evolution test Flashcards
what is a fossil
preserved remains of ancient organisms that provide evidence for how life has changed over time.
who proposed that the selective use/disuse of an organ led to a change in the organ, and was passed to the offspring?
Jean-baptiste Lamarck
who was Alfred Wallace?
published his own theory of evolution by natural selection around the same time as Darwin
what is fitness?
the ability of an individual to survive and reproduce in its specific environment
what is natural selection? what is another name for it?
process where individuals are better suited to their environment, so they survive and reproduce more successfully; survival of the fittest.
what is a homologous structure?
structures that have different mature forms but develop from the same embryonic tissues
what are vestigial organs?
homologous structures that are so reduced in size that they no longer function. ex: human appendix
what is evolution?
the process by which modern organisms have descended from ancient organisms.
what is artificial selection?
a human choosing the strongest, fastest, or best of the animals to breed.
what is descent with modification?
the idea that each living species has descended with changes over time from other species
what did Darwin observe that contributed to theory of evolution?
finches and turtles
what is inheritance of acquired traits?
a giraffe stretching its neck longer and longer, and the trait is passed to the offspring
convergent evolution?
unrelated species begin to look similar to one another
what is divergent evolution?
enough differences accumulate to create a new species
what is adaptive radiation?
the name of the changes that lead to divergent evolution
what are analogous structures?
structures with the same function but evolved separately in different species
what is darwin’s publication of his theory of evolution called?
on the origin of species
what was the ship where Darwin traveled to the Galapagos called?
H.M.S. Beagle
what did darwin study in addition to to living organisms?
fossils
what did Darwin observe about plants and animals on the islands ?
their characteristics varied from island to island
what is an adaptation?
inherited characteristic that increases an organism’s ability to survive and reproduce in its environment
what is struggle for existence?
competition for food, space and other resources within a species
what is the most accurate way to determine the age of a fossil?
radiometric dating
what kind of fossil is easily identifiable?
index fossils
what is the hardy-Weinberg principle?
frequency of each allele in the gene pool remains constant
what are the 5 conditions to make hardy-Weinberg possible?
1) very large population
2) no gene flow between populations
3) no mutations
4) random mating
5) no natural selection
what does a bell shaped curve represent?
stabilizing selection
what does a mountain shaped curve represent?
directional selection
what does a double camel hump shaped graph represent?
disruptive selection
what is taxonomy?
science of naming and classifying organisms
what does a useful classification system do?
gives each organism a unique name
what is a cladogram?
a diagram which shows the evolutionary relationships among a group of organisms
name the 7 taxonomic levels greatest to least:
kingdom - phylum - class - order - family - genus - species
what is a taxon?
group or level of organization in which organisms are classified
what is a binomial nomenclature?
classification system in which each species is assigned a two part scientific name
domain of all organisms that have nuclei?
eukarya
what are archaebacteria?
kingdom of ancient unicellular prokaryotes found in extreme environments
what are eubacteria?
kingdom of unicellular prokaryotes that can cause disease
what are Protista
kingdom of composed eukaryotes that are not classified as animals, plants, or fungi
what are fungi?
kingdom of heterotrophs including mushrooms, toadstools, and yeast that obtain energy nutrients from dead matter
what is plantae?
multicellular photosynthetic autotrophs
what is the taxon larger than a kingdom?
domain
what is the first part of a scientific name called? (always capitalized)
genus
what is a dichotomous key?
series of paired statements that describe characteristics of different organisms that can be used to classify different organisms
what are the three domains?
archaea, bacteria, and eukarya
what are the 6 kingdoms?
archaebacteria, Protista, plantae, eubacteria, fungi, and animalia
difference between stabilizing, disruptive and directional selection
stabilizing- average phenotype favored
directional- change in environment shifts spectrum of phenotype a
disruptive- two or more extreme phenotype a have advantages
