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Flashcards in Week1-7 Deck (72)
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1
Q

What are Darwins observations?

A
  • Variation exists in all populations
  • some variation is heritable
  • any traits better suited to an environment will tend to increase in frequency, while other variants decrease
2
Q

What is natural selection?

A

Individuals better suited to their environment are more likely to survive, and have offspring with a good chance of inheriting those traits

3
Q

What is selective pressure?

A

-drives evolution and natural
selection in a certain direction
-can be high or low
- when a gene affects something very important for survival, selective pressure is high

4
Q

Examples of selective pressure

A

Gulo- gene that allows the body to produce its own vitamin C

5
Q

What is a species? And example

A

The offspring have to be fertile to
Interbreed
Ex: non fertile hybrids
A horse and donkey may produce a mule or a hinny but it is infertile.

6
Q

What is a genotype? And example

A

Genetic makeup

Ex: Bb for eye colour

7
Q

What is a phenotype? And example

A

Physical appearance

Ex: brown eyes

8
Q

Example of dominance

A

Brown eyes, right handed, widows peak, detached earlobes.

9
Q

Examples of ressesive

A

Blue eyes, left handed, attached earlobes

10
Q

What is incomprehensible dominance?

A

Cross between organisms with 2 different phenotypes produce offspring with a 3rd phenotype.

11
Q

Sex chromosomes?

A

Xx-female xy- male

12
Q

What is recombination?

A

Joining of strands of DNA from different organisms.

Ensure children are not replicas of their parents

13
Q

How is it determined if a mutation is advantageous?

A

If the mutation is useful and become positive. Makes it useful to survive in your environment.

14
Q

What is meant by the tree of life?

A
  • We’re all related.

- we all mutated from each other, all from a common ancestor

15
Q

What does the LUCA stand for and how long ago did it live

A

Last- universal- common- ancestor

3.8 billion years old

16
Q

What happens to a species when there is a change in the environment?

A

The traits will change, more mutation

Ex: 2 populations will become very different to survive in their environment, they adapt

17
Q

What is the difference between Gradualism and Punctuated Equilibrium?

A

Gradualism-> they slowly get better

Punctuated-> changes in a relatively static way . huge changes, huge leaps forward, rest for long time.

18
Q

How would you respond to someone who questions the validity of evolution because it’s “just a theory” ?

A

The theory brings all the facts together. Not just someone’s guess, it’s based on facts and research.

19
Q

Why aren’t there a lot of fossils?

A

Erosion, storms, decompose, animals eat their carcasses

20
Q

How are vestigial structures used to support evolution?

A

Appendix, wisdom teeth, tail. We need them at one point but our environment changed and we adapted

21
Q

What is relative dating?

A

Comparing strata with one another to discover which one is older

22
Q

What is absolute/ numerical dating?

A

More precise; establishes a range of dates

23
Q

Why was the Hadrian era considered “hellish”? Was it possible for life to exist?

A

It was a giant fireball, has a lot of iron, no oxygen or bacteria so it was impossible for life to exist

24
Q

When did the first mammals appear?

A

The mezazoic era

25
Q

What was the “great dying”

A

Marine life dead from methane in water

Volcanic eruption

Extinction of insects

26
Q

What was the key evolutionary trait of the Cenozoic?

A

Adaption

27
Q

Can relative dating give us a date for a fossil?

A

No

28
Q

Name one dating method that can be used in the study of human evolution

A

Absolute dating

29
Q

What is biological evolution?

A

Descent with modification through genetic inheritance, relies on natural laws, evidence and is testable

30
Q

What is creationism?

A

The present universal and all life forms came about as a result of the action of a divine creator (super natural)

31
Q

Problems of biological evolution?

A

Discuss adaption without mentioning evolution explicitly

Depth of coverage in uneven across the country

32
Q

What is scientific classification?

A

Life forms can be classified according to shared ancestry characteristics, or traits.

33
Q

Strepsirrhini

A

Wet- nosed ( like dogs or cats)

Longer snouts

Can produce their own vitamin c

34
Q

Haplorrhini

A

Apes, humans

35
Q

Platyrrhini

A

Flat nose: new world money’s

36
Q

Catarrhini

A

Narrow nose: old world monkeys , apes , humans

37
Q

Cresting?

