If a meteor impact or volcanic eruption injected a lot of dust into the atmosphere and
reduced the sunlight reaching Earth’s surface by 70 percent for one year, which of the
following marine communities most likely would be least affected?
A) deep-sea vent
B) coral reef
C) intertidal
D) estuary
Which of the following is a primary difference between ectomycorrhizae and
endomycorrhizae?
A) Endomycorrhizae have thicker, shorter hyphae than ectomycorrhizae.
B) Ectomycorrhizae do not penetrate root cells, whereas endomycorrhizae grow into
invaginations of the root cell membranes.
C) Endomycorrhizae are more common than ectomycorrhizae.
D) There are no significant differences between ectomycorrhizae and endomycorrhizae.
The following questions refer to the generalized life cycle for land plants shown in the
figure below. Each number within a circle or square represents a specific plant or plant
part, and each number over an arrow represents either meiosis, mitosis, or fertilization.
In the figure above, which number represents the mature gametophyte?
A) 1
B) 3
C) 7
D) 11
Which of the following effects can occur because of the high surface tension of water?
A) Lakes cannot freeze solid in winter, despite low temperatures.
B) A raft spider can walk across the surface of a small pond.
C) Organisms can resist temperature changes, although they give off heat due to
chemical reactions.
D) Sweat can evaporate from the skin, helping to keep people from overheating.
Which of the following is most similar in structure to ATP?
A) a pentose sugar
B) a DNA nucleotide
C) an RNA nucleotide
D) an amino acid with three phosphate groups attached
If meiosis produces haploid cells, how is the diploid number restored for those
organisms that spend most of their life cycle in the diploid state?
A) DNA replication
B) reverse transcription
C) synapsis
D) fertilization
Extracellular glucose inhibits transcription of the lac operon by _____.
A) strengthening the binding of the repressor to the operator
B) weakening the binding of the repressor to the operator
C) inhibiting RNA polymerase from opening the strands of DNA to initiate
transcription
D) reducing the levels of intracellular cAMP
In plant cells, the middle lamella _____.
A) allows adjacent cells to adhere to one another
B) prevents dehydration of adjacent cells
C) maintains the plant’s circulatory system
D) allows for gas and nutrient exchange among adjacent cells
The divisions of the nervous system that have antagonistic, or opposing, actions are
_____.
A) motor and sensory systems
B) sympathetic and parasympathetic systems
C) presynaptic and postsynaptic membranes
D) central nervous system and peripheral nervous system
Refer to the following figure to answer the questions below.
Refer to the figure above (first three rows of the periodic table). What element has
properties most similar to carbon?
A) boron
B) silicon
C) nitrogen
D) phosphorus
In recent times, it has been shown that adult cells can be induced to become pluripotent
stem cells (iPS). To make this conversion, what has been done to the adult cells?
A) A retrovirus is used to introduce four specific regulatory genes.
B) The adult stem cells must be fused with embryonic cells.
C) Cytoplasm from embryonic cells is injected into the adult cells.
D) The nucleus of an embryonic cell is used to replace the nucleus of an adult cell.
Several scientific laboratories across the globe are performing research concerning the
origin of life on Earth. Which of the following are the most likely results of abiotic
experiments testing the potential for hydrogen bonding between various nucleic acids
and amino acids? Base your response on our current understanding of Earth’s first
genetic systems.
A)
B)
C)
D)
The cortical reaction of sea urchin eggs functions directly in _____.
A) the formation of a fertilization envelope
B) the production of a fast block to polyspermy
C) the release of hydrolytic enzymes from the sperm
D) the generation of an electrical impulse by the egg
Which one of the following, if missing, would usually prevent translation from starting?
A) exon
B) cap
C) AUG codon
D) poly-A tail
E. coli cells typically make most of their ATP by metabolizing glucose. Under the
conditions of this experiment, as time passed, E. coli generation times should be _____.
A) the same as in the typical environment
B) faster than in the typical environment
C) slower than in the typical environment
The membrane potential in which there is no net movement of the ion across the
membrane is called the _____.
A) graded potential
B) threshold potential
C) equilibrium potential
D) action potential
An enlarged cecum is typical of _____.
A) rabbits, horses, and herbivorous bears
B) carnivorous animals
C) tubeworms that digest via symbionts
D) humans and other primates
A researcher is trying to construct a molecular-based phylogeny of the entire animal
kingdom. Assuming that none of the following genes is absolutely conserved, which of
the following would be the best choice on which to base the phylogeny?
A) genes involved in chitin synthesis
B) collagen genes
C) β-catenin genes
D) genes involved in eye-lens synthesis
Protein kinases are enzymes that transfer the terminal phosphate from ATP to an amino
acid residue on the target protein. Many are located on the plasma membrane as integral
membrane proteins or peripheral membrane proteins. What purpose may be served by
their plasma membrane localization?
A) ATP is more abundant near the plasma membrane.
