Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution
Despite the best efforts by biology teachers, there are still misconceptions regarding evolution. Pop science fiction has led a lot of people to believe that biologists don't believe evolution.
This rich Web site - companion to the PBS series offers teachers with resources which support evolution education and avoid the kinds of myths 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 well. It is often misunderstood by non-scientists and even some scientists are guilty of using a definition that confuses the issue. This is particularly relevant when it comes to the nature of the words themselves.
It is therefore important to define the terms used in evolutionary biology. Understanding Evolution's website does this in a simple and efficient way. The site is a companion to the show which first aired in 2001, but it also functions as an independent resource. The material is presented in a nested fashion that assists in navigation and orientation.
The site defines terms like common ancestor, the gradual process and adaptation. These terms help to frame the nature of evolution as well as its relation to other concepts in science. The site also provides an overview of how the concept of evolution has been researched and verified. This information can be used to dispel the myths that have been engendered by creationists.
You can also consult a glossary that contains terms that are used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:
Adaptation is the tendency of heritable traits to become better suited to an environment. This is the result of natural selection. Organisms with more adaptable traits are more likely than those with less adaptable traits to reproduce and survive.
Common ancestor: The latest common ancestor of two or more species. The common ancestor can be identified by analyzing the DNA of the species.
Deoxyribonucleic acid: A huge biological molecule that holds the information needed for cell replication. The information is stored in a sequence of nucleotides that are strung together into long chains, referred to as chromosomes. Mutations are the cause of new genetic information within cells.
Coevolution is a relationship between two species where evolutionary changes in one species are affected by changes in evolutionary processes in the other. Coevolution can be observed in the interactions between predator and prey, or parasite and hosts.
Origins
Species (groups that can crossbreed), evolve by a series of natural variations in their offspring's traits. The changes can be triggered by a variety of causes, including natural selection, genetic drift, and mixing of genes. The evolution of new species could take thousands of years. Environmental conditions, such as climate changes or competition for food and habitat can impede or accelerate the process.
The Evolution site tracks through time the emergence of various species of plants and animals, focusing on major transitions in each group's past. It also explores the evolutionary history of humans and humans, a subject that is especially important for students to comprehend.
Darwin's Origin was written in 1859, when only a few antediluvian fossils of humans had been found. The most famous among them was the skullcap and associated bones found in 1856 in the Little Feldhofer Grotto in Germany that is now thought to be an early Homo neanderthalensis. It is unlikely that Darwin was aware of the skullcap, which was first published in 1858, one year after the publication of the first edition of The Origin. Origin.
While the site focuses on biology, it also contains a wealth of information about geology as well as paleontology. One of the most appealing features on the 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 some of the fossil groups featured on the site.
The site is a companion to the PBS television series, but it could also be used as an educational resource for teachers and students. The site is well-organized, and provides clear links to the introduction information 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 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 that illustrate 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 and has many advantages over the modern observational and research methods of examining evolutionary processes. Paleobiology focuses on not only the process and events that occur frequently or over time, but also the distribution and frequency of different species of animals across the geological time.
The site is divided into several optional paths to learning evolution, including "Evolution 101," which takes the user on a linear path through the science of nature and the evidence that supports the theory of evolution. The path also examines myths about evolution and the background of evolutionary thought.
Each of the other major sections of the Evolution site is equally well developed, with materials that support a variety of different pedagogical levels and curriculum levels. In addition to general textual content, the site features an array of multimedia and interactive content including 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.
For instance the page "Coral Reef Connections" provides an overview of the relationships between corals and their interactions with other organisms. It then narrows down to a single clam that can communicate with its neighbors and respond to changes in the water conditions that occur at the reef level. This page, as well as the other multidisciplinary, multimedia, and interactive pages on the site, offer an excellent introduction to the broad spectrum of topics in evolutionary biology. The content includes an overview of the significance of natural selectivity and the concept of phylogenetics, an important method for understanding the evolution of change.
Evolutionary Theory
Evolution is an underlying thread that runs through all branches of biology. A vast collection of resources helps teachers teach about evolution across the life sciences.
One resource, which is the companion to PBS's television series Understanding Evolution is an excellent example of a Web site that provides the depth and the breadth in terms of its educational resources. The site has a variety of interactive learning modules. It also has a nested "bread crumb" structure that helps students move from the cartoon style of Understanding Evolution to elements on this large Web site more closely linked to the field of research science. For instance, an animation introducing the notion of genetic inheritance leads to a page highlighting John Endler's experiments in artificial selection with guppies in native ponds of Trinidad.
Another helpful resource is the Evolution Library on this Web website, which includes an extensive library of multimedia assets related to evolution. The content is organized according to curriculum-based paths that parallel the learning goals established in the biology standards. It contains seven videos specifically designed for classroom use, which can be streamed at no cost or purchased on DVD.
A number of important questions remain at the core of evolutionary biology, including the factors that trigger evolution and how fast it happens. This is particularly true for humans' evolution which was a challenge to reconcile religious beliefs that held that humans have a distinct place in creation and a soul with the idea that innate physical traits evolved from Apes.
There are 에볼루션 바카라 무료 Evolution KR of other ways in which evolution could occur and natural selection being the most well-known theory. However scientists also study different kinds of evolution, such as mutation, genetic drift and sexual selection, among other things.
While many fields of scientific inquiry have a conflict with literal interpretations of religious texts evolutionary biology has been the subject of particularly intense controversy and resistance from religious fundamentalists. While certain religions have been able to reconcile their beliefs with the theories of evolution, other religions have not.