Exploring Evolution's Great Transformations

What does evolution teach us about our connection to other forms of life?

• It shows we are fundamentally different.

• It suggests we have no relation to other animals.

• It highlights our unique position as humans.

• It reveals our deep connections to all living things.

How much of Earth's history was dominated by microbes before complex animal life appeared?

• The last hundredth of a second of the Earth's history hour.

• The first 10 minutes of the Earth's history hour.

• The first 50 minutes of the Earth's history hour.

• The last 10 minutes of the Earth's history hour.

What was a significant discovery about whale evolution?

• Whales have always been marine animals.

• Whales evolved from land mammals.

• Whales are not mammals.

• Whales have no connection to terrestrial animals.

How did whales adapt their nostrils for life in water?

• By closing their nostrils permanently.

• By moving nostrils to the top of the head.

• By reducing the size of their nostrils.

• By developing gills.

What was the key to understanding whale evolution?

• The discovery of their ability to live on land and sea.

• Finding fossils of whales with legs.

• The realization that whales were once insects.

• The discovery that whales have always been mammals.

What was the significance of the transition from water to land by early tetrapods?

• It was a crucial step in the evolution of vertebrates.

• It led to the development of aquatic life.

• It had little impact on the course of evolution.

• It marked the beginning of the Cambrian explosion.

What was the initial habitat of the earliest tetrapods according to recent discoveries?

• Open oceans

• Freshwater streams

• Forests

• Deserts

What does the Cambrian explosion refer to?

• A volcanic event that shaped Earth's geography.

• A sudden increase in the diversity of complex life forms.

• The appearance of the first single-celled organisms.

• The extinction of dinosaurs.

What was a groundbreaking discovery about the genetic basis of animal body plans?

• Each species has a unique set of body plan genes.

• Body plans are determined by environmental factors.

• A universal set of genes shapes the body plans of all animals.

• Body plans are randomly determined.

What did the discovery of the gene 'eyeless' in fruit flies demonstrate?

• The gene has no impact on eye development.

• Similar genes control eye development across different species.

• The gene is unique to fruit flies.

• Fruit flies can develop eyes in the absence of this gene.