Which piece of evidence would best support the argument for kin selection as a mechanism for the evolution of altruistic behavior?

Question

• a hippo stops a crocodile from eating an antelope
• a clown fish helps clean parasites off of a sea anemone
• a penguin protects its chick from seagulls
• an antelope gets separated from the herd and killed by predators

Answer 1

The piece of evidence that would best support the argument for kin selection as a mechanism for the evolution of altruistic behavior is:

• a penguin protects its chick from seagulls

This example illustrates kin selection because the penguin is exhibiting altruistic behavior (protecting its offspring) that increases the likelihood of survival for its genetic relatives (the chick). Kin selection theory suggests that individuals are more likely to engage in altruistic behaviors toward close relatives, as doing so helps to ensure the survival and reproduction of shared genes.

Answer 2

Which of the following pieces of evidence would be considered the most reliable and valid?
• data reported by a world-renowned expert that cannot be reproduced in a different lab
• data collected from a controlled experiment that has been reproduced in several different labs
• data collected from a thousand individuals that cannot be reproduced under different circumstances
• data from a single observation of an event that has not been witnessed again

Answer 3

The most reliable and valid piece of evidence among the options provided would be:

• data collected from a controlled experiment that has been reproduced in several different labs

This choice is the most robust because it involves controlled experimental conditions, which help establish causality, and its reproduction in multiple labs indicates that the results are reliable and not due to random chance or specific conditions in a single experiment. Reproducibility is a cornerstone of scientific validity, making this evidence the most trustworthy among the given options.