Part I: Questions from the first part of the course
True-false (mark A for true, B for false):
1. An atom must have more protons than neutrons to be considered an isotope.
2. The four main types of organic molecules in cells are carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen.
3. When you heat a protein or put it in acid, it will no longer be able to do its job because heat and acid can destroy a
protein’s shape.
Multiple choice / matching:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Researchers in England are testing the hypothesis that autism is linked to a condition called synesthesia (in which
senses such as sight and sound are intertwined). The researchers sent questionnaires to adults with or without autism.
The survey asked questions such as “Do you see colors when you hear musical notes?” The results suggested that 19%
of people with autism met the criteria for synesthesia, compared with only about 7% of people without autism.
4. What was the dependent variable in this study?
a. The researchers
d. The percent of people with synesthesia
b. The questionnaires
e. The adults without autism
c. The percent of people with autism
5. What was the control group in this study?
a. The researchers
b. The questionnaires
c. The percent of people with autism
d. The percent of people with synesthesia
e. The adults without autism
6. What was a standardized variable in this study?
a. The color a person sees when hearing musical notes
d. All of the participants were adults
b. The musical notes a person hears when seeing colors
e. All of the participants had synesthesia
c. All of the participants had autism
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------In a recent “Pet Doctor” column in the local paper, Dr. Fox said that “Flaxseed oil is not the best source of omega-3 for
some people and some dogs who lack certain converting enzymes. These enzymes are totally lacking in cats, for whom
flaxseed oil is of no significant nutritional value.”
7. Dr. Fox is talking about flaxseed oil, which is a type of
a. lipid
b. carbohydrate
c. protein
d. nucleic acid
e. nucleotide
8. The enzymes that he’s talking about are a type of
a. lipid
b. carbohydrate
c. protein
d. DNA
e. RNA
9. The fact that some dogs and all cats lack this enzyme most likely means that these animals can’t digest the flaxseed
oil into:
a. amino acids
d. proteins
b. large fat molecules
e. glycerol plus fatty acids
c. monosaccharides
10. Unlike dogs and cats, humans do have the enzymes needed to metabolize flaxseed oil. We use these enzymes and
the ___ reaction to do so.
a. photosynthesis
d. dehydration synthesis
b. hydrolysis
e. omega-3
c. ATP + H2O à ADP + P
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1
11. Which of the following statements about water is true?
a. It consists of three atoms
d. It contains three ionic bonds
b. It consists of three molecules
e. It contains three hydrogen bonds
c. It contains three covalent bonds
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Refer to the figure below in answering the next four questions.
I."
II."
X"
Y"
12. The structure depicted in panel II is part of the ____ in panel I.
a. cell membrane
b. cell membrane and nuclear envelope
c. cell membrane, nuclear envelope, and ER
d. cell membrane, nuclear envelope, ER, and Golgi apparatus
e. cell membrane, nuclear envelope, ER, Golgi apparatus, and mitochondria
13. Why do the dissolved substances (the little squares) in panel II have to pass through the structures labeled Y?
a. Because they can’t pass through the hydrophilic parts of the molecules labeled X.
b. Because they can’t pass through the hydrophobic parts of the molecules labeled X.
c. Because they get tangled up in the little tails of the molecules labeled X.
d. Because they get repelled by the little ball-shaped heads of the molecules labeled X.
14. In panel II, the structure labeled X is a _____, and the structure labeled Y is a _____.
a. steroid molecule … phospholipid
d. phospholipid … protein
b. fat molecule … nucleus
e. molecule … cell
c. DNA molecule … RNA molecule
15. In panel I, we are looking at:
a. a virus cell
d. a plant cell
b. a prokaryotic cell
e. It could be any of the above; we can’t tell
c. a eukaryotic cell
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------16. An organ donor’s heart, lungs, kidneys, or other organs might be surgically transplanted into someone else after he
or she dies. Someone who gets one of those organs would also get at least some of the donor’s:
a. organelles
b. tissues
c. cells
d. molecules
e. All of the above
2
17. The molecule at right is an example of a(n):
a. lipid
d. monosaccharide
b. amino acid
e. inorganic molecule
c. nucleotide
18. Some fish use their fins to “fan” their fertilized eggs, which improves water and oxygen circulation around the
developing embryos. Why do the embryos need oxygen?
a. They can’t carry out meiosis without it.
d. They need O2 to carry out photosynthesis.
b. So they can digest the prey they catch.
e. The plants the embryos eat need it for photosynthesis.
c. Otherwise they can’t generate ATP.
