Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution
Despite the best efforts of biology educators, misconceptions about evolution remain. People who have absorbed the nonsense of pop science often believe that biologists don't believe in evolution.
This rich website - companion to the PBS series - provides teachers with materials which support evolution education and avoids the kinds of misconceptions that hinder it. 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. Many non-scientists are unable to grasp the concept, and some scientists even employ a definition that confuses it. This is especially applicable to debates about the definition of the word itself.
Therefore, it is important to define terms used in evolutionary biology. The website for the PBS show, Understanding Evolution, does this in a clear and helpful manner. The site serves as an accompaniment to the 2001 series, but also a resource of its own. The content is organized in a way that makes it easy to navigate and understand.
The site defines terms such as common ancestor and gradual process. These terms help frame the nature and relationship of evolution with other scientific concepts. The site gives a comprehensive overview of the way in which evolution has been tested. This information can be used to dispel myths that have been engendered by the creationists.
You can also consult a glossary that contains terms used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:
Adaptation is the tendency of heritable traits to become more suited to the environment. 무료에볼루션 is the result of natural selection. Organisms with more adaptable traits are more likely than those with less adaptable traits to survive and reproduce.
Common ancestor (also known as common ancestor) is the most recent ancestral ancestor shared by two or more species. By analyzing DNA from these species it is possible to identify the common ancestor.
Deoxyribonucleic acid: A large biological molecule that holds the information needed for cell replication. The information is contained in sequences of nucleotides that are strung together to form long chains, referred to as chromosomes. Mutations are the basis for new genetic information in cells.
Coevolution is a relationship between two species in which evolutionary changes in one species are influenced by evolutionary changes in the other. Coevolution can be observed in the interaction of predator and prey, or parasites and hosts.
Origins
Species (groups of individuals who can interbreed) develop through a series of natural changes in the characteristics of their offspring. The causes of these changes are various factors, including natural selection, gene drift, and mixing of the gene pool. The evolution of new species could take thousands of years. Environmental circumstances, such as climate changes or competition for food resources and habitat can slow or speed up the process.
The Evolution site traces through time the emergence of various animal and plant groups with a focus on major changes in each group's history. It also focuses on human evolution, which is a topic that is of particular interest to students.
Darwin's Origin was published in 1859, at a time when only a handful of antediluvian fossils of humans were 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 regarded as an early Homo neanderthalensis. While the skullcap wasn't published until 1858, just a year before the first edition of the Origin was published, it's extremely unlikely that Darwin had seen or heard of it.
The site is mostly one of biology, but it also contains a lot of information on paleontology and geology. Among the best features of the Web site are a set of timelines that illustrate how geological and climatic conditions have changed over time as well as an interactive map of the distribution of a few fossil groups that are featured on the site.
The site is a companion to a PBS TV series but it could be used as a resource for teachers and students. The site is very well-organized and offers clear links between the introduction material in Understanding Evolution (developed with support from the National Science Foundation) and the more specialized elements of the museum Web site. These hyperlinks facilitate the move from the engaging cartoon style of the Understanding Evolution pages to the more sophisticated world of research science. In particular, there are links to John Endler's research with Guppies, which demonstrate the importance of ecology in evolutionary theory.
Diversity
The evolution of life on Earth has led to a wide variety of animals, plants, and insects. Paleobiology is the study of these creatures in their geological context is a superior method of study over modern observational or experimental methods for exploring evolutionary phenomena. In addition to examining processes and events that occur regularly or over a long period of time, paleobiology can be used to analyze the diversity of species of organisms and their distribution throughout the geological time.
The site is divided into several paths that can be chosen to study the subject of evolution. One of these paths, "Evolution 101," takes the viewer through the evolution of nature and the evidence of evolution. The path also explores the most common misconceptions about evolution, as well as the evolution theory's history.
Each of the other major sections of the Evolution site is similarly constructed, with materials that support a variety of educational levels and pedagogical styles. In addition to the general textual content, the site offers a wide range of multimedia and interactive resources, such as videos, animations and virtual labs. The content is laid out in a nested bread crumb style that facilitates navigation and orientation within the large web site.
에볼루션 바카라 체험 For instance, the page "Coral Reef Connections" provides an overview of the coral's relationships and their interactions with other organisms and then zooms in on one clam, which is able to communicate with its neighbours and respond to changes in the conditions of the water that occur at the reef level. This page, along with the other multidisciplinary interactive and multimedia pages, offers a great introduction to a variety 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 method to understand evolutionary changes.
Evolutionary Theory
Evolution is a common thread that runs through all branches of biology. A vast collection of resources helps teachers teach about evolution across the life sciences.
One resource, a companion to the PBS television series Understanding Evolution, is an exceptional example of a Web site that offers both depth and a variety of educational resources. The site features a wide range of interactive learning modules. It also has an embedded "bread crumb" structure that allows students to move from the cartoon style of Understanding Evolution to elements on this huge site that are more closely linked to the field of research science. For example an animation that explains the notion of genetic inheritance leads to a page highlighting John Endler's experiments in artificial selection with guppies from the native ponds of Trinidad.
The Evolution Library on this website has a huge multimedia library of materials that deal to evolution. The content is organized in curriculum-based pathways that correspond to the learning objectives set out in the standards for biology. It contains seven short videos specifically designed for use in classrooms. They are available to stream or purchase as DVDs.
Evolutionary biology remains an area of study that has many important questions, such as what triggers evolution and the speed at which it takes place. This is especially true for human evolution, which has made it difficult to reconcile the notion that the physical traits of humans derived from apes with religions that believe that humans are unique among living things and has an exclusive place in the creation, with a soul.
In addition there are a myriad of ways that evolution can be triggered, with natural selection being the most widely accepted theory. However scientists also study different kinds of evolution, such as genetic drift, mutation, and sexual selection, among others.
Many fields of inquiry have a conflict with the literal interpretations of religious texts, evolutionary biology has been the subject of particularly fierce debate and opposition from religious fundamentalists. While some religions have been able to reconcile their beliefs with the ideas of evolution, other religions aren't.