Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution
Despite the best efforts of biology teachers, misinformation about evolution remain. People who have been exposed to the nonsense of pop science often believe that biologists claim they do not believe in evolution.
This rich Web site, which is a companion to the PBS program offers teachers resources which support evolution education, while avoiding the kinds of misconceptions that make it difficult to understand. It's laid out in a nested "bread crumb" format to make it easy for navigation and orientation.
Definitions
It's difficult to teach evolution well. It is often misunderstood even by non-scientists, and even scientists are guilty of using definitions that confuse the issue. This is particularly relevant when it comes to the definition of the words.
It is therefore crucial to define the terms used in evolutionary biology. The website for the PBS show, Understanding Evolution, does this in a clear and useful way. The website is a companion to the show that premiered 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, gradual process, and adaptation. These terms help define the nature and relationship of evolution to other concepts in science. The site gives a comprehensive overview of the ways 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 used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:
Adaptation is the tendency of hereditary traits to become more suitable to their environment. This is the result of natural selection, which occurs when organisms that are better adapted traits are more likely survive and reproduce than those with less adaptable characteristics.
Common ancestor (also called common ancestor) The most recent ancestor shared by two or more species. By studying the DNA of these species, it is possible to identify the common ancestor.
Deoxyribonucleic acid: A huge biological molecule that holds the information required for cell replication. The information is stored in nucleotide sequences, which are strung into long chains called chromosomes. Mutations are the source of new genetic information in cells.
Coevolution: A relationship between two species in which evolutionary changes in one species are dependent on evolutionary changes in the other. Coevolution can be seen through the interaction between predator and prey, or parasites and hosts.
Origins
Species (groups of individuals that are able to interbreed) change through a series of natural changes in the characteristics of their offspring. These changes are caused by a variety that include natural selection, genetic drift, and mixing of gene pools. The evolution of new species can take thousands of years. Environmental conditions, such as changes in the climate or competition for food or habitat can impede or accelerate the process.
The Evolution site tracks the evolution of a variety of groups of animals and plants over time with a focus on the key changes that took place 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, when only a handful of antediluvian fossils of humans were discovered. One of them was the infamous skullcap and associated bones found in 1856 in the Little Feldhofer Grotto in Germany, which is now known to be an early Homo neanderthalensis. It is unlikely that Darwin was aware of the skullcap, which was published in 1858, which was a year after the first edition of The Origin. Origin.
The site is mostly an online biology resource, but it also contains many details on paleontology and geology. The site offers a number of aspects that are quite impressive, including the timeline of how climate and geological conditions have changed over the course of time. It also has maps that show the locations of fossil groups.
Although the site is a companion piece to a PBS television show but it also stands on its own as a valuable source for teachers and students. The site is extremely well organized and provides clear links between the introductory information in Understanding Evolution (developed with support from the National Science Foundation) and the more specialized components of the museum's Web site. 에볼루션코리아 facilitate the transition from the engaging 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 led to a variety of plants, animals and insects. Paleobiology is the study of these creatures in their natural environment and has numerous advantages over modern observational and experimental methods in its exploration of evolutionary phenomena. In addition to studying the processes and events that happen regularly or over a lengthy period of time, paleobiology can be used to study the relative abundance of different kinds of organisms as well as their distribution across the geological time.
The website is divided into various routes that can be taken to study the subject of evolution. One of the paths, "Evolution 101," guides the user through the nature and evidence of evolution. The path also reveals the most common misconceptions about evolution, as well as the evolution theory's history.
Each of the other main sections of the Evolution site is equally well developed, with materials that can be used to support a range of curriculum levels and pedagogical styles. The site has a range of multimedia and interactive resources which include animations, video clips and virtual laboratories, in addition to its general textual content. The content is presented in a nested bread crumb-like fashion that helps with navigation and orientation within the vast web site.
The page "Coral Reef Connections", for example, provides a comprehensive overview of the coral's relationships and their interactions with other organisms and zooms in to a single clam, which can communicate with its neighbors and react to changes in water conditions that occur on 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 range of topics in evolutionary biology. The content includes a discussion on the significance of natural selectivity and the concept of phylogenetics as a key tool for understanding evolutionary change.
Evolutionary Theory
For biology students evolution is a crucial thread that connects all branches of the field. A rich collection of resources can help teachers teach about evolution across all life sciences.
One resource, which is the companion to PBS's television show Understanding Evolution is an excellent example of an Web site that provides depth as well as wide range of educational resources. The site has a wide array of interactive learning modules. It also has an "bread crumb structure" that assists students in moving away from the cartoon-like style that is used in Understanding Evolution and onto elements on this site that are more closely connected to the worlds of research science. For example an animation that introduces the notion of genetic inheritance leads to a page that focuses on John Endler's experiments with artificial selection with guppies from the native ponds of Trinidad.
The Evolution Library on this website has a huge multimedia library of resources that are associated to evolution. The content is organized according to courses that are based on curriculum and follow the learning goals established in the standards for biology. It contains seven short videos specifically intended for use in the classroom. They can be viewed online or purchased as DVDs.
Many important questions remain at the heart of evolutionary biology, including the factors that trigger evolution and the speed at which it occurs. This is especially relevant to human evolution, where it has been difficult to reconcile that the physical characteristics of humans were derived from apes, and the religions that believe that humanity is unique among living things and has a special place in creation, with a soul.
There are also a number of other ways evolution can take place and natural selection being the most popular theory. Scientists also study different types like mutation, genetic drift, and sexual selection.
While many scientific fields of study have a conflict with literal interpretations in religious texts, 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 notions of evolution, others haven't.