CH 1+2 Flashcards
process of genetic change in a population whereby, as a result of natural selection, avg. state of a character becomes improved with reference to a specific function, or whereby a population is thought to have become better suited to some ft. of its environment
Adaptation
evolutionary change of a ft. within a lineage over an arbitrary period of time
anagenesis
ft. or a trait
character
one of the variant conditions of a character
character state
Doctrine that each species was created separately, essentially in its present form, by a supernatural creator
creationist movement
set of species descended form a particular ancestral species
clade
branching of lineages during phylogeny
cladogenesis
lineage from which two or more descendant lineages evolved
common ancestor
0
descent with modification
evolution of increasing difference between lineages in one or more characters
Divergence
philosophical view that all members of a class of objects share certain invariant, unchanging properties that distinguish them from other classes
essentialism
origin of entities possessing different states of one or more characteristic and changes in the proportions of those entities over time
evolution
reconciliation of darwin’s theory with the findings of modern genetics, which gave rise to a theory that emphasized the coaction of random mutation, selection, genetic drift, and gene flow
evolutionary synthesis
proportion, of gene copies having that allelic state
frequency
diagram representing the history by which gene copies have been derived from ancestral gene copies in previous generation
gene tree
DNA sequence that differs from homologous sequence at one or more base pair sites
haplotype
taxon about the species level, such as a named genus or phylum
higher taxon
possession by two or more species of a character state derived, with or without modification , from their common ancestor
homology
possession by two or more species of a similar or identical character state that has not been derived by both species from their common ancestor
homoplasy
movement of gene or symbionts between individual organisms other than by transmission from parents to their offspring
horizontal gene transfer
informed conjecture or proposition of what might be true
hypothesis
persistence of a genetic polymorphism through a speciation event, so that fixation occurs only in the descendant species, or in their descendants after subsequent speciation
incomplete lineage sorting
diverged from a group of other taxa
ingroup
formerly widespread belief that modifications of an individual during its life time, due to its behavior or its environment, could be transmitted to its descendents
inheritance of acquired characteristics
theory that evolution is caused by inheritance of character changes acquired during the life of an individual due to tis behavior or to environmental influnces
lamarckism
series of ancestral and descendants populations through time; usually refers to a single evolving species, but may include several species descended from a common ancestor
lineage
evolution of substantial phenotypic changes, usually great enough to place the changed lineage and its descendants in a distinct genus or higher taxon
macroevolution
slight, short-term evolutionary changes within species
microevolution
statistical method of estimating the parameters of a model from data
maximum likeihood
concept of a steady rate of change in DNA sequence over time, providing a basis for dating the time of divergence of lineages if the rates of change can be estimated
molecular clock
refers to a taxon, or a bunch of a phylogenetic tree or gene tree, that includes all the species that descended from a common ancestor
monophyletic
differential survival and/or reproduction of classes of entities that differ in one or more characteristics
natural selection
modern theory that natural selection, acting on randomly generated particulate genetic variation, is the major, but not the sole, cause of evolution
neo-darwinsim
taxon that diverged from a group of other taxa before they diverged from one another
outgroup
refers to a taxon whose members are all derived from a single ancestor, but which does not include all the descendants of that ancestor
paraphylectic
principle of accounting for observations by the hypothesis requiring the fewest or simplest assumptions that lack evidence
(principle of invoking the minimal number of evolutionary changes to infer phylogenetic relationship)
parsimony
diagram representing the evolutionary relationships among named groups of organisms (their history of descent from common ancestor)
phylogenetic tree
group of conspecific organism that occupy a more or less well defined geographic region and exhibit reproductive continuity from generation to generation
population
history of descent of a group of taxa such as species from their common ancestor, including the order of branching and sometimes the absolute time of divergence
phylogeny
taxon composed of members derived by evolution from ancestors in more than one ancestral taxon (members that do no share a unique common ancestor)
polyphylectic
nonfunctional member of a gene family that has been derived from a functional gene
pseudogene
coherent body of statements, based on reasoning and evidence, that explains some aspects of nature by recourse to natural laws or processess
scientific theory
two species or higher taxa that are derived from an immediate common ancestor, and are therefore one another’s closest relatives
sister group
derived character state that is shared by two or more taxa and is postulated to have evolved in their common ancestor
synapomorphy
named unit to which individuals, or sets of species, are assigned
taxon
proposition that natural processes that operated in the past are the same as in the present
uniformitarianism
