Darwin's Theory of Evolution Flashcards
What was Charles Darwin’s contribution to science?
Darwin developed a theory of biological evolution that explains how modern organisms evolved over long periods of time through descent from common ancestors.
What three patterns of biodiversity did Darwin note?
Species vary globally, locally, and over time.
What is artificial selection?
In artificial selection, nature provides variations and humans select those useful.
Who was Charles Darwin?
An English naturalist who made numerous observations during his travels on the Beagle which led him to pose a hypothesis about how life changes over time.
Who were James Hutton and Charles Lyell?
Geologists who proposed that Earth is shaped by geological forces over extremely long periods of time, Earth is very old, and the processes are still occurring today.
Who was Thomas Malthus?
An English economist who predicted that the human population would grow faster than the resources needed to sustain it.
Who was Jean Lamarck?
French naturalist who proposed that the selective use or disuse of an organ led to a change in the organ that was then passed on to the offspring.
Who was Alfred Wallace?
He published his own theory of evolution by natural selection about the same time as Charles Darwin.
Means that members of each species compete regularly for food and other necessary resources
The struggle for existence
The ability of an individual to survive and reproduce in its specific environment
Fitness
The idea that each living species has descended with changes over time from other species
Descent with modification
What is inheritance of acquired traits?
An organism acquiring a trait and passing it on to offspring
