The Process of Evolution

Lesson 4.a

Rice is the staple food in the Philippines. There are various types of rice in the country and Filipinos call
them by local names such as laon, wagwag, sinandomeng, and angelica. These are some of the different
varieties of the rice plant with the scientific name Oryza sativa,  yet they all differ. What do these
differences imply? It means that human intervention can change the organism into a different or
improved organism. Human intervention includes choosing specific traits mixed with other selected
species. However, all organisms can change naturally through time even without human intervention.
This change through time is called evolution, the process by which modern organisms have descended
from ancient organisms.

Some Information about the Scientists and Evolution:

1. Carolous Linnaeus

o Father of taxonomy (differentiate classical taxonomy and modern taxonomy)

o Started the binomial system of nomenclature

2. Thomas Malthus

o Believed that populations grow geometrically while resources slowly increase or

not at all, leading to competition

3. Jean Baptiste de Lamarck

o First to propose about the theory of evolution: Theory of inheritance of

acquired traits andTheory of use and disuse
o Physiological needs drive Lamarckian evolution
o Defined evolution as process of increasing complexity
o No extinction of species. Species disappeared because they just evolved into
different
o Organisms adapt to evolve

4. Georges Cuvier

o Established extinction through fossils

o Believed that the earth was immensely old
o Catastrophes caused that each one wiped out a number of species
o Didn’t believe organic evolution because of the mummified cats and ibises

5. James Hutton
 o Proposed theory of gradualism (Slow subtle processes could cause substantial
change overtime)
o Great age of the earth

6. Charles Lyell

o Proposed the theory of uniformitarianism (natural agents now at work on and

within the earthhave operated with general uniformity through immensely long
periods of time)

7. Gregor Mendel

o Studied garden peas

o Responsible for the: Law of segregation (two alleles for each gene separate
during gameteformation) and Law of Independent Assortment (alleles of genes
on non-homologous chromosomes assort independently during gamete
formation)

8. Charles Darwin

o Explained evolution through: Natural Selection, Idea of Common Descent, Idea

of Gradualism, Idea of Multiplication of species
o Organisms evolve to adapt

9. Alfred Russel Wallace

o Had a correspondence with Darwin regarding the theory of evolution by means

of Natural Selection
o Realized that species evolved because fittest individuals survived and
reproduced passing their advantageous

10. Hugo de Vries

o Rediscovered Mendel’s work

o Thought of theory of mutation but his idea of mutation before has nothing to
do with the real mutations

11. Carl Correns

o Rediscovered Mendel’s work

o Worked on the Behavior of the Progeny of Racial Hybrids

Schools of Thought Lamarckian

 Physiological needs drives organisms to
Central idea Natural selection: nature selects wh
evolve; to become more complex

Explanation on how adaptations of Theory of inheritance of Acquired traits; and

Descent with Modification by natur
organisms arise Theory of Use and Disuse

Smallest unit that can evolve Individual species Populations

Do variations initially exist in No, variations are caused by inheriting

Yes, important requirement for evo
populations? acquired traits

Environment as an important factor for

Common idea Environment as an important factor
evolution

No, organisms just evolved into another

Does extinction happen? Yes, organisms that do not possess
species
  
  Raw material for evolution-mutatio
Variations in population, acquired traits are Darwin observed offspring to be res
Missing ingredient
not passed to the next generation

12. Erich Von Tschermak

o Rediscovered Mendel’s work

o Applied Mendial laws to artificial selection to improve crop yield

13. Rosalind Franklin

o One of the few women during their time to be recognized for her contribution
in the scientific
o Worked on the x-ray diffraction image of the DNA. X-ray crystallography picture
of the DNA thattime were not pictures of molecules. The spots were produced
by diffracted x-rays from the fibers of a purified
o She also concluded that the sugar-phosphate backbones were outside the DNA
molecule (contrary to Crick and Watson’s claim)
o Died at the age of 38 (1958) so she was ineligible for the Nobel

14. James Watson and Francis Crick

o Discovered that the DNA is a double stranded helix, from Rosalind Franklin’s
works

Lamarckian vs. Darwinian Evolution: Comparing Theories on Evolution

 
 

Voyage of the Beagle

1. Primary mission of the voyage is to chart poorly known stretches of South America coastline
2. Darwin observed and collected thousands of plants and animals
3. Noted organisms special features that enabled it to survive diverse environments
4. Associated species of plants and animals in South America’s temperate and tropical regions
as more closely related species than species ofthe temperate regions of Europe
5. Fossils found in South America resemble living species in that same region
6. Saw fossils of aquatic organisms in the Andes (mountain region), and accounted its presence
through many earthquakes that may have These observations affirmed his learning from
Lyell’s Principle of Geology.
7. The voyage reached Galapagos where he observed finches. There were finches unique to
the island while there were others that resembled the mainland species. This helped him
hypothesize that the Galapagos was colonized by species from the mainland South America
then diversified giving rise to different species (on different islands).

