15 Of The Best Documentaries On Evolution Site
Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution
Despite the best efforts of biology teachers, misinformation about evolution remain. People who have absorbed pop science nonsense often assume that biologists do not believe in evolution.
This rich Web site - companion to the PBS series - provides teachers with materials that promote evolution education and help avoid the kinds of misconceptions that make it difficult to understand. It's arranged in a nested "bread crumb" format to make it easy for navigation and orientation.
Definitions
Evolution is a complex and difficult subject to teach effectively. Non-scientists often misunderstand the subject, and some scientists even employ a definition that confuses it. This is especially true when it comes to discussions on the nature of the word.
It is therefore essential 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 manner. The site is a companion to the show that premiered in 2001, but it also functions as an independent resource. The information is presented in a structured manner that makes it simpler to navigate and understand.
The site defines terms like common ancestor, gradual process, and adaptation. These terms help frame the nature of evolution and its relationship to evolution to other scientific concepts. The site also provides an overview of how the concept of evolution has been vetted and confirmed. This information can be used to dispel myths that have been propagated by creationists.
It is also possible to get a glossary of terms used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:
Adaptation: The tendency for heritable characteristics to become more suitable to a particular setting. Full Content is a result of natural selection. It occurs when organisms that are better-adapted traits are more likely to survive and reproduce than those with less adaptable traits.
Common ancestor: The latest common ancestor of two or more distinct species. The common ancestor can be identified by analyzing the DNA of those species.
Deoxyribonucleic Acid: A large biological molecular that contains the necessary information for cell replication. The information is stored in nucleotide sequences, which are strung into long chains, referred to as chromosomes. Mutations are the cause of new genetic information within cells.
Coevolution is a relationship between two species in which evolutionary changes in one species are dependent on evolutionary changes in the other. Coevolution is evident in the interactions between predator and prey, or parasites and hosts.
Origins
Species (groups which can interbreed) develop by a series of natural variations in their offspring's traits. These changes can be caused by various factors, including natural selection, gene drift and mixing of the gene pool. The evolution of a new species could take thousands of years and the process can be slowed or increased due to environmental conditions, such as climate change or the competition for food or habitat.
The Evolution site tracks the development of various animal and plant groups through time and focuses on the most significant transitions that occurred in each group's history. It also examines the evolution of humans, which is a topic that is particularly important for students.
Darwin's Origin was written in 1859, when just a handful of antediluvian fossils of human beings had been discovered. The skullcap that is famous, along with the associated bones, was discovered in 1856 in the Little Feldhofer Grotto of Germany. It is now recognized as an early Homo neanderthalensis. It is highly unlikely that Darwin was aware of the skullcap when it was published in 1858, a year following the initial edition of The Origin.
The site is mostly a biology site, but it also contains many details on paleontology and geology. One of the most appealing features of the Web site are a timeline of events that illustrate 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.
While the site is a companion piece to a PBS television series but it also stands on its own as a valuable source for teachers and students. The site is well-organized and offers clear links to the introduction information of Understanding Evolution (developed under the National Science Foundation's funding) and the more specialized features of the museum's website. These hyperlinks help users move from the cartoon-like style of the Understanding Evolution pages to the more sophisticated world of research science. Particularly, there are links to John Endler's experiments with guppies that illustrate the importance of ecology in evolutionary theory.
Diversity
The evolution of life has resulted in many species of animals, plants and insects. Paleobiology is the study of these creatures within their geological context offers many advantages over modern observational or experimental methods of studying evolutionary processes. In addition to studying the processes and events that happen regularly or over a long period of time, paleobiology allows to examine the diversity of groups of organisms and their distribution across the geological time.
The site is divided into several options to gain knowledge about evolution. One of these paths, "Evolution 101," walks the reader through the nature and evidence of evolution. The course also focuses on common misconceptions about evolution as well as the evolution theory's history.
Each of the main sections on the Evolution website is equally well-developed, with materials that are suited to a variety of levels of curriculum and teaching methods. In addition to general textual content, the site offers a wide range of interactive and multimedia resources like video clips, animations, and virtual laboratories. The breadcrumb-like structure of the content aids in navigation and orientation on the large web site.
For instance the page "Coral Reef Connections" provides an overview of the relationships between corals and their interaction with other organisms, then narrows down to a single clam that is able to communicate with its neighbors and respond to changes in water conditions at the reef level. This page, as well as the other multidisciplinary multimedia and interactive pages, provides an excellent introduction to the many areas of evolutionary biology. The content includes a discussion on the significance of natural selectivity and the concept of phylogenetics analysis, an important tool to understand evolutionary changes.
Evolutionary Theory
For biology students, evolution is a key thread that weaves together all the branches of the field. A vast collection of books helps in teaching evolution across all life science disciplines.
One resource, which is a companion to the PBS television series Understanding Evolution, is an exceptional example of a Web site that provides depth and a variety of educational resources. The site offers a variety of interactive learning modules. It also features a "bread crumb structure" that helps students move away from the cartoon style used in Understanding Evolution and onto elements of this vast website that are closely related to the fields of research science. For example an animation that explains the concept of genetic inheritance links to a page that highlights John Endler's experiments in artificial selection with guppies in native ponds of Trinidad.
Another resource that is worth mentioning is the Evolution Library on this web site, which contains an extensive library of multimedia assets connected to evolution. The content is organized according to curricula-based pathways that correspond to the learning goals established in biology standards. It includes seven short videos designed specifically for use in classrooms, and can be streamed at no cost or purchased on DVD.
A variety of crucial questions remain in the midst of evolutionary biology, including the factors that trigger evolution and how fast it happens. This is especially true in the case of human evolution which was a challenge to reconcile religious beliefs that humanity has a special place in creation and a soul with the notion that human beings have innate physical traits evolved from the apes.
In addition there are a variety of ways in which evolution could occur with natural selection being the most widely accepted theory. Scientists also study other kinds like mutation, genetic drift, and sexual selection.
While many fields of scientific inquiry conflict with literal interpretations of the Bible, evolutionary biology has been the subject of fierce debate and opposition from religious fundamentalists. While some religions have been able to reconcile their beliefs with the notions of evolution, others haven't.