C
d. Strain D
e. All of the strains are equally likely to be infectious.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 21.0 Chapter Introduction
Bloom’s Category: 4. Analyzing
3. Which of the following statements about evolution is false?
a. Scientists can observe evolution in action.
b. Evolutionary theory can be applied to solve practical problems.
c. Biologists have accumulated a large body of evidence about the evolutionary changes
that have occurred in the past.
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
,d. Biologists have accumulated a large body of evidence about how evolutionary changes
occur.
e. All of the above are true; none is false.
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
4. Which of the following statements about Darwin is true?
a. Even as a youth he recognized that life evolves.
b. He published his observations about evolution soon after the hms Beagle arrived in
England.
c. He recognized that animals on the Galápagos Islands were all identical to those on the
mainland.
d. He had a keen interest in geology.
e. He was the first to present evidence that life has evolved.
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
5. Most scientists and historians give Darwin more credit than Wallace regarding their
contributions to evolutionary theory because
a. only Darwin provided a mechanism for evolution.
b. Darwin provided more extensive evidence in support of evolution.
c. Darwin developed his ideas first.
d. Both a and b
e. Both b and c
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
6. Darwin published The Origin of Species
a. before 1840.
b. between 1841 and 1880.
c. between 1881 and 1920.
d. between 1921 and 1960.
e. after 1960.
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
7. Which of the following best describes natural selection?
a. The differential survival and reproduction of individuals
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
,b. Chance variations in traits
c. The processes that lead individuals to resemble their parents
d. The potential for all species to increase rapidly in number
e. Individuals evolve in response to environmental change
Answer: a
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
8. Rank the following events from earliest to latest:
I. Darwin publishes his work on evolution.
II. Watson and Crick determine the structure of DNA.
III. Mendel’s work on genetics is rediscovered.
a. I, II, III
b. I, III, II
c. II, III, I
d. II, I, III
e. III, I, II
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
9.–11. In Mendel’s peas, tall and short plant variants resulted from differences at a single
genetic locus, with tall being dominant to short.
9. The differences between the tall and short plants were caused by their different
a. alleles.
b. gene pools.
c. genotypes.
d. Both a and b
e. Both a and c
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
10. The height of the plant is called its
a. allele.
b. gene pool.
c. phenotype.
d. genotype.
e. adaptation.
Answer: c
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
, Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
11. Which of the following statements is true?
a. Heterozygotes are all tall.
b. Heterozygotes are intermediate in height between tall homozygotes and short
homozygotes.
c. More than one genotype can yield the same phenotype.
d. Both a and c
e. Both b and c
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 4. Analyzing
12. In order for a population to evolve,
a. its members must have heritable genetic variation.
b. natural selection must be acting on the population.
c. all members of the population must have identical phenotypes.
d. Both a and b
e. None of the above
Answer: a
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
13. In a population of field mice in the Sand Hills of Nebraska, some individuals have
lighter coat colors than others. Which of the following would be the most efficient way of
determining whether the lighter coat color is a heritable trait?
a. Obtaining DNA sequence from the individuals
b. Breeding the mice of both colors in the lab and observing the coat colors of their
offspring
c. Performing a chemical analysis of the coat hairs
d. Conducting a field experiment to observe whether the lighter mice have a lower risk of
predation than the darker mice
e. Comparing the number of offspring produced by light- and dark-colored mice
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 5. Evaluating
14. Which of the following statements about the relationship between genotype and
phenotype is true?
a. A given genotype always produces a specific phenotype.
b. Genotypes alone determine phenotype.
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
to accompany
Life: The Science of Biology, Tenth Edition
Sadava • Hillis • Heller • Berenbaum
Chapter 21: Mechanisms of Evolution
TEST FILE QUESTIONS
(By Norman Johnson)
Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following statements about the 1918–19 influenza pandemic is false?
a. Compared with most flu viruses, the virus of the pandemic hit young adults particularly
hard.
b. There were more deaths from this virus than there were combat deaths in World War I.
c. The virus often triggered an especially intense reaction in the immune system.
d. The virus was the product of evolution.
e. All of the above are true; none is false.
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 21.0 Chapter Introduction
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
2. Suppose you are the lead researcher in an influenza lab and your team has uncovered
four strains that have evolved changes from last year’s influenza virus. Strain A has
evolved four changes in its surface proteins and three changes in its interior proteins.
