ASSIGNMENT QUESTIONS SET – 1

CHAPTER – 9
HEREDITY AND EVOLUTION
1. What is heredity?
2. Name the plant on which Mendel performed his experiments?
3. Define variation?
4. Define a gene?
5. Who proposed the theory of inheritance of acquired characters.
6. State one of the evolutionary forces leading to the origin of a new species according to the
synthetic theory of evolution.
7. Give an example of a vestigial organ present in human body.
8. What is the evolutionary significance of the fossil Archaeopteryx?
9. Who proposed the double helical model of DNA? Answer: Watson and Crick.
10. Who proposed the theory of natural selection? Answer: Charles Darwin.
11. What is retro virus?
12. What is a genetically modified organism (GMO)?
13. Name any two genetic diseases.
14. Write the expanded form of DNA?
15. What are the components of chromosome?
16. What is a retrovirus?
17. What is sex chromosome?
18. How is sex determined in human beings?
19. What do you understand by evolution?
20. Define homologous organs?
21. Explain Darwin’s theory of evolution?
22. Define genetics. What is the contribution of Mendel in this branch of biology?
23. Where are the genes located? What is the chemical nature of gene?
24. During which stage of cell division can chromosome be seen? Write the features of
prokaryotic and eukaryotic chromosome.
25. Who provided the evidence of DNA as a genetic material? Write the names of components
of DNA?
26. What do you understand by the double helical structure of DNA? Who proposed this
structure?
27. Describe the different types of chromosomes.
28. How many types of nitrogenous bases are present in DNA? Name them.
29. How do embryological studies provide evidence for evolution?
30. Define evolution. And Describe the contribution of Lamarck?
31. What are homologous organs? How do they provide evidence in support of evolution?
32. Define the following terms? (i) Vestigial organs (ii) Analogous organs.
33. What are transgenic organisms? Which property of DNA is used as a tool in genetic
engineering?
34. Explain how the sex of the child is determined at the time of conception in human beings.
35. One of the examples of two analogous organs can be the wing of parrot and
a) Flippers of whale.
c) Foreleg of horse
b) Front leg of frog
d) Wing of housefly
36. Mention the ways by which variant genotypes are produced in organism?
37. In human beings blue eye colour is recessive to brown eye colour. If a brown eyed man has
a blue eyed mother then find
a) What are the possible genotypes of his father?
b) What is the genotype of the man and his mother?
38. What are fossils? Of what interest are fossils to the evolutionary biologists?
39. Who isolated DNA for the first time from pus cells?
40. Why is DNA called polynucleotide?
41. Name two purine nitrogenous bases found in a DNA molecule.
42. Who put forward the double helical model of DNA?
43. What are the three chemically essential parts of nucleotides constituting a DNA?
44. Guinea pig having black colour when crossed with guinea pig having same colour
produced 80 offspring, out of which 60 were black and 20 were white. Now,find out: (a)
What is the possible genotype of the guinea pigs?
(b) Which trait is dominant and which trait is recessive?
(c) What is this cross called as and what is its phenotypic ratio?
45. Distinguish between acquired and inherited traits giving one example of each.
46. Why did Mendel chosen pea plant for his experiments?
47. Cat’s paw, human hand and horse’s legs-are these organs homologous or analogous? Give
reason
48. Wings of bird and wings of insect-are these organs homologous or analogous? Give one
suitable season to support your answer.
49. Give one difference between eyes and eye spot. Which animal possesses eye spots?
50. Give one difference between artificial selection and natural selection.
51. What is true- humans have evolved from chimpanzees or humans and chimpanzees both
have evolved from a common ancestor?
52. What is the mechanism behind the expression of a particular trait?explain briefly.
53. What will happen to the expression of a particular trait if a gene get altered?
54. What are various ways by which genes can enter a population?
55. How will new species arise in case:
(a) Two sub-populations are separated due to a huge mountain in between them?
(b) A small population of individuals gets drifted away from the main land due to sea?
56. Only advantageous variations help in the evolution of an organism giving rise to a new
species. Explain with the help of an example.
57. A trait may be inherited, but may not be expressed." Justify this statement with the help of
a suitable example.
58. (a). What is genetics?
(b). Give the common name of plant on which Mendel performed his experiments. (c).
What for did Mendel use the term factors and what are these factors called now. (d). What
are genes? Where are the genes located?
59. 'It is a matter of chance whether a couple will give birth to a male child or a female child."
