Chapter 1 Questions

What type of biologist studies plant fossils?

A) Paleobotanist
B) Molecular Biologist
C) Plant Cell Biologist
D) Stem Cell Biologist

Which of these is NOT a hypothesis about the relationship between coat color and home environment of these mice?

A) All these are hypotheses
B) Coat color patterns evolved as adaptations to protect the mice from predators.
C) If coat color patterns are more easily distinguishable by predators, then mice with that color will be preyed upon more often
D) Coat color patterns are more easily recognized by predators when they are distinct from home environment color.

Which of these microscopic things does not qualify under the 7 properties of life?

A) H. walsbyi (Archaea)
B) S. cerevisiae (Yeast)
C) E.Coli (Bacteria)
D) M13 bacteriophage (Virus)

What are the 7 properties of life?

A key defining feature between eukaryotes and prokaryotes is the presence of ___.

A) A Cytoplasm
B) A membrane-enclose nucleus
C) DNA
D) A cell membrane

In which domain would you find humans?

A) Eukarya
B) Archaea
C) Animalia
D) Prokarya

Genes are long molecules of ___, which encode proteins or RNAs that perform some function in the cell.

A) RNA
B) Chromosomes
C) Genomes
D) DNA

If all living organisms contain DNA, would it be accurate to claim that all things that contain DNA must qualify as living (e.g. meet the 7 properties of life)?

A) Absolutely!
B) Both?
C) There must be an exception.
D) Certainly not!

Which type of biologist studies the process of gradual change during which new species arise from older species?

A) Physicist
B) Biochemist
C) Evolutionary Biology
D) Neurobiologist

Biology is the study of ___ and their interaction with one another and their environments.

A) Matter
B) Sedimentary rock formations
C) Planets
D) Living organisms

Which of these statements best summarizes the scientific method?

A) A systematic approach with defined steps to solving problems
B) None of these.
C) A creative formulation of assumptions about the world
D) An adaptable, fluid process of testing hypotheses

Within the natural sciences, fields of study are generally, described to fall into the category of life sciences or physical sciences. However, some fields of study fall into both categories and are therefore considered interdisciplinary. Which of these fields of study would be considered an interdisciplinary field of science?

A) Biology
B) Geology
C) Biochemistry
D) Astronomy

Which of these is an example of deductive reasoning?

A) The prediction that an egg released from the top of a 10 story building should break on impact with the sidewalk below.
B) The observation that burr seeds stuck to clothing and a dog's fur after a hike have tiny hook structures.
C) All of these.
D) Careful observation and measurement of the production of saliva in a dog's mouth when presented with a treat.

Testing of a candidate Alzheimer's drug for safety, before it is approved for marketing, is an example of what general type of science?

A) Expedited
B) Applied
C) Theoretical
D) Basic

What are the two broadest units of classification?

Which of these is NOT a fundamental characteristic of life?

A) The ability to communicate with other members of the same life form.
B) The ability to utilize energy from the external environment
C) The ability to regulate the internal environment of the life form.
D) All of these.

Select the answer that places the scientific method in proper order.

A) Observe, question, hypothesize, predict, experiment, analyze, communicate
B) Predict, question, hypothesize, observe, analyze, experiment, communicate
C) Question,experiment,hypothesize,question,analyze,predict,communicate
D) Hypothesize,question,predict,experiment,observe,analyze,communicate

___ is an "educated guess" to explain a phenomenon.

A) Theory
B) Law
C) Hypothesis
D) Experiment

What do we call an explanation for a phenomenon that has been tested by numerous related experiments and revised hypotheses?

A) A theory
B) A dependent variable
C) An independent variable
D) A control group

An experimental group matching all the conditions of the experiment except the variable being tested is the __ group.

A) Hypothesis
B) Control
C) Inductive
D) Dependent Variable

A valid hypothesis must be ___.

A) Testable and falsifiable
B) Falsifiable and proven
C) Testable and proven
D) Testable only

In comparison to eukaryotes, prokaryotes are ___.

A) are more structurally complex
B) are larger
C) do not have membranes
D) are smaller

Prokaryotes are classified as belonging to two different domains. What are the domains?

A) Eukarya and Animalia
B) Protista and Bacteria
C) Archaea and Monera
D) Bacteria and Archaea

Which of these provides evidence of the common ancestry of all life?

A) Structure of cilia
B) Near universality of the genetic code
C) Structure of the nucleus
D) Structure of chloroplast

Which of these is NOT one of the three domains of life?

A) Animalia
B) Bacteria
C) Eukarya
D) Archaea

On a phylogenetic tree, the length of branches is __.

A) The comparison of homologous DNA and RNA sequences provided by Woese
B) The point in evolution when, based on scientific evidence, an ancestor is thought to have diverged to form two new species
C) Proportional to the time elapsed since the split.
D) The separation of living organisms into three domains

Agrobacterium infects plants and causes them to form tumors. You are asked to determine how long a plant must be exposed to these bacteria to become infected. Which of the following experiments will provide the best data to address the question?

A) Measure the number of tumors formed on a plant when exposed to various concentrations of Agrobacterium
B) Measure the concentration of Agrobacterium in different soil environments where the plants grow
C) Measure the number of tumors formed on plants, which are exposed to Agrobacterium for different lengths of time
D) Determine the survival rate of Agrobacterium when exposed to different concentrations of an antibiotic