1) Which of the following is the correct sequence of events in the origin of life?

1. Formation of protocells
2. Synthesis of organic monomers

III. Synthesis of organic polymers

1. Formation of DNA-based genetic systems

1. A) I, II, III, IV
2. B) I, III, II, IV
3. C) II, III, I, IV
4. D) II, III, IV, I

C)

Which of the following is a defining characteristic that all protocells had in common?

A) the ability to synthesize enzymes

B) a surrounding membrane or membrane-like structure

C) RNA genes

D) the ability to replicate RNA

B)

The first genetic material on Earth was probably ________.

A) DNA produced by reverse transcriptase from abiotically produced RNA

B) DNA molecules whose information was transcribed to RNA and later translated in polypeptides

C) self-replicating RNA molecules

D) oligopeptides located within protocells

C)

) In 2013, researchers constructed a vesicle with replicated RNA. Why was this significant evidence for abiotic origin of life?

A) RNA molecules could pass on information to their "daughters."

B) RNA molecules were not able to replicate.

C) RNA would be used up by protocells.

D) RNA is a stable repository.

A)

Which of the following statements suggests natural selection as a mechanism in the evolution of ribozymes?

A) Single-stranded RNA has many shapes.

B) Replication of RNA is flawless.

C) Some strands of RNA replicate less often.

D) Some strands of RNA replicate more often and with more mutations.

C)

How was early Earth from more than three billion years ago different from today's Earth? Unlike Earth today, early Earth ________.

A) had an atmosphere rich in gases released from volcanic eruptions

B) had an oxidizing atmosphere

C) experienced little high-energy radiation from the sun

D) had an atmosphere with significant quantities of ozone

A)

Which hypothesis for the abiotic formation of organic molecules suggests that early Earth's atmosphere was a neutral atmosphere?

A) The energy for this synthesis could have come from lightning and UV radiation.

B) Some evidence suggests that the early atmosphere was made up primarily of nitrogen and carbon dioxide.

C) Amino acids were found near volcanic eruption sites.

D) Organic compounds were first produced in deep-sea hydrothermal vent

B)

What is thought to be the correct sequence of these events, from earliest to most recent, in the evolution of life on Earth?

1. origin of mitochondria
2. origin of multicellular eukaryotes
3. origin of chloroplasts
4. origin of cyanobacteria
5. origin of fungal-plant symbioses

A) 4, 3, 2, 1, 5

B) 4, 1, 2, 3, 5

C) 4, 1, 3, 2, 5

D) 4, 3, 1, 5, 2

C)

Which of the following showed their greatest diversity during the Mesozoic era but were a small, less diverse group during the Paleozoic era?

A) gymnosperms

B) fungi

C) flowering plants

D) mammals

D)

Which listing of geological periods is in the correct order, from oldest to most recent?

A) Cambrian, Devonian, Permian, Cretaceous

B) Devonian, Cambrian, Permian, Cretaceous

C) Cambrian, Permian, Devonian, Cretaceous

D) Permian, Cambrian, Cretaceous, Devonian

A)

You are the lucky student of a wacky professor who develops a time machine. He asks if you will test it with him. You get in, and there is an immediate glitch—the date readout fails so that when you land, you are not sure what era you are in. Your professor begins to panic, but you see something that tells you are in the Cenozoic era. Which of the following could it be?

A) a rabbit eating a daisy

B) a water lily floating in a pond

C) masses of green ferns with dragonflies hovering above them

D) a bee pollinating a flower

A)

You are the lucky student of a wacky professor who develops a time machine. He asks if you will test it with him. You get in, and there is an immediate glitch—the date readout fails so that when you land, you are not sure what era you are in. As your time machine lands, you see an unusual landscape before you. As you open the door, you realize you cannot breathe. You quickly shut the door, realizing you are in the ________.

1. A) Archaean eon
2. B) Cambrian period
3. C) Cenozoic era

D) Mesozoic era

A)

An early consequence of the release of oxygen gas by plant and bacterial photosynthesis was to ________.

A) change the atmosphere from oxidizing to reducing

B) make it easier to maintain reduced molecules

C) cause iron in ocean water and terrestrial rocks to rust (oxidize)

D) prevent the formation of an ozone layer

C)

What is true of the Cambrian explosion?

A) There are fossils of animals in geological strata that are older than the Cambrian explosion.

B) Only the fossils of microorganisms are found in geological strata older than the Cambrian explosion.

C) The Cambrian explosion is evidence for the instantaneous creation of life on Earth.

D) The Cambrian explosion marks the appearance of filter-feeding animals in the fossil record.

A)

Which of the following characteristics are expected in the first animals to have colonized land?

I) They were probably herbivores (ate photosynthesizers).

II) Animals had four appendages.

III) Animals had the ability to resist dehydration.

IV) Animals had lobe-finned fishes as ancestors.

V) Invertebrates

1. A) III only
2. B) III and V
3. C) I, III and V
4. D) I, II, III and IV

C)

If arrows indicate locations in the column where fossils of a particular type (see key) first appear, then which core in the figure above has the most accurate arrangement of fossils?

A) core A

B) core B

C) core C

D) core D

A)