Evo-devo is a field of biology comparing the developmental processes of different organisms to discover the evolutionary relationship between them and to further understand how the developmental processes evolved within the organisms. An evolutionary biologist can discover vital patterns from using an evo-devo conceptual framework. Understanding that the same master genes are found in fundamental [...]
I began my journey to the Museum of the Earth by opening the doors to a modern building. As I stepped inside, I overheard an elementary teacher describing the rules to her class. I smiled as I recalled the field trips I have taken throughout my education. From hiking in forests to observing in hospitals, [...]
“Punctuated Equilibria: an Alternative to Phyletic Gradualism” offers a different perspective to evolution than Darwin’s theory of phyletic gradualism. Phyletic gradualism suggests that new species arise from the slow and steady transformation of entire populations. This implies that the fossil record should consist of a long sequence of continuous intermediate forms linking ancestors and descendants [...]
I have chosen the clade of hominids. I would love to delve deeper into the hominid fossil record and obtain a better understanding of the evolution of humans. Two examples of fossil taxa within this clade are called “Lucy” of Australopithecus afarensis and “Peking Man” of Homo erectus. According to Peter Kessler, author of “Hominid Chronology”, 24,000 years [...]
The main point Lauder was trying to make in his article “Systematics and the Study of Organismal Form and Function” is that in order to fully comprehend the comparative analysis of morphology and physiology, an understanding of phylogenetic principles and practices is essential. Lauder states that focusing on phylogenetics will bring, “… increased precision to [...]
The four postulates of natural selection apply to bacteria. This is best seen in antibiotic resistance. Some antibiotics are initially successful at treating a certain disease, however, over time, the evolution of resistance in bacteria may occur. Individual bacteria in a population vary in traits (genes) due to mutations allowing for natural selection. The bacteria [...]
Drs. Futuyma and Agrawal, authors of “Evolutionary history and species interactions” would disagree with the above statement that ‘phylogenies are not an important tool in the field of ecology’. On the one hand, Drs. Futuyma and Agrawal state that, “Phylogenetic analysis of living organisms cannot entirely replace paleontology as a way of recovering the past…” [...]
Hi guys, my name is Amanda Merkel. I am a junior majoring in Biology. My interest in evolution initially began with the concept of using DNA to study the evolution of organisms. I am extremely fascinated by molecular evolution and throughout Track 2 I would like to gain experience dissecting scientific research.