The Berkeley Evolution Site The Berkeley site contains resources that can help students and educators understand and teach evolution. The resources are arranged into different learning paths such as "What did T. rex taste like?" Charles Darwin's theory of natural selection states that over time, animals that are more able to adapt to changing environments do better than those that don't become extinct. Science is about this process of evolutionary change. What is Evolution? The term "evolution" can be used to refer to a variety of nonscientific meanings. For example it could mean "progress" and "descent with modifications." It is an academic term that refers to the process of changing characteristics over time in organisms or species. In biological terms this change is due to natural selection and genetic drift. Evolution is an important tenet in the field of biology today. It is an accepted theory that has withstood the test of time and a multitude of scientific experiments. In contrast to other theories in science such as the Copernican theory or the germ theory of disease, evolution does not address issues of spiritual belief or God's existence. Early evolutionists, like Jean-Baptiste Lamarck and Erasmus Darwin (Charles's grandfather) believed that certain physical traits were predetermined to change in a step-like manner, as time passes. They called this the "Ladder of Nature" or scala naturae. Charles Lyell used the term to describe this concept in his Principles of Geology, first published in 1833. In ???? ??? , Darwin formulated his theory of evolution and published it in his book On the Origin of Species. It states that all species of organisms have the same ancestry, which can be proven through fossils and other evidence. This is the current understanding of evolution, and is supported by many lines of scientific research that include molecular genetics. Scientists don't know how organisms have evolved however they are certain that natural selection and genetic drift is the reason for the evolution of life. Individuals with advantageous characteristics are more likely than others to survive and reproduce. They pass on their genes to the next generation. As time passes the gene pool gradually changes and evolves into new species. Certain scientists use the term"evolution" in reference to large-scale change, such as the formation of a species from an ancestral one. Other scientists, like population geneticists, define the term "evolution" more broadly by referring to the net change in the frequency of alleles across generations. Both definitions are valid and reliable, although some scientists argue that the definition of allele frequency is lacking essential aspects of the evolution process. Origins of Life The development of life is a crucial stage in evolution. This occurs when living systems begin to evolve at the micro level - within individual cells, for instance. The origin of life is an important issue in a variety of disciplines, including biology and the field of chemistry. The question of how living things got their start has a special place in science because it is an important challenge to the theory of evolution. It is often referred to as "the mystery of life" or "abiogenesis." The notion that life could be born from non-living things was called "spontaneous generation" or "spontaneous evolutionary". It was a popular belief before Louis Pasteur's experiments proved that the emergence of living organisms was not possible through the natural process. Many scientists still think it is possible to move from nonliving substances to living ones. The conditions needed to create life are difficult to replicate in a laboratory. Researchers who are interested in the origins and development of life are also keen to know the physical properties of the early Earth as well as other planets. The development of life is dependent on a number of complex chemical reactions, which cannot be predicted by basic physical laws. These include the reading of long information-rich molecules (DNA or RNA) into proteins that carry out functions, and the replication of these complex molecules to produce new DNA or sequences of RNA. These chemical reactions are often compared with the chicken-and-egg problem of how life first appeared in the first place. The appearance of DNA/RNA and protein-based cell machinery is crucial for the onset of life, but without the development of life, the chemical reaction that is the basis for it is not working. Research in the field of abiogenesis requires collaboration among scientists from a variety of disciplines. This includes prebiotic chemists the astrobiologists, the planet scientists, geologists and geophysicists. Evolutionary Changes The word evolution is usually used to describe the accumulated changes in the genetic traits of a population over time. These changes could result from the response to environmental pressures as discussed in the entry on Darwinism (see the entry on Charles Darwin for background) or natural selection. This process increases the number of genes that provide a survival advantage in an animal, resulting in an overall change in the appearance of a group. The specific mechanisms that cause these evolutionary changes are mutation, reshuffling of genes during sexual reproduction, and also gene flow between populations. Natural selection is the process that makes beneficial mutations more common. All organisms undergo changes and reshuffles of genes. As previously mentioned, those with the beneficial trait have a higher reproductive rate than those that do not. Over the course of several generations, this difference in the numbers of offspring produced can result in a gradual shift in the number of advantageous traits within a group of. A good example of this is the growing beak size on different species of finches in the Galapagos Islands, which have evolved different shaped beaks to allow them to more easily access food in their new environment. These changes in the form and shape of living organisms may also help create new species. The majority of changes are caused by one mutation, but sometimes several occur simultaneously. The majority of these changes are not harmful or even harmful to the organism however, a small proportion of them can have an advantageous impact on survival and reproduction, thus increasing their frequency in the population over time. This is the way of natural selection and it could be a time-consuming process that produces the gradual changes that eventually result in the creation of a new species. Many people mistakenly associate evolution with the concept of soft inheritance which is the notion that traits inherited from parents can be changed through conscious choice or by abuse. This is a misinterpretation of the biological processes that lead to evolution. A more accurate description is that evolution is a two-step procedure which involves the separate, and often competing, forces of natural selection and mutation. Origins of Humans Humans today (Homo sapiens) evolved from primates, a group of mammals that also includes chimpanzees and gorillas and bonobos. The earliest human fossils indicate that our ancestors were bipeds - walkers on two legs. Genetic and biological similarities suggest that we share the same ancestry with Chimpanzees. In fact we are the most closely connected to chimpanzees belonging to the Pan genus that includes pygmy and bonobos and pygmy-chimpanzees. The last common ancestor of modern humans and chimpanzees was between 8 and 6 million years ago. In the course of time, humans have developed a number of characteristics, including bipedalism as well as the use of fire. They also developed advanced tools. It is only within the last 100,000 years that we've developed the majority of our important traits. These include a large brain that is sophisticated and the capacity of humans to construct and use tools, and the diversity of our culture. ???? ??? ??? of evolution occurs when genetic changes allow individuals of a population to better adapt to their surroundings. This adaptation is driven by natural selection, a process whereby certain traits are favored over other traits. The ones with the best adaptations are more likely to pass their genes to the next generation. This is the way that all species evolve and is the basis of the theory of evolution. Scientists refer to this as the "law of natural selection." ???? ??? that species which have a common ancestor, tend to develop similar characteristics over time. It is because these traits allow them to reproduce and survive within their environment. Every living thing has a DNA molecule that provides the information necessary to guide their growth and development. The DNA molecule consists of base pairs arranged spirally around phosphate molecules and sugar molecules. The sequence of bases found in each strand determines the phenotype, the appearance and behavior of a person. Different changes and reshuffling of genetic material (known as alleles) during reproduction causes variation in a group. Fossils of the earliest human species, Homo erectus and Homo neanderthalensis have been discovered in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Although there are some differences they all support the hypothesis that modern humans first appeared in Africa. The fossil and genetic evidence suggests that early humans left Africa and moved to Asia and Europe.
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