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Evolution Site – Teaching About Evolution

Despite the best efforts by biology educators, there are still a lot of misconceptions about evolution. Pop science nonsense has led many people to believe that biologists aren’t believers in evolution.

This rich Web site, which is a companion to the PBS program, provides teachers with materials which support evolution education, while avoiding the kinds of misconceptions that hinder it. It’s laid out in the “bread crumb” format to facilitate navigation and orientation.

Definitions

It’s difficult to teach evolution well. It is often misunderstood by non-scientists, and even some scientists use a definition that confuses the issue. This is especially true when discussing the meaning of the words themselves.

It is therefore important to define the terms used in evolutionary biology. The website for the PBS show, Understanding Evolution, does this in a clear and useful manner. The site is both an accompaniment to the 2001 series, and also a resource of its own. The content is organized in a 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 with other scientific concepts. The site gives a comprehensive overview of the manner in which evolution has been tested. This information can help dispel the myths created by creationists.

You can also consult a glossary that contains terms that are used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:

Adaptation: The tendency of hereditary traits to become more adaptable to a specific environment. This is the result of natural selection, which occurs when organisms with better-adapted characteristics are more likely to survive and reproduce than those with less adapted traits.

Common ancestor: The latest common ancestor of two or more distinct species. By analyzing DNA from these species, it is possible to identify the common ancestor.

Deoxyribonucleic Acid: A massive biological molecular containing the information required for cell replication. The information is stored in sequences of nucleotides that are strung together to form long chains, also known as chromosomes. Mutations are the reason behind the creation of new genetic information within cells.

Coevolution is a relationship between two species where evolutionary changes of one species are influenced by evolutionary changes in the other. Coevolution can be observed through the interaction between predator and prey, or parasite and hosts.

Origins

Species (groups that can crossbreed) change through a series of natural changes in the traits of their offspring. The changes can be caused by a variety of factors that include natural selection, genetic drift and mixing of gene pools. The development of a new species can take thousands of years and the process could be slowed down or speeded up by environmental factors like climate change or competition for food or habitat.

The Evolution site traces through time the emergence of various species of plants and animals, focusing on major transitions in each group’s history. It also explores the evolutionary history of humans which is particularly important for students to know.

When Darwin wrote the Origin of Species, only a handful of antediluvian human fossils had been discovered. The most famous among them was the skullcap and the associated bones discovered in 1856 in the Little Feldhofer Grotto in Germany which is now believed to be an early Homo neanderthalensis. Although the skullcap was not published until 1858, which was a year before the first edition of the Origin was published, it is very unlikely that Darwin had ever heard of it.

The site is mostly one of biology however, it also has many details on geology and paleontology. The Web site has numerous features that are particularly impressive, including the timeline of how geological and climate conditions have changed over time. It also has a map showing the distribution of fossil groups.

Although the site is a companion to the PBS television series however, it can stand on its own as a great source for teachers and students. The site is well-organized, and provides clear links to the introductory material of Understanding Evolution (developed under the National Science Foundation’s assistance) and 에볼루션코리아 the more specific features of the museum website. These hyperlinks facilitate the move from the enthralling cartoon style of the Understanding Evolution pages to the more sophisticated world of research science. There are links to John Endler’s experiments with guppies, which illustrate the importance of ecology in evolutionary theory.

Diversity

The evolution of life has resulted in a variety of plants, animals and insects. Paleobiology is the study of these creatures in their geological context and has many advantages over the current observational and experimental methods of examining evolutionary processes. Paleobiology focuses on not only processes and events that happen regularly or over time, but also the distribution and frequency of different groups of animals in space over the course of the geological time.

The site is divided into different routes that can be taken to learn about evolution. One of these paths, “Evolution 101,” walks the reader through the evolution of nature and the evidence of evolution. The path also explores common misconceptions about evolution as well as the evolution theory’s history.

Each of the main sections of the Evolution website is equally well-developed, and includes materials that are suited to a variety of levels of curriculum and teaching methods. In addition to general textual content, the site features an array of interactive and multimedia resources including videos, animations and virtual laboratories. The breadcrumb-like structure of the content helps with navigation and orientation on the massive Web site.

For instance, the page “Coral Reef Connections” gives a brief overview of the relationships between corals and their interactions with other organisms. It then narrows down to a single clam that is able to communicate with its neighbors and react to changes in the water conditions at the level of the reef. This page, as well as the other multidisciplinary multimedia and interactive pages, offers a great introduction to a variety of topics in evolutionary biology. The content also includes an explanation of the role of natural selection as well as the concept of phylogenetic analysis which is an important tool in understanding evolutionary changes.

Evolutionary Theory

Evolution is an underlying thread that is found throughout all branches of biology. A wide selection of resources helps teachers teach evolution across the disciplines of life science.

One resource, which is the companion to PBS’s television series Understanding Evolution is an excellent example of a Web page that offers both depth as well as breadth in terms of its educational resources. The site features a wealth of interactive learning modules. It also features a nested “bread crumb” structure that helps students move from the cartoon-like style of Understanding Evolution to elements on this huge site that are more closely tied to the world of research science. Animation that introduces the concept of genetics links to a page about John Endler’s experiments with artificial selection using Guppies in native ponds in Trinidad.

Another useful resource is the Evolution Library on this web site, which contains an extensive collection of multimedia items related to evolution. The content is organized according to courses that are based on curriculum and follow the learning objectives set out in biology standards. It contains seven short videos that are intended for use in the classroom. These are available to stream or purchase as DVDs.

Evolutionary biology remains an area of study that has many important questions to answer, such as what triggers evolution and how fast it takes place. This is particularly relevant for the evolution of humans which was a challenge to reconcile religious beliefs that held that humanity has a unique place in creation and a soul with the idea that innate physical traits were derived from apes.

In addition there are a variety of ways in which evolution could be triggered with natural selection being the most widely accepted theory. However scientists also study different kinds of evolution, such as mutation, genetic drift, and sexual selection, among others.

While many fields of scientific study are in conflict with literal interpretations found in religious texts, evolution biology has been the subject of intense debate and resistance from religious fundamentalists. Some religions have reconciled their beliefs to evolution but others haven’t.