Biology Chapter 10 Test 3/22/16

population

a group of organisms of the same species that live in a specific geographical area

species

a group of organisms that are closely related and can mate to produce fertile offspring; also the level of classification below genus and above subspecies

gradualism

a model of evolution in which gradual change over a long period of time leads to biological diversity

Paleontology is the study of fossils or extinct organisms. Explain how this field is important to evolutionary biology.

Because fossils are prime evidence of evolution and are useful to study to learn about how certain species evolved.

connection between catastrophism and gradualism

Catastrophism is the idea that Earth has been affected in the past by sudden, short-lived, violent events.The dominant paradigm of modern geology, in contrast, is gradualism in which slow incremental changes, ie erosion, create the Earth's appearance

Briefly explain how the geologist Charles Lyell influenced Darwin's ideas about how evolution works

Charles Lyell created the theory of uniformitarianism which is the theory that states that the geologic processes that shape Earth are uniform through time, which influenced Darwins ideas about how evolution happens over time

Evidence of evolution comes from diverse sources, such as fossils, geography, embryology, and anatomy. Briefly describe how each source gives evidence of evolution.

Fossils can show if an existing species has evolved from that fossil or not. Certain species evolve accordingly to the changes in geography to help them survive, if a geogrpahic area has changed and so have the species that live there, that is evidence of evolution. The similar features of embryos in very different organisms suggest evolution from a distant common ancestor. In anatomy, their appearance across different species offers strong evidence for common descent. It would be unlikely for many species to have such similar anatomy if each species evolved independently

How are genes and proteins similar to homologous structures when determining evolutionary relationships among species?

Genes and proteins have similar structures but perform different functions.

Describe one idea about evolution that was proposed before Darwin published his theory of natural selection

Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon proposed that species shared common ancestors instead of arising separately.

Why is heritability important for both natural and artificial selection?

Heritability is required for both natural and artifical selection to occur. The ability of a trait to be passed on from one generation to the next needs to happen for both natural and artificial selection.

Thomas Malthus was an economist who proposed that resources such as food, water, and shelter are natural limits to human population growth. Explain how Darwin extended this idea in his theory of natural selection

In a population where there is more food water and shelter, the higher chance of breeding and thriving, whereas in a population where there is less food water and shelter, they have a lower chance of breeding and thriving. Thomas Malthus's ideas are examples of natural selection.

On his voyage, Darwin observed fossils of extinct organisms that resembled living organisms. He also found shells of marine organisms high up in the mountains. How did these observations provide evidence that Earth is very old?

In order for these changes in similar organisms to happen, earth has to be much older than 6000 years old because of the fossils he found.

What insights did Darwin gain from observing island organisms such as the Galápagos tortoises and finches?

Some differences between species seemed to be well suited to the animals environment. Saddle-backed tortoises, which have long necks and legs lived in areas with lots of tall plants, Domed tortoises, with shorter necks and legs, lived in wet areas rich with molasses and short plants, finches with strong, thick beaks, lived in areas with a lot of large, hard shelled nuts, while finches with more delicate beaks were found where insects and fruit was widely available.

Explain what the following quote by Theodosius Dob- zhansky means: "Nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution."

The fact that evolution occurs explains the interrelatedness of the various facts of biology, and so makes biology make sense.

Natural selection is based on four main principles: variation, overproduction, adaptation, and descent with modification. Briefly explain how each of these principles is necessary for natural selection to occur

Variation is necessary because for natural selection so a species is able to adapt to a new environment because they are each different and not identical. Overproduction is necessary because it either raises the chance for it to survive, or results in competition for resources which are both examples of natural selection. Adaptation is necessary to allow a certain individual to survive better than other individuals it competes against in its environment. Descent with modification is necessary to pass on an adapted trait that allows the species to keep surviving.

Explain what is meant by the sentence "Natural selection can act only on existing traits."

What is meant is that natural selection can only act on phenotypes or physical traits, which are already there, rather than genetic traits.

connection between vestigal and analogous structures

a vestigal structure is a remnant of an analogous structure from another organism

heritability

ability of a trait to be passed from one generation to the next

connection between adaptation and evolution

adaptation is the process by which a species goes through evolution

analogous structure

body part that is similar in function as a body part of another organism but is structurally different

homologous structure

body part that is similar in structure on different organisms but performs different functions

variation

differences in physical traits of an individual from the group to which it belongs

evolution

generally, in biology, the process of change by which new species develop from preexisting species over time; at the genetic level, the process in which inherited characteristics within populations change over time; the process defined by Darwin as "descent with modification"

fitness

measure of an organism's ability to survive and produce offspring relative to other members of a population

Give an example of a vestigial structure and explain how vestigial structures are significant to evolution

n humans, the appendix is an example of a vestigial structure. The appendix is a remnant of the cecum, which makes up a large part of the large intestine in plant-eating mammals. Vestigial structures did not get smaller in one individual organism. It took many generations for those organs to shrink. Today, vestigial structures are among the most important examples demonstrating how evolution works.

connection between fossils and paleontology

paleontology is the study of fossils

vestigal structure

remnants of an organ or structure that functioned in an earlier ancestor

paleontology

study of fossils or extinct organisms

artificial selection

the human practice of breeding animals or plants that have certain desired traits

natural selection

the process by which individuals that are better adapted to their environment survive and reproduce more successfully than less well adapted individuals do; a theory to explain the mechanism of evolution

adaption

the process of becoming adapted to an environment; an anatomical, physiological, or behavioral change that improves a population's ability to survive

biogeography

the study of the geographical distribution of living organisms and fossils on Earth

fossil

the trace or remains of an organism that lived long ago, most commonly preserved in sedimentary rock

catastrophism

theory that states that natural disasters such as floods and volcanic eruptions shaped Earth's landforms and caused extinction of some species

uniformitarianism

theory that states that the geologic processes that shape Earth are uniform through time

connection between population and variation

there is a level of variation between the physical traits of a species in a population