Study Guide for Exam I - Spring 2012



STUDY GUIDE FOR EXAM I - Spring 2020This guide is a checklist of items you should know for Exam I. They are taken from both the lecture notes and the required textbook readings.For an excellent overview of misconceptions about natural selection and adaptation, go here: all embedded videos to be required viewing. You might see questions about them on the exam.Introduction to EvolutionKnow the four major lines of evidence that evolution has occurred and is now occurring.Be able to recognize examples of these lines of evidence.Know the meaning/significance of:fossilshomologous charactersbiogeographypaleontologytransitional fossilsanalogous charactersscientific hypothesis, theory, and lawBe familiar with some of the recent examples of evolution we discussed in class.Be able to address and correct the following misconceptions about evolution:Evolution is only a theory.Evolution is progress: evolving organisms get better.Evolution has never been observed.There are no transitional fossils.Evolution violates the Second Law of Thermodynamics.Use this site to address these additional misconceptions: is a theory about the origin of life.Evolution is a completely random process.Individual organisms evolve over the course of their lifespan.The Darwinian RevolutionUnderstand what is meant by “patterns” in the natural world, and what their significance is to the process and understanding of evolution.Know precisely what is meant by the terms observation, empirical data, and factsBe familiar with the contributions (to evolutionary thought) ofPlato and AristotleGeorge Cuvier(Thomas) Robert MalthusMotoo KimuraGeorge Louis LeclercJames HuttonCharles DarwinJean Baptiste LamarckCharles LyellAlfred Russel WallaceYou can find brief bios here: HYPERLINK "" is scala naturae, and who proposed it?What is the theory of evolution?What is the theory of evolution by means of inheritance of acquired characteristics, and who proposed it?What is the theory of evolution by means of natural selection, and who proposed it ?What is the theory of evolution by means of neutral mutations, and who proposed it?Why is epigenetic inheritance sometimes said to be “NeoLamarckian”?Know the definitions and significance oforganic evolutiongene pooldemebiological speciesevolutionary vs. physiological adaptationmicroevolutionpopulationspeciationmacroevolutionartificial selectiondescent with modificationconvergent evolutionuniformitarianismcatastrophism…and be able to recognize examples of these.What are homologous characters? How do they contribute to evidence for evolution/natural selection?What are analogous characters? How do they contribute to evidence for evolution/natural selection?Understand how Darwin’s observations (on the voyage of the HMS Beagle and back home in England) led him to the inferences that became the four tenets of evolution by means of natural selection.(Why the kerfuffle over “survival of the fittest”? Isn’t that what Darwin called it?)Understand what is meant by adaptive, maladaptive, and neutral traits. What defines them?What is the Darwinian definition of evolutionary fitness?Understand what is meant by William Hamilton’s idea of “selfish genes”.Do genes always encode traits that are best of their host’s long-term survival?What is a “survival machine”, as described in the short video interview with Richard Dawkins?Evidence of EvolutionBe familiar with the patterns of life in the natural world that provide empirical evidence of evolution, and why they support the theory that biodiversity arose as a product of organic evolution:1. Life on earth is diverse (interspecific variation)2. All life on earth can be joined in a single phylogeny.Biodiversity varies across time. Biodiversity varies across geographic space.3. There is genetic diversity within species. (intraspecific variation) 4. Organisms exhibit adaptative traits.5. Organisms also exhibit maladaptative traits.Know the meaning/significance and relevance to evolutionary theory of:ontogenetic homologiespaedomorphosisheterochronyneoteny vs. paedogenesis ( don’t memorize; just know that these are processes isometric vs. allometric growththat can contribute to the phenomenon/phenotype of paedomorphosis.)vestigial charactersatavistic charactersgene sequence homologiessyntenyUnderstand the strengths and weaknesses of the fossil record as evidence of evolution.Be familiar with the general concept of continental drift and what it tells us about organic evolution.What are: Pangaea, Gondwanaland, Laurasia? What is meant by “Old World” vs. “New World”?Understand how the presence of both adaptive and maladaptive traits provide evidence for evolution (vs. perfect creation by a supernatural power). Understand what is meant by “evolutionary compromise”.Evolution of PopulationsKnow the meaning/significance of: genepopulationgene poolhomozygosityinbreedingallele demepolymorphismheterozygosityoutbreedingUnderstand the levels of polymorphisms one might find in a natural population.What was demonstrated by the Lederberg Experiment?Know the five factors that can cause a population to evolve. Theoretically, what would happen if none of the five factors are operating in a population?Remember that while natural selection (and the other five HW factors) may occur at the level the individual organism, individual organisms do not evolve. Only populations evolve from one generation to the next. Know how to use the Hardy-Weinberg equation to address a question about a population that might be evolving.Use the questions embedded in Lecture 4 to practice and help you understand this model.Know how to devise null and alternative hypotheses to test whether a population is evolving.Understand the relevance of heterozygosity to populations and organismal health. Know the meaning/significance ofheterozygote advantageinbreeding depressionhybrid vigor/heterosis“honest signal” (biological)Understand the various reasons that even a potentially harmful allele might stay in a population over time.Know the five criteria that must be met if a population is to remain in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, and what they mean.Know the various types of reproductive isolating mechanisms, and at what level each operates. To review this, go to: that if a population is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, it means that population is NOT EVOLVING.Understand that the purpose of the Hardy-Weinberg equation is to allow the investigator to make predictions about expected allele and genotype frequencies in a population. It is a method for producing a NULL HYPOTHESIS about these frequencies. (You will not have to do a full-blown HW calculation, but you should know the general