Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution
Despite the best efforts by biology educators, misconceptions persist about the evolution. Pop science nonsense has led many people to think that biologists don't believe in evolution.
This site, which is a companion to the PBS series It provides teachers with materials which support evolution education and avoids the kinds of misinformation that can hinder it. It's laid out in a "bread crumb" format to facilitate navigation and orientation.
Definitions
It's difficult to teach evolution well. 에볼루션바카라사이트 is often misunderstood by non-scientists and even some scientists have been guilty of using an interpretation that is confusing the issue. This is particularly relevant to discussions about the meaning of the word itself.
It is crucial to define the terms used in evolutionary biology. The website for the PBS show, Understanding Evolution, does this in a clear and helpful manner. It is an accompaniment to the 2001 series, and it is also a resource on its own. The information is presented in a structured manner that makes it easier to navigate and understand.
The site defines terms like common ancestor, gradual process and so on. These terms help to define the nature and relationship of evolution to other scientific concepts. The site also provides an overview of how the concept of evolution has been researched and verified. This information can be used to dispel myths that have been created by creationists.
It is also possible to find a glossary of terms that are used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:
Adaptation: The tendency for heritable characteristics to become more adaptable to a specific environment. This is due to natural selection, which occurs when organisms that are more adaptable traits are more likely to survive and reproduce than those with less adapted characteristics.
Common ancestor (also known as common ancestor): The most recent ancestor shared by two or more species. The common ancestor can be identified by studying the DNA of the species.
Deoxyribonucleic acid: A massive biological molecule that contains the information needed for cell replication. The information is stored in sequences of nucleotides that are strung together into long chains, also known as chromosomes. Mutations are responsible for the creation of new genetic information inside cells.
Coevolution: A relationship between two species where evolutionary changes in one species are affected by changes in evolutionary processes in the other. Coevolution is evident through the interaction between predator and prey, or parasite and hosts.
Origins
Species (groups of individuals that are able to interbreed) change through natural changes in the characteristics of their offspring. These changes are caused by a variety that include natural selection, genetic drift and gene pool mixing. The evolution of new species could take thousands of years. Environmental conditions, like changes in the climate or competition for food and habitat, can slow or accelerate the process.
The Evolution site traces the emergence of a variety of animal and plant groups through time and focuses on the most significant shifts that occurred throughout the history of each group. It also focuses on the human evolutionary roots and humans, a subject that is especially important for students to know.
When Darwin wrote the Origin in 1859, only a handful of antediluvian human fossils had been found. Among them was the famous skullcap and bones that were discovered in 1856 at the Little Feldhofer Grotto in Germany, which is now known as an early Homo neanderthalensis. It is highly unlikely that Darwin was aware of the skullcap, which was first published in 1858, one year following the initial edition of The Origin.
The site is mostly a biology site however, it also has lots of information about paleontology and geology. One of the most appealing features of the website 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 a few fossil groups that are featured on the site.
The site is a companion for a PBS TV series but it can be used as a resource for teachers and students. The site is extremely well-organized and offers clear links between the introduction material in Understanding Evolution (developed with support from the National Science Foundation) and the more specific elements of the museum's web site. These hyperlinks make it easy to move from the cartoon-style Understanding Evolution pages into the more sophisticated worlds of research science. In particular there are links to John Endler's experiments using Guppies that demonstrate the importance of ecology in evolutionary theory.
Diversity
The evolution of life has led to many species of plants, animals and insects. Paleobiology, the study of these creatures within their geological context offers many advantages over modern observational or experimental methods of studying evolutionary processes. Paleobiology focuses on not just the processes and events that take place regularly or over time, but also the relative abundance and distribution of different species of animals in space over the course of geological time.
The website is divided into several routes that can be taken to study the subject of evolution. One of these paths, "Evolution 101," walks the reader through the nature and evidence of evolution. The course also focuses on the most common misconceptions about evolution, as well as the evolution of thought.
Each of the other sections of the Evolution site is equally well constructed, with materials that support a variety of educational levels and pedagogical styles. In addition to general textual content, the site also has an array of interactive and multimedia resources like videos, animations, and virtual labs. The breadcrumb-like structure of the content assists with navigation and orientation on the massive Web site.
The page "Coral Reef Connections" For instance, the page "Coral Reef Connections" provides an overview of the relationships between corals and their interactions with other organisms and then zooms in on one clam, which is able to communicate with its neighbors and react to changes in water conditions that occur on the reef level. This page, along with the other multidisciplinary interactive and multimedia pages, provides an excellent introduction to a variety of topics in evolutionary biology. The information also includes an overview of the importance of natural selection and the concept of phylogenetic analysis which is an important tool in understanding evolutionary changes.
Evolutionary Theory
Evolution is a common thread that connects all branches of biology. A vast collection of books helps in teaching evolution across all disciplines of life sciences.
One resource, which is the companion to PBS's television show 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 features a wealth of interactive learning modules. It also has a "bread crumb structure" that helps students move away from the cartoon-like style that is used in Understanding Evolution and onto elements on this large website more closely connected to the worlds of research science. For example an animation that explains the notion of genetic inheritance leads to a page that focuses on John Endler's artificial selection experiments using guppies in the ponds of his native country of Trinidad.
The Evolution Library on this website has a huge multimedia library of assets related with evolution. The content is organized according to the form of curriculum-based pathways that are in line with the learning objectives outlined in the standards for biology. It contains seven videos specifically designed for classroom use, which can be streamed for no cost or purchased on DVD.
Evolutionary biology is an area of study that poses many important questions, such as the causes of evolution and how fast it happens. This is particularly true for humans' evolution which was a challenge to reconcile religious beliefs that held that humanity has a unique place in creation and a soul with the notion that human beings have innate physical traits were derived from Apes.
In addition there are a myriad of ways that evolution could occur and natural selection is the most widely accepted theory. Scientists also study different types like mutation, genetic drift, and sexual selection.
While many scientific fields of study are in conflict with the literal interpretations of religious texts, the concept of evolution biology has been a source of intense controversy and opposition from religious fundamentalists. While some religions have been able to reconcile their beliefs with the ideas of evolution, others haven't.