Evolution Flashcards
What was the theory of evolution?
More than 3 billion years ago, life on earth began as simple organisms from which all the more complex organisms evolved
What are evolutionary relationships?
How all living things are related
What are ecological relationships?
How they interact with each other
Who came up with the idea of natural selection?
Charles Darwin
What is natural selection?
Individuals in a species show a wide range of variation
this variation is because of differences in their genes
Individuals with characteristics most suited to the environment are more likely to survive and reproduce
The genes that allow these individuals to be successful are passed to their offspring
What is a mutation?
A change in an organisms DNA
What can mutations make occur?
Evolution
Why can mutations occasionally be beneficial?
They produce a useful characteristic which could give the organism a better chance of surviving and reproducing which can be passed down
Why did people not agree with Darwin?
Went against religious beliefs
He could not explain it
There was not enough evidence
Who had different ideas to Darwin?
Jean-Baptiste Lamarck
What was Lamarck’s theory?
If characteristics were used a lot by an organism it would develop during its lifetime
They developed characteristics would be passed down to the next generation
