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14 Questions You're Afraid To Ask About Evolution Site
The Academy's Evolution Site

Biology is one of the most central concepts in biology. The Academies are involved in helping those who are interested in the sciences learn about the theory of evolution and how it is incorporated throughout all fields of scientific research.

This site provides teachers, students and general readers with a variety of learning resources about evolution. It contains key video clips from NOVA and WGBH produced science programs on DVD.

Tree of Life

The Tree of Life, an ancient symbol, symbolizes the interconnectedness of all life. It is used in many cultures and spiritual beliefs as an emblem of unity and love. It also has practical applications, like providing a framework to understand the evolution of species and how they respond to changes in environmental conditions.

Early attempts to represent the world of biology were founded on categorizing organisms on their metabolic and physical characteristics. These methods, based on the sampling of different parts of living organisms or on sequences of short DNA fragments, greatly increased the variety of organisms that could be included in a tree of life2. These trees are mostly populated of eukaryotes, while bacteria are largely underrepresented3,4.

Genetic techniques have greatly expanded our ability to represent the Tree of Life by circumventing the need for direct observation and experimentation. In particular, molecular methods allow us to construct trees using sequenced markers, such as the small subunit ribosomal RNA gene.

The Tree of Life has been greatly expanded thanks to genome sequencing. However there is a lot of biodiversity to be discovered. This is particularly the case for microorganisms which are difficult to cultivate, and which are usually only present in a single sample5. A recent study of all genomes known to date has produced a rough draft of the Tree of Life, including numerous archaea and bacteria that have not been isolated and their diversity is not fully understood6.

The expanded Tree of Life can be used to determine the diversity of a specific area and determine if certain habitats need special protection. This information can be used in a range of ways, from identifying the most effective medicines to combating disease to enhancing the quality of crops. The information is also valuable to conservation efforts. It can help biologists identify those areas that are most likely contain cryptic species with potentially important metabolic functions that may be at risk from anthropogenic change. While funding to protect biodiversity are important, the best way to conserve the world's biodiversity is to equip the people of developing nations with the knowledge they need to act locally and support conservation.

Phylogeny

A phylogeny is also known as an evolutionary tree, reveals the relationships between different groups of organisms. By using molecular information similarities and differences in morphology, or ontogeny (the course of development of an organism), scientists can build a phylogenetic tree that illustrates the evolutionary relationship between taxonomic categories. The concept of phylogeny is fundamental to understanding biodiversity, evolution and genetics.

A basic phylogenetic Tree (see Figure PageIndex 10 ) identifies the relationships between organisms that share similar traits that evolved from common ancestral. These shared traits are either homologous or analogous. Homologous characteristics are identical in their evolutionary path. Analogous traits might appear similar but they don't have the same origins. Scientists group similar traits into a grouping known as a clade. 에볼루션 in a group have a common characteristic, for example, amniotic egg production. They all came from an ancestor that had these eggs. A phylogenetic tree is then constructed by connecting the clades to identify the species that are most closely related to each other.

For a more precise and precise phylogenetic tree scientists make use of molecular data from DNA or RNA to establish the connections between organisms. This information is more precise and provides evidence of the evolutionary history of an organism. Researchers can utilize Molecular Data to determine the age of evolution of living organisms and discover how many organisms have the same ancestor.

The phylogenetic relationships of a species can be affected by a number of factors that include the phenomenon of phenotypicplasticity. This is a type of behavior that changes due to particular environmental conditions. This can make a trait appear more resembling to one species than to the other and obscure the phylogenetic signals. This problem can be mitigated by using cladistics, which is a the combination of homologous and analogous traits in the tree.

In addition, phylogenetics can help predict the duration and rate of speciation. This information can help conservation biologists make decisions about which species they should protect from the threat of extinction. It is ultimately the preservation of phylogenetic diversity that will lead to an ecosystem that is complete and balanced.

Evolutionary Theory

The main idea behind evolution is that organisms acquire distinct characteristics over time due to their interactions with their environments. Many scientists have developed theories of evolution, such as the Islamic naturalist Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201-274) who believed that an organism could evolve according to its individual needs and needs, the Swedish taxonomist Carolus Linnaeus (1707-1778) who conceived the modern hierarchical taxonomy as well as Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1844-1829), who suggested that the use or absence of traits can cause changes that are passed on to the

In the 1930s and 1940s, theories from various fields, including genetics, natural selection and particulate inheritance - came together to form the current evolutionary theory which explains how evolution occurs through the variation of genes within a population, and how these variants change in time as a result of natural selection. This model, known as genetic drift or mutation, gene flow and sexual selection, is a cornerstone of modern evolutionary biology and is mathematically described.

Recent advances in evolutionary developmental biology have shown how variation can be introduced to a species by genetic drift, mutations, reshuffling genes during sexual reproduction and migration between populations. These processes, along with other ones like directional selection and genetic erosion (changes in the frequency of the genotype over time), can lead to evolution that is defined as change in the genome of the species over time, and also by changes in phenotype over time (the expression of that genotype in the individual).

Incorporating evolutionary thinking into all areas of biology education can improve students' understanding of phylogeny as well as evolution. In a study by Grunspan et al. It was found that teaching students about the evidence for evolution boosted their understanding of evolution in a college-level course in biology. For more information on how to teach about evolution, look up The Evolutionary Potential of All Areas of Biology and Thinking Evolutionarily: A Framework for Infusing the Concept of Evolution into Life Sciences Education.

Evolution in Action


Scientists have looked at evolution through the past, studying fossils, and comparing species. They also study living organisms. But evolution isn't just something that happened in the past; it's an ongoing process that is taking place in the present. Bacteria mutate and resist antibiotics, viruses evolve and elude new medications, and animals adapt their behavior to the changing environment. The results are often evident.

It wasn't until the 1980s that biologists began realize that natural selection was at work. The key is that various traits have different rates of survival and reproduction (differential fitness) and are transferred from one generation to the next.

In the past, if one particular allele--the genetic sequence that defines color in a population of interbreeding organisms, it might quickly become more common than all other alleles. As time passes, that could mean that the number of black moths within a population could increase. The same is true for many other characteristics--including morphology and behavior--that vary among populations of organisms.

It is easier to observe evolution when a species, such as bacteria, has a rapid generation turnover. Since 1988 biologist Richard Lenski has been tracking twelve populations of E. coli that descended from a single strain; samples from each population are taken on a regular basis and over 50,000 generations have now passed.

Lenski's research has demonstrated that mutations can alter the rate at which change occurs and the efficiency at which a population reproduces. It also demonstrates that evolution takes time, which is hard for some to accept.

Microevolution can be observed in the fact that mosquito genes that confer resistance to pesticides are more prevalent in areas where insecticides are used. This is because the use of pesticides creates a selective pressure that favors people who have resistant genotypes.

The rapidity of evolution has led to a greater awareness of its significance particularly in a world shaped largely by human activity. This includes the effects of climate change, pollution and habitat loss that prevents many species from adapting. Understanding the evolution process can help us make better choices about the future of our planet as well as the life of its inhabitants.

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