Evolution

Question 1

Voyage of the Beagle

Answer 1

1831 journey on the HMS Beagle by Charles Darwin that led to the proposal of the theory of evolution

Question 2

Process of proposal to theory of evolution (Darwin’s Journey on the HMS Beagle)

Answer 2

On the Voyage of the Beagle, Darwin collected plants and animals. Observed high levels of diversity amongst organisms. Collected fossils that looked like organisms still alive, but some completely different.

Question 3

Fixity of Species

Answer 3

Pre-Darwin belief that claimed species do not change, are unrelated, and that Earth is young and has not changed much.

Question 4

The Galápagos Islands

Answer 4

1000km west of Ecuador. Close together but have different climates. Darwin was especially interested in land turtles and marine iguanas (eg. the shape of a tortoise shell could help identify which island the tortoise belonged to). Darwin wondered if the animals living on different islands had once been the same species, and evolved after becoming isolated from each other.

Question 5

Fossils (influence on Darwin’s thinking)

Answer 5

Fossils discovered that were much older than what people thought the age of the Earth is.

Question 6

James Hutton

Answer 6

1795 Geologist who hypothesized that the Earth is very old.

Question 7

Charles Lyell

Answer 7

1831 Geologist. The processes that shape the Earth now are the same as the processes of the past.

Question 8

Jean Baptiste Lamarck

Answer 8

Proposed that living things have changed over time, and species are descended from other species. He believed species tend toward perfection and that used functions would become more prominent and vice versa. He also believed in the inheritance of acquired skills.

Question 9

Thomas Malthus

Answer 9

Noticed that if population growth went unchecked, species would overrun the Earth. Darwin asked what causes the death of many and which factors determine who lives and dies. He concluded that all species tend to produce more offspring than they can support, leading to a struggle for existence

Question 10

On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection

Answer 10

Book by Darwin published in 1859. Darwin was scared to publish it due to fears of religious backlash

Question 11

Alfred Russell

Answer 11

Wrote an essay with Darwin summarizing the theory of evolution.

Question 12

Artificial Selection

Answer 12

Nature provides variations, humans selects traits

Question 13

Inherited variation

Answer 13

Members of a species vary

Question 14

Struggle for existence

Answer 14

Members of each species compete for food, space, mates, and other necessities. Predators with high fitness capture more prey, prey with high fitness avoid being caught.

Question 15

Fitness

Answer 15

An organism’s ability to survive and reproduce in its specific environment. Results from adaptations (inherited characteristics that improve an organism’s chance for survival). Survival of the fittest relates to how low fitness die and are unable to reproduce, while high fitness organisms survive and reproduce.

Question 16

Types of adaptations

Answer 16

Anatomical (eg. quills on porcupine), Physiological (eg. photosynthesis), Behavioral (live/hunt in groups).

Question 17

Natural Selection

Answer 17

Results from no human intervention and results in higher fitness amongst populations.

Question 18

Descent with Modification

Answer 18

Over large amounts of time, natural selection produces organisms with different structures, niches, and habitats and look different from their ancestors. Ie. each living thing has descended with changes, from other species over time.

Question 19

Evidence that living things have been evolving on Earth for millions of years (3 pieces of evidence)

Answer 19

Fossil record
Geographic distribution of living species
Homologous body structures (body part with the same basic structure as that of another organism but not the same function)

Question 20

Embryology

Answer 20

Smilitaries in early development. Also evidence that living things have been evolving.

Question 21

Darwin’s conclusion based on fossil records

Answer 21

Organisms had come into being, lived, and vanished. Ie. Life had changed over time

Question 22

Convergent Evolution

Answer 22

Organisms develop similar features and behaviors due to similar environment

Question 23

Analogous Structrues

Answer 23

Same function, different structure (eg. bat wing vs butterfly wing)

Question 24

Divergent Evolution

Answer 24

Species becoming more distinct due to environmental differences.

Question 25

Homologous Structures

Answer 25

Same structure, different function. Are constructed from the same basic bones. They can also be structures that have different mature forms but develop from the same embryonic tissues.

Question 26

Vestigial Organs

Answer 26

Organs that serve no useful function in an organism, but is not eliminated by natural selection as it does not effect the organism negatively.

Question 27

Role of DNA on evolution

Answer 27

Mutations control evolution

Question 28

Variation in species

Answer 28

Random mixing of genes from parents during meiosis

Question 29

Single gene trait

Answer 29

Trait controlled by one allele

Question 30

Polygenic trait

Answer 30

Trait controlled by many alleles

Question 31

Relative frequency

Answer 31

How often an allele is seen in the gene pool. A change in relative frequency is evolution.

Question 32

Directional Selection

Answer 32

One end of the curve has higher fitness (eg. bird beaks become larger and larger)

Question 33

Stabilizing Selection

Answer 33

Middle of curve has higher fitness (eg. babies born at average mass are more likely to survive)

Question 34

Disruptive Selection

Answer 34

Both ends of curve have higher fitness (eg. larger and smaller seeds become more common).

Question 35

Speciation

Answer 35

The formation of a new species. Population must be divided

Question 36

Reproductive Isolation

Answer 36

Members of two populations are unable to interbreed

Question 37

Causes of Reproductive Isolation

Answer 37

Geographic Isolation, Behavioral Isolation, Temporal Isolation

Question 38

Natural Selection Effect on Polygenic Traits

Answer 38

Distributions of phenotypes can be affected through: Directional Selection, Stabilizing Selection, Disruptive Selection

Question 39

Geographic Isolation

Answer 39

Two populations separated via geographic barriers

Question 40

Behavioral Isolation

Answer 40

Capable of interbreeding, but have different reproductive behaviors that prevent interbreeding

Question 41

Temporal Isolation

Answer 41

Species reproduce at different times