Does Technology Make Evolution Site Better Or Worse

The Academy's Evolution Site

The concept of biological evolution is among the most central concepts in biology. The Academies have long been involved in helping people who are interested in science understand the concept of evolution and how it influences all areas of scientific exploration.

This site provides teachers, students and general readers with a range of educational resources on evolution. It includes key video clips from NOVA and WGBH-produced science programs on DVD.

Tree of Life

The Tree of Life is an ancient symbol that represents the interconnectedness of life. It is a symbol of love and harmony in a variety of cultures. It has numerous practical applications in addition to providing a framework to understand the history of species, and how they react to changes in environmental conditions.

The first attempts at depicting the world of biology focused on categorizing organisms into distinct categories which had been distinguished by their physical and metabolic characteristics1. These methods, which depend on the collection of various parts of organisms or short DNA fragments, have greatly increased the diversity of a tree of Life2. The trees are mostly composed by eukaryotes, and bacterial diversity is vastly underrepresented3,4.

Genetic techniques have significantly expanded our ability to represent the Tree of Life by circumventing the requirement for direct observation and experimentation. Particularly, molecular methods enable us to create trees using sequenced markers such as the small subunit of ribosomal RNA gene.

The Tree of Life has been dramatically expanded through genome sequencing. However there is a lot of diversity to be discovered. This is particularly true for microorganisms that are difficult to cultivate and are often only represented in a single sample5. A recent study of all known genomes has created a rough draft of the Tree of Life, including a large number of bacteria and archaea that have not been isolated, and whose diversity is poorly understood6.

The expanded Tree of Life can be used to determine the diversity of a specific area and determine if specific habitats require special protection. This information can be used in a variety of ways, from identifying the most effective medicines to combating disease to enhancing the quality of crop yields. The information is also incredibly useful to conservation efforts. It helps biologists determine the areas most likely to contain cryptic species with important metabolic functions that could be at risk from anthropogenic change. While conservation funds are important, the most effective method to protect the world's biodiversity is to equip more people in developing countries with the knowledge they need to act locally and support conservation.

Phylogeny

A phylogeny (also called an evolutionary tree) depicts the relationships between species. By using molecular information, morphological similarities and differences, or ontogeny (the process of the development of an organism) scientists can construct a phylogenetic tree which illustrates the evolutionary relationships between taxonomic groups. Phylogeny plays a crucial role in understanding the relationship between genetics, biodiversity and evolution.

A basic phylogenetic Tree (see Figure PageIndex 10 ) is a method of identifying the relationships between organisms that share similar traits that have evolved from common ancestral. These shared traits may be homologous, or analogous. Homologous traits are the same in their evolutionary path. Analogous traits might appear similar, but they do not have the same ancestry. Scientists organize similar traits into a grouping called a clade. All organisms in a group share a characteristic, for example, amniotic egg production. They all evolved from an ancestor with these eggs. A phylogenetic tree can be constructed by connecting the clades to identify the species who are the closest to each other.

Scientists use DNA or RNA molecular data to create a phylogenetic chart that is more precise and detailed. This information is more precise than the morphological data and gives evidence of the evolutionary history of an organism or group. Molecular data allows researchers to determine the number of species that have an ancestor common to them and estimate their evolutionary age.

The phylogenetic relationships between species can be influenced by several factors including phenotypic plasticity, an aspect of behavior that changes in response to specific environmental conditions. This can cause a trait to appear more similar in one species than other species, which can obscure the phylogenetic signal. This issue can be cured by using cladistics. This is a method that incorporates a combination of homologous and analogous traits in the tree.

In addition, phylogenetics can help predict the time and pace of speciation. This information can assist conservation biologists in making decisions about which species to protect from extinction. In the end, it's the conservation of phylogenetic diversity that will lead to an ecosystem that is complete and balanced.

Evolutionary Theory

The fundamental concept of evolution is that organisms develop distinct characteristics over time based on their interactions with their environment. Several theories of evolutionary change have been proposed by a wide variety of scientists, including the Islamic naturalist Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201-1274) who proposed that a living organism develop gradually according to its needs as well as the Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus (1707-1778) who developed modern hierarchical taxonomy, and Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1744-1829) who suggested that the use or non-use of traits causes changes that could be passed onto offspring.

In the 1930s and 1940s, ideas from a variety of fields--including genetics, natural selection, and particulate inheritance - came together to form the modern synthesis of evolutionary theory that explains how evolution is triggered by the variation of genes within a population and how those variants change over time as a result of natural selection. This model, called genetic drift mutation, gene flow, and sexual selection, is a cornerstone of current evolutionary biology, and can be mathematically explained.

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

Incorporating evolutionary thinking into all aspects of biology education can increase students' understanding of phylogeny and evolution. A recent study by Grunspan and 무료 에볼루션 에볼루션 바카라 체험 사이트 [check these guys out] colleagues, for example revealed that teaching students about the evidence supporting evolution helped students accept the concept of evolution in a college-level biology class. To learn more about how to teach about evolution, see The Evolutionary Potential in All Areas of Biology and Thinking Evolutionarily: A Framework for Infusing the Concept of Evolution into Life Sciences Education.

Evolution in Action

Traditionally scientists have studied evolution by looking back--analyzing fossils, comparing species and studying living organisms. However, evolution isn't something that happened in the past. It's an ongoing process, taking place right now. Bacteria mutate and resist antibiotics, viruses re-invent themselves and elude new medications, and animals adapt their behavior to the changing climate. The changes that result are often apparent.

It wasn't until late-1980s that biologists realized that natural selection could be seen in action, as well. The key is that various characteristics result in different rates of survival and reproduction (differential fitness), and can be passed down from one generation to the next.

In the past, if a certain allele - the genetic sequence that determines colour - was present in a population of organisms that interbred, it could become more common than any other allele. Over time, this would mean that the number of moths with black pigmentation in a population may increase. The same is true for many other characteristics--including morphology and behavior--that vary among populations of organisms.

It is easier to see evolution when an organism, like bacteria, has a rapid generation turnover. Since 1988, 에볼루션 Richard Lenski, a biologist, has tracked twelve populations of E.coli that are descended from one strain. Samples of each population have been collected regularly, and 에볼루션 사이트 카지노 (Mozillabd.Science) more than 500.000 generations of E.coli have passed.

Lenski's research has revealed that mutations can alter the rate at which change occurs and the efficiency at which a population reproduces. It also proves that evolution takes time--a fact that many find difficult to accept.

Another example of microevolution is that mosquito genes for resistance to pesticides are more prevalent in populations where insecticides are employed. That's because the use of pesticides creates a selective pressure that favors individuals with resistant genotypes.

The rapidity of evolution has led to an increasing appreciation of its importance especially in a planet shaped largely by human activity. This includes pollution, climate change, and habitat loss that prevents many species from adapting. Understanding evolution can help us make smarter decisions regarding the future of our planet as well as the life of its inhabitants.