Lesson test: The limits of the theory

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The limits of the theory

1.[3p]
Which of these does the theory not claim?

Select all that apply

That life had a particular origin

Correct

That evolution tends towards greater complexity

Correct

That organisms are optimally designed

Correct

That allele frequencies change from one generation to the next

The answer is: That life had a particular origin, That evolution tends towards greater complexity, That organisms are optimally designed

2.[3p]
What does the inverted vertebrate retina illustrate?

Selection modifies an inherited arrangement rather than replacing it, even when the arrangement is awkward

Correct

That eyes are poorly adapted for seeing

The answer is: Selection modifies an inherited arrangement rather than replacing it, even when the arrangement is awkward

That cephalopods are more highly evolved than vertebrates

The answer is: Selection modifies an inherited arrangement rather than replacing it, even when the arrangement is awkward

That the eye could not have evolved gradually

The answer is: Selection modifies an inherited arrangement rather than replacing it, even when the arrangement is awkward

3.[3p]
What must an adaptive hypothesis do to be more than a story?

Select all that apply

Predict independent appearances in unrelated lineages facing the same circumstance

Correct

Survive a manipulation of the character with the fitness consequence measured

Correct

Show that the character's variation is heritable and predicts reproductive success

Correct

Be consistent with natural selection

The answer is: Predict independent appearances in unrelated lineages facing the same circumstance, Survive a manipulation of the character with the fitness consequence measured, Show that the character's variation is heritable and predicts reproductive success

4.[3p]
Why did Andersson's widowbird experiment include males whose tails were cut and reglued at the same length?

To separate the effect of tail length from the effect of being handled and glued

Correct

To increase the sample size

The answer is: To separate the effect of tail length from the effect of being handled and glued

To provide birds with intermediate tail lengths

The answer is: To separate the effect of tail length from the effect of being handled and glued

To test whether glue is toxic to widowbirds

The answer is: To separate the effect of tail length from the effect of being handled and glued

5.[3p]
Calling costs the caller 0.06 offspring and raises each listener by 0.05. How many full siblings must be within earshot for calling to be favoured?

CorrectNot quite: 3

6.[2p]
Haldane offered to die for eight cousins. What is $r$ between first cousins?

CorrectNot quite: 0.125

7.[3p]
Haplodiploidy is now accepted as the sufficient explanation for the repeated origin of eusociality in ants, bees and wasps.

True

The answer is: False

False

Correct

8.[3p]
Why does the tautology charge fail against the theory as a whole?

Fitness is predicted in advance from structure and circumstance, and the prediction is then checked against the count

Correct

Fitness has never actually been measured

The answer is: Fitness is predicted in advance from structure and circumstance, and the prediction is then checked against the count

Tautologies can still be useful

The answer is: Fitness is predicted in advance from structure and circumstance, and the prediction is then checked against the count

The charge was withdrawn by its author, which settles the logic

The answer is: Fitness is predicted in advance from structure and circumstance, and the prediction is then checked against the count

9.[3p]
Match each open question to what is at issue.

The unit of selection
Neutral versus selectionist
The extended synthesis
The Cambrian

whether group-level selection matters for ordinary characters
why most animal phyla appear within about 24 million years
how much molecular change is driven by selection
whether plasticity and niche construction need new theory

Show the answer

The unit of selection: whether group-level selection matters for ordinary characters Neutral versus selectionist: how much molecular change is driven by selection The extended synthesis: whether plasticity and niche construction need new theory The Cambrian: why most animal phyla appear within about 24 million years

1.[3p] Which of these does the theory not claim?

2.[3p] What does the inverted vertebrate retina illustrate?

3.[3p] What must an adaptive hypothesis do to be more than a story?

4.[3p] Why did Andersson's widowbird experiment include males whose tails were cut and reglued at the same length?

5.[3p] Calling costs the caller 0.06 offspring and raises each listener by 0.05. How many full siblings must be within earshot for calling to be favoured?

6.[2p] Haldane offered to die for eight cousins. What is r between first cousins?

7.[3p] Haplodiploidy is now accepted as the sufficient explanation for the repeated origin of eusociality in ants, bees and wasps.

8.[3p] Why does the tautology charge fail against the theory as a whole?

9.[3p] Match each open question to what is at issue.

1.[3p]
Which of these does the theory not claim?

2.[3p]
What does the inverted vertebrate retina illustrate?

3.[3p]
What must an adaptive hypothesis do to be more than a story?

4.[3p]
Why did Andersson's widowbird experiment include males whose tails were cut and reglued at the same length?

5.[3p]
Calling costs the caller 0.06 offspring and raises each listener by 0.05. How many full siblings must be within earshot for calling to be favoured?

6.[2p]
Haldane offered to die for eight cousins. What is $r$ between first cousins?

7.[3p]
Haplodiploidy is now accepted as the sufficient explanation for the repeated origin of eusociality in ants, bees and wasps.

8.[3p]
Why does the tautology charge fail against the theory as a whole?

9.[3p]
Match each open question to what is at issue.