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7th Grade Evolution
Evolution Questions & Definitions
Question | Answer |
---|---|
adaptation | a characteristic that helps an organism survive and reproduce in its environment |
species | a group of organisms that can mate with one another to produce fertile offspring |
evolution | the process by which populations accumulate inherited changes over time |
fossil | solidified remains or imprints of a once-living organism |
fossil record | fossils that provide a historical sequence of life |
vestigial structure | the remnant of a once-useful anatomical structure |
trait | a quality that can be passed on from 1 generation to another |
selective breeding | breeding of organisms that have a certain desired trait |
natural selection | process by which organisms with favorable traits survive and reproduce at a higher rate thatn organisms without the favorable traits |
generation time | period between the birth of 1 generation and the birth of the next generation |
extinct | a species of organism that has died out completely |
What are the 4 geological time eras? | Precambrian Time, Paleozoic Era, Mesozoic Era, and the Cenozoic Era |
What are the 3 ways you can compare organisms? | skeletal structures, DNA and the embyonic structures |
Who made observations that later became the foundations for his theory of evolution by natural selection? | Charles Darwin |
What are the 4 steps to Natural Selection? | Overproduction, Genetic Variation, Struggle to Survive, and Successful Reproduction |
What are the 3 steps to the formation of a new species? | seperation, adaptation, and division |
relative dating | ordering fossils to estimate their age |
absolute dating | the method of measuring the ratio of unstable atoms to stable atoms, which help determine the approximate age of a fossil |
geologic time scale | the calendar scientists use to outline the history of life on earth |
Pangaea | a single large landmass of the earth |
How old is our earth? | 4.6 Billion years old |
What is your geologic time address? | Phanerozoic, cenozoic, quaternary, holocene |
Naturalist | Is a person who studies plants and animals by observing. |
Variation | Is a slight difference in an inherited trail of individual members of a species. |
Camouflage | Wants to not be seen, blends in with environment |
Mimicry | Wants to be seen, resemblance of one species to another species. |
Comparative anatomy | The study of similarities and differences among structures of living species. |
Homologous structures | Body parts of organisms that are similar in structure and position but different in function. |
analogous structures | Body parts that perform a similar function but differ in structure. |
Vestigial structures | body parts that have lost their original function through evolution. |
Embryology | The science of the development of embryos from fertilization to birth. |
When compared with other fossils, what structure indicates the ancestor of whales used to walk on land? | Vestigial pelvic bones |
What causes variations to arise in a population? | random mutations in genes. |
What method can scientists use to determine when a fossil appeared on earth? | relative-age dating |