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EVOLUTION
Who was Darwin & what did he do?Scientific Vocabulary
Study of Evolution
Charles Darwin
1859 published life’s work “The Origin of Species”
Evolution based on Natural Selection
Evolution: historical phenomenon of species changing & diversifying over time
Natural Selection: how evolution happened
Darwin’s Evidence
BiogeographyPaleontologyEmbryologyMorphology
Biogeography
geographical distribution of living creatures
Paleontology
extinct life forms revealed in fossil record
Embryology
comparison of the physiological stages embryos
pass through during development
Morphology
comparison of anatomical shapes in different species
Today’s Evidence
Fossil Record
Homologous Structures
Analogous Structures
Vestigial Structures
Geographical Distribution
Embryology
Biochemistry*
Population Genetics*
Molecular biology*
Genomics*
Controversy & Evolution
US StatisticsScientific Vocabulary
The United States says...
“God created human beings pretty much in their present form” (55%)
“Divine intervention got things started & evolution was the means” (27%)
“Humans evolved from other life forms with no involvement from a god” (13%)Gallop Poll of 2900 people 2006
Scientific Vocabulary to help understanding...
Define the following words:
FACT
HYPOTHESIS
INFERENCE
LAW
THEORY
FACT
An observation that has been repeatedly confirmed and for all practical purposes is accepted as “true” Truth in science, however, is never final and what is accepted as a fact today may be modified or even discarded tomorrow
Hypothesis
A tentative statement about the natural world leading to deductions that can be tested If the deductions are verified, the hypothesis is provisionally corroborated. If the deductions are incorrect, the original hypothesis is proved false and must be abandoned or modified. Hypotheses can be used to build more complex inferences and explanations.
Inference
Conclusion drawn from available evidence
Law
A descriptive generalization about how some aspect of the natural world behaves under stated circumstances
Theory
A well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world that can incorporate facts, laws, inferences, and tested hypotheses