Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution

Despite the best efforts of biology educators, misconceptions about evolution persist. Pop science nonsense has led people to believe that biologists aren't believers in evolution.

This site, which is a companion to the PBS program, provides teachers with materials which support evolution education while avoiding the types of misconceptions that can make it difficult to understand. It's organized in a "bread crumb" format to aid in navigation and orientation.

Definitions

Evolution is a complicated and difficult subject matter to teach well. It is often misunderstood by non-scientists, and even scientists are guilty of using a definition that confuses the issue. This is particularly true when it comes to discussions on the meaning of the word itself.

It is therefore crucial to define the terms that are used in evolutionary biology. Understanding Evolution's website does this in a simple and efficient manner. The site is a companion site to the series that first aired in 2001, but it is also an independent resource. The material is presented in a way that assists in navigation and orientation.

The site defines terms like common ancestor, gradual process and adaptation. These terms help define the nature of evolution and its relationship to evolution to other concepts in science. The site then offers an overview of how the concept of evolution has been vetted and confirmed. This information will help to dispel the myths created by creationists.

It is also possible to get a glossary of terms used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:

The process of adaptation is the tendency of hereditary traits to become more suitable to their environment. This is due to natural selection. It occurs when organisms that are better adapted characteristics are more likely to survive and reproduce than those with less adaptable characteristics.

Common ancestor 에볼루션 바카라 무료 (also known as common ancestor) is the most recent ancestor that is shared by two or more species. The common ancestor can be identified by studying the DNA of the species.

Deoxyribonucleic acid: A huge biological molecule that holds the information needed for cell replication. The information is contained in a sequence of nucleotides that are strung together to form long chains, called chromosomes. Mutations are responsible for the creation of new genetic information within cells.

Coevolution is a relation between two species in which the evolution of one species are influenced by evolutionary changes of the other. Examples of coevolution are the interactions between predator and prey, or the parasite and the host.

Origins

Species (groups of individuals that are able to interbreed) develop through a series of natural changes in the traits of their offspring. The changes can be triggered by a variety of factors such as natural selection, genetic drift, and mixing of genes. The development of new species can take thousands of years. Environmental conditions, like changes in the climate or competition for food and habitat can slow or speed up the process.

The Evolution site traces through time the evolution of different animal and plant groups with a focus on major changes in each group's history. It also focuses on the evolutionary history of humans which is crucial for students to understand.

Darwin's Origin was written in 1859, at a time when only a handful of antediluvian fossils of humans had been found. Among them was the famous skullcap and bones that were discovered in 1856 at the Little Feldhofer Grotto in Germany which is now believed to be an early Homo neanderthalensis. While the skullcap wasn't published until 1858, 에볼루션 룰렛 which was one year before the first edition of the Origin appeared, it is extremely unlikely that Darwin had seen or heard of it.

While the site focuses on biology, it includes a good deal of information about geology and paleontology. The most impressive features on the site are a set of timelines that show how climatic and geological conditions have changed over time, and an interactive map of the geographical distribution of some fossil groups listed on the site.

The site is a companion to the PBS television series, 에볼루션 바카라 무료 but it can also be used as an educational resource by teachers and 에볼루션 바카라 사이트 바카라 무료 (Jobinvietnam.Net) students. The site is well-organized, and provides clear links to the introduction material of Understanding Evolution (developed under the National Science Foundation's funding) as well as the more specialized features of the museum website. These links make it easier to transition from the cartoon-style Understanding Evolution pages into the more sophisticated realms of research science. In particular there are hyperlinks to John Endler's research with Guppies that demonstrate the importance of ecology in evolutionary theory.

Diversity

The evolution of life on Earth has resulted in a variety of plants, animals, and insects. Paleobiology, the study of these creatures within their natural environment offers many advantages over the current observational or experimental methods for studying evolutionary phenomena. In addition to examining the processes and events that happen regularly or over a long period of time, paleobiology is able to study the relative abundance of different groups of organisms and their distribution across geological time.

The Web site is divided into a variety of pathways to understanding evolution which include "Evolution 101," which takes the viewer on a line through the scientific process and 에볼루션 바카라사이트 the evidence to support the theory of evolution. The path also explores common misconceptions about evolution as well as the history of evolutionary thought.

Each of the main sections of the Evolution website is equally well-developed, with materials that are suited to a variety of educational levels and teaching styles. In addition to the general textual content, the site also has a wide range of multimedia and interactive resources like videos, animations and virtual labs. The breadcrumb-like arrangement of the content assists with navigation and orientation on the vast website.

For example the page "Coral Reef Connections" provides an overview of the relationships between corals and their interaction with other organisms, then concentrates on a specific clam that is able to communicate with its neighbors and respond to changes in water conditions that take place at the reef level. This page, as well as the other multidisciplinary interactive and multimedia pages offers a great introduction to the many areas of evolutionary biology. The material also provides an overview of the importance of natural selection and the concept of phylogenetic analysis, which is an important tool in understanding evolutionary change.

Evolutionary Theory

Evolution is a common thread that is found throughout all branches of biology. A rich collection supports teaching evolution across the disciplines of life sciences.

One resource, which is the companion to PBS's TV series Understanding Evolution is an excellent example of an Web page that offers both depth as well as wide range of educational resources. The site features a wealth of interactive learning modules. It also has a "bread crumb structure" that allows students to move away from the cartoon-like style used in Understanding Evolution and onto elements of this vast website that are closely related to the realms of research science. For instance, an animation introducing the idea of genetic inheritance connects to a page highlighting John Endler's experiments with artificial selection with guppies from the native ponds of Trinidad.

Another resource that is worth mentioning is the Evolution Library on this Web site, which contains an extensive collection of multimedia resources related to evolution. The content is organized into the form of curriculum-based pathways that are in line with the learning goals set forth in biology standards. It contains seven videos designed specifically for classroom use, which can be streamed at no cost or purchased on DVD.

Evolutionary biology is still a field of study that poses many important questions, such as what causes evolution and how fast it happens. This is particularly true for human evolution, where it has been difficult to reconcile the idea that the physical characteristics of humans evolved from apes, and the religious beliefs that hold that humanity is unique in the universe and has an exclusive place in the creation, with soul.

Additionally there are a variety of ways that evolution can occur with natural selection being the most popular theory. Scientists also study other types such as genetic drift and sexual selection.

While many scientific fields of inquiry are in conflict with literal interpretations of religious texts evolutionary biology has been the subject of fierce debate and opposition from religious fundamentalists. Certain religions have reconciled their beliefs with evolutionary biology, while others haven't.