Strain B has evolved two changes in its surface proteins and seven changes in its interior
proteins. Strain C has evolved six changes in its surface proteins and none in its interior
proteins. Strain D has evolved only a single change in its surface proteins and none in its
interior proteins. Assuming that all other factors are equal, which of these strains is most
likely to be infectious?
a. Strain A
b. Strain B
c. Strain C
d. Strain D
e. All of the strains are equally likely to be infectious.
Answer: c
Textbook Reference: 21.0 Chapter Introduction
Bloom’s Category: 4. Analyzing
3. Which of the following statements about evolution is false?
a. Scientists can observe evolution in action.
b. Evolutionary theory can be applied to solve practical problems.
c. Biologists have accumulated a large body of evidence about the evolutionary changes
that have occurred in the past.
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
,d. Biologists have accumulated a large body of evidence about how evolutionary changes
occur.
e. All of the above are true; none is false.
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
4. Which of the following statements about Darwin is true?
a. Even as a youth he recognized that life evolves.
b. He published his observations about evolution soon after the hms Beagle arrived in
England.
c. He recognized that animals on the Galápagos Islands were all identical to those on the
mainland.
d. He had a keen interest in geology.
e. He was the first to present evidence that life has evolved.
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
5. Most scientists and historians give Darwin more credit than Wallace regarding their
contributions to evolutionary theory because
a. only Darwin provided a mechanism for evolution.
b. Darwin provided more extensive evidence in support of evolution.
c. Darwin developed his ideas first.
d. Both a and b
e. Both b and c
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
6. Darwin published The Origin of Species
a. before 1840.
b. between 1841 and 1880.
c. between 1881 and 1920.
d. between 1921 and 1960.
e. after 1960.
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
7. Which of the following best describes natural selection?
a. The differential survival and reproduction of individuals
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
,b. Chance variations in traits
c. The processes that lead individuals to resemble their parents
d. The potential for all species to increase rapidly in number
e. Individuals evolve in response to environmental change
Answer: a
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 1. Remembering
8. Rank the following events from earliest to latest:
I. Darwin publishes his work on evolution.
II. Watson and Crick determine the structure of DNA.
III. Mendel’s work on genetics is rediscovered.
a. I, II, III
b. I, III, II
c. II, III, I
d. II, I, III
e. III, I, II
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
9.–11. In Mendel’s peas, tall and short plant variants resulted from differences at a single
genetic locus, with tall being dominant to short.
9. The differences between the tall and short plants were caused by their different
a. alleles.
b. gene pools.
c. genotypes.
d. Both a and b
e. Both a and c
Answer: e
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
10. The height of the plant is called its
a. allele.
b. gene pool.
c. phenotype.
d. genotype.
e. adaptation.
Answer: c
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
, Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
11. Which of the following statements is true?
a. Heterozygotes are all tall.
b. Heterozygotes are intermediate in height between tall homozygotes and short
homozygotes.
c. More than one genotype can yield the same phenotype.
d. Both a and c
e. Both b and c
Answer: d
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 4. Analyzing
12. In order for a population to evolve,
a. its members must have heritable genetic variation.
b. natural selection must be acting on the population.
c. all members of the population must have identical phenotypes.
d. Both a and b
e. None of the above
Answer: a
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 2. Understanding
13. In a population of field mice in the Sand Hills of Nebraska, some individuals have
lighter coat colors than others. Which of the following would be the most efficient way of
determining whether the lighter coat color is a heritable trait?
a. Obtaining DNA sequence from the individuals
b. Breeding the mice of both colors in the lab and observing the coat colors of their
offspring
c. Performing a chemical analysis of the coat hairs
d. Conducting a field experiment to observe whether the lighter mice have a lower risk of
predation than the darker mice
e. Comparing the number of offspring produced by light- and dark-colored mice
Answer: b
Textbook Reference: 21.1 What Is the Relationship between Fact and Theory in
Evolution?
Bloom’s Category: 5. Evaluating
14. Which of the following statements about the relationship between genotype and
phenotype is true?
a. A given genotype always produces a specific phenotype.
b. Genotypes alone determine phenotype.
© 2014 Sinauer Associates, Inc.
