Describing and Arranging Organisms - MT2 - Part 1 Flashcards
Biological classification
Compiling an inventory of diversity
- common names
What factors can separate 2 species? (2)
- Essentialism
2. Population thinking
How do you separate species before evolution?
Essentialism
- different species had different essential traits
- eg) tapetail, whale fish and bignose, were thought to be different species but ti turns out they are the same speices just in different stages of its life
How do you separate after evolution?
Population thinking
- animals come form a common ancestor
- biological taxonomy is an inclusive hierarchy
Artificial classification
Group-defining do not correlate with other attributes
- biologists would not find this informative
- group all red things and all green things together even thought they may have nothing in common
Natural classification
Group-defining attributes that do correlate with other attributes
- groups plants together regardless of their colour
What did the first modern history works in natural history deal with? (2)
- Descriptive botany
2. Descriptive Zoology
What factors compelled natural historians to go beyond the ancient authors? (2)
- People bringing unidentified things back from their trips
- Printing press
What are zoologists primarily interested in? (2)
- Function
2. Adaptation
What are botanists more interested in? (2)
- Identification
2. Classification
What did botanists find important?
To be able to distinguish one species from another
- use of plant in medicine required being able to identify them
Who are the 2 most famous botanists of the world?
- Theophrastus
- Dioscorides
- both described about 500-600 plants
Herbarium
A library of dried and pressed plants
Who is herbarium credited to?
Luca Ghini
What does water do to plants?
It deteriorates them
- if you dry out water then the plant species can be preserved for a long amount of time
