Exam 1 Flashcards
(35 cards)
3 major approaches to evolution
Theoretical, experimental, observational.
Evolution
Species change over time.
Evolution tells us…
What? When? Where? Why? How?
Charles Darwin
“Origin of Species”
Did NOT create theory of evolution
Proposed N.S. & DWM
Alfred Russell Wallace
Enlightenment
17-18 centuries
Break in 2000 yrs of western thought
Focus on physical/material world
Naturalism
Proposal that natural explanations explain the physical/ mechanical world.
Mechanistic universe
Natural laws govern the universe.
Paves way for scientific method.
Science
A rigorous and repeatable method for observing and understanding the natural world.
Scientific method
Careful observation.
Experimentation.
Uses scientific theory.
Uses hypothesis.
Hypothesis
A scientifically testable idea.
Thomas Malthus
The Essay on Population.
Human populations are affected by natural phenomena.
Jean Baptiste Lamarck
Inheritance of acquired characteristics.
James Hutton & Charles Lyles
Uniformitarianism.
Natural phenomena are the result of natural laws over long periods.
Geological time.
William Clift
Law of Succession.
Correlation between the organisms living in an area and the (recent) fossil record.
George Cuvier
Extinction happens
By Darwin’s time:
Fossils exist.
Occur in layers.
Layers correlate to age of Earth.
Extinction happens.
Natural selection
Correlation of traits and fitness.
Fitness
Ability to survive and reproduce.
Postulates
Populations are variable.
Traits are heritable.
There is variation in fitness.
Fitness is not random.
Natural selection vs. Evolution
Individuals vs. population
Survive/reproduce vs. next generation
Phenotype vs. change in genotypes and allele frequencies.
Adaptation
A trait that increases fitness.
Adaptation program
The study of traits and fitness
Demonstrating adaptation
Everything must be testable.
Determine what the trait is for.
Determine if the trait increases fitness for the specified reason.
Approaches to adaptation
Experimental.
Observational.
Phylogenetic.