Evolution Unit Practice Test True/False Indicate whether the statement is true or false. 1. Radiometric dating is not possible on rocks that contain fossils since the radioactive isotopes that could be used are found only in igneous or metamorphic rock. 2. The oblong shape of both chloroplasts and cyanobacteria is good evidence that endosymbiosis of ancestral cyanobacteria was an essential step in the evolution of higher plants. 3. According to Darwin, the process of natural selection could result in a new kingdom of organisms. 4. Fossils, although interesting, do not actually provide evidence of evolution. Multiple Choice Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question. 5. While looking for fossils on an eroded hillside, you discover fossil coral and fish in one layer. In a layer just above, you find the fossil imprint of a fern frond and some fossil moss. Assuming the rock has not been disturbed, which of the following is the most probable conclusion? a. The area had been a sea until recent times. b. A forest had once grown there but had become submerged by water. c. In ancient times a sea had been replaced by land. d. A saltwater sea had changed to a freshwater lake long ago. Figure 14-1 6. According to Figure 14-1, what was the earliest form of multicellular life on Earth? a. fish c. land plants b. invertebrates d. reptiles 7. Which is the correct order of the typical sequence of events for fossilization? a. The organism dies and is buried in sediment. / Sediments build up in layers so the organism is surrounded. / Minerals replace harder structures like bone and shell. / Erosion
can expose buried fossils. b. The organism dies and is buried in sediment. / Minerals replace harder structures like bone and shell. / Sediments build up in layers so the organism is surrounded. / Erosion can expose buried fossils. c. Sediments build up in layers so the organism is surrounded. / The organism dies and is buried in sediment. / Minerals replace harder structures like bone and shell. / Erosion can expose buried fossils. d. The organism dies and is buried in sediment. / Sediments build up in layers so the organism is surrounded. / Erosion can expose buried fossils. / Minerals replace harder structures like bone and shell. 8. What assumption must be made to calculate an age using radiometic dating? a. the rate of decay of the isotopes b. the amount of the isotopes measured in the material c. the age of the material being analyzed d. the amount of the isotopes present in the material when it formed 9. Imagine you are a paleontologist who finds a well-preserved dinosaur skeleton. Careful excavation of the site reveals apparently undisturbed sediments and a thin layer of iridium 12 cm below the specimen. Infer the significance of this find. Which option most closely corresponds to your conclusion? a. The find is significant because the dinosaur skeleton is so well preserved. b. The find is significant because it indicates that dinosaur bones may be a source of iridium. c. The find is significant because it represents a dinosaur that lived after the Cretaceous period. d. The find is not very significant since well-preserved dinosaur skeletons are not particularly rare. 10. Which was most likely a consequence of the breakup of the supercontinent Pangea on the evolution of life on Earth? a. Populations of animals separated by the breakup of Pangea probably adapted to new environments and evolved into new species. b. Continental drift could rapidly change local climates, driving species to extinction. c. Populations of animals separated by the breakup of Pangea probably remained exactly the same over time. d. Continental drift could rapidly change local climates, triggering the evolution of new species. 11. Which is an accurate statement of the differences between spontaneous generation and biogenesis? a. Spontaneous generation is the idea that life can only come from life, while biogenesis is the outdated notion that animals arise from nonliving elements of their environment. b. Spontaneous generation and biogenesis are two names for the same principle concerning the origin of life. c. Spontaneous generation is the idea that life can come from nonliving components, while biogenesis is the more modern concept that life can only arise from another living organism. d. The concept of spontaneous generation recognizes that species generate offspring when environmental conditions are favorable, while biogenesis is the idea that life was created in a single event and has been unchanged ever since. 12. What evidence is there that modern archaebacteria may be most like the hypothesized earliest cells on Earth? a. Both archaebacteria and early cells share morphological similarities, including a membrane-bound nucleus.
