Biology for Non-Majors
Exam Answer Key
Course Introduction
Biology for Non-Majors offers a comprehensive introduction to the fundamental principles of biology, tailored specifically for students without an extensive background in the sciences. This course explores key biological concepts such as cell structure and function, genetics, evolution, ecology, and the diversity of life. Emphasis is placed on real-world applications and contemporary issues, including human health, environmental challenges, and biotechnology. Students will engage with scientific inquiry through interactive lectures, discussions, and laboratory experiences designed to foster biological literacy and critical thinking skills relevant to informed citizenship.
Recommended Textbook
Biology Now Core 1st Edition by Anne Houtman
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Page 2
Chapter 1: The Nature of Science
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Sample Questions
Q1) Once supported by a predictable experimental outcome,a scientific hypothesis
A)is never reexamined.
B)still cannot be considered to have been proven true.
C)can be used to predict the outcome of all future similar events.
D)is elevated to the status of theory.
Answer: B
Q2) Your friend says to you,"You do not need to understand evolution to understand biology because evolution is just a theory." How would you explain to your friend that a "theory" in science is not "just a theory"?
Answer: In science,a theory usually consists of a group of very well-researched and supported hypotheses that are interrelated.There are so many diverse and independent lines of investigation supporting these related hypotheses that form the theory that we can rely on the theory to help guide our understanding of all related topics.In the nonscience vernacular,the word theory usually refers to an untested explanation.
Q3) A direct and repeatable observation of any aspect of the natural world can be considered a scientific ________.
Answer: fact
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Page 3
Chapter 2: Chemistry of Life
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Q1) The class of macromolecules that do NOT form true polymers are the ________. Answer: lipids
Q2) exhibit various levels of structure
A)lipids
B)carbohydrates
C)nucleic acids
D)proteins
Answer: D
Q3) In the chemical reaction that forms hydrogen peroxide (H O ),hydrogen and oxygen share electrons creating ________ bonds between the two atoms.
A)covalent
B)peptide
C)hydrogen
D)ionic
Answer: A
Q4) An instrument that identifies chemicals based upon their weights is the ________. Answer: mass spectrometer
Q5) ________ molecules are nonpolar molecules that are repelled by water. Answer: Hydrophobic
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Chapter 3: Life Is Cellular
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Sample Questions
Q1) Ribosomes are very small nonmembranous organelles that can either exist freely in the cytoplasm or be embedded in the endoplasmic reticulum of a cell;they are associated with the synthesis of A)lipids.
B)proteins.
C)nucleic acids.
D)carbohydrates.
Answer: B
Q2) When scientists such as J.C.Venter and Daniel Gibson engineer a cell constructed with synthetic DNA in the laboratory,do they challenge accepted cell theory? If so,which part of cell theory do they challenge? Briefly explain your answer.
Answer: The engineering of such a cell is a challenge to the "all cells arise from preexisting cells" portion of the cell theory because a new cell has been generated without dividing a preexisting cell into two new cells.OR: The process does not challenge cell theory because the DNA is actually a copy of a preexisting cell's DNA,and therefore it actually does arise from a preexisting cell.
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Chapter 4: How Cells Work
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Sample Questions
Q1) The energy carriers NADPH and NADH differ structurally.Functionally they
A)are quite similar;each is produced in catabolic pathways and is used in anabolic pathways.
B)are quite similar;each is produced in anabolic pathways and is used in catabolic pathways.
C)are somewhat different;NADPH is produced from catabolic processes,whereas NADH is used in anabolic processes.
D)are somewhat different;NADH is produced from catabolic processes,whereas NADPH is used in anabolic processes.
Q2) In the reaction C H O + 6 O 6 CO + 6 H O,the 6 CO molecules are some of the A)substrates.
B)products.
C)enzymes.
D)reactants
Q3) A mutation in a plant cell produces rubisco enzymes,which can only bind O (and not CO ).What would be the outcome of this mutation?
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Chapter 5: Cell Division
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Sample Questions
Q1) All of the following contribute to genetic uniqueness EXCEPT
A)binary fission.
B)independent assortment.
C)crossing over.
