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Darwin's Theory of Evolution (Influences on Darwin (Before Darwin,…
Darwin's Theory of Evolution
Theory of Evolution
Biological Evolution
Stable environment = species won't change
Changing environment = adapting species
Descendants different from ancestors & might be new species
Evolution: process that different kinds of living organisms developed and diversified from earlier forms during earth's history
Adaptations in species = changing genes
Contemporary organisms evolved from earlier organisms
Variation increases chance that at least some individuals will survive if environment changes
Natural Selection
Good traits are common in population, while bad traits are less common
Enough changes may take place over time that the two types of (insert animal) may become different species
Natural selection can change a species or even make a new species
Natural processes favor some traits over others in a population
Natural selection causes those traits to be more common in subsequent generations
Fitness refers to relative ability of organism to survive and produce fertile offspring
Darwin
Theory of Evolution:
Evolution: present life has arisen gradually from past life forms
Natural selection: diversity of life has arisen through time
Evolution = what happens; Natural selection = how it occurs
Millions of species of plants, animals, and microorganisms on Earth are related to each by descent from common ancestors
Charles Darwin
Created Theory of Evolution which explains and unifies all of biology, natural history, etc... since Darwin published theory
Theory changed how we think about ourselves and how we relate to the world
Influences on Darwin
Before Darwin, most people believed that all species were created and remained unchanged from about 6,000 years ago
Jean Baptiste Lamarck proposed that acquired characteristics could be inherited
Charles Lyell wrote that present rock formations have developed through gradual changes over long periods of time
Observations of animal breeding helped Darwin appreciate the importance of heritable variations
Malthus’ work showed that populations produce more offspring than the environment can support
Alfred Russel Wallace formulated a theory very similar to Darwin’s, but Darwin’s clear and forceful Origin of Species earned him greater credit