Term | Definition |
What is evolution? | A change in the frequency of alleles in a population. Fact and theory. |
Adaptation | Process of change by which an organism or species becomes better suited to its environment. |
How to find frequency of alleles? | Divide the number of one type of allele by the total number of alleles. |
Natural selection | The process by which organisms better suited to their environment produce more offspring. |
Genetic Drift | Variation in the relative frequency of different genotypes in a small population. |
Gene Flow | Transfer of alleles or genes from one population to another. (Migration) |
Mechanisms of Evolution | Genetic Drift (chance), Gene Flow (migration), Natural Selection (adaptation) |
MacroEvolution | Descent with modification: Current species are descendants from ancestral species, which were different from the current ones. |
MicroEvolution | A change in the genetic composition of a population from one generation to the next. |
Creationism | The belief that the universe and all living things originate from specific acts of divine creation. |
Evolutionary creationism | The belief that god created the first cells and the earth etc, but afterwards evolution took place. |
Georges Buffon (1707-1788) | Suggested that the earth was much older than previously believed. |
Georges Cuvier (1769-1832) | By documenting fossil discoveries, showed that extinction had occurred. |
Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1744-1829) | Suggested that living species might change over time. |
Charles Lyell (1797-1875) | Argued that geological forces had gradually shaped the earth and continue to do so. |
Charles Darwin (1809-1882) | Published "origin of species" and is world renounced for his contribution to the theory of evolution. |
Alfred Wallace (1823-1913) | Described the process of evolution by natural selection and encouraged Darwin to publish the idea. |
Darwin traveled on the ____ around the world. | HMS Beagle |
Darwin's position on the voyage was _______. | The Captains gentleman Companion. |
What were some of the observations Darwin made on the voyage that led to his book. | Resemblance of island Finch species to mainland finch species.
Resemblance of extinct species to living species in the same area. |
Beliefs previous to Darwins publishing | All organisms were put on earth by the creator at the same time.
Organisms are fixed, no additions or substitutions. Earth is 6000 years old and is unchanging. |
Beliefs following Darwins publishing | Organisms change over time. Some organisms have gone extinct. Earth is more than 6000 years old. The Geology of earth is always changing. |
Conditions of evolution by natural selection. | There is a variation for a trait. The Variation is heritable, Differential reproductive success. |
Variation for a trait | Different versions of a trait are present within a population. |
Heritability | The different versions of a trait may be passed from parent to offspring. |
Differential reproductive success. | individuals with the version of a trait most suited to reproduction in their environment generally leave more offspring than individuals with other versions of the trait. |
FItness | Reproductive success of an individual with a certain trait compared to others without the trait. |
In the 1940's penicillin was uniformly effective in killing the bacterium _______. | Staphylococcus aureus. |
Natural Selection has led to an ________ in antibiotic-resistance allele, and humans are increasingly at risk from untreatable Staphylococcus Aureus. | Increase |
Tiktaalik fossils seem to represent a transitional phase between _________ and ___________. They have gills, scales ,and fins, but like salamanders, they have arm like ______ that could support their bodies. | lobe-finned fishes, Terrestrial vertebrates, Joints. |
Anatomical Homologies | Structural similarities in organs with different functions reveal common ancestry. |
Anatomical Homologies in Embryos | Similar embryonic structures have different developmental fates. |
Vestigial Organs as Anatomical Homologies | Remnants of organs that served a function in an organisms ancestors are still present, without a function. (Coccyx and Arrector pili muscle in humans) |
Analogy: Convergent evolution | Similar environmental pressures lead to similar characteristics in organisms from different lineages. (insect wing bird wing, bat wing) |
Homology | Similarities in structure due to shared ancestry. Homologous structures can have different functions in different organisms. |
Analogy | Similarities in structure due to convergent evolution. Analogous structures evolved independently from each other in different lineages. |