Evidence of evolution

Which statement best explains why birds with different types of beaks were found on different islands?

• Finches on different islands ate different types of food.

• Finches on different islands had different communication

  methods

• Finches on different islands drank water from different types of

  sources

• Finches on different islands had different methods for building

  their nests.

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About 1.5 million Americans are afflicted with a disorder called Alzheimer's disease. The disease is associated with memory loss and dementia. When scientists began studying the disease, they found that Alzheimer's patients had elevated levels of aluminum in their brains. This caused some people to believe that ingesting aluminum leads to Alzheimer's. Some people quit drinking out of aluminum cans; others threw away their aluminum cookware. Later research found that certain proteins are more closely associated with Alzheimer's than the concentration of aluminum in the brain. Which of the following does this example best illustrate?

• Science is a static field that does not accept new theories.

• Science is an ever-changing field in which new evidence can invalidate existing theories.

• Science is a static field in which data are collected to fit existing theories.

• Science is an ever-changing field in which new theories are always more valid than old theories.

Which theory does this picture depict?

• the theory of evolution

• the theory of superposition

• the theory of buoyancy

• the theory of plate tectonics

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Why does evidence have to meet a specific criteria to be considered empirical?

• to ensure observations are held to a standard that is replicable and accurate

• to allow scientists the creativity in making observations to fit their hypotheses

• to allow control over the development and design of experiments by scientists

• to ensure that no observation made by a scientist is overlooked

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NGSS.MS-PS1-2

The ideas in the table represent evidence of which scientific theory?

• the cell theory

• the atomic theory

• the theory of evolution

• the theory of plate tectonics

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What must always be present in order to form a true scientific explanation?

• controlled variables

• subjective evidence

• empirical evidence

• dependent variables

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Which of the groups did NOT collect empirical evidence?

• group Y, because they controlled only one variable in their experiment to make their observations

• group X, because they did not make observations about a phenomenon found in nature

• group W, because they did not make the observations themselves or do an experiment

• group Z, because they did not do an original experiment based on an original idea

Why is empirical evidence unsuitable to prove the existence of ghosts?

• Ghosts are not a phenomena that occurs in the natural world, so they cannot be observed.

• There have not been enough observations made to make valid explanations.

• Scientists cannot agree on how to interpret the observations about ghosts.

• Technology is not advanced enough to make observations about ghosts.

One day while hiking, Maria found a rock in the wall of a canyon. In the rock, she noticed an impression of a leaf. Which answer best describes what Maria has found?

• DNA

• Fossil

• Genetic evidence

• Developmental pattern

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NGSS.MS-LS4-1

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Which of the following is correct about debates in science?

• Scientists do not always make the same observations and inferences about an experiment, so debates are an important part of determining the best explanation of an aspect of the natural world.

• Scientists always make the same observations and inferences about an experiment, so debate is not a vital part of gaining knowledge about the natural world, as it only wastes time and slows down studies.

• Scientists who have the most data collected from replicating other scientists' experiments will always win debates about a piece of scientific knowledge.

• Scientist who have the most data collected from repeating their own experiment will always win a debates about a piece of scientific knowledge.