SAWEY CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN
BIOLOGY EXAM 1 2026 COMPREHENSIVE
REVIEW GUIDE GRADED A+
⩥ Scopes Trial (1925). Answer: -Most famous trial about evolution
-Scopes (general-science teacher) broke Tennessee law against teaching
"any theory that denies the story of the divine creation of man as taught
in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower
order of animal"
-Scopes was found guilty and fined a small amount
⩥ Supreme Court Rulings about Evolution. Answer: -Since the Scopes
trial, the U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled in favor of teaching
evolution in public schools
-The U.S. Supreme Court has continually ruled in favor of teaching
evolution in public schools, based on the principle of separation of
church and state
⩥ Age of the Universe. Answer: -Measurements from the Hubble
Telescope estimates that the universe is 8-12 billion years old
,-Prior to the Hubble Telescope was thought to be 20 billion years old
⩥ Origin of Earth and life on Earth. Answer: -Earth was formed 4.6
billion years ago
-Dated with radioisotope clocks
-No fossil evidence of life for first 1 billion years
-Though there are theories and hypothesis, there is no definite answer on
the origin of life on Earth
-Oldest fossil is 3.5 billion year-old bacteria
-But we don't know where the bacteria came from
⩥ Number of Known Species on Earth. Answer: ~1,750,00 known
species on Earth
-Most scientists believe that all of these species evolved during 3.5
billion years
-99% of species to ever live are extinct
,⩥ Charles Darwin. Answer: -Developed the modern day view of
Evolution
-Published the Origin of Species in the 1850s
-Most significant point was that all organisms are related to one another
and can be traced back (by lineage) to one (or several) original life
form(s).
-During the 1830s, a 22 year old naturalist named Charles Darwin
traveled on the HMS Beagle and collected a large amount of data on the
flora and fauna of the Galapagos Islands
-Darwin recognized the varieties of domestic animals resulted from
artificial selection (by humans)
-Proposed that the environment could also impose selection on traits that
affect survival and reproduction
⩥ Evolution by Natural Selection. Answer: 1. Individuals within species
are variable (pre-existing genetic variation)
, 2. Some variation passed to offspring (heritable)
3. More offspring are produced than can survive
4. Survival and reproduction are not random
-The individuals that survive and go on to reproduce, or who reproduce
the most, are those with the most favorable variations.
⩥ Agents of Natural Selection. Answer: -Disease
-Predators
-Water availability
-Temperature
-There are many more
⩥ DNA and Natural Selection. Answer: -DNA evidence is the newest
and perhaps the strongest support for the Theory of Evolution
BIOLOGY EXAM 1 2026 COMPREHENSIVE
REVIEW GUIDE GRADED A+
⩥ Scopes Trial (1925). Answer: -Most famous trial about evolution
-Scopes (general-science teacher) broke Tennessee law against teaching
"any theory that denies the story of the divine creation of man as taught
in the Bible, and to teach instead that man has descended from a lower
order of animal"
-Scopes was found guilty and fined a small amount
⩥ Supreme Court Rulings about Evolution. Answer: -Since the Scopes
trial, the U.S. Supreme Court has repeatedly ruled in favor of teaching
evolution in public schools
-The U.S. Supreme Court has continually ruled in favor of teaching
evolution in public schools, based on the principle of separation of
church and state
⩥ Age of the Universe. Answer: -Measurements from the Hubble
Telescope estimates that the universe is 8-12 billion years old
,-Prior to the Hubble Telescope was thought to be 20 billion years old
⩥ Origin of Earth and life on Earth. Answer: -Earth was formed 4.6
billion years ago
-Dated with radioisotope clocks
-No fossil evidence of life for first 1 billion years
-Though there are theories and hypothesis, there is no definite answer on
the origin of life on Earth
-Oldest fossil is 3.5 billion year-old bacteria
-But we don't know where the bacteria came from
⩥ Number of Known Species on Earth. Answer: ~1,750,00 known
species on Earth
-Most scientists believe that all of these species evolved during 3.5
billion years
-99% of species to ever live are extinct
,⩥ Charles Darwin. Answer: -Developed the modern day view of
Evolution
-Published the Origin of Species in the 1850s
-Most significant point was that all organisms are related to one another
and can be traced back (by lineage) to one (or several) original life
form(s).
-During the 1830s, a 22 year old naturalist named Charles Darwin
traveled on the HMS Beagle and collected a large amount of data on the
flora and fauna of the Galapagos Islands
-Darwin recognized the varieties of domestic animals resulted from
artificial selection (by humans)
-Proposed that the environment could also impose selection on traits that
affect survival and reproduction
⩥ Evolution by Natural Selection. Answer: 1. Individuals within species
are variable (pre-existing genetic variation)
, 2. Some variation passed to offspring (heritable)
3. More offspring are produced than can survive
4. Survival and reproduction are not random
-The individuals that survive and go on to reproduce, or who reproduce
the most, are those with the most favorable variations.
⩥ Agents of Natural Selection. Answer: -Disease
-Predators
-Water availability
-Temperature
-There are many more
⩥ DNA and Natural Selection. Answer: -DNA evidence is the newest
and perhaps the strongest support for the Theory of Evolution