D)random fertilization.
Q2) Cells spend the bulk of their time in the ________ phase of the cell cycle.
Q3) The goal of meiosis is to
A)create genetically identical offspring.
B)protect cells from getting cancer.
C)produce eggs and sperm.
D)regulate progression through the cell cycle.
Q4) Which of the following is true of the chromosomes in a homologous pair?
A)They both came from the organism's mother.
B)They both came from the organism's father.
C)They do not join together during meiosis.
D)They carry the same genes.
Q5) The goal of ________ is to increase genetic diversity by creating a new diploid individual from haploid cells.
Q6) Sister chromatids are held together at a constriction point called a ________.
Page 7
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Chapter 6: Patterns of Inheritance
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Sample Questions
Q1) Consider a gene with two alleles that show complete dominance.When two heterozygotes for this gene breed,they have a 25 percent chance of producing a homozygous recessive offspring.The next time these two individuals breed,what are the chances that they will once again have a homozygous recessive progeny?
A)0 percent
B)25 percent
C)50 percent
D)75 percent
Q2) Suppose D were dominant and d were recessive,and you could label the D allele in the P generation with a radioactive substance that could be inherited over several generations.You create hybrids by mating your radioactive DD individuals to dd individuals.Finally,you cross two F1 individuals (with the Dd genotype).In 1,000 offspring,how many would you predict would be radioactive?
A)250
B)500
C)750
D)1,000
Q3) Is it possible for two organisms with the same genotype to have different phenotypes? Explain your answer.
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Page 8
Chapter 7: Chromosomes and Human Genetics
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Sample Questions
Q1) A parent who is a carrier for the recessive autosomal disorder B has the genotype
Q2) A karyotype shows a chromosomal abnormality that does not change the length of any of the chromosomes.Which abnormality is indicated?
A)inversion
B)deletion
C)translocation
D)duplication
Q3) Which of the following statements would indicate a pedigree that shows the inheritance pattern of a recessive X-linked disease?
A)Most affected individuals are females.
B)Most affected individuals are males.
C)Males and females are affected equally.
D)The disease is seen in every generation.
Q4) Except for the sex chromosomes,all the chromosomes shown in a karyotype are numbered and are called ________.
Q5) Human males have one chromosome that females do not,known as the ________ chromosome.
Q6) An allele that "hides" in heterozygous carriers is called a ________ allele.
Page 9
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Chapter 8: What Genes Are
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Q1) When looking at a single-stranded piece of DNA, A)G will always be next to C.
B)G will always be next to G.
C)G will sometimes be next to T.
D)G will never be next to A.
Q2) DNA fingerprinting is based on regions of DNA that are variable between individuals.Many of these differences between individuals produce no change in phenotype.This type of mutation is a(n) A)deletion.
B)insertion.
C)silent mutation.
D)substitution mutation.
Q3) In the first step of the polymerase chain reaction (PCR),the two strands of the DNA being amplified must be separated by exposing the DNA to high ________.
Q4) DNA polymerase is used in the laboratory to A)perform gel electrophoresis procedures. B)cure patients of certain genetic diseases.
C)make many copies of a DNA sequence. D)attach DNA fragments to each other.
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Chapter 9: How Genes Work
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Sample Questions
Q1) In bacteria,the antibiotic erythromycin prevents ribosomes from functioning.The most likely reason that bacteria die from treatment with erythromycin is because the antibiotic
A)inhibits transcription.
B)inhibits translation.
C)causes the wrong bases to be added to the growing mRNA strand.
D)causes the wrong amino acids to be bound to the tRNA strands.
Q2) Protein coding genes specify the production of ________ as their immediate product.
A)rRNA
B)tRNA
C)DNA
D)mRNA
Q3) If a molecule of mRNA is a sentence,its bases are the letters and the codons are the ________.
Q4) RNA polymerase binds to the promoter more easily.
A)Transcription is up-regulated
B)Transcription is down-regulated
C)Translation is up-regulated
D)Translation is down-regulated
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Chapter 10: Evidence for Evolution
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Q1) The human and chimpanzee insulin genes are 98 percent similar.