A

Saggital- top of head

Nuchal- near neck muscles

38
Q

Zygomatic torus

A

Near cheek bone ( attached to skull)

39
Q

Supraorbital torus

A

Brow ridges

Thick brow ridges( bone )

40
Q

Subnasal prognathusm

A

How far out the face goes

41
Q

Dental arcade

A

The shape made by the teeth in the upper jaw

42
Q

Diastema

A

Gap between the canines and incisors

43
Q

Pectoral girdle

A

Connects upper limbs to trunk of body

Allows a wide range of movement

Clavicle holds upper limb bones away from
Chest and prices stability to shoulder joints

44
Q

Sexual dimorphism

A

When males are larger than females

Can look at overall body size or particular traits

45
Q

Why is reconciliation important in primate groups?

A

Important for keeping relationships

We need group for survival

We need to have ways to solve problems

46
Q

Discuss the notion of religion being vital for teaching morality

A

People would believe that if they do good things, they will go to heaven.

If you do bad things you’ll get punished, if you do good things you’ll be rewarded

47
Q

Group living advantaged and disadvantages

A

Advantages:

  • Increased protection
  • improve access to food, defend food resources from other groups
  • increased access to potential mates

Disadvantages:

  • may actually attract predators
  • group may have to travel further to find food
  • infectious diseases
48
Q

What is culture ?

A

Something we are born into

49
Q

What does grooming do

A

Bonding , establish and maintain alliances, reconcile conflict , exchange for other resources ( food, sex)

50
Q

Tool use

A

Fishing for termites

Using sticks to get honey in trees

Leaves to use as a sponge for water and as a napkin

Sticks and rock to crack open nuts or fruits

51
Q

What is monogamy?

A

Each make and female mate with only one member of the opposite sex but offspring are not always fathered by the male in the pair

52
Q

What is pair bonding

A

Males do not directly compete over access to females, Instead guard territory, guard mates, and invest in offspring

53
Q

4 types of locomotives

A

Verticlal clinging and leaping

Suspension

Quadrupedalisn

Bipedalism

54
Q

Describe vertical clinging and leaping

A

Body held upright

Animal grasps trunk of tree

Long, powerful Hind limbs

55
Q

Describe suspension

A

Supporting the body using forelimbs to hang beneath branches

Long upper limbs

56
Q

Describe quadrupedalism

A

Using four limbs to support body

In trees or on ground

May walk in palms, fingers, or knuckles

Arms and legs approx same length

57
Q

Describe bipedalism

A

Standing and moving in two hind limbs

58
Q

What is new classification?

A

Based on genetics and evolutionary history

59
Q

What are hominids

A

Great apes, humans , and our bipedal ancestors

60
Q

What are hominins?

A

Used to refer to us and our ancestors after the split

61
Q

How to date the divergence?

A

Molecular clock

As 2 species diverge from a common ancestor, their DNA becomes increasingly different ( random mutations)

62
Q

Name the 3 early hominins

A

Sahelanthropus tchadensis (toumai)

Orrorin tugenensis

Aridipithacus ramidus (ardi)

63
Q

Bipedalism advantages and disadvantages

A

Advantages:
Appears to be more efficient than quadrupedalism in terms of energy efficiency

Disadvantages:
Puts lots of stress on lower back, hips, knees, feet

Required modification to the skeleton

Childbirth more difficult

64
Q

Why was the hypothesis of male langur monkeys killing infants wrong?

A

The males didn’t show any violence when the baby’s were jumping on them and being annoying.

65
Q

Why do the male langurs kill the babies?

A

Because they want to have their own baby with a female but if they already have a baby they’re not able to become pregnant if they’re nursing at the same time so the only way they can have a baby with the female is by killing it

66
Q

What are signs of a monogamy relationship

A

Carrying the baby to free the mothers hands

Finding food to bring to the female

Small canines

Females lost skin swellings

Cooperative breeding, alloparents

67
Q

How are bonobos sexual behaviour similar to ours

A

Sex face to face

Time for pleasure and time for babies

Sex to bond with each other

Same sex sex

68
Q

What do bonobos use sex for

A

To break tension

To solve problems

MAke themselves feel better

69
Q

What are three conclusions on primate cooperation?

A
  1. Don’t need to be related
  2. Based on exchange( will remember act of kindness and will return the favour)
  3. Empathy
70
Q

What is altruism

A

When you act to benefit someone else’s well being sometimes even when it may cost you.

71
Q

What is mutualistic cooperation?

A

When you work together towards the same goal that is beneficial to all. Also leads to sharing

72
Q

How do chimps engage in a from of currency exchange?

A

They will barter goods such as meat or other services for sex, grooming, or even friendship.