19. The nutrition label at right reveals that this food is:
a. high in plant material
d. b and c are both correct
b. not going to deliver any amino acids
e. a, b, and c are all correct
c. totally devoid of lipids
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------For the next two questions, mark your scantron as follows:
Mark “a” if the first item is larger than the second
Mark “b” if the first item is smaller than the second
Mark “c” if the two items are the same size
20. Size of an enzyme … size of an amino acid
21. Strength of a hydrogen bond … strength of a covalent bond
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------22. Which of the following statements is true?
a. A neutron is a cell with a neutral charge.
b. A neutron is a molecule with a neutral charge.
c. Isotopes are made entirely of neutrons.
d. The number of neutrons is an element’s mass number.
e. A neutron’s location is typically physically closer to a proton than it is to an electron.
23. Study the molecules illustrated at right. Which of the following statements is false?
a. Molecule X is not considered a polymer or a monomer.
b. Molecule X is the most hydrophobic of the group.
c. Molecule Y is the same type of monomer as
molecule Z.
Y"
d. Molecule Z contains
all five of the most
X"
abundant elements
required in life.
e. Molecule Y has an R
group.
Z"
24. Based on the “preferred” bond numbers for each element, which of the following molecules is least likely to be
found in nature? Relevant atomic numbers: H (1); C (6); N (7); O (8).
a. H-C≡N
b. O=O
c. NH3
d. H2O
e. CO4
25. Using the electronegativity chart shown below, which molecule is most likely to dissolve in water?
a. NaCl
b. NCl3
c. CH4
d. Cl2O
e. C2H6
3
Part II: Questions from the second part of the course
True-false (mark A for true, B for false):
26. The same ribosome can make any type of protein in a cell.
27. When a ribosome reaches a STOP codon in a DNA molecule, the process of transcription stops.
28. An egg cell is haploid, so it has half as many chromosomes as an animal’s brain cells.
Multiple choice / matching:
29. HOW MANY of the following items might touch a ribosome in a normally functioning eukaryotic cell?
DNA
tRNA
reverse transcriptase
chromosome
DNA polymerase
codon
mRNA
RNA polymerase
a. two
b. three
c. four
d. five
e. six
30. Imagine a developing animal’s embryo that consists of just eight cells. Researchers break up the embryo, remove
the nucleus from each cell, and inject those nuclei into separate egg cells that have had their own nuclei removed.
Which of the following statements is true?
a. Because the eight resulting babies are not naturally conceived, they’re considered transgenic.
b. The eight resulting embryos would still need to undergo meiosis to complete development.
c. Each cell would immediately start dividing by binary fission.
d. The cells would die because they wouldn’t contain a full set of homologous chromosomes
e. All eight of the resulting babies would be genetically identical.
31. The illustration at right shows human
chromosomes 4 and 5 from a single cell. Which
of the following statements is true?
a. Chromosome 4 is homologous to
chromosome 5.
b. Chromosomes 4 and 5 each encode one
protein.
c. A and B are chromatids; assuming crossing
over has not occurred, A is identical to B.
d. The illustrated chromosomes could occur
within a single haploid cell.
e. The X and Y chromosomes would occur in a different cell (a gamete).
A
B C
chromosome(4(
D
chromosome(5(
32. What amino acid sequence does the following DNA sequence encode? (The dictionary of the genetic code is on
the front cover of the exam.)
GGTACCTTAACGGGC
a. Pro – Trp – Asn – Cys – Pro
b. Gly – Thr – Leu – Thr - Gly
33. In a dividing human cell, sister chromatids start moving apart from each other. What happens next?
a. DNA replication
d. Telophase
b. Cytokinesis
e. Chromosomes condense
c. Fertilization
34. Suppose all the tRNA were to vanish from a normally functioning cell. What would happen next?
a. Transcription would stop.
d. DNA would vanish as well.
b. Translation would stop.
e. mRNA would vanish as well.
c. Existing proteins would vanish as well.
