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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What apparently unselfish act of a bee does the author describe?
(a) Bringing back pollen to help feed the whole colony.
(b) Evacuating immature bees from an endangered hive.
(c) Fighting off predators who are near the queen.
(d) Losing its life to sting an intruder.

2. What behavior does the author cite about how elephant seals relate to rivals?
(a) Elephant seals group together to attack the strongest rival.
(b) Elephant seals wait for the strongest rival to die or become too old.
(c) Elephant seals steal mates away from the strongest rival.
(d) Elephant seals kill increasingly difficult rivals until they are killed.

3. What is a "war of attrition" based on in ESS?
(a) How many possible routes there are to a particular goal.
(b) How much time and energy a goal is worth.
(c) The amount of will and effort it takes to achieve a goal.
(d) How often a goal will be abandoned.

4. When a cell creates a sperm cell or egg cell with reduced DNA, what is the process called?
(a) Alleles.
(b) Mitosis.
(c) Plasmosis.
(d) Meiosis.

5. What does the author suggest might be better wording than "survival of the fittest"?
(a) Survival of the most reliable.
(b) Survival of the most adaptable.
(c) Survival of the best.
(d) Survival of the stable.

Short Answer Questions

1. What almost always happens when copies of things are made, according to Dawkins?

2. How does Dawkins define communication?

3. What would competition between early self-copying molecules be over?

4. In Dawkins' examine of ESS simulations, what two kinds of creatures are there?

5. In Dawkins' description, how does a bully behave?

Short Essay Questions

1. According to Dawkins, what happened to self-copying molecules that were less successful?

2. Why doesn't Dawkins find it statistically remarkable that an early molecule would arise that would copy itself?

3. What does Dawkins have to say about the phrase "to ensure the survival of the species?"

4. Describe the results of the intruder retreat experiment done by Niko Tinbergen.

5. What results in variety in Dawkins' view of early self-copying molecules?

6. Explain what a prober-retaliator is.

7. What does Dawkins say that the book will tell about the argument of nature versus nurture?

8. What is a cistron?

9. What does Dawkins say would happen if a selfish member of a species were born into a species of unselfish members?

10. What does Dawkins say would be a natural extension of valuing one's own species more than other species?

(see the answer keys)

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