Chapter 01
An Introduction to BiologyMultiple Choice Questions
1. The simplest structure shared among all living organisms is the
A. gut.
B. cell.
C. photosynthetic chloroplast.
D. community.
E. nucleus.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
2. Which of the following is likely NOT a common feature shared among all living organisms?
A. All living organisms use energy.
B. All living organisms maintain organization.
C. All living organisms have evolved over the course of many generations.
D. All living organisms maintain some level of homeostasis.
E. All living organisms are composed of similar structures.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
3. All living organisms respond and adjust to their environments. The process through which this occurs is called
A. photosynthesis.
B. metabolism.
C. adaptation.
D. growth and development.
E. genomics.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
4. The process by which organisms maintain a stable internal environment in the face of a fluctuating external environment is called
A. metabolism.
B. cellular respiration.
C. growth and development.
D. homeostasis.
E. functional proteomics and genomics.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
5. Polypeptides (proteins) are composed of amino acids as ________ are composed of DNA.
A. genes
B. RNA
C. proteomes
D. lipids
E. metabolites
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
6. We maintain a fairly constant body temperature despite exposures to different seasons or external temperatures. This is achieved through our capacity to
A. adapt to changing environments.
B. regulate body temperature.
C. maintain homeostasis.
D. All of these choices are correct.
E. None of these choices are correct.
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
7. All of the chemical reactions used to break down nutrients and build up components within the body are collectively known as
A. anabolism.
B. catabolism.
C. metabolism.
D. proteolysis.
E. hydrolysis.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
8. Which level of organization includes all others?
A. cell
B. tissue
C. organ
D. organism
E. population
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
9. Which level of organization is required for all others to form?
A. cell
B. tissue
C. organ
D. organism
E. population
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
10. When cells associate with each other they form
A. atoms.
B. molecules.
C. macromolecules.
D. tissues.
E. populations.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
11. When communities of organisms interact with their physical environment they form a(n)
A. population.
B. organism.
C. community.
D. ecosystem.
E. macromolecular community.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
12. Which of the following is LEAST likely required for the digestion of a meal?
A. molecules
B. cells
C. tissues
D. organs
E. populations
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
13. Which is the simplest of all levels of organization?
A. atom
B. cell
C. organ
D. organism
E. population
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
14. Which level of organization reflects an individual composed of multiple organ systems?
A. atom
B. cell
C. organ
D. organism
E. population
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
15. Which of the following are components of molecules?
A. atoms
B. cells
C. organs
D. organisms
E. populations
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
16. Many people at a wedding ceremony represent which level of organization?
A. cell
B. organ
C. organism
D. population
E. ecosystem
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
17. A flower on a plant represents which level of organization?
A. atom
B. cell
C. organ
D. organism
E. population
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
18. The phenomenon through which populations of organisms change over several generations is termed
A. homeostasis.
B. growth and development.
C. reproduction.
D. biological evolution.
E. organization.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
19. Changes in ________ represent the predominant cause for biological evolution.
A. homeostasis
B. growth and development
C. reproduction
D. genetic makeup
E. energy
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
20. A variety of finch species within the Hawaiian Islands have acquired different types of beaks needed for utilizing specific food resources. The process by which these different species of finches came about is likely to have involved
A. natural selection.
B. evolution.
C. an accumulation of harmful genetic mutations.
D. both natural selection and evolution.
E. None of these choices are correct.
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
21. Which of the following is TRUE of a genetic mutation?
A. It always produces harmful effects.
B. It never affects protein structure or function.
C. It is not a mechanism through which biological evolution occurs.
D. It happens quite frequently in a population.
E. It generally produces a change in the DNA sequence of a gene.
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
22. New species evolve from pre-existing species by the accumulation of
A. metabolic events.
B. genetic mutations.
C. proteomes.
D. reproductive events.
E. developmental events.
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
23. Evolutionary change
A. occurs through the modification of characteristics in a preexisting population.
B. may involve vertical descent with mutation.
C. may involve horizontal gene transfer.
D. All of these choices are correct.
E. None of these choices are correct.
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
24. In the process of biological evolution, new species may evolve through exchange of genes from one species to another. This process is called
A. proteome transfer.
B. horizontal gene transfer.
C. vertical evolution.
D. vertical descent with mutation.
E. genomic sciences.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
25. The grouping or classification of species is termed
A. eukaryotism.
B. prokaryotism.
C. genus.
D. kingdom.
E. taxonomy.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
26. When grouping organisms, which classification is most general for a particular type of organism?
A. Kingdom
B. Phylum
C. Order
D. Family
E. Species
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
27. When grouping organisms, which classification is most specific for a particular type of organism?
A. Kingdom
B. Phylum
C. Order
D. Family
E. Species
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
28. Which Kingdom of organisms is most noted for its ability to carry out photosynthesis?
A. Animilia
B. Protista
C. Fungi
D. Plantae
E. Bacteria
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
29. Biologists use nomenclature or the binomial to provide each species with a unique scientific name. Our species is called Homo sapiens. The first word refers to which taxonomical grouping?
A. Kingdom
B. Phylum
C. Order
D. Genus
E. Species
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
30. When considering nomenclature for scientific names, what is the difference between the two primates, Homo sapiens and Homo erectus?
A. One is a primate but the other is not.
B. They are animals of a different kingdom.
C. They are animals of a different order.
D. They are animals of a different species.
E. They are animals of a different genus.
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
31. Which of the following is generally more complex than the others?
A. Archaea
B. Bacteria
C. Prokarya
D. Eukarya
E. microorganisms
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
32. The complete genetic composition of an organism is called its
A. proteome.
B. genome.
C. transcriptosome.
D. phenotype.
E. None of these choices are correct.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
33. Which is responsible for encoding the proteins found in a cell?
A. genome
B. proteome
C. cytoskeleton
D. evolution
E. extracellular proteins
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
34. If a scientist were studying the interaction of different proteins in the regulation of insulin secretion from a pancreatic cell, he or she would be studying
A. genomics.
B. proteomics.
C. cell biology.
D. both genomics and proteomics.
E. both proteomics and cell biology.
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Moderate
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
35. An explanation for a biological process that is substantiated by a large body of evidence is called a
A. hypothesis.
B. theory.
C. systems biology.
D. reductionism.
E. prediction.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.02
Topic: Biology as a Scientific Discipline
36. Collecting data without a specific hypothesis in mind is called
A. reductionism.
B. hypothesis testing.
C. discovery-based science.
D. theoretical.
E. All of these choices are correct.
Bloom's Level: Knowledge
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.02
Topic: Biology as a Scientific Discipline
True/False Questions
37. All tissues are composed of cells.
TRUE
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
38. The capacity to maintain a fairly constant body temperature is a homeostatic process.
TRUE
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
39. A community is composed of different populations of animals and plants.
TRUE
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
40. A defining characteristic that distinguishes prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms is the lack of cell structure in one versus the other.
Bloom's Level: Comprehension
Difficulty Level: Easy
Section: 1.01
Topic: The Properties of Life: Past and Present
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