Lecture 3: Evolution & Darwin Flashcards
features of a divinely inspired creation
1) supreme being made and placed humans on earth
2) organisms look and function according to given design
3) species don’t change
common descent
-a group of organisms descending from a common ancestor
transmutation of species
-all life came from the same common ancestors and the commonn ancestor mutated and over time created new specie
binomial nomenclature
- created by Carolus Linnaeus
- genus and species classifying of organisms
nested hierarchy of organisms
kingdom > phylum > class > order > family > genus > species
sedimentation
-sediments deposited by water were compressed to form stone
erosion
-rock exposed to the elements, break down into sediment
gradualism
-profound change is the cumulative product of slow but continuous process
great geologic cycle
-the coupling of destruction by erosion and renewal by sedimentation
“we find no vestige of a beginning [of time], no prospect of an end”
- James Hutton
- realized geologic structures were not simple and immutable
- time and natural processes causes gradual change og earth
“invisible hand”
-the tendency of market prices to direct individuals pursuing their own self interests into productive activities that also promote economic well-being of society
competition and self interest
- believed human motives in the economy were often selfishness and greed but the competition in the free market would tend to benefit society bc it would keep prices low and build incentives for there to be a wide variety of goods and services available
- less competitve sellers will not succeed; if you can’t compete you won’t survive
lamarckian evolution
-believed that if a species acquired a trait in its lifetime it would be passed onto offspring (now proven false)
acquired traits
-traits you acquire during your lifetime do not get passed on
the rold of disasters in keeping the food supply in line with the population
- belief of Thomas Malthus
- bc populations grow geometrically, while food supplies only grow linearly, disasters periodically collapse populations enough so that there’s enough food until the next disaster
impact of extinction on theories of creation
-implies that god’s plan was imperfect
catastrophism
-our world was created as an end product to a catastrophy
“the present is the key to the past”
- belief of Charles Lyell
- geological remains from the distant past can and should be explained by geographical processes
- relates to his idea of uniformitarianism
uniformitarianism
-idea that geologic processes should be the same as they were in the past
atolls
-rings of island that appear around oceanic volcanoes
wallace’s line
- boundary line that separates the realms of asia and australia
- marks the faunal division btwn these 2 areas
Anaximander
- all organisms has common ancestor (common descent)
- wrote about the transmutation of species
Carolus Linnaeus
- wanted to understand divine plan by seeking similarity among organisms
- developed nomenclature
- created hierarchical classification (kingdom, phylum, etc)
James Hutton
- natural processes shape rock formations
- realized gradualism and great geologic cycle couldn’t have happened in a short period of time
Adam Smith
- studied competition btwn businesses lowers prices = good for society
- nobody made things just bc, ppl made things for profit
- lead to natural selection theory
Jean-Baptiste Lamark
- created first complete theory on evolution
- believed environmental forces shape adaptation
- -> thought this occurred through the idea of use and disuse
- believed in the importance of acquired traits
Thomas Malthus
saw populations grow geometrically, while food supplies grow linearly
-outside forces rectify this disparity to lower population size
Georges Cuvier
- believed in proponent of catastrophism
- verified that extinction occurs
- didn’t believe in evolution (but a catastrophy destroyed a previous world)
Charles Lyell
- believed in uniformitarianism
- Darwin was a disciple of him
- blieved geologic change was the steady accumulation of minute changes over a long period of time
- his view contrasts George Cuvier’s
Charles Darwin
- drew 1st evolutionary tree
- believed in common descent, transmutation of species, and that the mechanism of evolution is natural selection
Alfred Russel Wallace
- travelled in the philippines & created “wallace’s line”
- came up with natural selection years after Darwin and speak out their discovery together
- prompts publication of Darwin’s theory
Gregor Mendel
- understoof origin of genetic relationships via heredity
- believed that traits are inherited in a predictable fashion
James Watson & Francis Crick
- discovered structure of DNA thus building block for evolutionary change
- means for heritable information to be stored and passed on
megatherium
-giant ground sloth (of mammoth time)
glyptodon
-giant armadillo founded in rock strata with modern seashells
mockingbirds
-difference in appearance depending what island they come from
galapagos tortoises
-can tell which island they came from by looking at them
finches
-darwin realized all the birds he saw on the islands were all of the same species but w varying colors and beaks