B) They can more readily encounter and phosphorylate other membrane proteins.
C) Membrane localization lowers the activation energy of the phosphorylation reaction.
D) They flip back and forth across the membrane to access target proteins on either
side.
Suppose a plant had a photosynthetic pigment that absorbed far-red wavelengths of
light. In which of the following environments could that plant thrive?
A) on the surface of a lake
B) on the forest floor, beneath a canopy of taller plants
C) on the ocean floor, in very deep waters
D) on mountaintops, closer to the Sun
The surgical removal of the seminal vesicles would likely _____.
A) cause sterility because sperm would not be produced
B) cause sterility because sperm would not be able to exit the body
C) greatly reduce the volume of semen
D) cause the testes to migrate back into the abdominal cavity
Which of the following graphs illustrates the growth over several seasons of a
population of snowshoe hares that were introduced to an appropriate habitat also
inhabited by predators in northern Canada?
A)
B)
C)
D)
Use the following description and table to answer the question(s) below.
Diatoms are encased in petri-platelike cases (valves) made of translucent hydrated silica
whose thickness can be varied. The material used to store excess calories can also be
varied. At certain times, diatoms store excess calories in the form of the liquid
polysaccharide, laminarin, and at other times as oil. The following are data concerning
the density (specific gravity) of various components of diatoms, and of their
environment.
Specific Gravities of Materials Relevant to Diatoms
Water’s density and, consequently, its buoyancy decrease at warmer temperatures.
Based on this consideration and using data from the table above, at which time of year
should one expect diatoms to be storing excess calories mostly as oil?
A) mid-winter
B) early spring
C) late summer
D) late fall
What is the atomic number of the cation formed in the reaction illustrated above?
A) 8
B) 10
C) 11
D) 16
Which of the following best describes what occurred after the publication of Charles
Darwin’s On the Origin of Species?
A) The publisher was pressured to cease distribution.
B) The book was banned from schools.
C) The book was widely discussed and disseminated.
D) The book was discredited by most scientists.
A biologist studied a population of squirrels for fifteen years. During that time, the
population was never fewer than thirty squirrels and never more than forty-five. Her
data showed that over half of the squirrels born did not survive to reproduce, because of
both competition for food and predation. In a single generation, 90% of the squirrels
that were born lived to reproduce, and the population increased to eighty. Which
inference(s) about this most recent surge in the population size might be true?
A) The amount of available food may have increased.
B) The parental generation of squirrels developed better eyesight due to improved diet;
the subsequent squirrel generation inherited better eyesight.
C) The number of predators that prey upon squirrels may have decreased.
D) The amount of available food may have increased and/or the predators that prey
upon squirrels may have decreased.
You have found a new prokaryote. What line of evidence would support your
hypothesis that the organism is a cyanobacterium?
A) It is able to form colonies and produce oxygen.
B) It is an endosymbiont.
C) It forms chains called mycelia.
D) It lacks cell walls.
Use this information to answer the question(s) below.
A researcher found a method she could use to manipulate and quantify phosphorylation
and methylation in embryonic cells in culture.
Which method is utilized by eukaryotes to control their gene expression that is NOT
used in bacteria?
A) control of chromatin remodeling
B) control of RNA splicing
C) transcriptional control
D) control of both RNA splicing and chromatin remodeling
The following questions are based on the reaction A+ B ↔C+ Dshown in the
accompanying figure.
Which of the following in the figure would be the same in either an enzyme-catalyzed
or a noncatalyzed reaction?
A) a
B) b
C) c
D) d
For a particular microarray assay (DNA chip), cDNA has been made from the mRNAs
of a dozen patients’ breast tumor biopsies. The researchers will be looking for _____.
A) a particular gene that is amplified in all or most of the patient samples
B) a pattern of fluorescence that indicates which cells are over proliferating
C) a pattern shared among some or all of the samples that indicates gene expression
differing from control samples
D) a group of cDNAs that match those in non-breast cancer control samples from the
same population
Inheritance patterns cannot always be explained by Mendel’s models of inheritance. If a
pair of homologous chromosomes fails to separate during meiosis I, select the choice
that shows the chromosome number of the four resulting gametes with respect to the
normal haploid number (n)?
A) n+1; n+1; n-1; n-1
B) n+1; n-1; n; n
C) n+1; n-1; n-1; n-1
D) n+1; n+1; n; n
Which of the following pairs of proteins shares the most overall similarity in structure?
A) B-cell receptors and T-cell receptors
B) B-cell receptors and antibodies
C) T-cell receptors and antibodies
D) antibodies and antigens
The diagnosis of hypertension in adults is based on the _____.
A) measurement of fatty deposits on the endothelium of arteries
B) measurement of the LDL/HDL ratio in peripheral blood
C) percentage of blood volume made up of platelets
D) blood pressure being greater than 140 mm Hg systolic and/or greater than 90 mm Hg
diastolic