Final Exam Review- Evolution Flashcards
Define : evolution
Change in a population over time
- it takes time and an individual does not evolve
Explain Lamarck’s theory and how it was disproved.
- organisms constantly strive to improve themselves and become more advanced
- the effort to improve causes the most used body structures to develop , while unused structures waste away
- one a structure is modified by use or disuse , the modification is inherited by the organisms offspring
It was disproved when Weismann cut off mice tails and was expected to have their offspring having no tails. When those mice reproduced, this disproved his third point.
Explain the case of the peppered moth in England and how it related to natural selection.
before the industrial revolution, the trees were lightly coloured making it easier for the lighter moths to hide and the darker moths easier to be spotted and eaten. after the industrial revolution, the trees near the factories turned dark with smog making the darker moths easier to hide and the light moths easier to be spotted resulting in the light moths being eaten.
How was Charles Darwin involved in evolution?
He came up with the theory of natural selection
What did Darwin observe as he traveled on the beagle in the Galopogos?
He spent a lot of time studying organisms
What are the points of natural selection?
- variation within populations
- variations are favorable
- More young are produced than can survive
- The survivors reproduce with favorable characteristics
- Over enormous spans of time, small changes accumulate and populations change
Define : directional selection
Distributions of characteristics changing
Define : disruptive selection
Selection against the middle characteristic
Define : stabilizing selection
Organisms have less variety when conditions remain the same for a long period of time
Describe genetic equilibrium and what it means.
constant state of an allele frequency.
no variation= no evolution
Define : adaptive radiation
Multiple branching of a family tree
Define : convergent evolution
When different types of organisms evolve similar characteristics
What do paleontologists study?
Fossils
How can DNA be used to identify how closely related organisms are?
the closer related 2 organisms are, the more similar DNA will be. Humans and apes share 98% of the same DNA
Compare relative dating of fossils with radiometric dating.
Relative: based on the study of rock strata and how the fossils inside appear
Radiometric: based on the rate of decay of radioactive elements in rocks
