Question

Who proposed the term, “alpha”, “beta”, and “gamma” in taxonomy?
(a) Turrill
(b) Lederberg
(c) Huxley
(d) Lamarck

Answer 1

Hint: He was an English Botanist and well known for his works in the field of plant taxonomy, particularly his experimental and genetic approach to solving the problems regarding plant species.

Complete answer:
The terms Alpha, Beta, and Gamma in taxonomy were introduced by the English Botanist William Bertram Turrill and for this work, he was awarded as the Fellow of the Royal Society. These are the three levels of taxonomy to identify, classify, and study different plant species. Alpha is the basic level and considers few characters of plants only but as the classification goes further to beta and gamma levels, more features of plants are considered and it becomes easier to study each plant species in detail.
The feature used in these levels of taxonomy have been briefly given below -
-Alpha taxonomy is also called classical taxonomy and is based on the external morphological features of the plants. In this naming system the organism is identified, characterized and named in accordance with the linnaeus system of nomenclature.
-In the Beta taxonomy, internal characters like cytological, embryological, anatomical, etc. are also considered besides the external morphological features. In this taxonomy the organism is arranged in the form of a natural system of hierarchical categories. Beta taxonomy is known to search the natural system of classification.
-In Gamma taxonomy, the evolutionary characters are also considered along with all the characters that are considered in Alpha and Beta taxonomy. In this taxonomy the analysis of intraspecific variations and evolutionary traits are studied of the organism. Only very few groups of animals have classification upto gamma level otherwise the classification remains till alpha or beta level.
Lederberg was an American molecular biologist and particularly known for his work in the field of microbial genetics while Huxley was specialized in comparative anatomy and was also famous as "Darwin's Bulldog" because of his advocacy of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. Lamarck proposed the idea about the occurrence of biological evolution on the earth and he said that it occurred following the natural laws.

So, the correct answer is ‘Turrill’.

Note:
Taxonomy provides a classification which characteristics of organisms can be studied using description,keys and illustrations provided. It provides the knowledge of the diversity of organisms that lived and are currently living on the planet. Such information on the organism is recorded, stored and can be retrieved when needed.