Development of the theory of evolution
The phenomena whereby certain traits give an advantage to an organism in a certain environment and those traits are therefore passed on to the next generation.
What is natural selection?
The collection of ancient mostly extinct organisms that inform our thinking about evolution.
What is the fossil record?
The process by which different species evolve similar traits.
What is convergent evolution?
A trait that varies in a population. (Ex height in humans).
What is natural variation?
An example is how female birds often choose mates that very colorful.
What is sexual selection?
The idea that new types of organisms come from preexisting ones.
What is the theory of evolution?
This is a fossil's age compared to other fossils
What is relative age?
The process by which a species can evolve different traits to occupy different enviornments.
What is divergent evolution?
Mutation, recombination, random mating
What are the main causes of genetic variation in a population?
An example would a restriction on the natural variation of a species size. For example if a fish is too small it gets eaten and if it's too big it will be unable to hide from predators in the rocks.
What is stabilizing selection?
Layers of rock where fossils are found in chronological order.
What are strata?
Radiocarbon dating is an example that allows you to determine this.
What is the absolute age?
The selective breeding of organisms to create traits that people like
What is artificial selection?
The number of times a specific copy of gene appears in a given population.
What is allelic frequency?
An example would two drastically different colored individuals in a population. For example oysters one that is dark that can hide in dark rocks and another that is white that can hide in white sand.
What is disruptive selection?
He proposed that organisms could acquire new traits during their lifetimes and then pass those new traits on to their offspring.
Who was Lamarck?
The study of the locations of organisms around the world
What is biogeography?
The process by which traits are increased in a wild population as a result of being better adapted.
What is natural selection?
The number of times a specific trait appears in a population.
What is phenotypic frequency?
When the natural variation in a population is limited. For example all the palm trees in specific area grow very tall to escape from being eaten by grazing animals.
What is directional selection?
Proposed that natural variation in populations are then acted upon by natural forces in the environment to pick the ones that are the most adapted to that environment.
Who was Darwin?
Anatomical structures that appear in multiple organisms as a result of heredity.
What are homologous structures.
One example is the evolution of flowers the insects which pollinate them.
What is coevolution?
The conditions that need to be met for a population to be genetically stable or not undergoing evolution.
What is a Hardy Weinberg genetic equilibrium?
When specific factors or traits influence how a species chooses its mates.
What is non-random mating?