a3.2 classification and cladistics

Question 1

what is classification used to study

Answer 1

evolutionary relationships

Question 2

what is the basic assumption

Answer 2

all life on earth shares a common ancestor

Question 3

3 features of a cladogram

Answer 3

1. root
2. terminal branch
3. node

Question 4

what does each branch point or node represent

Answer 4

hypothetical common ancestor

Question 5

what does the branches above a node represent

Answer 5

a clade

Question 6

molecular clock

Answer 6

give estimates of mutation rates

Question 7

factors that affect mutation rates [3]

Answer 7

1. length of the generation time
2. size of a population
3. intensity of selective pressure

Question 8

what is used as the basis for constructing cladograms

Answer 8

base sequences of genes or amino acid sequences of proteins