Evolution Flashcards
evolution
descent with modification shaped through natural selection
refers to the processes that have transformed life on Earth from its earliest form to the vast diversity that characterizes it today
natural selection
- individual organisms have VARIATIONS in traits
- individual organisms with traits that are MORE ADAPTED to the environment SURVIVE and pass on those traits to their offspring
- increases the MATCH or HARMONY of the organism to its environment
proofs of evolution
- adaptive evolution
- homology
- fossil records
- molecular biology
adaptive evolution
changes in an organism that make it suitable to its habitat; changes result in an increased chance of SURVIVAL AND REPRODUCTION
example: bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotic after long exposures
homology
similarity due to common ancestry
fossil records
remains and imprints of organisms from earlier geological periods preserved in sedimentary rock
molecular biology
DNA analysis show common DNA strands among organisms
jean baptist lamarck
proposed USE AND DISUSE
use and disuse
body parts that are used extensively to cope up with the environment become more developed while those that aren’t used will deteriorate
modifications on organism acquired during its lifetime could be passed on to offspring
charles darwin
natural selection
natural selection
most accepted theory
because population is increasing, resources are limited and there will be a struggle for existence among individuals of a population.
those organisms who inherited variations best fit their environment will survive, while those variations less suited will die out (SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST)
binomial nomenclature
scientific way of naming organisms
phylogeny
study of evolutionary histories of organisms
systematics
discipline focused on determining evolutionary relationships of different characteristics