Darwin’s Focus on Adaptation

1. Adaptation- inherited characteristics of organisms that enhance their survival and

reproduction inspecific environments. Observed in the Galapagos
2. The difference in beak types and behaviors are adapted to the specific food in home
3. Natural selection caused these adaptations to arise. Natural selection explains the
difference insurvival of individual since some individuals of the same species have inherited
traits (adaptations) that allow the organism to survive and reproduce in a particular
4. Nature selects organisms with high
5. Darwin thought of the idea of descent with modification, which was caused by natural
selection.Though at that time, he was not quite confident of his idea, until Alfred Wallace
sent him his manuscript (worked in the Malayan Archipelago) that contains Wallace’s
hypothesis of natural selection identical to Darwin’s, and asked Darwin if he can ask Lyell if
it has merit for
 6. Lyell presented Wallace’s paper with Darwin’s unpublished essay to the Linnaean Society of
The following year Darwin published his book: On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural
Selection

The Origin of Species

1. Darwin’s observation on nature

2. The unity of life (descent of all organisms from ancestors)
3. Diversity of life (caused by descent with modification)
4. Darwin didn’t use the word evolution in his book (though the final word in the book is
EVOLVED),but instead he used the term “descent with modification”
5. Viewed life history as a tree as compared to Lamarck’s ladder view on species

Descent with modification (by Berkeley Education)

1. Beetles on a diet

 Imagine a year or two of drought in which there are few plants that these beetles can eat. 

 All the beetles have the same chances of survival and reproduction, but because of food
restrictions, the beetles in the population are a little smaller than the preceding generation
of beetles.

2. Beetles of a different colour

 Most of the beetles in the population (say 90%) have the genes (Links to an external
site.) for bright green coloration and a few of them (10%) have a gene that makes them
more brown.
  Some number of generations later, things have changed: brown beetles are more common
than they used to be and make up 70% of the population.

Which example illustrates descent with modification — a change in gene frequency over time?

The difference in weight in example 1 came about because of environmental influences — the low food
supply — not because of a change in the frequency of genes. Therefore, example 1 is not evolution.
Because the small body size in this population was not genetically determined, this generation of small-
bodied beetles will produce beetles that will grow to normal size if they have a normal food supply.

The changing color in example 2 is definitely evolution: these two generations of the same population
are genetically different. But how did it happen?

Artificial Selection

1. Artificial selection- process of selecting and breeding of animals and plants over many
generations to achieve the modifications desired by human
2. Caused the production of individuals used for crops, livestock, pets that resemble wild
3. Instead of nature serving as the selecting factor, its humans that select which organisms will
be used for breeding depending on to the traits they want to
4. Can take effect faster than natural selection, though follows the same principle as natural
selection where favorable traits will be more frequent in a population while less favorable
traits will

Natural Selection

1. Differential in rates of survival is dependent on individual’s heritable traits suited in the

2. An organism’s compatibility with its surrounding is increased by natural selection over
 3. A change in environment (or movement of individuals to new environment) may cause a
species to give rise to a new species depending on the traits that will be favored by the new 
environment

Lesson 4.b

Using the Tree for Classification (by Berkeley Education)

Biologists use phylogenetic trees for many purposes, including:

 Testing hypotheses about evolution

 Learning about the characteristics of extinct species and ancestral lineages
 Classifying organisms

Using phylogenies as a basis for classification is a relatively new development in biology.

Most of us are accustomed to the Linnaean system of classification (Links to an external site.) that

assigns every organism a kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species, which, among other
possibilities, has the handy mnemonic King Philip Came Over For Good Soup. This system was created
long before scientists understood that organisms evolved. Because the Linnaean system is not based on
evolution, most biologists are switching to a classification system that reflects the organisms'
evolutionary history.

This phylogenetic classification system (Links to an

external site.) names only clades — groups of
organisms that are all descended from a common
ancestor. As an example, we can look more closely at
reptiles and birds.

Under a system of phylogenetic classification, we could

name any clade on this tree. For example, the
Testudines, Squamata, Archosauria, and
Crocodylomorpha all form clades.

 
 However, the reptiles do not form a clade, as shown in
the cladogram. That means that either "reptile" is not a
valid phylogenetic grouping or we have to start
thinking of birds as reptiles.

Another cool thing about phylogenetic classification is

that it means that dinosaurs are not entirely extinct.
Birds are, in fact, dinosaurs (part of the clade
Dinosauria). It's pretty neat to think that you could
learn something about T. rex by studying birds!

