Descent with Modification: A Darwinian View of Life
2317556763 | evolution | descent with modification; the change in the genetic composition of a population from generation to generation | 0 | |
2317556764 | fossils | preserved remains of once-living organisms | 1 | |
2317556765 | strata | layers of sedimentary rock | 2 | |
2317556766 | catastrophism | a principle that states that geologic change occurs suddenly | 3 | |
2317556767 | uniformitarianism | is the idea that the geologic processes that operate today also operated in the past | 4 | |
2317556768 | paleontology | the earth science that studies fossil organisms and related remains | 5 | |
2317556769 | adaptation | inherited characteristic that increases an organism's chance of survival | 6 | |
2317556770 | natural selection | process by which individuals that are better suited to their environment survive and reproduce most successfully; also called survival of the fittest | 7 | |
2317556771 | artificial selection | selection by humans for breeding of useful traits from the natural variation among different organisms | 8 | |
2317556772 | homology | similarity in characteristics that results from common ancestry | 9 | |
2317556773 | homologous structures | structures that have different mature forms in different organisms but develop from the same embryonic tissues | 10 | |
2317556774 | vestigial structures | remnant of a structure that may have had an important function in a species' ancestors, but has no clear function in the modern species. | 11 | |
2317556775 | evolutionary tree | A branching diagram that reflects a hypothesis about evolutionary relationships among groups of organisms. | 12 | |
2317556776 | convergent evolution | process by which unrelated organisms independently evolve similarities when adapting to similar environments | 13 | |
2317556777 | analogous | Having characteristics that are similar because of convergent evolution, not homology. | 14 | |
2317556778 | Pangaea | the name of the single landmass that broke apart 200 million years ago and gave rise to today's continents | 15 | |
2317556779 | endemic | native or confined to a particular region or people; characteristic of or prevalent in a field | 16 | |
2317556780 | biogeography | dealing with the geographical distribution of animals and plants | 17 |