History and Nature of Science Flashcards
Select all of the following that are true about natural selection.
- reproductive success of individuals differs
- occurs due to variation in environmental factors
Selection of dairy cows that produce more milk for human consumption is an example of ___ selection, and selection of light-colored moths over dark0colored moths by a bird predator is an example of ___ selection.
artificial; natural
If humans are involved in perpetuating desired traits in organisms, the result is
artificial selection
How did natural selection shape the evolution of finches on the Galapagos Islands?
Birds with different heritable differences were able to better survive and reproduce in different habitats.
The shortened title of the book that Charles Darwin published in 1859 was
On the Origin of Species
Charles Darwin’s book titled On the Origin of Species proposed ___ as an evolutionary mechanism.
natural selection
Select observations and inferences that Charles Darwin made in support of natural selection.
- There is competition among individuals for limited resources.
- Some individuals survive due to their inherited characteristics, making them more likely to reproduce.
- Natural selection can change the characteristics of a population over many generations.
- Organisms are varied and some variations are inherited.
- More individuals are born than can survive to reproduce.
The modern evolutionary synthesis connects natural selection and
genetic variation that arises by mutation
The only way that new genetic variants arise is through ___, which is the raw material of evolution.
mutation
What increases genetic variability within a species through shuffling and reshuffling of parental alleles to produce genetically different offspring?
sexual reproduction
The entire collection of the genes and their alleles in a population is called the gene ___.
pool
Buffon
Closely related species arise from a common ancestor and are changing.
Lyell
Natural process are slow and steady, and the Earth is much older than 6,000 years.
Darwin
Variation exists in a population and new species arise when natural selection acts on the variation.
Lamarck
Repeated use of a body part increases an organism’s abilities, and this change during a lifetime passes to the next generation.
___ is defined as a change in allele frequencies in a population over time.
Evolution
Darwin reasoned that the variety of finch species found on the Galapagos Islands descended from a common ancestor. He used the phrase “descent with ___” to describe gradual genetic changes from the ancestral type.
modification
Select all of the reasonings of Charles Darwin that were influenced by Thomas Malthus’s essay.
- More individuals are born into a population than the habitat can support.
- Some individuals in a population are better able to obtain resources than others.
- There is variation in a population.
Changes in allele frequencies in a population or species that occur over a relatively short time rather than millions of years is an example of
microevolution
To calculate an allele frequency, you should divide the number of copies of that allele by the
total number of alleles in the population
Select the statements about Charles Darwin that are correct.
- Darwin studied similarities and differences among organisms and related them to geological observations.
- Darwin proposed that natural selection could give rise to new species over time.
Inbreeding members of the same species compose a ___.
population
The appearance of a new species of oak tree would be called a(n) ___ event.
macroevolutionary
A(n) ___ does not evolve because alleles do not change; however, a(n) ___ can evolve because allele frequencies can change.
individual; population