Fossils
the preserved remains of plants and animals
fossils
Darwin developed what biological idea after studying uniformitarianism that goes against the fixity of species?
the idea that organisms with the best traits will survive and reproduce and others will die off
survival of the fittest
Fundamentally, why do evolutionists and creationists view the history of change in living things?
Evolutionissts and creationists start with different presuppositions and different worldviews.
How do creationists view mutations?
mutations either do nothing or increase the disorder of an organism, which is in accordance to the Fall
Type of fossil where the biological material is replaced with minerals. (ex. petrified wood, typical dinosaur skeletons)
mineralized fossils
False, they compete for necessary resources and only the fittest survive to reproduce
the idea that species to not change over time
fixity of species
The bone structure of a whale fin and a bat wing are very similar. evolutionists refer to these similar body parts on different organisms as
homologous structures
According to the Bible, About how old is the earth?
6,000-10,000 years based on the geneologies
a mosquito encased in hardened amber is an example of what kind of fossil
original material
What idea developed by Geologist Charles Lyell influenced Darwin due to it being the idea that the Earth's physical processes operate at the same rate in the present as in the past.
uniformitarianism
the blending of Darwin's theories of natural selection with mutations and genetics
modern synthesis
A type of absolute dating method that can only be used for "young" fossils? (thousands of years old, not millions)
Carbon-14 dating
A fossil is found above an igneous rock layer that is dated at 50 million years. What can scientists say about the age of that fossil?
it is younger than 50 million years old.
What about the pose many dinosaur skeletons are fossilized in tells us about how they were buried?
They must have been buried by rapidly moving water and sediment in order to turn their head and tails back in the direction that they were buried.
The places where evolutionary family tree branches connect represent a(n) _______ that similar organisms evolved from
common ancestor
the idea that organisms can gain new traits and pass on those traits to their offspring
theory of aquired characteristics
How does a creationist explain the existance of homolgous structures in seemingly very different organisms
a common designer could also be responsible for the homologous structures that we observe
How do creationists differentiate between the terms kinds and species
kinds refers to the orginal type of creature that can reproduce with each other that God Created.
species is a newer term referring to the most specific type of organism we can have that have the ability to change due to natural selection.different kinds don't intersect on the family tree, but different kinds of species can come from one kind
What are transitional forms and why are they a problem for the naturalist's interpretation of the fossil record?
transitional forms are types of creatures between "kinds" that should exist if they evolved slowly over time. We don't find any in the fossil record.
What are vestigial structures and can you identify a problem with using them to support the idea that we all evolved from a common ancestor?
vestigial structures are structures on an organism that seemingly no longer have a purpose and are thought to be leftover from the evolutionary process. It is problematic because often we find that structures once thought to be vestigial were discovered to actually have a purpose.
On the basis of mutations, why must evolutionists beleive that the earth is very old?
for an animal to evolve, it must have a positive mutation. mutations are random and rare, so that requires a long time, and only the mutations that get passed on to offspring survive, which requires more time, and many/most mutations do nothing or are negative so you need a lot of time for the chance of a positive mutation.
How have some people tried to harmonize evolution with the Biblical story?
They attempt to put the millions of years needed for evolution somewhere into the Bible's story.
How does the concept of Genetic load provide evidence against evolution?
genetic load means the amount of genetic variation in a population is increasing, and with that comes more mutations, resulting in an abundance of harmful mutations over time that negatively affects the population, not help it. with more random mutations, the more DNA has degraded and the less an organism is fit for survival.