4
35. Ultimately, all forms of cancer can be traced to:
a. inadequate diet and a lack of exercise.
b. abnormal ribosomes and the inability to make proteins.
c. abnormal mitochondria and the inability to make ATP.
d. genetic mutations that make cells unable to stop dividing.
e. infection with viruses that inject new genes into host cells.
36. Suppose HIV touches a receptor on a human T cell and dumps its RNA inside the cell. What would happen next?
a. HIV’s genetic material would make its way to the cell’s nucleus.
b. The cell would start releasing HIV particles.
c. The cell would start producing viral protein coats and “doorknob” proteins.
d. HIV’s RNA would go find a ribosome in the cytoplasm.
e. Reverse transcriptase would make a DNA copy of the RNA.
37. What would happen if a mutation affected a gene encoding a person’s fat-digesting enzyme?
a. The person might not be able to digest fat anymore.
b. The person might not experience any change in phenotype.
c. The person might be able to digest new sources of fat, such as the “fake fat” (Olestra).
d. Since mutations may affect proteins in many ways, all of the above are possible.
e. It depends on the mutation; a substitution mutation would probably lead to (a), and an insertion mutation
would probably lead to (b).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------For the next two questions, mark your scantron as follows:
Mark “a” if the first item is larger than the second
Mark “b” if the first item is smaller than the second
Mark “c” if the two items are the same size
38. Number of sperm cells needed to make a set of identical quadruplets … number of sperm cells needed to make a
set of fraternal twins
39. Number of thymine nucleotides in the average RNA molecule … number of uracil nucleotides in the average
DNA molecule
40. Number of gametes with incorrect number of chromosomes if nondisjunction happens in meiosis I … number of
gametes with incorrect number of chromosomes if nondisjunction happens in meiosis II
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------41. Suppose that scientists discover a new gene that greatly increases the chance that a child will grow up to be an
athlete. They want to know whether the gene is on a sex chromosome. If the gene were recessive and on an X
chromosome, what pattern might they expect to see in the population (based on this information alone)?
a. Individuals with the gene will have more offspring than those without it.
b. The associated phenotype should be equally prevalent in males and females.
c. Fathers would pass the gene onto their sons, and mothers would pass the gene onto their daughters.
d. More males than females should express the associated phenotype.
e. Only males should express the gene.
42. A human sperm cell touches the outer membrane of a human egg cell. What happens next?
a. The gametes start to divide by mitosis.
b. The gametes undergo meiosis.
c. The sperm nucleus enters the egg, forming the zygote. The zygote immediately undergoes meiosis.
d. The sperm nucleus enters the egg, forming the zygote. The zygote immediately undergoes mitosis.
e. The chromosomes in the two gametes replicate, then fertilization occurs.
43. Scientists insert a gene for green fluorescent protein (from a jellyfish) into a fruit fly. The fly is now:
a. a clone.
d. a recipient of gene therapy.
b. transgenic.
e. a recipient of stem cell therapy.
c. a mutant.
5
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------44. Suppose a condition called “weak bladder” is caused by a dominant allele. The gene is on an autosome (i.e., not on
the X or Y chromosome). Mrs. Smith has a strong bladder, but her son Bobby has a weak bladder. What is the
condition of Bobby’s father’s bladder?
a. It is strong.
b. It is weak.
c. We don’t have enough information to know.
45. What is Bobby’s genotype?
a. BB
b. Bb
c. bb
d. We don’t have enough information to know.
46. What are the genotypes of Bobby’s parents?
a. Both parents: either BB or Bb (we can’t know for sure, for either parent)
b. Mrs. Smith: bb; Mr. Smith: Bb or BB (we can’t know for sure)
c. Mrs. Smith: BB; Mr. Smith: Bb
d. Both parents: bb
e. Both parents: Bb
47. One day, Bobby meets Hope Cladwell. Both of Hope’s parents have a strong bladder. What is Hope’s phenotype?
a. Strong bladder
b. Weak bladder
c. BB
d. Bb
e. bb
48. Bobby and Hope have identical twins. What is the probability that both children are Bb?
a. 100%
b. 75%
c. 50%
d. 25%
e. 0%.
