The graph below shows records of temperature (light gray line) and CO2 (dark gray
line) over the past 1,000 years. CO2 is recorded in parts per million (ppm).
If you focus on the data from the mid-1900s (indicated by the arrow) through today, the
graph shows that
A) there is a correlation between CO2 and temperature; when CO2 levels are high, so is
temperature.
B) there is a correlation between CO2 and temperature; when CO2 levels are high,
temperature is low.
C) there is no correlation between CO2 and temperature; CO2 fluctuates randomly and
temperature is constant.
D) there is no correlation between CO2 and temperature; CO2 is constant and
temperature fluctuates randomly.
According to “evo-devo” thinking, an organism’s body form can be substantially
changed
A) only through multiple mutations that produce a large number of new proteins.
B) through mutations that change sexually selected traits.
C) only when changes in the environment directly alter the major protein-coding genes
in the organism’s genome.
D) through mutations or changes in the expression of one or a few genes that regulate
development.
The largest group of prokaryotes is the ________, which obtain both energy and carbon
from ________.
A) autotrophs; inorganic molecules
B) chemoautotrophs; decaying organic material
C) chemoheterotrophs; organic molecules
D) photoautotrophs; light
Suppose you conduct the study and obtain the results graphed above. How do the
results of your study add to existing knowledge about whether or not higher anti-HPV
antibody levels provide greater protection from HPV-related cancers?
A) Your results add evidence that supports the original hypothesis.
B) Your results do not provide evidence that supports the hypothesis.
C) Your results neither support nor refute the hypothesis.
D) Your results, if they are replicated in another study, will add evidence that supports
the original hypothesis.
A bacterium living in an underground septic tank thrives by absorbing organic
compounds from decomposing wastes. What is it?
A) a chemoautotroph
B) a chemoheterotroph
C) a photoautotroph
D) a photoheterotroph
Which of the following statements regarding the Golgi apparatus is false?
A) The Golgi apparatus works closely with the endoplasmic reticulum.
B) The Golgi apparatus serves as a molecular warehouse and finishing factory.
C) The Golgi apparatus decreases in size when a cell increases its protein production.
D) The Golgi apparatus modifies chemicals received from the endoplasmic reticulum.
Cormorants are sea-dwelling birds that consume high levels of salt from the seawater
they drink. To get rid of this excess salt, cormorants ‘sneeze” out the salt that has
collected in a localized area near their sinuses. This process is an example of
A) osmoregulation.
B) thermoregulation.
C) conduction.
D) radiation.
Which of the following features would you expect to see in the flowers of
wind-pollinated grasses?
A) very large, fragrant, white flowers
B) petals with UV-absorbing “nectar guides”
C) very simple flowers that produce massive quantities of pollen
D) red flowers with long nectar tubes
Cats normally have a total of 18 toes, 5 on each front paw and 4 on each back paw. But
some cats express the dominant phenotype for polydactyly, which results in the
development of extra toes on one or more paws. Jake, a Canadian tabby cat, has 28 toes
and is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the cat with the most toes.
Suppose that Jake mates with a female cat, Lucy, who has 18 total toes. Over several
years, they have multiple litters and a total of 16 kittens (10 males and 6 females). The
total number of toes on each kitten ranges from 21 to 25.
One of Jake and Lucy’s kittens mates with another cat that has 18 total toes. What is the
probability that one of their offspring would have 18 total toes?
A) 100%
B) 75%
C) 50%
D) 0%
Most bats are inactive during the day (this is known as torpor) and feed during the
night. The graph below shows hypothetical data for a bat species.
Bats contain brown fat between their shoulder blades. How could this brown fat be an
adaptation to torpor?
A) Brown fat has many mitochondria, so it can produce more ATP.
B) Brown fat can produce heat and ATP through fermentation.
C) The mitochondria in brown fat can produce heat without making ATP.
D) It is not an adaptation; white fat is what they need to produce heat.
Which of the following direct energy transfers is impossible in living systems?
A) light energy to chemical energy
B) chemical energy to kinetic energy
C) light energy to potential energy
D) heat to light energy
How do sponges transport nutrients within their bodies?
A) They have simple digestive and circulatory systems composed of spongin.
B) They rely on diffusion to move nutrients between their cells.
C) Their mobile amoebocytes transport food molecules from cell to cell.
D) They are not able to transport nutrients within their bodies but must independently
absorb all necessary nutrients from the surrounding water.
The immediate results of the widespread use of pesticides and fertilizers included
________, but long-term results included ________.
A) dramatic increases in crop yields; the evolution of pest resistance
B) the increased spread of malaria; delayed resistance to pesticides
C) terrible declines in agricultural productivity; worldwide distribution of DDT
D) global declines in undesirable pests, such as mice, rats, crows, and sharks; increases
in these pests
Which kind of vessel has the lowest blood velocity?
A) artery
B) capillary
C) venule
D) vein
Resolution is the
A) ability of an optical instrument to show two close objects as separate.
B) size of an image.
C) ability of an optical instrument to magnify an image.
D) distance between the lenses of a microscope.
Which of the following occurs during interphase?
A) a reduction in the size of the nuclear membrane
B) cytokinesis
C) cell growth and duplication of the chromosomes
D) separation of newly formed DNA to opposite ends of the cell
Which of the following statements about glands and hormones is true?
A) The anterior pituitary produces multiple hormones that affect activity of other
endocrine glands and cells of the body.
B) The posterior pituitary produces melatonin, which helps regulate biological rhythms.
C) The pineal gland is the master control center of the endocrine system.
D) The hypothalamus is an endocrine gland responsible for producing the hormone
calcitonin.
