What was the first stage of the process that led to the abiotic origin of life?
A) synthesis of monomers, such as amino acids and nucleotides
B) origin of self-replicating molecules
C) synthesis of polymers, such as proteins and nucleic acids
D) formation of pre-cells
Please read the following scenario to answer the following questions.
While shopping, you settle on two types of cookies. The nutritional label for the
chocolate mint cookies lists 5 grams of saturated fat, 0 grams of trans fat, 22 grams of
carbohydrates, and 11 grams of protein per serving. The nutritional label for the peanut
butter cookies lists 0 grams of saturated fat, 5 grams of trans fat, 26 grams of
carbohydrates, and 4 grams of protein per serving.
The manufacturer of the chocolate mint cookies changed the ingredients of its cookies.
Each serving now has 1 gram of saturated fat (4 fewer grams), 4 grams of trans fat (4
more grams), 21 grams of carbohydrates (1 fewer gram), and 11 grams of protein (no
change). Do you think that the manufacturer made these cookies healthier?
A) No, because they now have less saturated fat.
B) Yes, because they now have less saturated fat.
C) Yes, because they now have fewer grams of carbohydrates.
D) No, because they now have more grams of trans fat.
Relative to a pH of 6, a pH of 4 has a ________.
A) 200 times higher H+ concentration
B) 100 times higher H+ concentration
C) 20 times higher H+ concentration
D) 100 times lower H+ concentration
The basic unit of nervous tissue is the ________.
A) dendrite
B) axon
C) neuron
D) brain
Someone with liver failure will, in particular, have problems with the digestion and
absorption of ________.
A) minerals
B) fats
C) carbohydrates
D) proteins
What typically has to happen before a fruit develops?
I) flowering
II) pollination
III) double fertilization
A) I only
B) I and II
C) II and III
D) I, II, and III
Glucose molecules provide energy to power the swimming motion of sperm. In this
example, the sperm are changing ________.
A) chemical energy into kinetic energy
B) chemical energy into potential energy
C) kinetic energy into potential energy
D) kinetic energy into chemical energy
A feature unique to mammals includes ________.
A) the presence of hair
B) extended parental care of the young
C) being endotherms
D) having no egg-laying members
A secondary immune response differs from a primary immune response in that the
secondary response ________.
A) produces helper T cells
B) produces cytotoxic T cells
C) produces effector cells
D) produces memory cells
Read the following scenario to answer the following questions.
In some zoos, rare crosses between a male lion and a female tiger have produced hybrid
offspring called “ligers.” Male ligers are sterile but some female ligers are fertile. In the
wild, lion and tiger ranges do not naturally overlap, making such a cross unlikely.
Furthermore, the solitary behavior of tigers and the social organizations of lions create
behavioral differences.
Applying the biological species concept, the sterility of ligers reveals that ________.
A) a new species called “ligers” is forming
B) tigers and lions are actually the same species
C) tigers and lions are separate species
D) lions are probably a subspecies of tigers
To determine the phenotype of an individual who expresses a dominant trait, you would
cross that individual with an individual who ________.
A) expresses the dominant trait
B) is homozygous recessive for that trait
C) is homozygous dominant for that trait
D) is heterozygous for that trait
Read the following scenario to answer the following questions.
Yawning is a reflexive action that is often associated with sleepiness. When a person
yawns, the mouth opens, and a longer than normal breath of air is inhaled, followed by
a longer than normal exhalation. Hypothesizing that yawning has a regulatory
mechanism similar to breathing, scientists conducted an experiment on college students
to test the effect of ambient carbon dioxide levels on yawning.
To graph their results, the scientists would plot the ________.
A) number of yawns on the x-axis
B) dependent variable on the x-axis
C) level of carbon dioxide on the x-axis
D) age of college students on the x-axis
Certain cells that line the stomach synthesize a digestive enzyme and secrete it into the
stomach. Which of the following processes could be responsible for its secretion?
A) endocytosis
B) exocytosis
C) phagocytosis
D) passive transport
More people die of ________ cancer than of any other cancer.
A) lung
B) skin
C) pancreatic
D) breast
Electron transport takes place in the ________.
A) mitochondria
B) chloroplasts
C) cytoplasm
D) ribosomes
Sometimes when I have my morning coffee, which I drink black with no cream or
sugar, I notice a thin film floating on top of the coffee. Since I have just read Chapter 3
of the text, I now realize the nature of this substance and so I run to my friend
screaming, “Look at this ________ in my coffee!”