49. Because weak bladder is caused by a dominant allele, a heterozygous individual produces ___ gametes carrying
allele B as compared to gametes carrying allele b.
a. more
b. fewer
c. the same number of
50. Bobby and Hope both have blood type AB. What are the possible blood types of their children?
a. A
b. AB
c. B
d. O
e. a, b, and c
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Great job! You’re
done!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Part III: Questions from the third part of the course
True-false (mark A for true, B for false):
51. Even though Darwin didn’t know it at the time, changes in DNA sequences produce the variation that natural
selection requires.
52. If the range of a species is divided by a tall mountain, the two parts of the population may experience different
selective forces; they may eventually split into two species.
Multiple choice / matching:
53. How many of the following terms apply to at least some examples of both fungi and protists?
eukaryotic
one-celled
prokaryotic
multicellular
heterotrophic
cells contain mitochondria
autotrophic
cause disease in humans and other animals
a. three
b. four
c. five
d. six
e. seven
6
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------For the next two questions, mark your scantron as follows (answers may be used more than once or not at all):
Mark “a” if the first item is larger than the second
Mark “b” if the first item is smaller than the second
Mark “c” if the two items are the same size
54. Number of species of chordates … number of species of all other animal phyla, combined
55. The number of eukaryotic species with mitochondria … the number of eukaryotic species with chloroplasts
56. Number of prokaryotic domains … number of eukaryotic domains
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------57. If allele frequencies change from one generation to the next, that definitely means
a. the population has avoided genetic drift.
d. the population is heading for extinction.
b. natural selection has happened.
e. the population is improving itself to avoid extinction.
c. evolution has happened.
58. Which of the following is an adaptation that characterizes both land plants and green algae?
a. Chloroplasts
b. Stomata
c. Xylem
d. Seeds
e. All of the above are in both plants and algae.
59. If you find a fossil embryo that includes a gastrula, you
can be sure that you have a:
a. human
d. animal
b. mammal
e. sponge
c. vertebrate
60. The “turkey tail” fungi growing on the log at right are:
a. just reproductive parts of the fungus; the feeding
parts are inside the log.
b. composed of cells that lack nuclei.
c. in a different domain from both plants and animals
d. All of the above are correct.
e. Only b and c are correct.
61. A male dragonfly uses specialized appendages to grab a female in a mating attempt. Each of 10 species of
dragonflies has different-shaped appendages. The females are choosy, and they reject males with the “wrong”
shaped parts. What reproductive barrier keeps related species of dragonflies apart?
a. Habitat isolation
d. Temporal isolation
b. Mechanical isolation
e. Gametic isolation
c. Natural selection
62. Scientists have inserted a gene for green fluorescent protein (from a jellyfish) into a fruit fly. This would never
occur in nature, since a jellyfish and a fly are different species. Moreover, these two animals are also from
different:
a. kingdoms
b. phyla
c. domains
d. none of the above is correct
63. Mutation and migration are both
a. examples of genetic drift
b. postzygotic barriers to evolution
c. ways to explain punctuated equilibrium
d. ways that evolution can occur
e. required for natural selection but not artificial selection
7
64. The mascot for Texas Christian University is a “horned frog,” a name
that suggests the animal is an amphibian. In fact, a so-called “horned
frog” is a reptile that is more properly called a “horned lizard.”
Suppose you have a friend who goes to TCU; she hasn’t had the
benefit of your biology education, so she ignorantly insists the mascot
really is an amphibian. What features might you show her to prove
that the animal is a reptile?
a. You could look at the body covering; a reptile has dry scales,
whereas an amphibian has extremely fine (nearly invisible)
fur scattered over its moist body surface.
b. You could look at reproduction; a frog lays eggs that die if
they are removed from water, whereas a lizard lays eggs on land.
c. You could look at how the animal breathes; unlike a frog, a lizard uses lungs to exchange gases.
d. You could look at where the animal lives; adult frogs must live in ponds and streams, whereas adult lizards
burrow in dry soil.
e. You could look at the animal’s mating rituals; frogs croak to attract mates, whereas reptiles are unable to
make any sounds.
65. Bats, birds, and insects all have wings. Given what you know about the evolutionary tree, and the occurrence of
flight, it is reasonable to conclude that:
a. All tetrapods have wings.
b. All arthropods can fly.
c. Flight originated independently in mammals, birds, and insects.
d. The structures that enable these animals to fly should all be homologous to each other.
e. Insects gave rise to birds, which gave rise to mammals.
