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22 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
Theory |
an explanation based on a body of facts that have been repeatedly confirmed through experiments |
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Scientific Theory Characteristics |
- Must be consistent with current observations - Predictability power - Must be consistent with other branches of science - unites seeming disconnected observations - Consists of 5 propositions - Follow Methodological naturalism |
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Methodological Naturalism |
- explanations based upon observations, and test. All theories are to be explained by reference to natural cause and events (not supernatural explanations) |
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Holism |
-isthe idea that all the properties of a given system (physical, biological,chemical) cannot be determined or explained by its component parts alone. |
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Reductionism |
-Reductionismin science says that a complex system can be explained by reduction to its fundamental parts. (Example-•that the processes of biology canbe reduced to chemistry and thelaws of chemistry explained by physics.) |
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Holistic |
ecology, evolutionary biology, systematics, biogeography, ethology, environmental science |
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Reductionist |
–Physiology,–cell biology,–Histology,–moleculargenetics,–Biochemistry, |
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Pre-Darwin |
•static world,•the world is not very old, •the world was created for us,•we are special, the pinnacle andpurpose of creation,•we are exempt from the laws of nature,•there is purpose in the universeand in our lives,• |
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Post-Darwin |
•ever-changing world•the world is ancient•we are just one of billions ofspecies (mostof which are now extinct)•we evolved by the same mechanismsas all species•we are not exempt from the laws ofnature •Science is not equipped to answerquestions about purpose |
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Title of Darwin's Book |
On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection or the Preservations of Favored Races in the Struggle for Life (1859) |
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DESCENTWITH MODIFICATION |
1.The proposition that thecharacteristics of organisms change over time Contrast-THEIMMUTABILITY OF SPECIES – The proposition that all species wesee today are still in their original form – there has been nochange in characteristics over time |
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COMMONDESCENT |
Allforms of life have descended from the first primordial living thing by abranching of lineages. The history of life can be represented as a greatbranching tree CONTRAST WITH: the“lawn”– Eachspecies represents a separate and independent act of creation. There are nobranching lineages. |
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GRADUALNESS |
the proposition that thedifferences between organisms evolve by innumerable incrementally small stepsthrough intermediate forms over very long periods of time. CONTRAST WITH: SALTATION – theproposition that large differences evolve by leaps or “saltations”without intermediates between ancestors and descendents. |
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POPULATIONALSPECIATION |
The creation of new species occursby the splitting of one population into two or more. Each population at thatpoint acquires its own set of unique hereditary characteristics CONTRAST WITH: 1. SALTATION and:2. TRANSFORMATIONALSPECIATION(inheritance of acquired characteristics) |
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5.NATURAL SELECTION |
Evolutionary change occurs as aresult of natural selection – (differential reproductive fitness – organismswith traits that give them an advantage in survival and reproduction contributemore of their offspring to the next generation than organisms without suchtraits). CONTRAST WITH: TRANSFORMATIONALSPECIATION(or inheritance of acquired characteristics) |
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Artificial Selections |
•– humans select forbreeding individualswith desirable features |
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Natural selection |
–thereexists a universal “struggle for life” (competition)–individualsin same population compete for resources–preyare under constant threat from predators–allpopulations are subject to changes in their environment. –nature(the environment) does the selecting |
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Fitness |
the relative contribution of your genes to the next generation compared with other organisms in the environment |
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THEALLELE FREQUENCIES OF A GENE IN A POPULATION WILL NOT CHANGE AS LONG AS 5CONDITIONS ARE HOLD TRUE: |
•Therecan be no mutations.•Matingmust be random.•Theremust be no migrations.•Therecan be no genetic drift (population must be infinitely large).•Theremust be no natural selection. |
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Extinction |
Failure to adapt to the changing environment |
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Extinction |
Failure to adapt to the changing environment |
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Punctuated Equilibrium |
Rate of evolution fluctuates |