The ________ is the protective chamber that houses the ovule and later matures to
become the fruit.
A) ovary
B) carpel
C) sepals
D) stigma
When bar-headed geese fly at very high altitudes (possibly over Mount Everest!), they
breathe very thin air where the partial pressure of oxygen is very low compared to that
at sea level. They are able to do this because they have a modified version of the
hemoglobin protein. Which of the following is their hemoglobin protein most likely
similar to in terms of its ability to bind oxygen?
A) an adult human
B) a human fetus
C) a bird that lives at sea level
D) an earthworm
The “big bang” that produced the universe is thought to have occurred
A) 40 to 50 billion years ago.
B) 12 to 14 billion years ago.
C) 4.6 billion years ago.
D) 4 million years ago.
When sarcomeres contract, they generate force (tension). However, the amount of force
generated depends on the sarcomere length and the amount of thick and thin filament
overlap. Below is a figure that details the forcegenerating properties of a single
sarcomere. This figure was modified from a scientific paper by Al Gordon and
colleagues from 1966 and is a classic illustration of the relationship between sarcomere
length and force.
Mammalian muscles can shorten approximately 35% of their resting length when all
sarcomeres contract. If a sarcomere passes through maximal tension generation during
this 35% contraction, what is the likely starting point for contraction of a sarcomere?
A) point A
B) point B
C) point D
D) point E
Small, nonpolar, hydrophobic molecules such as fatty acids
A) easily pass through a membrane’s lipid bilayer.
B) very slowly diffuse through a membrane’s lipid bilayer.
C) require transport proteins to pass through a membrane’s lipid bilayer.
D) are actively transported across cell membranes.
You’ve been experiencing acid indigestion lately, and you’d like a quick fix for the
problem. You do a little research on the Internet and discover that your problem is
caused by excess stomach acid. In the pharmacy aisles, however, you’re having a little
trouble deciding what to purchase to address the problem. At the pharmacy counter, the
clerk recommends that you purchase PEPCID AC or Alka-Seltzer tablets.
If you were able to chemically analyze your stomach fluids 30 minutes after taking two
tablets, you would find
A) more hydrogen ions.
B) fewer hydrogen ions.
C) the same number of hydrogen ions.
D) that the pH in your stomach has decreased.
Which part of the ATP molecule breaks free of the rest when an ATP molecule is used
for energy?
A) part A
B) part B
C) part C
D) part D
These two molecules are structural isomers. What is the difference between them?
A) the number of carbon atoms
B) the number of hydrogen atoms
C) the location of a double-bonded oxygen atom
D) Only one of them has a double bond between carbon atoms.
Inhibitory neurotransmitters are most like what part of an automobile?
A) brakes
B) radio
C) muffler
D) engine
After reading the paragraph below, answer the questions that follow.
While DNA microarrays can be used to determine whether or not a gene is expressed in
a cell, quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) can be used to measure the extent
of gene expression in cells and tissues. To perform qPCR, mRNA is extracted from cells
and reverse transcribed to complementary DNA (cDNA). Using fluorescent DNA
molecules that recognize specific gene sequences and DNA polymerase, copies of the
gene sequence of interest are made. After the copies are made, a fluorescent detector
measures the intensity of the fluorescent signal, which is proportional to the number of
mRNA transcripts in the cell and corresponds to the level of gene expression in the cell.
A scientist hypothesizes that a new drug turns on a certain gene in a skin cell. Which of
the following experiments would be the best to test her hypothesis?
A) Use qPCR to measure the initial levels of gene expression in skin cells, treat skin
cells with the drug and measure the levels of gene expression, and then compare the
two measurements.
B) Use qPCR to measure the levels of gene expression in skin cells after exposure to
the drug.
C) Use qPCR to measure the initial levels of gene expression in muscle cells, treat skin
cells with the drug and measure the levels of gene expression, and then compare the
two measurements.
D) Use qPCR to measure the levels of gene expression in skin cells after exposure to
the drug and then add another drug to turn off gene expression and use qPCR to
measure the levels of expression.
Air leaving human lungs during exhalation contains
A) no oxygen.
B) no carbon dioxide.
C) mostly carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide.
D) carbon dioxide and unused oxygen.
You spray your lawn with a pesticide. The concentration of the pesticide in the tissues
of the grass on your lawn is 10-6 parts per million (ppm). Grasshoppers eat the grass
and are in turn eaten by rats, which are then eaten by owls. At each successive trophic
level, the concentration of pesticides increases. The term for this process is
A) extirpation.
B) biological magnification.
C) habitat loss.
D) climate change.
After reading the paragraph below, answer the questions that follow.
Malnutrition can cause a variety of health problems, including being underweight, due
to unbalanced or insufficient diet. It is estimated that in 2015, approximately 14% of
preschool-age children globally will be underweight (WHO and UNICEF Joint Global
Nutrition Database, 2011). While this is a high percentage, it is a drop from
approximately 25% just 25 years earlier.
Consider the data table below and answer the questions that follow.
Which of the following sub-regions has shown the least variation in estimated
prevalence (%) of underweight preschool children from the year 1990 to the year 2015?
A) Eastern Asia
B) Caribbean
C) Northern Africa
D) Southern Africa
Archaea are composed of ________ cells.
A) prokaryotic
B) bacterial
C) eukaryotic
D) animal
Which of the following statements is supported by this figure?
A) The greater the concentration of auxin, the more promotion of root elongation
occurs.
B) Auxin concentrations below 10-8 g/L promote both root and stem elongation.
C) Auxin concentrations around 10-4 g/L promote stem elongation but inhibit root
elongation.
D) Auxin concentrations above 0.9 g/L are best for promoting stem elongation.