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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

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

2. What molecules does Dawkins say existed in ancient seas and formed amino acids?

3. What does ESS stand for?

4. Which cells in an organism contain the creature's DNA?

5. How does Dawkins characterize the natural world in his discussion of selfishness?

Short Essay Questions

1. What happens to genes in sexual reproduction?

2. Explain what a prober-retaliator is.

3. How do animals become active and quicker than plants?

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

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

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

7. Describe "crossing over."

8. In ESS simulations, what happens when a hawk enters a stable group of doves?

9. What examples does Dawkins give of humanity's valuation of its own species?

10. What two ways does Dawkins picture that the first self-copying molecule might copy itself?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss Dawkins' ideas about communication as presented in The Selfish Gene.

1) How does Dawkins define communication?

2) What is the role of lying in the natural world and in survival? How does lying relate to Dawkins' ideas in The Selfish Gene?

3) What altruistic roles does communication play? What selfish roles can communication play in the natural world? How does Dawkins refute ideas that communication is essentially altruistic and functions for the good of the species?

Essay Topic 2

The opposite of selfishness is altruism, and Dawkins argues that many seemingly altruistic behaviors actually originate with the selfishness of genes. Discuss altruism in Dawkins' book.

1) What altruistic behaviors does Dawkins attribute to selfish genes? How convincing are his arguments?

2) What is "altruism"? Is there such a thing as true "altruism?"

3) How can altruism function for the good of the individual or for the good of the individual's genes?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the idea of stability in natural systems.

1) What is ESS, and why is it valuable to scientists who are studying natural systems?

2) Why does nature tend toward stable systems? What causes this rule to be true?

3) How does stability affect evolution? What is its relationship to competition?

(see the answer keys)

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