Lec 13: Intro to Evolution Flashcards
What is the theory of evolution?
It it the central unifying concept of biology.
One of the most influential concepts of western thought
What are the two components of Theory of Evolution?
1) Living things change gradually over time
2) Adaptations have arisen through natural selection.
How did species change over time?
Gradually, not instantaneously.
A bacteria cannot become a shark all of a sudden
What happened to species over time?
They changed over time
How do lineages split by?
Via speciation which results in generation of biodiversity
What do all species have in common?
Common ancestors
What are adaptations a result of?
Natural Selection
What are the products of Evolution?
Biodiversity and adaptations
What is decent with Modification?
What do the diagonal lines indicate on the phylogenic trees?
Evolution of different features, like feathers etc
Traits change over time
What is biodiversity?
Number and kinds of different organisms in a given area.
It is all the species
What is adaptation?
A TRAIT that makes an organism better able to survive or reproduce
The EVOLUTIONARY process that leads to the origin and maintenance of such traits.
What is macro-evolution?
It is evolutionary history over time, it studies long-term pattern, and uses COMPARATIVE DATA
What is micro-evolution?
Evolutionary changes due to some force (Natural Selection)
It focuses on the population level
Uses EXPERIMENTAL and COMPARATIVE studies of genetics and ecology patterns.
What are the approaches to evolutionary biology?
- Observational: Describe and Quantify
- Theoretical: Develop models, verbal and graphical, mathematical or computational
- Comparative: Obtain the same data from many species
- Experimental: Manipulating a system to address a scientific hypothesis.
