Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution
Despite the best efforts of biology educators, misconceptions persist about the evolution. People who have absorbed pop science nonsense often assume that biologists are saying they don't believe in evolution.
This rich website - companion to the PBS series offers teachers with resources which support evolution education and help avoid the kinds of misconceptions that hinder it. It's laid out in a nested "bread crumb" format for ease of navigation and orientation.
Definitions
It is difficult to effectively teach evolution. People who are not scientists often have a difficult time understanding the subject and some scientists use a definition that confuses it. This is especially relevant to discussions about the nature of the word.
As such, it is crucial to define the terms that are used in evolutionary biology. The website for the PBS show, Understanding Evolution, does this in a clear and helpful way. The site is a companion site to the show that premiered in 2001, but it can also function as an independent resource. 에볼루션 슬롯게임 is presented in a nested manner which aids navigation and orientation.
The site defines terms such as common ancestor and gradual process. These terms help frame the nature of evolution as well as its relationship to other scientific concepts. The website then provides an overview of how the concept of evolution has been researched and validated. This information can help dispel the myths that are created by the creationists.
It is also possible to find the glossary of terms used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:
Adaptation: The tendency of hereditary traits to become more suitable to a particular setting. This is a result of natural selection. It occurs when organisms with better adapted traits are more likely survive and reproduce than those with less adapted characteristics.
Common ancestor (also known as common ancestor): The most recent ancestor that is shared by two or more species. By analyzing DNA from these species it is possible to determine the common ancestor.
Deoxyribonucleic acid: A massive biological molecule that contains the information needed for cell replication. The information is stored in nucleotide sequences, which are strung into long chains known as chromosomes. Mutations are the source of new genetic information within cells.
Coevolution is the relationship between two species in which the evolutionary changes of one species are influenced evolutionary changes in the other. Coevolution can be observed in the interactions between predator and prey, or parasites and hosts.
Origins
Species (groups of individuals who can interbreed) change through a series of natural changes in the characteristics of their offspring. The changes can be triggered by a variety of causes such as natural selection, genetic drift, and mixing of gene pools. The evolution of new species can take thousands of years. Environmental conditions, like climate changes or competition for food and habitat can slow or speed up the process.
The Evolution site tracks the evolution of a variety of animal and plant groups through time and focuses on the most significant shifts that occurred throughout each group's history. It also focuses on the human evolutionary roots and humans, a subject that is crucial for students to understand.
When Darwin wrote the Origin in 1859, only a handful of antediluvian human fossils had been discovered. The famous skullcap, along with the bones associated with it were discovered in 1856 in the Little Feldhofer Grotto of Germany. It is now known as an early Homo neanderthalensis. It is highly unlikely that Darwin knew about the skullcap when it was published in 1858, a year after the first edition of The Origin. Origin.
The site is mostly an online biology resource however it also includes many details on paleontology and geology. The most impressive features on the site are a timeline of events that show how geological and climatic conditions 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 television series, but it could also be used as an educational resource by teachers and students. The site is well-organized and offers easy links to the introductory material of Understanding Evolution (developed under the National Science Foundation's assistance) and the more specific features of the museum's website. These hyperlinks make it easier to move from the cartoon-style Understanding Evolution pages into the more sophisticated realms of research science. Particularly there are hyperlinks to John Endler's experiments with Guppies, which demonstrate the importance of ecology in evolutionary theory.
Diversity
The evolution of life has led to a variety of animals, plants and insects. Paleobiology is the study of these creatures within their natural environment and has many advantages over the current observational and experimental methods in its exploration of evolutionary processes. In addition to examining processes and events that occur frequently or over a long period of time, paleobiology allows to study the relative abundance of various kinds of organisms as well as their distribution in space over geological time.
click through the next site is divided up into different options to gain knowledge about evolution. One of these paths, "Evolution 101," takes the viewer through the complexities and evidence of evolution. The path also explores misconceptions about evolution and also the history of evolutionary thought.
Each of the other major sections of the Evolution site is equally well developed, with materials that can be used to support a range of educational levels and pedagogical styles. The site includes a variety of interactive and multimedia resources which include videos, animations, and virtual laboratories as well as general textual content. The content is laid out in a nested bread crumb fashion that aids navigation and orientation on the web site.
The page "Coral Reef Connections" For instance, it gives a brief overview of coral relationships and interactions with other organisms, and then zooms in on one clam, which can communicate with its neighbors 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 many topics in evolutionary biology. The content also includes an explanation of the significance of natural selectivity and the concept phylogenetics analysis, an important tool to understand evolutionary change.
Evolutionary Theory
For biology students the concept of evolution is a major thread that binds all branches of the field. A vast collection of books helps in teaching evolution across the disciplines of life sciences.
One resource, which is the companion to PBS's television show Understanding Evolution is an excellent example of a Web page that provides the depth and the breadth in terms of its educational resources. The site has a wide array of interactive learning modules. It also features a nested "bread crumb" structure that allows students to move from the cartoon-like style of Understanding Evolution to elements on this large Web site more closely tied to the field of research science. An animation that introduces the concept of genetics links to a page that highlights John Endler's artificial-selection experiments with Guppies in native ponds in Trinidad.
Another helpful resource is the Evolution Library on this Web site, which contains an extensive collection of multimedia items that are related to evolution. The content is organized according to curricula-based paths that correspond to the learning goals set forth in the biology standards. It contains seven videos designed for use in classrooms. They can be streamed or purchased as DVDs.
Evolutionary biology remains a field of study with a lot of important questions, including what triggers evolution and the speed at which it takes place. This is particularly true for the evolution of humans, where it was difficult to reconcile religious beliefs that humanity has a unique place in the creation and a soul with the notion that human beings have innate physical traits were derived from apes.
There are a myriad of other ways evolution can take place including natural selection, which is the most well-known theory. Scientists also study other types such as genetic drift and sexual selection.
While many fields of scientific study have a conflict with the literal interpretations of religious texts, the concept of evolution biology has been a subject of intense debate and opposition from religious fundamentalists. While certain religions have managed to reconcile their beliefs with the ideas of evolution, other religions have not.