A) hydrophilic substance
B) hydrophobic substance
C) disaccharide
D) polysaccharide
The formation of a zygote and a cell with a triploid nucleus is unique to flowering
plants. What is this process called?
A) fertilization
B) double fertilization
C) germination
D) pollination
What causes the inside of a membrane to become positively charged during an action
potential?
A) Negatively charged ions rush out.
B) Positively charged ions rush in.
C) Positively charged ions rush out.
D) Negatively charged ions rush in.
When the concentration of glucose in the blood rises following the digestion of a meal,
what is the hormonal response?
A) Increased amounts of both glucagon and insulin are released.
B) An increased amount of glucagon is released.
C) An increased amount of insulin is released.
D) Glucagon and insulin levels in the blood stay the same.
Transcription is the ________.
A) manufacture of a strand of RNA complementary to a strand of DNA
B) manufacture of two new DNA double helices that are identical to an old DNA
double helix
C) modification of a strand of RNA prior to the manufacture of a protein
D) manufacture of a protein based on information carried by RNA
If a person is suffering from heat stroke, which organ system is failing?
A) skeletal system
B) digestive system
C) nervous system
D) circulatory system
A main function of most types of epithelial tissue is ________.
A) sensation
B) support
C) covering surfaces
D) absorption
Type I survivorship curves are typical of species that exhibit ________.
A) an intermediate number of offspring and an intermediate level of parental care
B) few offspring and good parental care
C) many offspring and good parental care
D) many offspring and poor parental care
What is the epiglottis?
A) a muscle that moves the esophagus into line with the pharynx during swallowing
B) a muscle that moves the trachea out of line with the pharynx during swallowing
C) a flap that flips down to cover the entry to the trachea during swallowing
D) a muscular sphincter that closes off the entry to the trachea during swallowing
Which of the following kinds of proteins circulates in the blood and coats the surfaces
of microbes to make them more susceptible to engulfment by phagocytic cells?
A) defensive
B) histamine
C) B cell receptor
D) antigen
Please read the following scenario and then answer the following questions.
Corn crops are susceptible to damage by different species of corn borer, an insect (a
type of arthropod) that feeds and lives on corn plants. It is estimated that corn borers
may cause up to $1 billion of damage a year to corn crops. Because of pests like the
corn borer, researchers have created genetically modified pest-resistant crops. One type
of pest-resistant crop, Bt corn, expresses a bacterial toxin that kills corn borers if they
consume the toxin. While Bt corn has been planted and used in the United States since
1996, some researchers and members of the public continue to worry about negative
effects of the Bt toxin on other animals, including arthropods and humans. In order to
investigate the effects of Bt toxins on other animals, researchers conducted experiments
where they fed arthropods Bt corn or non-Bt corn. A summary of the effects of eating
Bt corn on single species of corn borer, mite, and beetle are shown in the figure below.
What can you conclude from the data in the graph?
A) Corn borers are less likely to survive if they eat Bt corn compared to non-Bt corn.
B) Mites have the highest percent mortality of the arthropods studied.
C) Beetles are more likely to survive than mites when fed Bt corn.
D) Bt corn affects the mortality of all three arthropods equally.
Humans domesticated the rose from a wild ancestor with large, scented flowers. Why
might fragrant chemicals in flowers be adaptive for wild roses?
A) They attract herbivores.
B) They repel seed dispersal agents.
C) They attract pollinators.
D) They prevent seed germination.
The major abiotic reservoir for phosphorus is ________.
A) the oceans
B) the atmosphere
C) rock
D) dead organic matter
Under the biological species concept, what criterion is used to assign populations of
organisms to the same biological species?
A) a very similar appearance
B) being able to interbreed and produce fertile offspring
C) responding to the environment in the same way
D) having 99% of their genes in common
In the figure above, which of the following produce nitrogen in a form that can be used
directly by the plant, without need for conversion?
A) nitrifying bacteria only
B) ammonifying bacteria only
C) nitrogen-fixing bacteria only
D) ammonifying bacteria and nitrogen fixing bacteria
One function of antibodies is to ________.
A) deactivate defensive proteins
B) stimulate the production of antigens
C) phagocytose invading bacteria
D) clump invader cells
The figure below shows a Y-shaped antibody molecule. How many antigens can a
single antibody molecule bind?
A) one
B) two
C) three
D) four
Based on fossil evidence, eukaryotes evolved about ________ years ago.
A) 500,000
B) 1 billion
C) 1.8 billion
D) 3.5 billion