66. How many of the following animal/adaptation combinations actually exist?
A coral animal with a complete digestive tract
A sponge with bilateral symmetry
A chordate with an incomplete digestive tract
An unsegmented annelid
a. zero
b. two
A flatworm developing from a gastrula
An echinoderm lacking organ systems
A segmented mollusk
A segmented arthropod
c. four
d. six
e. eight
67. Utilities are investing huge amounts of money into wind farms, which consist of massive windmills that generate
electricity. Many eagles are killed each year as they fly into the rotating blades of the windmills. Given enough
time, what do you predict will happen to the eagle population?
a. The selective pressure will cause additional mutations that will cause the eagles to walk instead of fly.
b. Eagles that nest in the windmills will have greater reproductive success than those that do not.
c. According to the founder effect theory, a small number of the eagles will leave to start another colony far
away from the windmills.
d. The windmills cannot affect the eagles because they are no longer evolving.
e. The genes of eagles that are most likely to fly toward a windmill will be less represented in the next
generation.
68. The main difference between elm trees (angiosperms) and pine trees (gymnosperms) is that:
a. elm trees have vascular tissue; pine trees don’t.
b. elm trees don’t have swimming sperm; pine trees do.
c. elm trees make seeds in fruits; pine trees make seeds in cones.
d. elm trees have stomata; pine trees don’t.
e. elm trees don’t need a cuticle; pine trees do.
8
69. A fish phylogeny study at OU aims to figure out the evolutionary relationships among all the types of fishes in the
world. They studied DNA samples from all of the fish species, and they used radiometric dating to determine the
ages of the preserved remains of about 60 extinct fish. Which line(s) of evidence for evolution did the researchers
use in their study?
a. All of them
b. Fossil record
c. Molecular
d. Vestigial structures e. Both b and c
70. In the photo at right, the peas contain the ___, and the pods are
the ___.
a. pollen … seeds
d. stomata … flowers
b. embryos … fruits
e. swimming sperm… lignin
c. xylem … phloem
71. The half-life of Isotope X is unknown. In a 100,000 year old
fossil, there is 1/8 the amount of Isotope X compared to the
amount of isotope found in a living organism. What is the halflife of Isotope X, in years?
a. 800,000
b. 300,000
c. 100,000
d. 80,000
e. 33,000
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Use the diagram below to answer the next two questions.
Z"
Y"
W"
X"
V"
72. What is the correct placement of the origin of endosymbiosis on the evolutionary tree shown above?
a. V
b. W
c. X
d. Y
e. Z
73. What is the correct placement of DNA on the evolutionary tree shown above?
a. V
b. W
c. X
d. Y
e. Z
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------74. Some species of mosquitoes are resistant to DDT (a chemical that kills the larvae of mosquitoes and other insects).
Which of the following hypotheses regarding DDT resistance in mosquitoes is most likely to be correct?
a. To survive and reproduce, a mosquito had to mutate to become resistant.
b. The mosquitoes that became resistant during their lifetime passed this trait to their offspring.
c. Mosquitoes are more likely to become resistant than any other insect species.
d. Those mosquitoes that were resistant produced more offspring, so subsequent generations contained more
individuals that were resistant.
e. The DDT caused the mosquitoes to mutate in order to become resistant.
9
75. Earlier this year you may have followed stories about Comet ISON, which came rather near Earth before it went
around the sun (where it may or may not have fizzled out). Biologists are interested in comets because they carry
water and organic molecules; moreover, comets can cause a lot of damage if they crash into Earth. Which of the
following statements is FALSE?
a. Water’s origin on Earth is important to the origin of life because all life requires water.
b. Organic molecules are important to the origin of life because all life requires amino acids and other C- and
H-containing molecules.
c. Shortly after life started (thanks to water and organic molecules), land plants evolved; these organisms had
to be in place before animals could evolve on land or in the ocean.
d. Celestial bodies have played an important role in life’s history; other big objects from outer space (like
meteorites) apparently caused the extinction of the dinosaurs about 65 million years ago.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Part IV: Questions from the fourth part of the course
True-false (mark A for true, B for false):
76. Ecologists agree that evolution generally favors equilibrium life histories over opportunistic ones.
77. As a general rule, organisms that live near the equator have fewer adaptations to low temperature than do
organisms that live farther away from the equator.