Justify this statement with the help of a flow chart showing the fusion of sex chromosomes.
60. What are homologous organs? How do they provide evidence in support of evolution?
61. Who provided the evidence of DNA as a genetic material? Write the names of components
of DNA? How many types of nitrogenous bases are present in DNA? Name them.
62. Name the two homologous structures in vertebrates. Why are they so called? How do such
organs help in understanding an evolutionary relationship?
63. Will geographical isolation be a major factor in the speciation of a self-pollination plant
species? Why or why not?
64. What are vestigial organs? Name any two vestigial organs in man and name organ which is
vestigial in man but not in birds.
65. All dead organisms do not leave their fossil records, but in some cases their fossils are
formed. How do these fossils records form a direct evidence of past happenings?
66. Evolution is a process in which simple life forms change into complex life forms by
gradual changes. But, there is a difference between chemical and organic evolution.
Differentiate by giving three points.
67. There are a number of ways by which the genes enter a population. Explain briefly the
three ways.
68. Why can the wings of a bird and the wings of a bat not be considered analogous? (Imp.)
69. How did the Mendelian 'factors' acquire a change in the terminology? Who changed it?
70. What is palaeontology? What is its importance? (Imp.)
71. The genotype of green stemmed tomato plants is denoted as GG and that of purple
stemmed tomato plants is denoted as gg. When these two are crossed with each other: (a)
What colour of stem would you expect in the F1 progeny?
(b) Give the percentage of purple stemmed plants if F1 plants are self pollinated.
(c) In what ratio would you find the genotypes GG and gg in the progeny?
Draw flow chart in support of your answer.
72. How has the method of artificial selection by humans helped in the evolution of different
vegetables? Explain in brief giving an example.
73. (a) Write two factors which could lead to the rise of a new species.
(b) (i) What is the scientific term of the organs shown below? (ii) How do these organs
provide evidence in support of evolution?
74. (a) Name the type of sex chromosome present in human male and human female.
(b) With the help of a flow chart determine genetically in human beings the sex of the
offspring if a sperm carrying Xchromosome fertilizes the egg?
75. In pea plant round seed is dominant over the wrinkled. If a cross is carried between these
two plants, give answer to the following questions.
(a) Mention the genes for the traits of parents.
(b) State the trait of F1 hybrids.
(c) Write the ratio of F2 progeny obtained from this cross. What is the name of the cross?
[2011]
76. Give appropriate terms for the following :
(a) The trait which can express itself in next generation.
(b) The trait an organism have due to inheritance.
(c) Origin of a new species from pre-existing one.
77. If a pure tall pea plant is crossed with a pure dwarf plant, then in the first generation only
tall plants appear.
(a) What happens to the traits of the dwarf plant?
(b) In the second generation, the dwarf trait reappears. Why?
78. How was it established that genes are located on the chromosomes?
79. Clarify the terms 'haploid' and 'diploid'. What is the relation between the two terms?
80. Explain the law of segregation by taking an example.
81. If a trait A exists in 10% of a population of an asexually reproducing species and a trait B
exists in 60% of the same species, which trait is likely to have arisen earlier?
82. How does creation of variations in a species promote survival?
83. ‘Variations that confer an advantage to an individual organism only will survive in a
population.’ Justify.
84. Suggest three similarities between Mendel's 'factors' and 'chromosomes'.
85. Justify logically that many genes are present on one chromosome.
 ASSIGNMENT QUESTIONS SET – 2
CHAPTER – 9
HEREDITY AND EVOLUTION
1. Exchange of genetic material takes place in
(a) vegetative reproduction
(b) asexual reproduction
(c) sexual reproduction
(d) budding
2. Two pink coloured flowers on crossing resulted in 1 red, 2 pink and 1 white flower
progeny. The nature of the cross will be
(a) double fertilisation
(b) self pollination
(c) cross fertilisation
(d) no fertilisation
3. A cross between a tall plant (TT) and short pea plant (tt) resulted in progeny that were all
tall plants because
(a) tallness is the dominant trait
(b) shortness is the dominant trait
(c) tallness is the recessive trait
(d) height of pea plant is not governed by gene ‘T’ or ‘t’
4. Which of the following statement is incorrect?
(a) For every hormone there is a gene.
(b) For every protein there is a gene.
(c) For production of every enzyme there is a gene.
