Why Do Cave Fish Lose Their Eyes
Quiz by Nicole Garcia
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7 questions
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- Q1What ability have many cave fishes lost?the ability to seethe ability to seethe ability to swimthe ability to hear30s
- Q2To organize this text, the author divides it into sections with subheadings. What is described in the section with the subheading "Darwin Is Stumped"?Darwin's understanding of evolution and his explanation of blindness in cave fishesthe animals Darwin studied as a young man that led him to develop his theory of evolutionthe objections that have been raised to the theory of evolution developed by DarwinDarwin's daily life in the 19th century and the places where he studied blindness in cave fishes120s
- Q3An organism's genes determine which traits it inherits. What evidence in the article supports this statement?"...if you have an accident and lose a finger, your children will still be born with five fingers on each hand. If you lift weights and become a body builder, it doesn't mean your children will be born with bulging biceps. In each case, your genes haven't changed-even though your body has.""We usually think of evolution in a positive sense, that is, as a process in which species acquire new traits. But in cave fishes we have an example of regressive evolution, a process in which species lose a trait-in this case, the ability to see.""In some of these underground caves, there are fishes, crustaceans, salamanders and other organisms that have evolved to live without light. For example, more than one hundred species of cave fishes live their lives in perpetual darkness. They depend on senses other than sight to hunt, eat and reproduce. ""jean-Baptiste Lamarck...suggested that giraffes stretched their necks to reach higher leaves, and as a result their offspring were born with longer necks. The idea that cave fishes lost their eyesight because generations of fish didn't use their eyes is a Lamarckian mistake."120s
- Q4Based on the information about evolution in this text, what does the trait of blindness have on a fish living in a dark cave?The trait of blindness has positive effect; it gives the fish an evolutionary advantage.The trait of blindness has a mixed effect; it is an advantage for the fish at certain times and a disadvantage at other times.The trait of blindness has a neutral effect: it is neither an advantage nor a disadvantage.The trait of blindness has a negative effect; it gives the fish an evolutionary disadvantage.120s
- Q5What is the main idea of this text?The neutral mutation hypothesis about the blindness of cave fishes is based on the idea that the mutations that cause blindness have no effect (or a neutral effect) on the survival of a fish living in a dark cave.Many cave fishes are blind, and an experiment carried out by scientists suggests that blindness in these fishes is the result of a mutation that also improves their sense of smell.Charles Darwin was a scientist living in the 19th century who was convinced that cave fishes lost their eyesight because they did not use their eyes.There are caves deep underground where the sun never shines, and in some of these underground caves, there are fishes, crustaceans, salamanders, and other organisms that have evolved over many years to live without light.120s
- Q6The title of this text is "Why Do Cave Fish Lose Their Eyes?" Why might the author have written the title as a question?to criticize scientists for not having reached a definite answer about why cave fishes lose their eyesto encourage readers to answer the question on their own before they read the articleto prepare readers for a discussion of possible answers to this question in the articleto praise scientists for the effort they have put into understanding the cause of blindness in cave fishes120s
- Q7Choose the answer that best completes the sentence. Many species of cave fishes are blind or nearly blind. ______________, they all evolved from fishes that could see.ConsequentlyFor instanceHoweverPrimarily120s