Chapter 16

1. Chapter 16 Darwin’s Theory of Evolution

2. ____ 1. Darwin noticed that many organisms seemed well suited to a. being preserved as fossils. b. providing humans with food. c. surviving in the environments in which they lived. d. swimming from South America to the Galápagos Islands.

3. c. surviving in the environments in which they lived.

4. ____ 2. The species of finches that Charles Darwin found on different Galápagos Islands varied in certain structural adaptations. One of the most significant adaptations that Darwin noted was the a. similarities of the birds’ embryos. b. birds’ different-shaped beaks. c. length of the birds’ necks. d. number of eggs in each bird’s nest.

5. b. birds’ different-shaped beaks.

6. ____ 3. Based on the adaptations Charles Darwin observed in finches and tortoises in the Galápagos, he wondered a. if species living on different islands had once been members of the same species. b. if finches and tortoises had originated from the same ancestral species. c. if all birds on the different islands were finches. d. why all tortoises on the different islands were identical.

7. a. if species living on different islands had once been members of the same species.

8. ____ 4. Which of the following ideas was NOT part of Darwin’s contribution to science? a. descent with modification b. inheritance of acquired characteristics c. survival of the fittest d. natural selection

9. b. inheritance of acquired characteristics

10. ____ 5. Charles Darwin’s observation that finches of different species on the Galápagos Islands have many similar physical characteristics supports the hypothesis that these finches a. have the ability to interbreed. b. acquired traits through use and disuse. c. all eat the same type of food. d. descended from a common ancestor.

11. d. descended from a common ancestor.

12. 6. On the Galápagos Islands, Charles Darwin observed a. completely unrelated species on each of the islands. b. species exactly like those found in South America. c. species similar to mainland South American species. d. species completely unrelated to those found in South America.

13. c. species similar to mainland South American species.

14. ____ 7. Which of the following ideas is supported by Darwin’s observation of local variation among tortoises in the Galápagos Islands? a. artificial selection b. adaptation c. acquired characteristics d. tendency towards perfection

15. b. adaptation

16. ____ 8. Darwin first began to formulate his concept of evolution by natural selection after a. experimenting with animals. b. observing patterns among the geographical location of certain species. c. reading the writings of Wallace. d. agreeing with Lamarck about the driving force behind evolution.

17. b. observing patterns among the geographical location of certain species.

18. ____ 9. People of Charles Darwin’s time understood that fossils were a. preserved remains of ancient organisms. b. available for every organism that ever lived. c. unrelated to living species. d. evidence for the evolution of life on Earth.

19. a. preserved remains of ancient organisms.

20. ____ 10. James Hutton’s and Charles Lyell’s work suggests that a. Earth is several million years old. b. Earth is several thousand years old. c. all fossils were formed in the last 1000 years. d. all rocks on Earth contain fossils.

21. a. Earth is several million years old.

22. ____ 11. In the 1800s, Charles Lyell emphasized that a. the human population will outgrow the available food supply. b. all populations evolve through natural selection. c. Earth is a few thousand years old. d. past geological events must be explained in terms of processes observable today.

23. d. past geological events must be explained in terms of processes observable today.

24. ____ 12. One scientist who attempted to explain how rock formations, such as rock layers, form and change over time was a. Thomas Malthus. b. James Hutton. c. Charles Darwin. d. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck.

25. b. James Hutton.

26. ____ 13. James Hutton’s and Charles Lyell’s work was important to Darwin because these scientists a. explained volcanoes and earthquakes. b. explained all geologic events on Earth. c. suggested that Earth was old enough for evolution to have occurred. d. refuted the work of Lamarck, which was based on misunderstandings.

27. c. suggested that Earth was old enough for evolution to have occurred.

28. ____ 14. What did Charles Darwin learn from reading the work of James Hutton and Charles Lyell? a. Earth is relatively young. b. Gradual change operating over long periods of time can result in dramatic changes. c. All geological change is caused by living organisms. d. The processes that formed old rocks on Earth do not operate today.

29. b. Gradual change operating over long periods of time can result in dramatic changes.

30. ____ 15. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck proposed that organisms a. have an innate tendency toward complexity and perfection. b. have an innate tendency to become simpler as time passes. c. inherit all of the adaptations they display. d. belong to species that never change.

31. a. have an innate tendency toward complexity and perfection.

32. ____ 16. Which is a major concept included in Lamarck’s evolutionary hypothesis? a. Change is the result of survival of the fittest. b. Body structures can change according to the actions of the organism. c. A small population size decreases the rate of evolution. d. Artificial selection is the basis for evolution.

33. b. Body structures can change according to the actions of the organism.

34. ____ 17. Lamarck’s ideas about evolution include the concept that differences among the traits of organisms arise as a result of a. continual increases in population size. b. the actions of organisms as they use or fail to use body structures. c. an unchanging local environment. d. the natural variations already present within the population of organisms.

35. b. the actions of organisms as they use or fail to use body structures.

36. ____ 18. In an experiment, suppose that the wings of fruit flies were clipped short for fifty generations. The fifty-first generation emerged with normal-length wings. This observation would tend to disprove the idea that evolution is based on a. inheritance of natural variations. b. inheritance of acquired characteristics. c. natural selection. d. survival of the fittest.

37. b. inheritance of acquired characteristics.

38. ____ 19. The economist Thomas Malthus suggested that a. in the human population, people die faster than babies are born. b. without certain checks on population size, there would soon be insufficient food for the growing human population. c. in the 1700s, England needed more housing. d. the majority of a species’ offspring die.

39. b. without certain checks on population size, there would soon be insufficient food for the growing human population.

40. ____ 20. The idea that events like war, starvation, and disease could prevent the endless growth of human populations was presented by a. Charles Darwin. b. Jean-Baptiste Lamarck. c. Thomas Malthus. d. Charles Lyell.

41. c. Thomas Malthus.

42. ____ 21. Darwin realized that the economist Malthus’s theory of population control a. applied only to humans. b. could be generalized to any population of organisms. c. could be generalized only when populations lived in crowded conditions. d. explained why the number of deaths exceeded that of births.

43. b. could be generalized to any population of organisms.

44. ____ 22. When a dairy farmer chooses to breed the cows that give the most milk in the herd, the farmers are following the principle of a. acquired characteristics. b. descent with modification. c. artificial selection. d. natural selection.

45. c. artificial selection.

46. ____ 23. When farmers select animals or plants to use for breeding, they look for a. species that are perfect and unchanging. b. homologous structures. c. characteristics acquired during the lifetime of the organism. d. natural variations that are present in a species.

47. d. natural variations that are present in a species.

48. ____ 24. When a farmer breeds only his or her best livestock, the process involved is a. natural selection. b. artificial selection. c. artificial variation. d. survival of the fittest.

49. b. artificial selection.

50. ____ 25. According to Darwin’s theory of natural selection, individuals who survive are the ones best adapted for their environment. Their survival is due to the a. possession of adaptations developed through use. b. possession of inherited adaptations that maximize fitness. c. lack of competition within the species. d. choices made by plant and animal breeders.