Indicate the answer choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.
1. What commonsense observation makes the theory of acquired characteristics UNLIKELY?
a. An individual may inherit traits found in both of his or her parents.
b. Anatomical changes such as loss of a limb are not seen in the offspring of an individual.
c. Evolution requires genetic change in populations.
d. Alleles that result in abnormal phenotypes may be less common in some populations than in others.
e. Offspring often look more like their parents than unrelated individuals.
2. Which one of the following topics of research belongs to the discipline of transmission genetics?
a. inheritance pattern of gene alleles
b. mechanism of DNA replication
c. gene expression patterns
d. evolution
e. chemical modification of nucleic acids
3. The first complete DNA sequence of a nonviral, free-living organism was obtained for
a. a bacterium in 1900.
b. a bacterium in 1945.
c. a bacterium in 1995.
d. humans in 1990.
e. humans in 2000.
4. Identify a FALSE statement from the following descriptions of genetics.
a. Humans first applied genetics to the domestication of plants and animals between approximately
10,000 and 12,000 years ago.
b. Some viruses use RNA to carry their genetic information.
c. Albinism results from a mutation in the genes that control the synthesis and storage of melanin.
d. All human traits that display blending inheritance are affected by a single gene.
e. The process by which genetic information is copied and decoded is similar for all forms of life.
5. The contribution of Gilbert and Sanger to modern genetics was to
a. develop the PCR technique.
b. discover DNA in the nucleus of cells.
c. describe the structure of DNA.
d. show that genes were made of DNA.
e. develop a method for sequencing DNA.
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6. In the late 1990s, what important discovery in genetics was made?
a. The three-dimensional structure of DNA was described, which showed how DNA might be replicated.
b. The first recombinant DNA experiments were performed that started the biotechnology field.
c. DNA sequencing methods were first discovered.
d. Genes were found to be located on chromosomes.
e. Tiny RNAs were discovered that play important roles in the regulation of gene expression.
7. The golden mutation in the zebrafish was useful because of which of the following results?
a. It led to the discovery of a similar gene in humans that is involved in skin pigmentation.
b. It led to the development of new varieties of wheat.
c. It led to the ability to identify many of the genes that result in an increase in heart attacks.
d. It allowed the zebrafish to be grown in captivity and become commercially profitable.
e. It became the first gene in a model organism to be sequenced.
8. Which of the following scientists contributed significantly to the foundations of molecular genetics?
a. James Watson
b. Thomas Hunt Morgan
c. John B. S. Haldane
d. Charles Darwin
e. Sewall Wright
9. Identify a TRUE statement.
a. Genetic influences are solely responsible for the traits of an organism.
b. Environmental influences can only responsible for the physical traits of an organism, such as height,
weight, or color.
c. Environmental influences can only be responsible for the behavioral traits of an organism .
d. Environmental influences can affect gene activity.
e. Separating genetic and environmental influences on organismal traits is easy.
10. Permanent, heritable changes in genetic information (DNA) are called
a. evolution.
b. defects.
c. SNP.
d. alleles.
e. mutations.
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11. A measurable or observable trait or characteristic is called a
a. phenotype.
b. genotype.
c. single-nucleotide polymorphism.
d. small interfering RNA.
e. gene bank.
12. Which one of the following pairings between the subdiscipline of genetics and the phenomenon is
INCORRECT?
a. evolution—population genetics
b. gene regulation—molecular genetics
c. allelic frequency alteration—population genetics
d. arrangement of genes on chromosome—transmission genetics
e. chemical nature of the gene—transmission genetics
13. A change in allele frequency within a population over time leads to
a. a genome.
b. a phenotype.
c. a genotype.
d. mutations.
e. evolution.
14. Which of the following scientists contributed significantly to the foundations of population genetics?
a. James Watson
b. Thomas Hunt Morgan
c. Ronald Fisher
d. Charles Darwin
e. Frederick Sanger
15. Which of the following statements is FALSE concerning prokaryotic cells?
a. They lack a nuclear membrane.
b. They lack organelles such as chloroplasts.
c. They are less complex than eukaryotic cells.
d. They lack genetic information.
e. They lack a true nucleus