78. Although Earth’s temperature has gone up and down throughout history, the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere
never changed (until human activities began altering the global climate).
Multiple choice / matching:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------For each of the next three questions, determine the correct level of ecological interaction. Use the following choices.
a. Ecosystem
b. Population
c. Community
79. Release of CO2 from decomposers in the sediments of a lake
80. Symbiotic relationship between ants and the aphids they guard
81. Increase in the birth rate of grey squirrels
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------82. Medical professionals recommend that children and pregnant women limit their consumption of tuna, because of
high concentrations of mercury in that fish. It is therefore reasonable to infer that tuna get their energy from eating:
a. pure mercury
d. ocean sediments
b. plankton and other autotrophs
e. tuna
c. predatory fish
83. Why are food chains limited to 3-5 trophic levels of consumers?
a. Too many atoms have been lost from the ecosystem by the highest levels
b. Although consumers are “energy-efficient,” the producer trophic level loses too much energy as heat
c. Too much sunlight has been trapped at the highest levels
d. Too many species are competing to consume the predators at the top of the food chain
e. It would require more energy to hunt top predators than is available in the biomass at that trophic level
84. Grass carp are native to Eurasia; they were introduced to US waterways in 1963. Since
that time, according to invasivespeciesinfo.gov, the fish have “significantly altered the
food web and trophic structure of aquatic systems by inducing changes in plant,
invertebrate, and fish communities.” What is the LEAST likely way that an introduced
fish species could cause so much trouble to a previously undisturbed stream?
a. Competing with native species for food.
b. Preying on the eggs of other fish, reducing their reproductive rates.
c. Taking up habitat that native species once occupied.
d. Modifying the habitat so it’s not as good as it previously was for native species.
e. Gulping too much oxygen from the air, reducing the amount available for other shallow-water species.
10
85. The headline on November 8 said it all: “Australian officials outlaw Katy Perry's seed-embedded 'Prism'
packaging.” The packaging is allowed in the U.S. Why would Australian officials do such a thing?
a. They dislike Katy Perry’s type of music.
b. They are worried that people will plant the seeds, which will be invasive and outcompete native plants.
c. They are worried that people will eat the seeds, which are poisonous to people.
d. Australia is in the southern hemisphere, so they don’t need as many as we do in the northern hemisphere.
e. The more plants that grow in the southern hemisphere, the more CO2 is released into the atmosphere; the
seeds therefore increase the greenhouse effect.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------86. The article pasted at right came from the Norman Transcript around the
time of the great “cricket invasion” we experienced this fall. Does the
article mention any producers?
a. No
b. Yes
87. Assuming the insects are herbivores, what is the trophic level of the
snakes?
a. primary consumer
c. tertiary consumer
b. secondary consumer
d. quaternary consumer
88. Temperature is an example of a(n) ____ factor that affects the number of
insects.
a. density-dependent b. abiotic
c. equilibrial
d. population-level
e. logistic
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------89. Coevolution is LEAST likely in a ___ relationship.
a. parasitic
b. mutualistic
c. predator/prey
d. commensal
e. herbivore/plant
90. In the carbon cycle:
a. carbon atoms may move from producer to consumer to decomposer to the abiotic environment and back to
producers.
b. plants (the major producers on land) absorb carbon through their roots.
c. CO2 gas is the main carbon source for primary consumers.
d. after an animal dies, plants may obtain its carbon by absorbing the animal’s organic molecules.
e. All of the above are correct.
91. How many of these biomes are correctly paired with the conditions in which they occur?
Tropical rain forest – warm and wet year-round, poor soils
Taiga – low precipitation, acidic soils, winters are long and cold, dominated by coniferous trees
Desert – low precipitation, temperatures may be high or low
Temperate deciduous forest – low precipitation, cool summers, mild winters
Temperate grasslands – frequent fires, extremely high summer rainfall
Tundra – layer of permanently frozen soil (permafrost)
Chaparral – frequent fires, hot summers, mild winters
a. two
b. three
c. four
d. five
e. six
92. Why is plastic pollution a problem in the ocean?
a. Plastics dissolve completely in ocean water, releasing toxins that poison aquatic life.
b. Plastics trigger blooms of invasive algae that compete with native species.
c. Plastics never decompose; they just accumulate, and animals that mistake plastic bits for food may die.
d. Plastics release acids that lower the ocean’s pH, disrupting food webs by making it harder for corals and other
aquatic animals to build their exoskeletons.
e. Plastics sink to the ocean bottom, where they block the sunlight that producers need to live.
