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The Academy's Evolution Site
Biological evolution is one of the most central concepts in biology. The Academies have long been involved in helping those interested in science comprehend the concept of evolution and how it influences all areas of scientific research.
This site offers a variety of resources for teachers, students as well as general readers about evolution. It includes key video clip from NOVA and WGBH produced science programs on DVD.
Tree of Life
The Tree of Life, 에볼루션바카라사이트 an ancient symbol, symbolizes the interconnectedness of all life. It is an emblem of love and unity in many cultures. It can be used in many practical ways in addition to providing a framework to understand the history of species and how they respond to changing environmental conditions.
Early attempts to describe the world of biology were founded on categorizing organisms on their metabolic and physical characteristics. These methods, which rely on sampling of different parts of living organisms, or sequences of short fragments of their DNA, greatly increased the variety of organisms that could be included in the tree of life2. The trees are mostly composed by eukaryotes and the diversity of bacterial species is greatly underrepresented3,4.
Genetic techniques have greatly broadened our ability to represent the Tree of Life by circumventing the need for direct observation and experimentation. Particularly, molecular methods allow us to build trees using sequenced markers like the small subunit ribosomal RNA gene.
Despite the dramatic growth of the Tree of Life through genome sequencing, a lot of biodiversity is waiting to be discovered. This is especially true for microorganisms that are difficult to cultivate and are usually found in one sample5. A recent analysis of all genomes that are known has produced a rough draft of the Tree of Life, including a large number of bacteria and archaea that have not been isolated and their diversity is not fully understood6.
This expanded Tree of Life is particularly useful for assessing the biodiversity of an area, 에볼루션 카지노 which can help to determine whether specific habitats require special protection. This information can be utilized in a range of ways, from identifying the most effective treatments to fight disease to enhancing crops. It is also valuable for conservation efforts. It can aid biologists in identifying areas that are likely to have cryptic species, which may have vital metabolic functions and be vulnerable to changes caused by humans. While funds to protect biodiversity are essential, ultimately the best way to protect the world's biodiversity is for more people in developing countries to be empowered with the knowledge to act locally to promote conservation from within.
Phylogeny
A phylogeny (also known as an evolutionary tree) illustrates the relationship between organisms. By using molecular information similarities and differences in morphology or ontogeny (the process of the development of an organism) scientists can construct a phylogenetic tree that illustrates the evolutionary relationships between taxonomic categories. The phylogeny of a tree plays an important role in understanding biodiversity, genetics and evolution.
A basic phylogenetic Tree (see Figure PageIndex 10 Finds the connections between organisms that have similar characteristics and have evolved from an ancestor that shared traits. These shared traits may be analogous, or homologous. Homologous traits are identical in their evolutionary origins, while analogous traits look like they do, 에볼루션 무료 바카라 but don't have the same origins. Scientists group similar traits together into a grouping referred to as a the clade. Every organism in a group have a common characteristic, like amniotic egg production. They all came from an ancestor who had these eggs. The clades are then connected to form a phylogenetic branch that can identify organisms that have the closest connection to each other.
For a more precise and accurate phylogenetic tree scientists use molecular data from DNA or RNA to establish the relationships between organisms. This information is more precise than morphological information and gives evidence of the evolutionary history of an individual or group. Researchers can use Molecular Data to calculate the age of evolution of organisms and identify how many species have an ancestor common to all.
The phylogenetic relationships between organisms can be affected by a variety of factors including phenotypic plasticity, a kind of behavior that changes in response to unique environmental conditions. This can cause a characteristic to appear more similar to a species than another and obscure the phylogenetic signals. This problem can be addressed by using cladistics. This is a method that incorporates a combination of analogous and homologous features in the tree.
Additionally, phylogenetics can aid in predicting the duration and rate of speciation. This information can help conservation biologists decide which species they should protect from extinction. In the end, it is the preservation of phylogenetic diversity that will lead to an ecosystem that is complete and balanced.
Evolutionary Theory
The fundamental concept in evolution is that organisms alter over time because of their interactions with their environment. Several theories of evolutionary change have been proposed by a wide range of scientists including the Islamic naturalist Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201-1274) who proposed that a living organism develop gradually according to its requirements as well as the Swedish botanist Carolus Linnaeus (1707-1778) who designed modern hierarchical taxonomy, and Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1744-1829) who suggested that use or disuse of traits causes changes that can be passed onto offspring.
In the 1930s and 1940s, theories from various fields, including genetics, natural selection, 에볼루션 카지노 사이트 (lp-inside.ru) and particulate inheritance, were brought together to create a modern evolutionary theory. This defines how evolution is triggered by the variation in genes within the population and how these variants alter over time due to natural selection. This model, which incorporates genetic drift, mutations as well as gene flow and sexual selection can be mathematically described.
Recent discoveries in the field of evolutionary developmental biology have revealed how variations can be introduced to a species by mutations, genetic drift, reshuffling genes during sexual reproduction, and even migration between populations. These processes, in conjunction with others, such as directional selection and gene erosion (changes in frequency of genotypes over time), can lead towards evolution. Evolution is defined by changes in the genome over time and changes in phenotype (the expression of genotypes in individuals).
Students can gain a better understanding of the concept of phylogeny through incorporating evolutionary thinking into all aspects of biology. In a recent study conducted by Grunspan et al., it was shown that teaching students about the evidence for evolution increased their understanding of evolution in an undergraduate biology course. To find out more about how to teach about evolution, see The Evolutionary Potential in All Areas of Biology and Thinking Evolutionarily A Framework for Infusing Evolution in Life Sciences Education.
Evolution in Action
Traditionally, scientists have studied evolution by looking back--analyzing fossils, comparing species and studying living organisms. But evolution isn't just something that happened in the past; it's an ongoing process that is happening today. Bacteria evolve and resist antibiotics, viruses re-invent themselves and escape new drugs and animals alter their behavior to a changing planet. The results are often evident.
But it wasn't until the late-1980s that biologists realized that natural selection can be observed in action as well. The key to this is that different traits confer an individual rate of survival and reproduction, and can be passed on from one generation to another.
In the past when one particular allele, the genetic sequence that controls coloration - was present in a group of interbreeding species, it could quickly become more prevalent than the other alleles. In time, this could mean that the number of moths that have black pigmentation may increase. The same is true for many other characteristics--including morphology and behavior--that vary among populations of organisms.
It is easier to track evolution when the species, like bacteria, has a rapid generation turnover. Since 1988, Richard Lenski, a biologist, has studied twelve populations of E.coli that descend from one strain. Samples from each population have been collected frequently and more than 50,000 generations of E.coli have been observed to have passed.
Lenski's work has demonstrated that mutations can drastically alter the speed at which a population reproduces and, consequently the rate at which it evolves. It also shows that evolution takes time, a fact that some people find hard to accept.
Another example of microevolution is the way mosquito genes for resistance to pesticides appear more frequently in populations where insecticides are employed. That's because the use of pesticides causes a selective pressure that favors those with resistant genotypes.
The rapidity of evolution has led to an increasing recognition of its importance, especially in a world that is largely shaped 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 smarter decisions about the future of our planet, as well as the lives of its inhabitants.