A)comparative embryology
B)fossil evidence
C)comparative anatomy
D)comparative DNA
E)biogeographic evidence
Q2) Cultivation of corn over thousands of years has resulted in a modern corncob that looks very different from the tiny ancestral cob.Does this support the concept of evolution?
A)No.The change in corn was accidental and does not demonstrate the process of evolution.
B)Yes.The change in corn is an example of natural selection and demonstrates the process of evolution.
C)No.Artificial selection is driven by humans rather than natural selection and does not demonstrate what occurs in the wild.
D)Yes.Artificial selection demonstrates that evolution can occur,even though the driving force was humans rather than natural selection.
Q3) Explain how an intermediate fossil can provide evidence for the lineage of current species.
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Page 12
Chapter 11: Mechanisms of Evolution
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Q1) Jean-Baptiste Lamark proposed that populations evolve when traits acquired during the lifetime of a parent are passed down to offspring.What is wrong with this proposal?
A)Only changes in the DNA sequence of an organism can be inherited.Traits acquired throughout life generally do not involve DNA.
B)The environment chooses which traits are necessary for survival rather than the individual.
C)Changes in a species occur at the individual level rather than at the population level.
D)The inheritance of acquired traits would not lead to speciation because it would cause all of the individuals in a population to become more similar.
Q2) A friend states,"Exposing bacteria to antibiotics causes the cells to mutate to become antibiotic resistant." Explain to your friend why he is incorrect and provide the correct explanation.
Q3) Evaluate the accuracy of the following statement: The natural selection of a prey species can be altered if a new predator is introduced.Explain how you reached your conclusion.
Q4) Compare and contrast bottleneck and founder effect.
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Page 13
Chapter 12: Adaptation and Species
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Sample Questions
Q1) In many predator-prey relationships,evolutionary change in the prey will result in evolutionary change in the predator,a phenomenon known as A)polyploidy.
B)allopatrism.
C)coevolution.
D)sympatric speciation.
Q2) Which of the following organisms would best be identified as a species using the biological species concept?
A)a population of mice living on a mountaintop where the nearest population of mice is 50 miles away
B)a bacteria found living in the human gut with thousands of other bacteria
C)dinosaurs identified by morphologically similar fossil remains located in a single valley in South America
D)a rare plant living in a remote location in Peru that reproduces asexually
Q3) Individuals of the same species generally
A)experience prezygotic barriers to reproduction.
B)do not interbreed extensively.
C)share many common physical and behavioral characteristics.
D)vary only very slightly in appearance.
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Page 14
Chapter 13: The History of Life
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Q1) About 540 mya,there was an astonishing burst of evolutionary activity that correlated to the first appearance in the fossil record of most of the major living animal groups.Popularly known as the ________,this geologic time changed the face of life on Earth.
Q2) How was the distribution of humans (after they evolved)affected by continental drift?
A)The supercontinent of Pangaea had not yet split up before humans evolved.This made it very easy for humans to travel over the entire landmass of Earth.
B)The supercontinent of Pangaea had already begun to split up,but the continents were still very close together making it pretty easy for humans to travel from one continent to another.
C)The supercontinent of Pangaea had not yet split up before humans evolved.This had little impact on the distribution of humans because they did not travel until the 1400s.
D)The supercontinent of Pangaea split apart and the resulting continents were pretty much in their present day locations by the time modern humans evolved.This would have slowed the distribution of humans until they developed ways of easily traversing the oceans.
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Page 15
Chapter 14: Human Evolution
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Sample Questions
Q1) The first vertebrates to evolve lacked jaws and had skeletons made from a strong flexible tissue called cartilage.The lamprey is a modern example of this ancient group of vertebrates known as A)amphibians.
B)reptiles.
C)bony fishes.
D)jawless fishes.
Q2) Eggs provide
A)both nuclear and mitochondrial DNA to the offspring cell.
B)only nuclear DNA to the offspring cell.
C)only mitochondrial DNA to the offspring cell.
D)no DNA to the offspring cell.
Q3) Which of the following could NOT be used to describe humans?
A)eutherian
B)mammal
C)primate
D)marsupial
Q4) In the eighteenth century,a Swedish naturalist devised a system of biological classification known as ________.