11
93. Sunlight and ____ are the two most important factors determining the abundance of producers in an aquatic
ecosystem. That explains why polluting water with animal wastes causes ____.
a. exposure to bacteria … disease
d. O2 availability … competition among producers
b. temperature … plants to die
e. CO2 availability … photosynthesis to exceed respiration
c. inorganic nutrients … eutrophication
94. Why are fish dying in the seasonal “dead zone” in the Gulf of Mexico (near where the Mississippi River empties
into the Gulf)?
a. Because of the competitive exclusion principle, fish are being forced to share a niche with other aquatic life.
b. Invasive disease-causing organisms are migrating from the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico.
c. Oil spills in the Gulf are poisoning the fish.
d. Invasive grass carp and other introduced species are outcompeting native fish.
e. Decomposers are using up the water’s oxygen as they decompose algae, whose growth is stimulated by
fertilizer that washes into the Mississippi River from farmlands.
95. New Hampshire was under 1 kilometer of ice during the last ice age; now it’s not. Do you predict the same species
live in New Hampshire now as they did during the last ice age?
a. Yes, plants and animals are matched to a particular location on the globe, and they don’t change even if the
climate changes.
b. Yes, no species have gone extinct since the last ice age, so all the species must still be the same.
c. No, because humans killed all the ice-loving animals, and different animals took their place. The plants
should be the same though.
d. No, because the selective forces at the two times were too different.
96. If species did change in New Hampshire between the last ice age and now, that would be an example of
a. eutrophication
b. biomagnification
c. succession d. artificial selection e. logistic growth
97. The illustration at right shows age
structure diagrams for China (left)
and India (right). Which
population will see the higher rate
of future population growth?
a. Both will be equal, since
human populations all
reproduce at the same
rate.
b. China, because that
population has more
people who are very
elderly.
c. India, because that
population has a greater
proportion of young
people.
98. A population of turtles has a birth rate of 7 turtles per year and a death rate of 6 turtles per year. A nearby
population of plants has a “birth” rate of 20,000 seedlings per year and a death rate of 21,000 individuals per year.
Which population has the higher growth rate?
a. The turtles, because births exceed deaths.
b. The plants, because they produce so many more offspring than the turtles.
c. The turtles, because reptiles tend to live a long time.
d. The plants, because young plants grow faster than young turtles.
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99. Earth’s average temperature has gone up and down in the past 65 million years; humans have only been around for
the past 7 million or so years. Why do climate scientists conclude that the recent increase in Earth’s average
temperature is associated with human activities?
a. Because the human population is growing exponentially; all those human bodies are releasing heat into the
atmosphere.
b. Because we’ve changed the atmosphere in a way that lets in more sunlight.
c. Because human activities created the atmosphere that is causing global warming.
d. Because we’ve been digging up and burning so much oil, coal, and natural gas.
e. Because we have only begun “mining” the atmosphere’s CO2 and using it for fuel since the 1800’s; the
resulting CO2 depletion of the atmosphere is causing climate change.
100. What color is your test form?
a. Green
b. Yellow
-------If you want to check your answers against the key immediately after the exam, mark them on this test form
(as well as on the scantron).
-------J J Congratulations on surviving non-majors biology!! Enjoy your well-deserved break. J J
-------After you check the key, do these calculations to figure your final exam score:
Total correct (part 1):
Total correct (part 2):
Total correct (part 3):
Total correct (part 4):
Points (# correct x 2):
Points (# correct x 2):
Points (# correct x 2):
Points (# correct x 2):
Total final exam score = sum of the points on all four parts:
If you want to figure out your improvement points, do this:
(A) Percent correct (part 1):
(A) Percent correct (part 2):
(A) Percent correct (part 3):
(B) Actual score on exam 1:
(B) Actual score on exam 2:
(B) Actual score on exam 3:
Improvement = (A) – (B):
Improvement = (A) – (B):
Improvement = (A) – (B):
Total improvement points = largest of the above three boxes
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