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Evolution Terms
Vocabulary Associated with Evolution Unit
Term | Definition |
---|---|
Evolution | Change of populations over time, especially from simple to more complex |
Related to | Being connected to a family, group, or individual |
Descended from | To come down from another generation, to be a direct blood relative |
Fossil | The preserved remains or impression of a prehistoric organism |
Natural Selection | The process where organisms better adapted to their environment survive and reproduce passing on those adaptations to the next generation |
Artificial Selection | The process where humans choose what traits get passed down to the next generation |
Cladogram | A branching diagram showing the relationship of a number of different species |
Speciation | The formation of a new species through the course of evolution |
Gene Pool | The total of alleles or genes in a population |
Homologous Structures | When different organisms have bones or organs that have very similar form and function |
Analogous Structures | Different animals have structures with the same function but no underlying common form |
Vestigial Structure | A structure present in an organism that no longer has a purpose or function |
Competition | Fighting over resources such as food, shelter, or mates. |
Embryo | unborn developing organism |
geographic isloation | When a population is separated by some form of geography from the rest of their species. |
genetic drift | a variation of the allele frequency in a small population |
Adaptive Radiation | The diversification of a group of organisms into different forms filling different ecological niches |