The Top 5 Reasons Why People Are Successful In The Evolution Site Industry
The Academy's Evolution Site
Biological evolution is a central concept in biology. The Academies have been active for a long time in helping those interested in science comprehend the theory of evolution and how it affects every area of scientific inquiry.
This site offers a variety of resources for students, teachers and general readers of evolution. It has the most important video clips from NOVA and the WGBH-produced science programs on DVD.
Tree of Life
The Tree of Life is an ancient symbol of the interconnectedness of life. It appears in many spiritual traditions and cultures as symbolizing unity and love. It has many practical applications as well, including providing a framework to understand the history of species and how they respond to changing environmental conditions.
Early approaches to depicting the biological world focused on categorizing organisms into distinct categories which were distinguished by physical and metabolic characteristics1. These methods, which rely on the collection of various parts of organisms or short DNA fragments, have greatly increased the diversity of a tree of Life2. However these trees are mainly comprised of eukaryotes, and bacterial diversity remains vastly underrepresented3,4.
Genetic techniques have greatly expanded our ability to visualize the Tree of Life by circumventing the requirement for direct observation and experimentation. We can construct trees using molecular techniques like the small-subunit ribosomal gene.
Despite the rapid growth of the Tree of Life through genome sequencing, a large amount of biodiversity remains to be discovered. This is particularly true for microorganisms that are difficult to cultivate, and are typically found in one sample5. A recent analysis of all known genomes has produced a rough draft of the Tree of Life, including a large number of archaea and bacteria that are not isolated and whose diversity is poorly understood6.
The expanded Tree of Life can be used to evaluate the biodiversity of a specific region and determine if certain habitats require special protection. This information can be utilized in a range of ways, from identifying the most effective medicines to combating disease to improving the quality of crops. It is also beneficial to conservation efforts. It can help biologists identify the areas that are most likely to contain cryptic species with important metabolic functions that could be at risk of anthropogenic changes. While funding to protect biodiversity are important, the most effective method to preserve the world's biodiversity is to empower more people in developing countries with the necessary knowledge to take action locally and encourage conservation.
Phylogeny
A phylogeny (also called an evolutionary tree) shows the relationships between organisms. Using molecular data, morphological similarities and differences or ontogeny (the process of the development of an organism), scientists can build an phylogenetic tree that demonstrates the evolution of taxonomic categories. Phylogeny is crucial in understanding evolution, biodiversity and genetics.
A basic phylogenetic tree (see Figure PageIndex 10 ) determines the relationship between organisms that share similar traits that have evolved from common ancestral. These shared traits are either homologous or analogous. Homologous traits are identical in their evolutionary roots while analogous traits appear like they do, but don't have the identical origins. Scientists arrange similar traits into a grouping referred to as a clade. Every organism in a group have a common trait, such as amniotic egg production. They all evolved from an ancestor that had these eggs. The clades are then linked to form a phylogenetic branch that can determine the organisms with the closest relationship.
Scientists utilize molecular DNA or RNA data to construct a phylogenetic graph that is more precise and precise. This data is more precise than the morphological data and provides evidence of the evolution background of an organism or group. The analysis of molecular data can help researchers identify the number of species who share an ancestor common to them and estimate their evolutionary age.
The phylogenetic relationship can be affected by a number of factors, including phenotypicplasticity. This is a kind of behavior that alters as a result of unique environmental conditions. This can cause a characteristic to appear more similar to one species than another, obscuring the phylogenetic signals. However, this problem can be reduced by the use of methods such as cladistics which incorporate a combination of similar and homologous traits into the tree.
Additionally, www.evolutionkr.kr determine the duration and rate at which speciation occurs. This information can assist conservation biologists decide which species to protect from extinction. In the end, it is the conservation of phylogenetic variety that will result in an ecosystem that is balanced and complete.
Evolutionary Theory
The central theme in evolution is that organisms change over time as a result of their interactions with their environment. A variety of theories about evolution have been proposed by a wide range of scientists, including the Islamic naturalist Nasir al-Din al-Tusi (1201-1274) who believed that an organism would evolve slowly in accordance with 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 use or disuse of traits can cause changes that can be passed onto offspring.
In the 1930s and 1940s, theories from a variety of fields -- including natural selection, genetics, and particulate inheritance -- came together to form the current synthesis of evolutionary theory which explains how evolution happens through the variation of genes within a population and how these variants change in time as a result of natural selection. This model, which includes mutations, genetic drift in gene flow, and sexual selection can be mathematically described mathematically.
Recent advances in the field of evolutionary developmental biology have demonstrated the ways in which variation can be introduced to a species by genetic drift, mutations and reshuffling of genes during sexual reproduction and the movement between populations. These processes, as well as other ones like directionally-selected selection and erosion of genes (changes in frequency of genotypes over time) can result in evolution. Evolution is defined as changes in the genome over time, as well as changes in the phenotype (the expression of genotypes in an individual).
Incorporating evolutionary thinking into all aspects of biology education could increase students' understanding of phylogeny and evolution. In a study by Grunspan and co. It was found that teaching students about the evidence for evolution boosted their acceptance of evolution during an undergraduate biology course. To find out more about how to teach about evolution, please read The Evolutionary Potential in all Areas of Biology and Thinking Evolutionarily: A Framework for Infusing Evolution into Life Sciences Education.
Evolution in Action
Traditionally, scientists have studied evolution by looking back--analyzing fossils, comparing species and studying living organisms. Evolution isn't a flims event; it is an ongoing process that continues to be observed today. Viruses evolve to stay away from new medications and bacteria mutate to resist antibiotics. Animals alter their behavior as a result of a changing world. The changes that result are often evident.
It wasn't until late 1980s that biologists understood that natural selection can be observed in action as well. The key is that various traits confer different rates of survival and reproduction (differential fitness) and are transferred from one generation to the next.
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 all other alleles. As time passes, this could mean that the number of moths that have black pigmentation in 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 an organism, like bacteria, has a high generation turnover. Since 1988, Richard Lenski, a biologist, has studied twelve populations of E.coli that descend from a single strain. Samples from each population were taken regularly and more than 500.000 generations of E.coli have been observed to have passed.
Lenski's research has shown that mutations can drastically alter the rate at which a population reproduces and, consequently, the rate at which it alters. It also shows that evolution takes time, something that is hard for some to accept.
Microevolution can also be seen in the fact that mosquito genes for resistance to pesticides are more common in populations that have used insecticides. Pesticides create a selective pressure which favors individuals who have resistant genotypes.
The rapidity of evolution has led to a greater awareness of its significance, especially in a world which is largely shaped by human activities. This includes climate change, pollution, and habitat loss that prevents many species from adapting. Understanding the evolution process can help you make better decisions about the future of the planet and its inhabitants.