b. Photosynthesis allows both archaebacteria and the earliest cells to harness energy from the Sun. c. Archaebacteria thrive in extreme environments of intense heat or pressure, and microfossils suggest early life forms lived in volcanic environments. d. Archeabacteria can only survive in warm, shallow waters similar to the primordial seas in which cells evolved on early Earth. 13. Fossil evidence proves that cyanobacteria were thriving as long as 3.5 million years ago. Integrating this evidence and your own knowledge of cyanobacteria, identify the most significant effect these organisms had on the ecosystem of the planet as a whole. a. Cyanobacteria extract energy from inorganic compounds such as hydrogen sulfide, so they could survive in places like hydrothermal vents at the ocean floor. b. Cyanobacteria were among the first cells adapted as predators, so they spurred coevolution among their prey in an early arms race. c. Cyanobacteria were some of the first photosynthetic prokaryotes. The oxygen they produced formed the protective ozone layer. d. Cyanobacteria were the first eukaryotic cells. They harbored smaller prokaryotes that evolved into mitochondria and chloroplasts. 14. Which of these is evidence for the endosymbiont theory? a. Mitochondria and chloroplasts cannot live on their own outside a cell. b. Mitochondria and chloroplasts contain their own circular DNA. c. Mitochondria and chloroplasts are surrounded by a membrane. d. Mitochondria and chloroplasts both transform energy from one form to another. 15. Which evidence has suggested to some researchers that birds and dinosaurs may have evolved from a common ancestor? a. Fossil dinosaurs with feathers have been found. b. Birds and dinosaurs have a fused collarbone. c. Fossilized true birds have been found from the same time period as feathered dinosaurs. d. Both dinosaurs and birds have clawed feet. 16. What was the significance of the Cambrian explosion to the evolution of life on Earth? a. It was a mass extinction during which nearly 90% of marine species were lost. b. It was a rapid diversification of the ancestors of most major animal groups. c. It was caused by tectonic instability, resulting in an eruption of multiple volcanoes. d. It was the event in which life began, but no fossils survive and little is known. 17. What does relative dating depend on to identify similarly aged rocks in different locations? a. the kinds of fossils found in the rock b. the radiometric age of the rocks c. the mineral composition of the rock d. the position of the rock layer 18. Within a decade of the introduction of a new insecticide, nearly all of the descendants of the target insects are resistant to the usual-sized dose. What is the most likely explanation for this change in susceptibility to the insecticide? a. Eating the insecticide caused the insects to become more resistant to it. b. Eating the insecticide caused the insects to become less resistant to it. c. The pesticide destroyed organisms that cause disease in the insects, thus allowing them to live longer. d. The insects developed physiological adaptations to the insecticide.
19. Which answer best shows an animal's adaptation to the tropical rain forest? a. camouflage in a tree frog b. the long neck of a giraffe c. an elephant's long trunk d. migration of birds in winter 20. Which combination of characteristics in a population would provide the greatest potential for evolutionary change? a. small population, few mutations b. small population, many mutations c. large population, few mutations d. large population, many mutations 21. When investigating shell color of a species of snail found only in a remote area seldom visited by humans, scientists discovered the distribution of individuals that is shown in the graph in Figure 15-1. Based on the information shown in the graph, what form of selection is the snail population undergoing? Figure 15-1 a. stabilizing selection c. artificial selection b. disruptive selection d. directional selection 22. What type of adaptation is shown in Figure 15-2? Figure 15-2 a. mimicry c. artificial selection b. camouflage d. homologous structure 23. Which term best describes the structures shown in Figure 15-3?
Figure 15-3 a. homologous c. analogous b. heterologous d. vestigial Figure 15-4 24. Which type of natural selection showed in Figure 15-4 favors average individuals? a. A c. C b. B d. D 25. Which type of natural selection shown in Figure 15-4 would favor giraffes that need to reach the tallest branches to eat? a. A c. C b. B d. D 26. Which of the following is a correct statement about the relationship between natural selection and evolution? a. Natural selection results from evolution. b. Natural selection includes evolution as a part of it. c. Natural selection is one mechanism of evolution. d. Natural selection and evolution are the same thing. 27. How do fossils demonstrate evidence of evolution? a. They show that ancient species share similarities with species now on Earth. b. They show evidence of species that are now extinct. c. They are the primary source of evidence of natural selection.
d. Fossils reveal that many species have remained unchanged for millions of years. 28. Which of the following is the explanation of why bird wings and reptile forelegs are evidence of evolution? a. Similar functions point to a common ancestor. b. Analogous structures indicate a common ancestor. c. Vestigial structures point to a common ancestor. d. Homologous structures indicate a common ancestor. 29. Superficially similar features molded by natural selection in very different species are classified as what kind of structures? a. vestigial c. analogous b. homologous d. comparative 30. A population diverges and becomes reproductively isolated. Which of the following is the best description of that phenomenon? a. speciation c. postzygotic isolation b. bottleneck d. sexual selection 31. If a species is suddenly introduced into a new habitat, what might occur? a. habitat speciation c. adaptive radiation b. coevolution d. selective speciation 32. On the islands of Hawaii there are a group of about 30 species of highly variable, but closely related, species of plant called silverswords. These species appear to be related to a small group of plants in North America. What are the silverswords an example of? a. mimicry c. adaptive radiation b. analogous structures d. vestigial structures