Download Darwin`s Dangerous Idea: Questions

Darwin’s Dangerous Idea: Questions
1. Who was Charles Darwin and what important ideas did he contribute to
scientific knowledge?
2. State Darwin’s “Tree of Life” theory of the evolution of new species
through time.
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3. State Darwin’s theory of natural selection.
Natural and Unnatural Selection
Read pages 58 – 61 in Populations and Ecosystem.
1. Explain how the domestic dog may have evolved from one
strain of wolves.
2. Define and give examples of selective breeding.
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3. Define natural selection and distinguish it from selective
breeding. Use examples.
4. Summarize John Endler’s study. Do his results support the
theory of natural selection? How?
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5. How many species of finches did Darwin find on the Galapagos
Islands? Describe Darwin’s theory about how they evolved
from a single species.
6. What is a selective pressure? Explain the role of selective
pressures in evolution and give and example.
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7. What explanation would Captain Fitzpatrick and Darwin’s
Cousin Emma give for the variety of finches on Galapagos?
8. Define extinction. Tell how Darwin and modern scientists
explain extinction. How would Cousin Emma explain it?
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