Earth Changes Over Time

Question 1

Define evolution

Answer 1

Evolution is a gradual change over time.

Question 2

Name three ways the Earth has evolved…

Answer 2

• climate change
• supercontinents breaking apart
• changes in humans
• changes in plant life
• animal evolution

Question 3

Whose theory is a theory of acquired traits?

Answer 3

Lamarck

Question 4

Whose theory is known as the survival of the fittest?

Answer 4

Darwin

Question 5

Explain Lamarck’s theory as it relates to giraffes…

Answer 5

Lamarck believes that giraffes’ necks have become longer over time because the giraffes have stretched their necks. And the characteristic was then passed onto the offspring (acquired trait).

Question 5

Explain Darwin’s theory as it relates to giraffes…

Answer 5

• Darwin says that there are short and long neck giraffes due to natural selection and variation.
• Giraffes with short necks were not able to reach food, so they died taking the gene for short necks with them.
• Long-necked giraffes were able to reach the food and survive so there were mainly long-necked giraffes that survived and reproduced (survival of the fittest).

Question 6

Whose theory believed that animals could go extinct?

Answer 6

Darwin

Question 7

Whose theory believed that inherited and acquired traits could be passed to offspring?

Answer 7

Lamarck

Question 8

Whose theory believed that only inherited traits could be passed to offspring?

Answer 8

Darwin

Question 9

Whose theory thought that organisms could choose their traits and choose to survive?

Answer 9

Lamarck

Question 10

Whose theory knew that certain traits helped organisms survive better, but that the organisms themselves did not choose their specific traits?

Answer 10

Darwin

Question 11

Whose theory believed that there was variation in a population?

Answer 11

Darwin

Question 12

Name three points of evidence that Darwin’s theory is correct…

Answer 12

• Acquired traits are not passed onto offspring; only traits encoded in DNA are passed onto offspring
• Fossil evidence has showed that entire populations have gone extinct
• Mendel’s work of genetics helped to prove Darwin’s theory about traits and DNA
• you could also discuss embryology, homologous & vestigial structures, and geographic distribution

Question 13

What does “survival of the fittest” mean?

Answer 13

Organisms with specific traits that will be successful for a particular environment will survive the best.

Question 14

What did Darwin discover about the finches on the Galapagos Islands?

Answer 14

Darwin discovered that the finches were all related but that their beak shape was different due to the different types of food found on the island (adaptions).

Question 15

What are structural adaptations? Give two examples.

Answer 15

Structural adaptations are the physical features of an organism

Examples - claws, wings, beaks, fur, sharp teeth, etc…

Question 16

What are behavioral adaptations? Give two examples.

Answer 16

Behavioral adaptations are something that an organism does

Examples
- migrating (birds fly south in winter)
- hiberation (bears in winter)
- octopus squirting ink to get away from a predator
- a sea cucumber throwing out its intestines to scare away an organism

Question 17

Define speciation

Answer 17

Formation of a new species

Question 18

Which speciation type has occurred when species mate at different times of the year?

Answer 18

Temporal Isolation

Question 19

Which speciation type has occurred when two populations are capable of breeding, but they do not due to differences in behavior and courtship rituals?

Answer 19

Behavioral Isolation

Question 20

Which type of speciation has occurred when two populations are separated by barriers such as mountains or rivers?

Answer 20

Geographic Isolation

Question 20

Which type of speciation has occurred when species live in the same region but occupy different habitats?

Answer 20

Ecological Isolation

Question 20

New species form… is this microevolution or macroevolution?

Answer 20

Macroevolution

Question 21

Which type of speciation has occurred when species cannot breed successfully due to differences in DNA and genetics?

Answer 21

Reproductive Isolation

Question 22

We have changes in genes…is this microevolution or macroevolution?

Answer 22

Microevolution

Question 23

What is gradualism?

Answer 23

A very slow change within a population that is always occurring

Question 24

What is punctuated equilibrium?

Answer 24

A very rapid change in a population followed by a long period of no change.

Question 25

What is a variation that makes an organism better suited to an environment?

Answer 25

Adaptation - adaptations can be structural or behavioral

Question 26

What is embryology?

Answer 26

The study of the early growth stages of an organism

Question 27

What are vestigial structures?

Answer 27

Vestigial structures are traits that our ancestors needed but no longer serve a purpose in our environment. They have no useful function.

Question 28

What are homologous structures?

Answer 28

Homologous structures are similar physical features in organisms that share a common ancestor, but the features serve completely different functions

Question 29

Define variations

Answer 29

Variation can be defined as any difference between the individuals in a species or groups of organisms of any species.

Question 30

What are fossils?

Answer 30

Fossils arethe preserved remains of plants and animals whose bodies were buried in sediments. They tell the history of life on earth.