A Look At The Good And Bad About Evolution Site

Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution

Despite the best efforts of biology teachers, there are still misconceptions about evolution. People who have been exposed to popular science myths often assume that biologists don't believe in evolution.

This rich Web site - companion to the PBS series offers teachers with resources which support evolution education and avoids the kinds of misconceptions that make it difficult to understand. It's organized in a nested "bread crumb" format for ease of navigation and orientation.

Definitions

Evolution is a complex and difficult subject to teach effectively. It is often misunderstood by non-scientists, and even some scientists have been guilty of using an interpretation that is confusing the issue. This is especially true when it comes to discussions on the definition of the word itself.

It is therefore important to define the terms that are used in evolutionary biology. The website for the PBS show, Understanding Evolution, does this in a simple and efficient way. The website is a companion to the show which first aired in 2001, but it is also an independent resource. The material is presented in an organized way that makes it easy to navigate and understand.

The site defines terms such as common ancestor and the gradual process. These terms help frame the nature of evolution and its relationship to other concepts in science. The site then offers an overview of how the concept of evolution has been vetted and validated. This information can be used to dispel misconceptions that have been created by the creationists.

You can also access a glossary that contains terms that are used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:

Adaptation: The tendency for heritable traits to become better adaptable to a specific environment.  에볼루션 바카라  is the result of natural selection. Organisms with better-adapted characteristics are more likely than those with less-adapted characteristics to survive and reproduce.

Common ancestor: The latest common ancestor of two or more different species. The common ancestor can be identified by studying the DNA of the species.

Deoxyribonucleic acid: A massive biological molecule that contains the information required for cell replication. The information is stored in nucleotide sequences, which are strung into long chains known as chromosomes. Mutations are responsible for the creation of new genetic information inside cells.

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

Origins

Species (groups of individuals who can interbreed) evolve through natural changes in the characteristics of their offspring. Changes can be caused by various factors, including natural selection, gene drift, and mixing of the gene pool. The evolution of a new species may take thousands of years and the process may be slowed or increased by environmental factors like climate change or the competition for food or habitat.

The Evolution site tracks through time the evolution of different species of plants and animals and focuses on major changes in each group's history. It also examines the human evolutionary roots and humans, a subject that is particularly important for students to know.

When Darwin wrote the Origin of Species, only a handful of antediluvian human fossils had been found. One of them was the infamous skullcap and associated bones found in 1856 at the Little Feldhofer Grotto in Germany, which is now known to be an early Homo neanderthalensis. It is highly unlikely that Darwin was aware of the skullcap, which was published in 1858, a year following the initial edition of The Origin. Origin.

The site is mostly one of biology however, it also has a lot of information on paleontology and geology. Among the best features of the Web site are a set of timelines that show the way in which climatic and geological conditions have changed over time and a map of the distribution of a few of the fossil groups featured on the site.

Although the site is a companion to the PBS television show but it also stands on its own as a great resource for teachers and students. The site is well-organized, and provides easy links to the introductory information of Understanding Evolution (developed under the National Science Foundation's support) and the more specialized features of the museum's website. These links facilitate the transition from the enthralling cartoon style of the Understanding Evolution pages to the more sophisticated world of research science. Particularly there are links to John Endler's research with guppies that illustrate the importance of ecology in evolutionary theory.

Diversity

The evolution of life has produced a variety of plants, animals and insects. Paleobiology is the study of these creatures in their geological environment, has many advantages over modern observational or research methods for studying evolutionary phenomena. In addition to studying processes and events that occur regularly or over a long period of time, paleobiology can be used to examine the relative abundance of various kinds of organisms as well as their distribution throughout the geological time.

The website is divided into different routes that can be taken to learn about evolution. One of the paths, "Evolution 101," walks the reader through the evolution of nature and the evidence of evolution. The course also focuses on common misconceptions about evolution as well as the evolution of thought.

Each of the main sections on the Evolution website is equally well-developed, and includes materials that are suited to a variety of levels of curriculum and teaching methods. The site has a range of multimedia and interactive resources that include video clips, animations and virtual labs in addition to general textual content. The breadcrumb-like structure of the content assists with navigation and orientation on the massive Web site.

For example the page "Coral Reef Connections" provides an overview of the relationships between corals and their interactions with other organisms. Then, it zooms in on a single clam that can communicate with its neighbors and react to changes in the water conditions that take place at the level of the reef. This page, along with the other multidisciplinary, multimedia, and interactive pages on the site, provide an excellent introduction to a broad spectrum of topics in evolutionary biology. The content also includes a discussion of the role of natural selection as well as the concept of phylogenetic analysis which is a crucial tool for understanding the evolution of change.

Evolutionary Theory

For biology students the concept of evolution is a major thread that binds all the branches of the field. A rich collection of resources can help teachers teach about evolution across the life sciences.

One resource, a companion to the PBS television series Understanding Evolution, is an outstanding example of a Web site that provides depth and breadth in its educational resources. The site offers a range of interactive learning modules. It also features an embedded "bread crumb" structure that helps students transition from the cartoon style of Understanding Evolution to elements on this large Web site more closely linked to the world of research science. For instance, an animation introducing the notion of genetic inheritance leads to a page that focuses on John Endler's experiments with artificial selection using guppies in the ponds of his native country of Trinidad.

The Evolution Library on this website contains a large multimedia library of resources that are associated with evolution. The content is organized according to curricula-based paths that correspond to the learning objectives set out in biology standards. It contains seven videos specifically designed for use in the classroom, and can be streamed for free or purchased on DVD.

Evolutionary biology is a field of study with a lot of important questions to answer, such as what causes evolution and how fast it occurs. This is particularly relevant for humans' evolution which was a challenge to reconcile religious beliefs that held that humanity has a unique place in the creation and a soul with the notion that human beings have innate physical traits evolved from apes.

There are a variety of other ways evolution could occur and natural selection being the most widely accepted theory. Scientists also study other kinds such as genetic drift and sexual selection.

While many fields of scientific study are in conflict with literal interpretations found in religious texts, evolution biology has been a source of intense debate and resistance from religious fundamentalists. Certain religions have reconciled their beliefs to evolution while others haven't.