"Life and Purpose" Article

Which sentence from the section “Every organism is instructed” BEST summarizes the role of the genome?

• The full set of genes necessary to pull together a self-generating and self-maintaining self is called a

  “genome.”

• A genome has the ability to express certain genes, and certain proteins, on some occasions and not

  others.

• When it’s time to copy DNA into daughter molecules, the genes controlling the DNA-copying enzymes

  are “switched on.”

• It functions continuously to instruct self-generation and self-maintenance

Which sentence from the article BEST explains why a protein is made with crevices and bumps?

• These shapes allow proteins to do two major activities.

• They combine to form the thousands of different kinds of chemical structures that make up a cell.

• That sequence defines how the protein will fold up into its functional shape.

• These mistakes produce mutant genes that make proteins with different shapes.

Which selection from the section “Every organism can evolve” BEST shows the role of mutation in how organisms evolve?

• DNA is copied with remarkable accuracy, but mistakes sometimes happen. These mistakes produce

  mutant genes that make proteins with different shapes.

• At the other extreme, it may have disastrous consequences on self-organization and self-maintenance,

  and the daughter will not survive.

• The most interesting mutations are those that generate instructions for a daughter that is somewhat

  different from its parent.

• If the ducks live in grasslands, the mutant feet might slow things down and the trait will be less likely to

  spread.

Which of the following is a MAIN idea of the article?

• Proteins are very important to the self-generation of organisms.

• The purpose of every organism is to self-generate and self-maintain.

• Passing mutations from one generation to the next is vital to the evolution of an organism.

• In an organism, the genome contains instructions for self-generation and self-maintenance.