(d) For every molecule of fat there is a gene
5. If a round, green seeded pea plant (RR yy) is crossed with wrinkled, yellow seeded pea
plant, (rr YY) the seeds produced in F1 generation are
(a) round and yellow
(b) round and green
(c) wrinkled and green
(d) wrinkled and yellow
6. In human males all the chromosomes are paired perfectly except one. This/these unpaired
chromosome is/are
(i) large chromosome
(ii) small chromosome
 (iii) Y-chromosome
(iv) X-chromosome
(a) (i) and (ii) (b) (iii) only
(c) (iii) and (iv) (d) (ii) and (iv)
7. The maleness of a child is determined by
(a) the X chromosome in the zygote
(b) the Y chromosome in zygote
(c) the cytoplasm of germ cell which determines the sex
(d) sex is determined by chance
8. A zygote which has an X-chromosome inherited from the father will develop into a
(a) boy
(b) girl
(c) X- chromosome does not determine the sex of a child
(d) either boy or girl
9. Select the incorrect statement
(a) Frequency of certain genes in a population change over several generations resulting in
evolution
(b) Reduction in weight of the organism due to starvation is genetically controlled
(c) Low weight parents can have heavy weight progeny
(d) Traits which are not inherited over generations do not cause evolution
10. New species may be formed if
(i) DNA undergoes significant changes in germ cells
(ii) chromosome number changes in the gamete
(iii) there is no change in the genetic material
(iv) mating does not take place
(a) (i) and (ii) (b) (i) and (iii)
(c) (ii), (iii) and (iv) (d) (i), (ii) and (iii)
11. Two pea plants one with round green seeds (RRyy) and another with wrinkled yellow
(rrYY) seeds produce F1 progeny that have round, yellow (RrYy) seeds. When F1 plants
are selfed, the F2 progeny will have new combination of characters. Choose the new
combination from the following
(i) Round, yellow
(ii) Round, green
(iii) Wrinkled, yellow
(iv) Wrinkled, green
 (a) (i) and (ii) (b) (i) and (iv)
(c) (ii) and (iii) (d) (i) and (iii)
12. A basket of vegetables contains carrot, potato, radish and tomato. Which of them represent
the correct homologous structures?
(a) Carrot and potato
(b) Carrot and tomato
(c) Radish and carrot
(d) Radish and potato
13. Select the correct statement
(a) Tendril of a pea plant and phylloclade of Opuntia are homologous
(b) Tendril of a pea plant and phylloclade of Opuntia are analogous
(c) Wings of birds and limbs of lizards are analogous
(d) Wings of birds and wings of bat are homologous
14. If the fossil of an organism is found in the deeper layers of earth, then we can predict that
(a) the extinction of organism has occurred recently
(b) the extinction of organism has occurred thousands of years ago
(c) the fossil position in the layers of earth is not related to its time of extinction
(d) time of extinction cannot be determined
15. Which of the following statements is not true with respect to variation?
(a) All variations in a species have equal chance of survival
(b) Change in genetic composition results in variation
(c) Selection of variants by environmental factors forms the basis of evolutionary
processes.
(d) Variation is minimum in asexual reproduction
16. A trait in an organism is influenced by
(a) paternal DNA only
(b) maternal DNA only
(c) both maternal and paternal DNA
(d) neither by paternal nor by maternal DNA
17. Select the group which shares maximum number of common characters
(a) two individuals of a species
(b) two species of a genus
(c) two genera of a family
(d) two genera of two families
18. According to the evolutionary theory, formation of a new species is generally due to
 (a) sudden creation by nature
(b) accumulation of variations over several generations
(c) clones formed during asexual reproduction
(d) movement of individuals from one habitat to another
19. From the list given below, select the character which can be acquired but not inherited
(a) colour of eye
(b) colour of skin
(c) size of body
(d) nature of hair
20. The two versions of a trait (character) which are brought in by the male and female
gametes are situated on
(a) copies of the same chromosome
(b) two different chromosomes
(c) sex chromosomes
(d) any chromosome
21. Select the statements that describe characteristics of genes
(i) genes are specific sequence of bases in a DNA molecule
(ii) a gene does not code for proteins
(iii) in individuals of a given species, a specific gene is located on a particular chromosome
(iv) each chromosome has only one gene
(a) (i) and (ii) (b) (i) and (iii)
(c) (i) and (iv) (d) (ii) and (iv)
22. In peas, a pure tall plant (TT) is crossed with a short plant (tt). The ratio of pure tall plants
to short plants in F2 is
(a) 1 : 3
(b) 3 : 1
(c) 1 : 1
(d) 2 : 1
23. The number of pair (s) of sex chromosomes in the zygote of humans is
(a) one
(b) two
(c) three
(d) four
24. The theory of evolution of species by natural selection was given by
(a) Mendel (b) Darwin
 (c) Morgan (d) Lamarck
25. Some dinosaurs had feathers although they could not fly but birds have feathers that help
them to fly. In the context of evolution this means that
(a) reptiles have evolved from birds
(b) there is no evolutionary connection between reptiles and birds
(c) feathers are homologous structures in both the organisms
(d) birds have evolved from reptiles
26. State one advantage of variation of a species. [2009]
27. What is the effect of DNA copying which is not perfectly accurate on the reproduction
process? [2008]
