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Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution

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

This rich Web site, which is a complement to the PBS program offers teachers resources that support the evolution of education, while avoiding the kinds of misconceptions which make it difficult to understand. It's laid out in a "bread crumb" format to aid in navigation and orientation.

Definitions

It's difficult to teach evolution well. 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 particularly applicable to discussions on the definition of the word itself.

It is therefore crucial to define the terms that are used in evolutionary biology. The website for the PBS show, Understanding Evolution, does this in a clear and helpful way. It is an accompanying site for the 2001 series, but it is also a resource on its own. The material is presented in a structured manner that makes it easier to navigate and understand.

The site defines terms like common ancestor and gradual process. These terms help to define the nature of evolution and its relation to other scientific concepts. The site then offers an overview of how the concept of evolution has been tested and verified. This information can be used to dispel misconceptions that have been propagated by the creationists.

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

Adaptation is the process of changing hereditary traits to become better suited to an environment. This is the result of natural selection. Organisms with better-adapted traits are more likely than those with less adaptable traits to survive and reproduce.

Common ancestor: The latest common ancestor of two or 에볼루션 바카라 more species. By studying the DNA of these species, it is possible to identify the common ancestor.

Deoxyribonucleic acid: A massive biological molecule that contains information necessary for cell replication. The information is stored in a sequence of nucleotides that are strung together to form long chains, called chromosomes. Mutations are the reason behind the creation of new genetic information inside cells.

Coevolution: A relationship between two species in which evolutionary changes in one species are influenced by evolutionary changes in the other. Examples of coevolution include the interactions between predator and prey, or parasite and host.

Origins

Species (groups of individuals that are able to interbreed) change through a series of natural changes in the characteristics of their offspring. The changes can be caused by a variety, including natural selection, genetic drift, and gene pool mixing. The evolution of new species could take thousands of years. Environmental conditions, like climate change or competition for food and habitat, can slow or accelerate the process.

The Evolution site traces through time the evolution of various species of plants and animals with a focus on major changes within each group's past. It also explores the human evolutionary roots which is crucial for students to understand.

Darwin's Origin was written in 1859, when just a few antediluvian fossils of humans were discovered. The most famous among them was the skullcap and the associated bones discovered in 1856 at the Little Feldhofer Grotto in Germany, which is now known to be an early Homo neanderthalensis. While the skullcap wasn't published until 1858, just one year before the first edition of the Origin appeared, it is extremely unlikely that Darwin had heard or seen of it.

The site is mostly one of biology, but it also contains many details on paleontology and geology. The most impressive features of the Web site are a series of timelines which show the way in which climatic and geological conditions have changed over time, as well as a map of the distribution of a few fossil groups that are featured on the site.

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

Diversity

The evolution of life on Earth has led to a wide variety of plants, animals, and insects. Paleobiology is the study of these creatures within their natural environment and has a number of advantages over modern observational and experimental methods in its exploration of evolutionary phenomena. Paleobiology can examine not just the processes and events that take place regularly or over time but also the relative abundance and distribution of different groups of animals in space over the course of geological time.

The Web site is divided into several optional ways to learn about evolution, including "Evolution 101," which takes the viewer on a line through the scientific process and the evidence supporting the theory of evolution. The path also explores common misconceptions about evolution and the history of evolutionary thought.

Each of the main sections on the Evolution website is equally well-developed, and includes materials that can be used to support a variety of levels of curriculum and teaching methods. The site offers a wide array of multimedia and interactive resources which include videos, animations, and virtual laboratories, in addition to its general textual content. The breadcrumb-like structure of the content aids in navigation and orientation on the large Web site.

For instance, the page "Coral Reef Connections" gives a brief overview of the relationships between corals and their interactions with other organisms, then concentrates on a specific clam that can communicate with its neighbors and respond to changes in the water conditions 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 wide spectrum of topics in 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 for understanding the evolution of changes.

Evolutionary Theory

For biology students the concept of evolution is a major thread that binds all branches of the field. A rich collection supports teaching evolution across the life science disciplines.

One resource, a companion to the PBS television series Understanding Evolution, is an excellent example of an Web site that provides depth and a variety of educational resources. The site offers a variety of interactive learning modules. It also has a "bread crumb structure" that assists students in moving away from the cartoon style used in Understanding Evolution and onto elements of this vast website that are closely related to the worlds of research science. An animation that introduces the concept of genetics is linked to a page highlighting John Endler's artificial-selection experiments with guppies on native ponds in Trinidad.

Another helpful resource is the Evolution Library on this site, which contains an extensive multimedia library of assets connected to evolution. The content is organized according to courses that are based on curriculum and follow the learning goals established in the biology standards. It contains seven short videos specifically intended for use in the classroom. These can be streamed or purchased as DVDs.

Evolutionary biology is still an area of study that poses many important questions, including what causes evolution and how quickly it happens. This is especially true for human evolution, which has made it difficult to reconcile that the innate physical characteristics of humans derived from apes with religious beliefs that hold that humanity is unique in the universe and has an enviable place in creation with a soul.

There are also a number of other ways evolution could occur, with natural selection as the most well-known theory. Scientists also study different types like mutation, genetic drift, and sexual selection.

While many scientific fields of study are in conflict with the literal interpretations of religious texts, evolution biology has been a subject of intense debate and opposition from religious fundamentalists. While some religions have been able to reconcile their beliefs with the ideas of evolution, others haven't.