Q5) All of your mitochondrial DNA was inherited from your ________.
Page 16
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Chapter 15: General Principles of Ecology
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Q1) The term biotic includes
A)all living organisms.
B)all nonliving components of the biosphere.
C)both living and nonliving components of the biosphere.
D)only those living and nonliving factors that interact with each other.
Q2) Nonliving factors in the biosphere are called ________ factors.
Q3) Climate change will affect
A)animals but not plants.
B)all organisms in the biosphere.
C)natural organisms but not humans.
D)weak organisms but not strong organisms.
Q4) An individual's home is part of his A)carbon footprint.
B)food footprint.
C)built-up land footprint.
D)goods-and-services footprint.
Q5) Scientists predict that current increases in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations will cause temperatures on Earth to rise,a phenomenon known as
Q6) Describe how burning fossil fuels can warm the planet.
Q7) Describe how a decrease in plant populations can affect the water cycle.
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Chapter 16: Growth of Populations
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Q1) A population will remain at a constant size when emigration equals immigration and A)food is not a limiting factor.
B)births equal deaths.
C)predators leave the area.
D)available space remains the same.
Q2) For most populations,irregular fluctuations in size or density
A)are less commonly experienced than the smooth J-shaped growth curve.
B)occur commonly before carrying capacity is reached.
C)are more common than the smooth J-shaped growth curve.
D)occur only when density-independent factors dominate.
Q3) The decrease in the availability of food or cover that accompanies increasing population size illustrates the concept of a(n)
A)density-dependent factor.
B)density-independent factor.
C)exponential growth factor.
D)logistic growth factor.
Q4) Use a specific example to explain how population density may change for people living in one country without any change in population size.
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Chapter 17: Communities of Organisms
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Q1) Which of the following symbols represents a mutualistic relationship?
A)+/-
B)+/+
C)o/+
D)-/-
Q2) a bird building a nest within a tree
A)mutualism
B)commensalism
C)exploitation
D)competition
Q3) A(n)________ is a single sequence of who eats whom in a community.
Q4) What statement best describes a parasitic relationship?
A)Both the parasite and the host benefit.
B)Only the parasite benefits;the host is harmed.
C)Both the parasite and the host are harmed.
D)Only the host benefits;the parasite is harmed.
Q5) ________ consumers feed on primary consumers as part or all of their diet.
Q6) The general process by which species in a community are replaced over time is called ________.
Q7) How does primary succession differ from secondary succession?
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Chapter 18: Ecosystems
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Q1) Tuna are predatory fish that consume smaller,carnivorous fish that have fed on zooplankton.The zooplankton had fed on phytoplankton.You eat tuna,you are what level of the food chain?
A)the second trophic level
B)the third trophic level
C)the fourth trophic level
D)the fifth trophic level
Q2) This biome is commonly found in both temperate and tropical latitudes.It does not receive enough moisture to support vigorous tree growth,so it is dominated by grasses and herbaceous plants.Burrowing rodents like voles and prairie dogs are common.
A)tropical forest
B)chaparral
C)boreal forest
D)tundra
E)desert
F)temperate deciduous forest
G)grassland
Q3) A group of living communities interacting with one another and their shared physical environment is a(n)________.
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Page 20
Chapter 19: Applying the Science
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Q1) Journal of the American Medical Association,a peer-reviewed scientific journal
A)primary
B)secondary
Q2) You are reading an article in National Geographic regarding the evolution of humans.This would be an example of A)primary literature.
B)secondary literature.
C)peer-reviewed scientific journal literature.
D)meta-analysis literature.
Q3) The fact that the onset of autism symptoms typically occur at about the same age children receive many of their vaccinations,including the MMR,is an example of A)an observed correlation but not necessarily evidence of a cause-and-effect relationship.
B)an observed correlation and strong evidence of a cause-and-effect relationship.
C)an observed and evidentially supported cause-and-effect relationship.
D)an observed cause-and-effect relationship but not necessarily a correlation.
Q4) What is a first step an individual should take when beginning to assess a "scientific" claim made by another person?
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