click below
click below
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Science vocab.
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Natural Selection | The process by which individuals are better adapted to their environment and are more likly to survive and reproduce. |
| Variation | Any difference between individuals of the same species. |
| Half-Life | The time it takes for half of the atoms in a sample to decay. |
| Scientific Theory | A well tested concept that explains a wide range of observation. |
| Puncthated equilioria | The theory that species evolve quickly during short bursts of time. |
| Fossil record | Documentation of the millions of fossils scientists have collected over time. |
| Radioactive elements | Unstable elements that decay or break down into different elements. |
| Homologous Structures | Similar structures that related species have inherited from common ancestors. |
| Mold | A hollow space left where the fossil has decayed or dissolved. |
| Relative dating | A process comparing the age of two fossils by their placement in teh layers of sedimentery rock layers. |
| Evolution | Gradual changes in a species over time. |
| Petrified fossils | Fossils that are buried in sediments and acually changed to rock. |
| Adaption | A trait that helps an organism survive and reproduce. |
| Gradulism | The theory that evolution occurs slowly but steadly. |
| Branching Tree | A diagram that shows how scientists think diffenrent groups of organisms are related. |
| Radioactive dating | A process that tests the radioactive materials within a fossil to tell its acual age (also known as absolute dating). |
| Fossil | Preserved remains of an organism that lived in the past. |
| Extinction | When no member of the species is still alive. |
| Cast | A copy of the shape of the organism its made from. |
| Competetion | This is a factor in Natural Selection as organisms attempt to survive using the same limited resources (food, shelter, mates...). |
| Homologous Sturctures | evidence that related species had a common ancestor because Of the way their bodies are anatomically constructed in similar ways. (dolphin flipper, bird wing, dog leg) |
| OverProduction | This factor in Natural Selection happens when there are more offspringthat can possibly survive on the given resources. |
| Species | A group of organisms that can mate together and produce fertile offspring. |