principles of the model so you can apply it. But you might see HW equations again on the final exam.)Know the difference between microevolution and macroevolution.Know the genetic difference between mitosis and meiosis. If you don’t recall, review Chapters 12 and 13 of Biology by Campbell, or review this tutorial: that Drive Evolution: MutationUnderstand the evolutionary implications of the Luria-Delbruck fluctuation experiment.Know the meaning/significance ofmutation genotypespontaneous vs. induced mutationscarcinogenpolymorphismphenotypemutagenBe able to recognize and know what is meant by the various types of evolutionarily relevant mutations:point mutationdeletiontranslocationgermlinesilentduplicationinversionpolyploidysomaticneutralUnderstand the evolutionary significance (or lack thereof) of mutations in cells that are totipotent, pluripotent, and multipotent. Know the definitions of these terms and what each of these cell types can potentially become.Where must mutations occur to be evolutionarily relevant? What types of mutations can and cannot be passed on to offspring in each of these organisms: bacteria, archaeans, animals, fungi, plants?Be able to calculate the rate of incorporation of a new allele in a mutating population. (I’ll provide the formula, but know how to plug in the values I might provide.)Know the meaning/significance of the following terms related to mutation:mutation (as a process)clonetotipotentduplicationsomatic cell/mutationmutation (as an end result)polymorphismpluripotentdeletiongermline cell/mutationpropaguleploidymultipotentinversionsyntenygenetic recombinationpolyploidyhybridtranslocationCan haploid organisms undergo mitosis? Meiosis? Why or why not?Can diploid organisms undergo mitosis? Meiosis? Why or why not?Understand the definitions of and differences between synonymous, silent, and neutral mutations.Understand the meaning/significance of adaptive, maladaptive, and neutral traits/alleles/mutations.Understand how silent mutations are not always neutral, and the concept of codon bias.Watch the two “Stated Clearly” videos embedded in Lecture 5 to learn how new genetic material can evolve.Understand the meaning/significance of germline vs. somatic mutations. Which type has direct evolutionary consequences?Understand the determinate vs. indeterminate growth, and what this means in terms of germline and somatic cell mutations being passed on to the next generation. Which types of organisms have which type of growth/development?Understand that a mutation can have (1) little or no phenotypic effect, or (2) major phenotypic effect.What is the Neutral Theory of Molecular Evolution? Who first proposed it?What were the contributions of Emile Zuckerkandle, Linus Pauling, and Motoo Kimura.What is the Molecular Clock? What types of genes are most reliable to serve as molecular clock genes?What is stated by the molecular clock hypothesis? What does it NOT imply?Forces that Drive Evolution: Non-infinite Population SizeKnow the meaning/significance of the following terms:Genetic driftinbreedingsampling errorgeneFounder EffectoutbreedinghomozygosityalleleBottleneck Effectfixation of an alleleheterozygositygene poolUnderstand why the rate of evolution in a population can depend greatly on that population’s size.Are small populations or large populations more likely to evolve quickly? Why?Systematics and Taxonomy (Workshop/Lecture)Know what is meant by phylogeny.Know how to read a basic phylogenetic tree. On a phylogenetic tree, be able to identify and understand:taxoncharacterpolyphyletic taxonnodecladecommon ancestormonophyletic taxonsister taxaparaphyletic taxonKnow the reasons that scientific classifications are useful. Know the (subtle) distinction between taxonomy and systematics. Know the significance of the work of Carl LinnaeusWhat are the basic rules of Systema naturae? What are the most basic rules governing naming of species?What is binomial nomenclature in the Linnaean system? What language is used, and why?Know the classification hierarchy and how to correctly write a scientific name.Know what is meant by “most inclusive” and “least inclusive” taxonomic ranks.Understand how the taxa are nested within each other.What was Carl Woese’s contribution to systematics? On what did he base his invention of the Domain?Know the meaning/significance of: taxoncommon ancestorparsimonyderivedsynapomorphytaxon nameingroupsister taxaprimitivesymplesiomorphytaxon rankoutgroupcladeapomorphyautapomorphytaxon contentnodecladogenesisplesiomorphydichotomousKnow how to read and understand a cladogram (a phylogenetic tree constructed using cladistic techniques)Know what is meant by character and character state. How are characters used to classify organisms?Understand what defines a homoplasy/analogous character. Be able to recognize examples.Understand the difference between parallel and convergent evolution with respect to homoplasy.Know what is meant by parsimony, and be able to recognize a most parsimonious phylogenetic tree from among a selection of several different phylogenies.Understand why a phylogenetic tree can be rotated at a node without changing the information in the tree.Understand that—as represented on a phylogenetic tree—once an ancestral taxon has split into two new taxa, that ancestral population is no longer, technically, extant (it has split into two genetically different units).Ancestors of modern taxa are always (1) hypothetical and (2) extinct. Extant species do not give rise to extant species. The ancestor cannot be directly observed, so must remain hypothetical.Understand the rules of the cladistic system devised by German biologist Willi Hennig.TIPS FOR EFFECTIVE STUDYING: 1. Don't memorize the details or names of specific examples in the notes or text or workshops. Instead, try to understand the concept those examples are illustrating, and be able to recognize new examples of the same concepts. Memorization is fine for things like vocabulary and names. But the MOST important thing you can do is UNDERSTAND HOW THINGS WORK and apply this to new situations. 2. Read the textbook chapters and USE THE PRACTICE QUESTIONS AT THE END OF EACH CHAPTER TO TEST YOURSELF. They are an excellent gauge of how well you are actually understanding the material.3. If you don’t remember the definition or significance of something in the notes or this study guide…GOOGLE IT.Seriously! This is sometimes the BEST way to find multiple sources that will really help you understand these sometimes-tough concepts. Choose your sources wisely, but learn to teach yourself biology by using the abundant resources available at the touch of a key. ................
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