Biology 101 SP08

Exam III
Please answer all questions on the
answer sheets provided.

04/21/08
Multiple choice questions are worth 1 pt each.
All other questions have the points indicated.
1. Which of the following is an example of unconscious selection?
a. Insecticide is sprayed on a field to kill grasshoppers, a few survive.
b. Elk are bred by a hunt club to have larger antlers.
c. All of the fish in a catfish pond are harvested.
d. Breeders mate small flowered roses together to make plants with tiny roses.
2. The DNA strand was mixed with restriction enzymes and cut at the points indicated. Place the approximate positions
of the bands on the gel. Label each band with its letter.
3. Which of the following would
insert a drug gene into a tobacco
plant
a. Agrobacterium
b. DNA Ligase
c. Transformase
d. Hybridizing probe DNA
4. Which individual in the figure to
the right is the most fit.
5. You are watching the news with your friends and the anchor of the nightly news describes a new variety of corn. The
anchor says, “Scientists removed a gene that converts sugars into starch to make sweeter corn in this new transgenic
plant”. You respond, “Hey, that may be a GMO, but that isn’t a transgenic plant.” Why might you have said that? -1
pt
6. Indicate for each whether evolution is occurring and why. 1 pt each
a)
I am interested in increasing the number of raspberry plants in my garden. I currently have one
raspberry plant. I propagate it by burying part of the stem of my raspberry plant so that it will grow
roots and add the newly rooted stem to my row of raspberries. I do this for three years, replacing plants
that don’t do well with new cuttings.
b) A population of deer live in a hollow in the mountains fenced off and maintained by a hunt club. There
are 25 deer in the population. A flood occurs in the hollow and wipes out 12 of the deer.
c) A population of voles (small mouse like mammals) lives in a northern forest. Through a bizarre quirk
of fate, each of the voles has exactly the same number of young.
Biology 101 SP08
Exam III
04/21/08
7. Gentech recently genetically modified canola plants to express a protein that triggers the trait of burning stored
fat. Organisms that eat this canola will loose fat deposits and achieve svelte physiques (i.e. skinny). Gentech
wants to grow this canola in the fields around the Murray State campus.
The concern is that even though a local dairy farm is two fields from the experimental canola crop, the dairy
cows may somehow be exposed to the protein produced by the transgenic canola. We want our cows fat
and happy, skinny cows don’t make much milk.
Draw and clearly label all parts of a model or diagram that shows how this could happen. Be certain to
include both the organisms and the biological processes involved. Also make sure that the location of the
gene is clearly indicated at each step. The canola is not directly fed to the cows or accidentally mixed with
their food. – 3 pts
8. We are conducting research on selection of dandelions growing in Murray golf courses. As part of our research
we collected the data in the table below. Answer the following questions to determine which traits influenced
the fitness of dandelions.
Plant ID label
A
B
C
D
E
F
# of offspring
2
3
8
6
5
3
Flower length
(cm)
0.02
0.35
0.05
0.98
0.38
0.88
Plant biomass
(gm)
9.49
6.55
6.89
3.05
12.21
0.98
Number of days to
flower
48
53
28
35
41
50
a) Plot the relationships between fitness and the three other traits. Label the dependent and independent
axes of the graph. – 3pts
b) Use evidence in the graph you created above to answer the research question, “What trait influenced the
fitness of dandelions?”. – 2pts
c) Predict a likely selective agent on the dandelions. Describe how this selective agent would alter the
allele frequency of the trait identified in question a above. – 2pts
d) What kind of selection is occurring in the population – 1 pt
a) Directional selection
b) Disruptive selection
c) Stabilizing selection
9. Avida-ED was run with the default population
size and all of the functions selected for 2000
generations under three mutation rates. 5 runs
were performed under each set of conditions.
The results of the experiment are shown at
right.
Explain why you think…
a) “oro” never evolved under 0% mutation. -1 pt
b) “oro” never evolved under 10% mutation. -1 pt
Figure 3. The effect of mutation rate on the evolution of “oro” in
Avida-ED. * indicates that “oro” never evolved. Some
populations died out prior to 2000 generations under 10%
mutation rate.
Biology 101 SP08
Exam III
04/21/08