Evolution

Question 1

Neutral Mutation

Answer 1

A mutation that doesn’t result in any advantage or disadvantage

Question 2

Harmful Mutation

Answer 2

A mutation that reduces the reproductive success of an organism

Question 3

Beneficial Mutation

Answer 3

A mutation that increases reproductive success so they are favoured by natural selection

Question 4

Artificial Selection

Answer 4

Directed breeding to obtain a specific trait

Question 5

What are the 2 advantages to artificial selection?

Answer 5

1) Can achieve the most desirable traits

2) Variability

Question 6

What are the 3 disadvantages of artificial selection?

Answer 6

1) Eliminates traits
2) No variability
3) A undesirable trait may become desirable over time

Question 7

Catastrophism

Answer 7

The theory that fossils were caused by a series of global catastrophes that wiped out most species on Earth

Question 8

Uniformitarianism

Answer 8

The theory that geological changes are slow and gradual and that natural processes haven’t changed overtime

Question 9

Homologous

Answer 9

A structure with a common evolutionary origin that may serve different functions in modern species

Example: Bat wing and human arm

Question 10

Analogous

Answer 10

A structure that performs the same function as another but isn’t similar in origin

Example: Bird and insect wings

Question 11

Vestigal

Answer 11

A structure in an organism that has lost all or most of its original function in the course of evolution

Example: Human Appendix

Question 12

Genetic Drift

Answer 12

When chance events cause changes in frequencies of alleles in a population; more prominent in small populations

Question 13

Genetic Bottleneck

Answer 13

A dramatic often temporary decrease in population size causing significant genetic drift

Question 14

Species

Answer 14

All organisms capable of breeding freely with each other under natural conditions

Question 15

Speciation

Answer 15

The formation of a new species

Question 16

Evolution

Answer 16

The scientific theory that describes changes in species overtime and their shared ancestry

Question 17

What are Darwins 5 Key Points of Evolution?

Answer 17

1) In each generation populations produce more offspring than there are adults
2) Populations do not continue to grow in size
3) Food and other resources are limited
4) Individuals within all populations vary
5) Many variations are inheritable

Question 18

Directional Selection

Answer 18

Selection that favours a trait that has significantly increased or decreased compared to the population average

Question 19

Stabililing Selection

Answer 19

Selection that only favours the traits that the majority population has

Question 20

Disruptive Selection

Answer 20

Selection thar favours two or more variations of a trait that differ from the population average

Question 21

Sexual Selection

Answer 21

Selection that favours your ability to reproduce

Question 22

What are the 5 pieces of evidence for evolution?

Answer 22

1) Palaeontology
2) Comparative Anatomy
3) Embryology
4) Comparative Biochemistry
5) Geographical Distribution

Question 23

Explain 2 of the pieces of evidence for evolution. (Palaeontology and Comparative Biochemistry)

Answer 23

Palaeontology: The study of prehistoric life through fossils. The fact that not all organisms appear in fossils supports the fact that species evolve over time
Comparative Biochemistry: Comparing DNA and amino acid sequences from different animals to see how closely related species are. The more closely related the more similar their biogeochemical makeup.

Question 24

Domestication

Answer 24

The changing of members of a species to suit human needs through controlled captive breeding

Question 25

What are the 2 reasons for individual variability?

Answer 25

1) Time

2) Biodiversity

Question 26

Individual Variability

Answer 26

How individuals found within the same species can show differences in the morphology

Question 27

What are Lamarck’s 2 Principles of Evolution?

Answer 27

1) Use and Disuse
Structures that are used become larger and ones that aren’t become smaller
2) The inheritance of acquired characteristics
Individuals can pass on characteristics to their offspring that they’ve acquired during their lives

Question 28

Natural Selection

Answer 28

The way individuals favour the reproductive success of certain individuals over others

Question 29

Founder Effect

Answer 29

Genetic drift that results when a small number of individuals separate from their original population and establish a new one

Question 30

Hardy-Weinberg Principle

Answer 30

In large populations allele frequencies are expected to remain constant from generation to generation

Question 31

What are the 5 Conditions that result in evolution?

Answer 31

1) Natural Selection
2) Small Population Size
3) Mutation
4) Immigration or Emigration
5) Horizontal Gene Transfer

Question 32

Reproductive Isolating Mechanism

Answer 32

Any trait that stops 2 individuals from successfully mating

Question 33

What are 2 examples of Reproductive Isolating Mechanisms?

Answer 33

1) Pre Zygotic Behavioural Isolation

2) Post Zygotic

Question 34

Allopatric

Answer 34

The formation of a new species as a result of evolutionary changes following a period of geographic isolation

Question 35

Sympatric

Answer 35

The evolution of populations within the same geographic are into separate species

Question 36

Microevolution

Answer 36

Changes in gene frequencies and phenotypic traits within a population and species

Question 37

Explain evolution according to Charles Darwin

Answer 37

Believed all living things are descended from their common ancestors and natural selection