Chapters 15-17 Flashcards
when did earth form
about 4.6 billion years ago
how first life may have evolved
- abiotic synthesis of small organic molecules, such as amino acids and nitrogenous bases
- joining of these small molecules into polymers, such as proteins and nucleic acids
- packaging of these molecules into “protocells”
- origin of self-replicating molecules that eventually made inheritance possible
what does O2 tend to do?
As a strong oxidizing agent, O2 tends to disrupt chemical bonds.
next 3 stages of life
- Abiotic synthesis of polymers
- Formation of protocells
- Self-replicating RNA
macroevolution
evolutionary change above the species level. encompasses…
- the origin of a new group of organisms through a series of speciation events and
- the impact of mass extinctions on the diversity of life and its subsequent recovery.
radiometric dating
- is based on the decay of radioactive isotopes (unstable forms of an element)
- can date rocks and fossils.
- carbon-14 decays to another element
plate tectonics
the theory that Earth’s crust is divided into giant, irregularly shaped plates that essentially float on the underlying mantle.
permian extinction
linked to the effects of extreme volcanic activity.
cretaceous extinction
included most dinosaurs. may have been caused by the impact of an asteroid.
adaptive radiations
periods of evolutionary change in which many new species evolve from a common ancestor.
“evo-devo”
combines evolutionary and developmental biology.
taxonomy
branch of biology concerned with identifying, naming, and classifying species.
binomial
two-part scientific name
phylogeny
The evolutionary history of a species or group of species
systematics
a discipline of biology that focuses on
- classifying organisms
- determining their evolutionary relationships.
phylogenetic tree
a hypothesis of evolutionary relationships.
analogy
Similarity due to convergent evolution
cladistics
groups organisms by common ancestry.
clade
monophyletic group that consists of an ancestral species and all its evolutionary descendants—a distinct branch in the tree of life.
Cladistics two main types of characters
- A shared ancestral character
2. A shared derived character
shared ancestral character
common to members of a particular clade, but originated in an ancestor that is not a member of the clade.
shared derived character
common to members of a particular clade and is not found in its ancestors.
parsimony
the adoption of the simplest explanation for observed phenomena.
molecular systematics
uses DNA or other molecules to infer relatedness.
molecular clock
a method that estimates the time required for a given amount of evolutionary change.
Earliest form of life
prokaryotes about 3.5 to 2 billion years ago
origin of single-celled eukaryotes
1.8 billion years ago. originated when prokaryotic cells became capable of aerobic respiration or photosynthesis
origin multicellular eukaryotes
1.2 billion years ago. larger organisms 600 million years ago.
earth’s eon history
hadean, archaean, Proterozoic, and Phanerozoic
paedomorphosis
the retention in the adult body of structures that were juvenile features in an ancestral species
hierarchical classification of an animal
species -> genus -> family => orders => classes => phyla => kingdoms => domains
taxon
each taxonomic unit at any level
convergent evolution
occurs when similar environments and natural selection produce similar adaptations in organisms from different evolutionary lineages
outgroup
a species from a lineage that is closely related to but not part of the group of species we are studying
horizontal gene transfer
a process in which genes are transferred from one genome to another through mechanisms such as plasmid exchange and viral infection.
metagenomics
researchers collect samples from a particular environment, and isolate and sequence the DNA they contain
microbiome
genomes of individual species
microbiota
the community of microorganisms that live in and on our bodies
pathogens
disease-causing agents