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Evolution chapter 7
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Adaptation | a characteristic that improves an individual’s ability to survive and reproduce in a particular environment |
| Species | a group of organisms that are closely related and can mate to produce fertile offspring |
| Evolution | the process in which inherited characteristics within a population change over generations such that new species sometimes arise |
| Fossil | the remains or physical evidence of an organism preserved by geological processes |
| Fossil record | a historic sequence of life indicated by fossils found in layers of the Earth’s crust |
| Trait | a genetically determined characteristic |
| Selective breeding | the human practice of breeding animals or plants that have desired characteristics |
| Natural selection | the process by which organisms that are better adapted to their environment survive and reproduce more successfully than less well adapted individuals do; a theory to explain the mechanics of evolution |
| Generation time | the period of time between the birth of one generation and the birth of the next generation |
| Speciation | the formation of new species as a result of evolution |
| Homologous structures | anatomical features that have similar evolutionary origins and exhibit similar anatomical patterns |