15 Evolution Site Benefits Everybody Must Be Able To
Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution
Despite the best efforts of biology educators, misinformation about evolution remain. People who have been exposed to pop science nonsense often assume that biologists claim they don't believe in evolution.
This site, which is a complement to the PBS program, provides teachers with materials that promote evolution education, while avoiding the kinds of misconceptions which hinder it. It's laid out in a nested "bread crumb" format to make it easy for navigation and orientation.
Definitions
Evolution is a complicated and challenging subject to teach effectively. Non-scientists often misunderstand the subject, and some scientists even employ a definition that confuses it. This is particularly true when discussing the nature of the words themselves.
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. The site is both a companion for the 2001 series, but also a resource on its own. The material is presented in an organized way that makes it easy to navigate and comprehend.
The site defines terms like common ancestor, the gradual process, and adaptation. These terms help to define the nature and significance of evolution to other scientific concepts. The website then provides an overview of how the concept of evolution has been researched and validated. This information can be used to dispel the myths that have been engendered by creationists.
You can also access a glossary that contains terms that are used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:
Adaptation: The tendency for heritable characteristics to become more suitable to a particular setting. This is the result of natural selection. Organisms that have better-adapted characteristics are more likely than those with less adaptable characteristics to survive and reproduce.
Common ancestor (also known as common ancestor) is the most recent ancestor that is shared by two or more species. By analyzing DNA from these species it is possible to identify the common ancestor.
Deoxyribonucleic Acid: A massive biological molecular containing the necessary information for cell replication. The information is stored in nucleotides arranged in sequences that are strung together into long chains, called chromosomes. Mutations are responsible for the creation of new genetic information within cells.
Coevolution: A relationship between two species where evolutionary changes in one species are dependent on evolutionary changes in the other. Coevolution can be seen in the interactions between predator and prey, or parasite and hosts.
Origins
Species (groups that can interbreed) develop through a series natural changes in their offspring's traits. Changes can be caused by numerous factors, like natural selection, gene drift and mixing of the gene pool. The development of new species can take thousands of years. 에볼루션코리아 , such as climate changes or competition for food or habitat can slow or speed up the process.
The Evolution site follows the emergence of various animal and plant groups, focusing on major transitions in each group's history. It also explores human evolution and is a subject that is particularly important for students.
When Darwin wrote the Origin in 1859, only a handful of antediluvian human fossils had been found. The famous skullcap, with the bones that accompanied it, was discovered in 1856 in the Little Feldhofer Grotto of Germany. It is now known as an early Homo neanderthalensis. Although the skullcap was not published until 1858, just a year before the first edition of the Origin was published, it's highly unlikely that Darwin had seen or heard of it.
The site is mostly one of biology however, it also has many details on paleontology and geology. Among the best features of the Web site are a series of timelines which show the way in which climatic and geological conditions have changed over time, and an outline of the distribution of a few of the fossil groups featured on the site.
The site is a companion to a PBS television series, but it could also be used as an educational source for teachers and students. The site is well-organized and offers 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's website. These links facilitate the transition from the engaging cartoon style of the Understanding Evolution pages to the more sophisticated world of research science. Particularly there are hyperlinks to John Endler's experiments using Guppies, which demonstrate the importance of ecology in evolutionary theory.
Diversity
The evolution of life on Earth has produced a diversity of animals, plants and insects. Paleobiology is the study of these creatures in their geological environment, has many advantages over modern observational or research methods for exploring evolutionary processes. Paleobiology can examine not only the process and events that take place regularly or over time, but also the relative abundance and distribution of various animal groups in space throughout the geological time.
The Web site is divided into a variety of paths to learning evolution, including "Evolution 101," which takes the viewer on a liner path through the scientific process and the evidence to support the theory of evolution. The course also focuses on common misconceptions about evolution and the history of evolutionary thought.
Each of the other major sections of the Evolution site is similarly developed, with materials that support a variety of educational levels and pedagogical styles. The site includes a variety of multimedia and interactive resources which include video clips, animations and virtual labs in addition to general textual content. The content is presented in a nested bread crumb-like fashion that helps with navigation and orientation on the Web site.
For example, the page "Coral Reef Connections" provides a comprehensive overview of the relationships between corals and their interactions with other organisms. Then, it narrows down to a single clam that can communicate with its neighbors and respond to changes in water conditions that occur 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 variety of topics in evolutionary biology. The content includes a discussion on the role of natural selectivity and the concept of phylogenetics which is a crucial tool for understanding evolutionary changes.
Evolutionary Theory
Evolution is a common thread that is found throughout all branches of biology. A vast collection of resources supports teaching about evolution across the life sciences.
One resource, a companion to the PBS television series Understanding Evolution, is an excellent example of an Web site that offers both depth and a variety of educational resources. The site has a wide array of interactive learning modules. It also features an "bread crumb structure" that assists students in moving away from the cartoon style that is used in Understanding Evolution and onto elements on this large website more closely connected to the realms of research science. For example an animation that explains the idea of genetic inheritance connects to a page that focuses on John Endler's experiments in artificial selection with guppies from the native ponds of Trinidad.
에볼루션 카지노 is the Evolution Library on this web site, which contains an extensive multimedia library of assets that are related to evolution. The content is organized according to curriculum-based paths that parallel the learning objectives set out in the standards for biology. It contains seven videos specifically designed for use in classrooms. These can be viewed online or purchased as DVDs.
Many important questions remain at the heart of evolutionary biology, including what triggers evolution and the speed at which it occurs. This is particularly relevant in the case of human evolution where it was a challenge to reconcile religious beliefs that humanity has a unique position in the universe and a soul with the idea that innate physical traits evolved from the apes.
There are a myriad of other ways in which evolution can take place, with natural selection as the most widely accepted theory. However scientists also study other kinds of evolution, such as genetic drift, mutation, and sexual selection, among others.
Many fields of inquiry conflict with literal interpretations of the Bible evolutionary biology has been the subject of particularly controversial debate and resistance from religious fundamentalists. Some religions have reconciled their beliefs to evolution but others haven't.