28. What decides that humans give rise to humans? (Imp.)
29. What are hereditary characteristics?
30. Are the variations created by sexual reproduction heritable or non-heritable? (Imp.)
31. What are the components of a chromosome? (Imp.)
32. What is a retrovirus?
33. What is a sex chromosome?
34. How many chromosomes are there in a human ovum?
35. Who coined the term ‘factor’? (Imp.)
36. Give the monohybrid ratio.
37. Write the dihybrid ratio.
38. Define the term ‘speciation’.
39. What is a factor?
40. Name the most accepted theory of evolution.
41. Define the term ‘evolution’.
42. Whose theory influenced Darwin? What did Darwin fail to explain? (Imp.)
43. Define ‘recessive characteristic’.
44. What is the basis of sex determination in most plants and animals? (Imp.)
45. What are fossils? What do they tell about the process of evolution? [2008]
46. What do you understand by the term heredity? [2008]
47. What constitutes the link between one generation and the next? [2008]
48. "The sex of the children is determined by the what they inherit from their father and not
from the mother." Justify. [2008]
49. Explain the terms analogous and homologous organs with one example of each. [2008]
50. A man with blood group A marries a woman with blood group O and their daughter has
blood group O. Is this information enough to tell you which of the traits “blood group A or
O’ is dominant? Why? [2008]
51. Define variation in relation to a species. Why is variation beneficial to the species? [2008]
52. Describe briefly four ways in which individuals with a particular trait may increase in a
population. [2008]
53. What are acquired characteristics? (Imp.)
54. What is variation?
55. Why is variation less common in asexually reproducing organisms?
56. Clarify the term heredity and variation. (Imp.)
57. Define variation in relation to a species. Why is variation beneficial to the species? (Imp.)
58. What are autosomes?
59. What is the reason that a male is called 'heterogametic'? (Imp.)
60. What was the basic study material of Mendel? How did he bring in the term 'factor'?
61. Why are the traits acquired during lifetime of an individual not inherited? [2009]
62. How is the sex of a newborn determined in humans?
63. Do genetic combination of mothers play a significant role in determining the sex of a new
born?
64. Mention three important features of fossils which help in the study of evolution.
65. Why do all the gametes formed in human females have an X chromosome?
66. In human beings, the statistical probability of getting either a male or female child is 50 :
50. Give a suitable explanation.
67. A very small population of a species faces a greater threat of extinction than a larger
population. Provide a suitable genetic explanation.
68. What are homologous structures? Give an example. Is it necessary that homologous
structures always have a common ancestor?
69. Does the occurrence of diversity of animals on earth suggest their diverse ancestry also?
Discuss this point in the light of evolution.
70. Give the pair of contrasting traits of the following characters in pea plant and mention
which is dominant and recessive (i) yellow seed (ii) round seed
71. Why did Mendel choose pea plant for his experiments?
72. A woman has only daughters. Analyse the situation genetically and provide a suitable
explanation.
73. Does geographical isolation of individuals of a species lead to formation of a new species?
Provide a suitable explanation.
74. Bacteria have a simpler body plan when compared with human beings. Does it mean that
human beings are more evolved than bacteria? Provide a suitable explanation.
75. All the human races like Africans, Asians, Europeans, Americans and others might have
evolved from a common ancestor. Provide a few evidences in support of this view.
76. Differentiate between inherited and acquired characters. Give one example for each type.
77. Give reasons why acquired characters are not inherited.
78. Evolution has exhibited a greater stability of molecular structure when compared with
morphological structures. Comment on the statement and justify your opinion.
79. Give the basic features of the mechanism of inheritance.
80. Give reasons for the appearance of new combinations of characters in the F2 progeny.