Evolution Site - Teaching About Evolution
Despite the best efforts of biology educators, misinformation about evolution remain. Pop science nonsense has led many people to believe that biologists don't believe evolution.
This site, which is a companion to the PBS series - provides teachers with materials that support evolution education and help avoid the kinds of myths that make it difficult to understand. 에볼루션코리아 's organized in the "bread crumb" format to aid in navigation and orientation.
Definitions
Evolution is a complex and difficult subject to teach effectively. It is often misunderstood even by non-scientists, and even scientists are guilty of using a definition that confuses the issue. This is especially true when it comes to debates about the meaning of the word itself.
It is therefore essential to define the terms that are used in evolutionary biology. The website for the PBS show, Understanding Evolution, does this in a clear and useful manner. The site serves as a companion for the 2001 series, and also a resource on its own. The content is presented in a way which aids navigation and orientation.
The site defines terms like common ancestor, the gradual process, and adaptation. These terms help define the nature and significance of evolution to other scientific concepts. The website provides a summary of the ways in which evolution has been tested. This information can be used to dispel the myths that have been engendered by the creationists.
It is also possible to access the glossary of terms used in evolutionary biology. These terms include:
Adaptation: The tendency for heritable traits to become better suitable to a particular setting. This is a result of natural selection. Organisms with better-adapted characteristics are more likely than those with less adaptable characteristics to survive and reproduce.
Common ancestor (also known as common ancestor): The most recent ancestor shared by two or more species. By analyzing DNA from these species, it is possible to identify the common ancestor.
Deoxyribonucleic Acid: A huge biological molecular containing the information needed for cell replication. The information is contained in a sequence of nucleotides that are strung together into long chains, called chromosomes. Mutations are the cause of new genetic information in cells.
Coevolution is the relationship between two species in which the evolution of one species are influenced evolutionary changes of the other. Coevolution is evident in the interactions between predator and prey, or parasite and hosts.
Origins
Species (groups that can interbreed), evolve through a series of natural changes in the traits of their offspring. The causes of these changes are various factors, including natural selection, gene drift and mixing of the gene pool. The evolution of new species can take thousands of years. Environmental conditions, such as changes in the climate or competition for food resources and habitat can slow or speed up the process.
The Evolution site tracks through time the evolution of different species of plants and animals with a focus on major changes within each group's past. It also focuses on the evolutionary origin of humans which is especially important for students to know.
Darwin's Origin was published in 1859, when only a handful of antediluvian fossils of human beings had been discovered. Among them was the famous skullcap and the associated bones discovered in 1856 in the Little Feldhofer Grotto in Germany, which is now known to be an early Homo neanderthalensis. While the skullcap wasn't published until 1858, a year before the first edition of the Origin appeared, it is extremely unlikely that Darwin had seen or heard of it.
The site is mostly one of biology, but it also contains many details on geology and paleontology. Among the best features on the site are a series of timelines which show the way in which climatic and geological conditions have changed over time as well as a map of the distribution of some of the fossil groups featured on the site.
The site is a companion for the PBS TV series but it can also be used as a resource for teachers and students. The site is well-organized and provides easy links to the introductory material of Understanding Evolution (developed under the National Science Foundation's support) as well as the more specialized features of the museum website. These hyperlinks help users move from the enthralling cartoon style of the Understanding Evolution pages to the more sophisticated world of research science. There are links to John Endler's experiments with guppies. They demonstrate the importance of ecology in evolutionary theory.
Diversity
The evolution of life on Earth has resulted in a variety of animals, plants and insects. Paleobiology is the study of these creatures within their natural environment and has numerous advantages over modern observational and experimental methods of examining evolutionary processes. Paleobiology focuses on not only processes and events that happen regularly or over time but also the relative abundance and distribution of various animal groups across geological time.
The website is divided into a variety of paths to learning evolution that include "Evolution 101," which takes the viewer on a line through the science of nature and the evidence that supports the theory of evolution. The path also examines myths regarding evolution, as well as the history of evolutionary thinking.
Each of the other main sections of the Evolution site is similarly developed, with materials that support a variety of different pedagogical levels and curriculum levels. In addition to the general textual content, the site features an array of interactive and multimedia resources like video clips, animations, and virtual labs. The breadcrumb-like structure of the content helps with navigation and orientation on the massive website.
For instance the page "Coral Reef Connections" provides a comprehensive overview of coral relationships and their interactions with other organisms. It then concentrates on a specific clam that can communicate with its neighbors and react to changes in water conditions at the reef level. This page, as well as the other multidisciplinary, multimedia, and interactive pages on the website, provide an excellent introduction to a wide spectrum of topics in evolutionary biology. The content includes an explanation of the role of natural selectivity and the concept of phylogenetics analysis as a key method for understanding the evolution of changes.
Evolutionary Theory
Evolution is an underlying thread that is found throughout all branches of biology. A rich collection of resources can help teachers teach about evolution across the life sciences.
One resource, the companion to PBS's television series Understanding Evolution is an excellent example of an Web site that provides the depth and the breadth in terms of its educational resources. The site offers a range of interactive learning modules. It also features an embedded "bread crumb" structure that helps students move from the cartoon-like style of Understanding Evolution to elements on this large Web site more closely tied to the field of research science. An animation that introduces students to the concept of genetics is linked to a page about John Endler's experiments in artificial selection using guppies on native ponds in Trinidad.
Another resource that is worth mentioning is the Evolution Library on this website, which includes an extensive multimedia library of assets that are related to evolution. The content is organized into curricula-based pathways that correspond to the learning objectives set out in the biology standards. It includes seven short videos specifically designed for classroom use, which can be streamed at no cost or purchased on DVD.
Many important questions remain in the midst of evolutionary biology, such as what causes evolution to occur and how fast it happens. This is particularly applicable to human evolution where it has been difficult to reconcile that the innate physical characteristics of humans derived from apes with religious beliefs that claim that humans are unique among living things and has a special place in creation, with soul.
In addition there are a variety of ways that evolution can be triggered with natural selection being the most popular theory. Scientists also study other kinds such as mutation, genetic drift and sexual selection.
Although many scientific fields of study have a conflict with literal interpretations in religious texts, evolution biology has been a source of intense debate and opposition from religious fundamentalists. Certain religions have embraced their beliefs with evolution, but others haven't.