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Paleontology 200 > Evolution > Flashcards

Evolution Flashcards

1
Q

Who was the scientist who first conceived the theory of evolution?

A

Charles Darwin

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2
Q

What does evolution explain?

A

How organisms came into existence, how organisms become adapted to their environments, and why organisms share specific traits.

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3
Q

What are the four principles of life that evolution is based on?

A

Organism traits are heritable, Sometimes organisms have heritable traits that are new, Organisms traits determine how successful they will be (repro and survival), and Natural Environments have limited resources.

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4
Q

What does it mean that a trait is heritable?

A

Meaning that the trait is part of the genetic code and can be passed down to offspring, e.g. broken leg - not heritable, eye colour - heritable

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5
Q

What is the source of new heritable traits?

A

Genetic mutation

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6
Q

What must there be in a population for selection to occur?

A

Variation in a trait or set of traits

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7
Q

What does limited resources in an environment lead to?

A

Competition is that environment permitting only some organisms to successfully reproduce.

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8
Q

Does the evolution of a new species require the extinction of its ancestor?

A

no, new species can evolve from gradual changes in a branched off portion of a previous species

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9
Q

What is the process by which evolution occurs?

A

Natural Selection

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10
Q

What is the grouping of organisms based off?

A

Most recent shared common ancestors

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11
Q

What is a character, when talking about evolution?

A

any heritable trait that can be described and labeled

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12
Q

What is a shared derived character?

A

A character that is present in two or more groups and their common ancestor but is not present in previous groups

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13
Q

What is the technical term for shared derived character?

A

Synapomorphy

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14
Q

What is a Synapomorphy of Ornithiscians?

A

Predentary Bone

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15
Q

What is convergent evolution?

A

An event where two unrelated groups of organisms evolve the same character/trait.

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16
Q

When does convergent evolution usually occur?

A

When two lineages have to adapt to similar habitats/modes of life

17
Q

What is the idea “all things held equal the simpler answer is the better answer” called?

A

Parsimony, or Occam’s razor

18
Q

What are species family trees made from common traits called?

A

Phylogenetic trees

19
Q

What are the components of phylogenetic trees?

A

Nodes and Branches

20
Q

What is a node on a phylogenetic tree?

A

A point where two lineages share a common ancestor, a point where two branches diverge

21
Q

What is a group that all shares a common ancestor called?

A

A clade

22
Q

What are the categories of the Linnaean Hierarchy?

A

Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species

23
Q

Why isnt the Linnaean Hierchy the best way to catergorize species anymore

A

More recent evidence has shown that some main groups, like fish, evolved before other groups, like mammals, but they are treated as the same in the Linnaean system.

24
Q

Who was a close colleague of Darwin that was the first to say that birds evolved from dinosaurs?

A

Thomas Henry Huxley

25
Q

Which specimen did Thomas Huxley use to prove the relationship between birds and dinosaurs?

A

Archeopteryx

26
Q

What characters did Archeopteryx have that linked it to both birds and dinosaurs?

A

long wing feathers and tail feathers also had teeth, clawed fingers, and dinosaur vertebrae.

27
Q

Why was Sinosauropteryx important in proving a dinosaur-bird relationship?

A

It was the first non-avian feathers dinosaur

28
Q

What was characteristic of Yutyrannus?

A

Large Feathered Dinosaur

29
Q

What are the four definitions for the clade of Birds?

A

Archeopteryx and all of its descendants. All feathered Dinosaurs. Flying Dinosaurs. Crown Dinosaurs

30
Q

What is the problem with the archeopteryx and all of its descendants definition of birds?

A

Phylogenetic evidence suggests taht archeopteryx is more closely related to dromaeosaurid theropods than to modern birds

31
Q

What is the problem with the feathered dinosaur definition of birds?

A

It includes a large number of species that we would consider dinosaurs and not birds.

32
Q

What is the problem with the flying dinosaur definition?

A

It is difficult to determine which specimens could fly vs glide using the fossil record

33
Q

What is the problem with the crown dinosaurs definition?

A

Fails to recognize many feathered and flying dinosaurs

34
Q

Which bird definition is preferred by paelontologists?

A

The Crown Dinosaurs

Paleontology 200 (12 decks)

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