Summary and Additional Notes

Summary of Key Concepts:

1. Darwin’s theory explains evolution based on his observations. Natural selection is the
survival and reproduction of organisms that best adapted to their changing environment.
2. Taxonomy is important to show the relationships between organisms and to possibly trace
the evolutionary origin of organisms.

Additional Notes:


o The pieces of evidence for evolution are: (a) fossils; (b) anatomical evidence; (c)
embryological evidences; (d) biogeographic evidence; and (e) biochemical
pieces of evidence.

Examples of Recent Evolution in Humans

1. Drinking milk as adults


o a. All mammals (besides humans) stop producing lactase after weaning.
o b. Lactase is needed to breakdown lactose (milk sugar) in the body.
 o c. This means that they will no longer be able to digest milk when they get
older.
o d. Scientists have discovered a mutation that first appeared on the plains of
Hungary about 7,500 years ago, that allowed some humans to digest milk into
adulthood.
o e. The ability to digest protein-rich, calorie-dense, dairy products was a definite
evolutionary advantage.
o f. We still see evidence of this genetic change today, in the fact that ~ 75% of
humans are lactose intolerant.

2. Disease Resistance

 I. Sickle - Cell Anemia

o a. Sickle-Cell Anemia prevents Malaria.
o b. Sickle-Cell Anemia is most common in people of African descent (7%), and
other areas where malaria is prevalent. 
o c. Sickle-Cell Anemia is a condition caused by a genetic mutation that leads to
misshapen red blood cells that look like a crescent or sickle, hence the name.
These abnormal red blood cells are impaired in their ability to deliver oxygen to
the cells. In addition, these cells have a shorter life-span and lead to anemia
which is the inability for blood to clot properly leading to excessive bleeding
upon injury. The sickle shape of these cells often create blockages within the
blood vessels as they simply get 'stuck' to the vessel walls or aggregate
together. Patients often experience pain, lethargy, shortness of breath,
dizziness, headaches, or coldness in the hands and feet. 

 II. HIV Infection
o a. about 10% of Europeans have a genetic mutation that protects them from
HIV infection.
o b. This genetic mutation (known as CCR5-Ä32) prevents the virus from entering
the cells.

3.  Blue Eyes - a Mutation


o a. New research shows that people with blue eyes have a single, common
ancestor. 
o b. Scientists have tracked down a genetic mutation which took place 6,000-
10,000 years ago and is the cause of the eye color of all blue-eyed people.
o c. Originally, everyone had brown eyes. There was a genetic mutation in the
OCA2 gene that adds melanin (pigmentation) to our eyes that essentially turned
the gene off. This caused a decrease in the melanin of the eye, thus turning
blue. Green-eyed people have less melanin than brown eyes, but more that
blue-eyes. 
4. Super Sight


o a. Some people perceive millions of colors that remain invisible to the rest of
us. 

5.  Breathing at High Altitudes


o a. Indigenous Tibetans, who live at altitudes above 10,000 feet in the Himalayan
highlands, have blood that produces more of the oxygen-transporting
hemoglobin protein. 

6.  Wisdom Teeth


o a. 25 % of humans today are born without wisdom teeth. 
o b. A few thousand years ago, a mutation popped up that prevented wisdom
teeth from growing at all. 
o c. Humans stopped needing wisdom teeth after humans begin cooking food and
developed agriculture thousands of years ago.
o d. This switch to softer foods, decreased the size of our jaw muscles.
o e. Cave men would wear out their molars and have room for the wisdom teeth
to replace them.
o f. Most people don’t have room for them.

7.  Shrinking Brains


o a. We think pretty highly of our brains, but it turns out they've actually been
shrinking for more than 20,000 years. There has been speculation as to why,
but we don't know for sure. It is possible that as technology developed, people
become less dependent on their brains. The total change adds up to a piece to
the size of a tennis ball in an adult male.

8. The Appendix


o a. Our appendix was used to secrete digestive enzymes that were needed to
break-down our previous diet of cellulose-rich plants.

9. Arrector Pili (goose bumps)


o a. Goose bumps really serve no purpose to modern humans, but when we were
much harrier, they probably served the same function that the arrector pili
serve in other mammals. The pili contract involuntarily when the mammal is
either cold or feels threatened. This acts to keep the animal warm and to
increase the size of its appearance to ward off danger. 
10. Vestigial Tails 


o a. Your coccyx, better known as your tailbone, is the very last part of your
vertebrae, and is the remnant of a lost tail. We all have a tail bone. Most people
know that. But did you know that you also carry genes that encode for a tail
too?  In the vast majority of people, these genes are essentially turned off by
epigenetic factors. These genes, on occasion get "turned back on" and we get
babies born with a tail-like appendage. Usually, surgery is performed in infancy
to remove the unneeded tail.