Download AP Biology Summer Assignment

AP Biology Summer Assignment
Since Biology is the study of life and evolution explains the unity and diversity of life we see on
Earth you will focus on evolution for your summer assignment. For you summer assignment is in
two parts.
Part I: you will be refreshing your memory on some evolutionary topics by reading the
evolution chapters in your textbook (9th grade textbook is fine or AP Biology) and answer
the following questions.
1. Describe (in two to three sentences) the philosophies and theories related to evolution of
the following: Aristotle, Hutton, Cuvier, Lyell, Malthus, Wallace, Lamarck and Linnaeus.
2. How did each of the researchers above influence Charles Darwin?
3. Describe the observations and the inferences Darwin made that led him to propose natural
selection as a mechanism for evolutionary change.
4. Describe, compare and contrast artificial and natural selection.
5. Explain how the following types of evidence support Darwin’s theory of evolution:
homology, biogeography and the fossil record.
6. Describe the conditions on the early Earth that made the origin of life possible.
7. Describe the stages in the origin of life and the first cells.
8. Create a table with the kingdoms of life and compare them in terms of cell type, cell wall
composition, mode of nutrition, methods of energy production and/or capture, uni or multi
cellular, presence of histones, and two examples.
Part II: Watch any of the following movies:
Charles Darwin and the Tree of Life (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1371711/)
OR Creation (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creation_(2009_film)
OR Darwin’s Dangerous Idea (http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/darwin/)
OR another movie you find about Charles Darwin and his ideas.
For each movie write a review of the movie (summary and your thoughts) about one page and
answer the following questions. Some of the questions are in the movie but there are a couple
questions you need to look up.
What did most of Europe believe for about 2000 years about the origin of species?
What is significant about the shapes of the tortoise shells in the Galapagos Islands?
Describe who and what the major influences are on Darwin’s ideas discussed in the film you
watched?
4. What did people find scandalous about Darwin’s book?
5. Describe how any organism supports Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection.
(Don’t use finches)
1.
2.
3.
These are due on Tuesday, September 15 th via Haiku to Ms. Bischoff.