Phylogeny and Taxonomy

Which discipline is primarily concerned with the classification and naming of organisms?

Which of the following taxonomic categories contains the fewest number of species?

In a phylogenetic tree, what does a branch point represent?

What is a polytomy in a phylogenetic tree?

Similarities in the bone structure of a bat's wing and a human's arm are an example of:

The wings of a bird and the wings of an insect are examples of:

What is the key principle behind the concept of parsimony in phylogenetic analysis?

What is a clade?

A valid clade is ________, meaning that it consists of an ancestral species and all its descendants.

Which of the following describes a paraphyletic group?

What defines a polyphyletic group?

Hair in mammals is an example of a:

What is an outgroup used for when constructing a cladogram?

What is the purpose of a transitional fossil in understanding phylogeny?

What is the goal of applying the principle of maximum likelihood in constructing phylogenetic trees?

Given a DNA sequence alignment, which phylogenetic tree is considered the most parsimonious?

In the context of molecular phylogenies, what is the significance of using DNA that codes for rRNA?

Which type of genes can arise from gene duplication within a species?

What is the key characteristic of orthologous genes?

What is the concept of the molecular clock used for?

Why are phylogenetic hypotheses constantly revised?

Which of the following is NOT one of the three domains of life?

How does horizontal gene transfer complicate the construction of phylogenetic trees?

Which of the following is a key assumption of molecular clocks?

Which process is most likely to lead to analogous structures?

A systematist is studying the evolutionary history of a group of plants. They identify a particular morphological trait that is shared by all members of the group, but also found in distantly related groups. Which term best describes this trait?

In comparing different possible phylogenetic trees, a researcher calculates the number of evolutionary changes required for each. They choose the tree that requires the fewest changes. Which principle is the researcher applying?

A gene is duplicated in a species. Over time, the two copies diverge, with one copy taking on a completely new function that benefits the organism. What is this process called?

Which of the following would be the LEAST useful when constructing a phylogeny of a group of closely related animal species?

Which is something that molecular clocks are often calibrated against?

Which of the following is an example of horizontal gene transfer?

A researcher discovers a new organism. Initial analysis shows it has a cell wall made of psuedopeptidoglycan, and lives in extreme environments. In which domain of life would this organism likely be classified?

What is the relationship between systematics and taxonomy?

A group consisting of an ancestor, but all of the ancestor's descendants are not included, is referred to as:

Which of the following best describes the usefulness of mtDNA in phylogenetics?

Which of the following characterisics is LEAST helpful for developing a phylogenetic tree?

Why is it vital to distinguish homology from analogy when inferring phylogeny?

In cladistics, what is the term for a shared derived character?

What is the relationship between shared ancestral characters and shared derived characters?

Which statement explains why systematists utilize both morphological and molecular data to infer phylogenies?

How does the concept of shared ancestry relate to the determination of homologies?

What is the significance of the arrangement of clades within larger clades?

How does the classification of organisms into groups relate to their evolutionary history?

Why is it important for a clade to be monophyletic in cladistics?

What challenge does horizontal gene transfer pose to phylogenetic analysis, and how can it affect our understanding of evolutionary relationships?

When constructing phylogenetic trees, why is it useful to use genes that code for rRNA?

Why are phylogenetic hypotheses viewed as works in progress that are subject to change?

What distinguishes orthologous genes from paralogous genes in molecular evolution?

How does the concept of parsimony guide the construction of phylogenetic trees?

An evolutionary biologist is using a molecular clock to determine when a group of related organisms diverged. To do this, what must they do?

How can transitional fossils help in understanding broad patterns of evolution?

Why is it important to differentiate between orthologous and paralogous genes when using molecular data to reconstruct phylogenetic relationships?

What key assumption is crucial for the effective use of molecular clocks in tracing evolutionary time?

Why does the study of molecular phylogenies often focus on genes that are universally distributed across many distantly related groups?

How does cladistics approach the classification of organisms?

Which statement applies when a group of animals has an ancestral species paired with some, but not all, of its descendants?

How do you determine the most parsimonious tree possible, based on DNA sequence data?

Hair on mammals, when compared to other vertebrates, is an example of a:

For constructing cladograms, it is important to find suitable outgroup species. Which species should you incorporate as an outgroup?