Download Chapters 15-17 Learning Objectives

Honors Biology – Chapters 15 - 17 Learning Objectives
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Date
1. Demonstrate an ability to meet deadlines by turning in assignments on time.
2. Demonstrate an ability to use appropriate grammar and spelling and to make corrections as necessary.
Essential Question A. What is evolutionary theory, and how does it explain how living organisms have
changed over the past 3.5 billion years?
3. Explain the difference between a scientific hypothesis and a scientific theory
4. Explain that Darwin’s theory of evolution (evolutionary theory) explains how organisms evolve because:
 (1) All populations have variations in adaptations due to mutations/genetic recombination
 (2) Overproduction in a species produces more offspring than can survive
 (3) Limited resources in ecosystems results in competition for those resources
 (4) Variation, overproduction, and competition lead to natural selection by the environment: individuals
with better adaptations are better able to complete, survive longer and produce more offspring.
 (5) The variation in a population (especially the traits that make organisms better able to survive and
reproduce) is passed down to, or inherited by, future generations through DNA.
5. Predict the effect on a species if, hypothetically, one of the 5 factors did not exist in a population. Would the
species evolve?
6. Explain that the great diversity of organisms is the result of more than 3.5 billion years of evolution that has
filled available ecosystem niches on Earth with life forms.
7. Explain that the millions of species alive today are “descended with modification” from ancestral species,
and that all living things have a common ancestor.
8. Explain that diverse species evolving from ancestral species unites organisms into a single “tree of life”.
9. Explain that random changes in the genetic makeup of cells and organisms (mutations) can cause changes
in their physical characteristics or behaviors; if mutations occur during the production of gametes, changes
will be inherited by offspring (leading to variation in adaptations)
10. Explain that while most mutations in gametes are harmful, a small minority may create new alleles that allow
the offspring to better survive and reproduce (and therefore be “naturally selected”).
 Explain what happens to alleles in a population if the 1) allele results in a trait that reduces the fitness in
an organism or 2) allele results in a trait that increases the fitness in an organism
 Explain what is meant by the “relative frequency” of alleles
11. Explain “speciation”, including how populations become reproductively isolated from each other through
behavioral, geographic, and temporal isolation
12. Explain the three ways that natural selection can affect the distribution of phenotypes in a population:
directional selection, stabilizing selection, disruptive selection
13. Explain Jean-Baptiste Lamarck’s hypothesis for how living things changed over time, and explain why this
hypothesis is incorrect. Note: our developing understanding of the epigenome may eventually suggest that
Lamarck was, in some cases, partially correct.
Essential Question B. What evidence supports evolutionary theory?
14. Explain the types of evidence available that support evolutionary theory and how life has evolved from a common
ancestor, including the following (be familiar with one thorough, specific example for c, d, e, f)
a) The origin of the first prokaryotic cells.
b) The origin of the first eukaryotic cells.
c) Fossil record, transitional fossils (relative dating and radioactive dating),
d) Anatomical similarities (homologous structures, embryology)
e) DNA/gene similarities (e.g. in yeast, flies, and mammals); DNA as a universal language
f) Observable evolution, natural selection, evolution
15. Explain how cladograms use data to portray hypotheses about evolutionary relationships
16. Explain how Darwin’s finches evolved over time, using data collected by modern scientists
17. Explain how some bacteria (like S. aureus) have evolved resistance antibiotics in the last few years/decades
Essential Question C. How can we determine if a population is evolving quickly or, conversely, approaching
“genetic equilibrium” and not evolving very quickly?
18. Explain the terms “gene pool” and “relative frequency” of alleles and how they relate
19. Explain the difference between a population that is in genetic equilibrium and one that is evolving
20. Explain the Hardy-Weinberg principle and be able to use the related equation to determine if a population is
evolving or in equilibrium