biodiversity and evolution

Question 1

the science of classifying organisms according to their characteristics

Answer 1

taxonomy

Question 2

list the 7 basic categories that organisms are classified by from largest to smallest

Answer 2

kingdom - phylum - class - order - family - genus - species

king philiph came over from Greece smiling

Question 3

what information is found in a scientific name

Answer 3

the first name tells the genus; the second name is sthe species

Question 4

list at least two criteria that taxonomists use to classify an organism

Answer 4

using genetic similarities and physical similarities

Question 5

what is a phylogenic tree and what does it show

Answer 5

its a diagram which shows the evolutionary relationship of a group of organisms

Question 6

what is natural selection

Answer 6

the mechanism for evolutionary change in a population of organisms

Question 7

5 conditions necessary for natural selection to occur

Answer 7

1. earth is constantly changing
2. in any population there is a variety among individuals
3. resources are limited
4. individuals that use the available resources are more likely to survive to reproduce
5. when the environment changes species have to adapt

Question 8

why did darwin keep his ideas about evolution a secret at first?

Answer 8

he didnt want to dishonor his family. his wife was religious and he wanted to respect that.

Question 9

how can evolution explain the large biodiversity of life on earth?

Answer 9

the more animals evolve the larger the variety of life there is.

Question 10

2 examples of how having a high biodiversity on earth is beneficial to the human race

Answer 10

economic benefits; more than half of the most important prescription drugs come from wild species
increases the productivity and stability of ecosystems; plants and algae maintain the atmosphere

Question 11

list the 5 kingdoms of organisms and give a specific example of each

Answer 11

monera - salmonella
protista - paramecium
fungi - fungal spores
plantae - red maple tree
animalia - beaver

Question 12

the evolutionary history of a group of organisms

Answer 12

phylogeny

Question 13

a diagram which shows the evolutionary relationship of a group of organisms

Answer 13

phylogenetic tree

Question 14

a group of organisms that includes an ancestor and its descendants

Answer 14

clade

Question 15

a diagram which compares the traits of ancestral relationships

Answer 15

cladogram

Question 16

the change in the inherited characteristics of biological populations over successive generations

Answer 16

evolution

Question 17

evidence that have been discovered since darwin’s time that support the theory of evolution

Answer 17

1. additions to the fossil record
2. homologous structures
3. dna similarities
4. comparative embryology
5. vestigial structures

Question 18

evidence that darwin presents to support the theory of evolution

Answer 18

1. the existence of fossils that closely resembled living specimens
2. a distinctive distribution of plants and animals in lands with similar climates that were not physically connected
3. unique but similar species on several nearby island