Natural Selection
The ability of an organism to survive and reproduce in its environment.
What is fitness?
Random changes in DNA that introduce new alleles into a population.
What are mutations?
The frequency of the dominant allele.
What is p?
Similarities in DNA, RNA, and proteins between species provide this evidence of evolution.
What is molecular evidence?
A diagram that shows evolutionary relationships among species.
What is a cladogram?
The three requirements for natural selection to occur.
What are variation, heredity, and differential reproduction?
Movement of alleles between populations when individuals migrate and reproduce.
What is gene flow?
The equation showing that total allele frequencies equal 1.
What is p + q = 1?
Similar traits in related species inherited from a common ancestor.
What are homologous traits?
A branching point on a phylogenetic tree representing a common ancestor.
What is a node?
A change that makes an organism better suited to its environment due to natural selection.
What is an adaptation?
Random fluctuations in allele frequencies, especially in small populations.
What is genetic drift?
The equation representing genotype frequencies in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium.
What is p² + 2pq + q² = 1?
Preserved remains or impressions of ancient organisms.
What are fossils?
Speciation that occurs when populations are separated geographically.
What is allopatric speciation?
This type of selection favors individuals at both extremes of a trait.
What is disruptive selection?
When a small group forms a new population with allele frequencies different from the original population.
What is the founder effect?
The genotype frequency represented by q².
What is homozygous recessive?
A hypothesis suggesting RNA was the first genetic material before DNA.
What is the RNA World Hypothesis?
When unrelated species independently evolve similar traits due to similar environments.
What is convergent evolution?
Natural selection has no direction or end goal; it works only on traits that provide advantages in the present environment.
What is natural selection has no plan or goal?
A drastic reduction in population size that reduces genetic diversity.
What is the bottleneck effect?
Five conditions required for Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium.
What are no mutations, no gene flow, random mating, large population, and no natural selection?
Ocean environments proposed as locations where early protocells may have formed.
What are deep-sea hydrothermal vents?
Rapid bursts of speciation when new habitats become available.
What is adaptive radiation?