Evolutionary Theory and Phylogenetics Lecture Notes Review

Vocabulary flashcards covering key concepts from the lecture on descent with modification, evidence for evolution, and phylogenetic tree-thinking, including definitions of important terms related to evolutionary biology.

Descent with modification

Darwin's theory that all life has descended from a common ancestor, with changes occurring over time.

Radiometric dating

A method used to confirm the age of Earth and geological formations.

Geologic Time Scale

A system of chronological dating that relates geological strata (stratigraphy) to time.

Selective breeding

The process by which humans choose which animals or plants reproduce, leading to desired traits in subsequent generations.

Direct observation (of evolution)

Observing evolutionary changes occurring in real-time, such as antibiotic resistance in bacteria or resistance to treatments like AZT.

Mutable (species)

The concept that species are not fixed but can change over time.

Vestigial traits

Non-functional, rudimentary structures in an organism that are inherited from an ancestor who had a functional version of the structure.

Pseudogenes

Non-functional relatives of genes that have lost their ability to code for functional proteins or are otherwise no longer expressed in the cell; sometimes referred to as 'junk DNA'.

Fossil record

The history of life as documented by fossils, providing evidence for newer forms deriving from older.

Transitional forms

Fossils or organisms that show intermediate states between an ancestral form and its evolutionary descendants.

Biogeography

The study of the geographical distribution of plants, animals, and other forms of life, providing evidence of newer forms deriving from older forms.

Law of succession

The observation that fossil and living organisms in the same geographic region are related to each other and distinctly different from organisms of other areas.

Homology

Similarity in characteristics resulting from shared ancestry.

Owen's interpretation of homology

Similarity in structures despite differences in function.

Darwin's interpretation of homology

Similarity of characters due to traits inherited from a common ancestor.

Evolutionary tree-thinking

The use of phylogenetic trees to understand evolutionary relationships and patterns, visualizing descent with modification.

Phylogeny

The evolutionary history (tree) of a group of organisms.

Lineage

A sequence of ancestor to descendant populations through time, representing a branch on a phylogeny.

Biological classification (using phylogenies)

The scientific arrangement and naming of organisms based on their evolutionary history and relationships.

Phylogenetic forensics

The use of phylogenetic analysis to trace the origins and transmission pathways of events, such as disease outbreaks like HIV.

Phylogenies as hypotheses

The understanding that phylogenetic trees are scientific hypotheses about evolutionary relationships that are subject to testing, revision, and refinement with new data.

Derived character

A trait that is present in one or more descendant species but was NOT present in the common ancestor of the group.

Shared derived characters

Evolutionary novelties that are unique to a particular clade and are inherited by all its members, indicating common ancestry within that group.

Unique derived characters

Derived traits that are found in only one specific species or group within a larger phylogeny.

Nested sets of shared derived characters

A hierarchical arrangement of evolutionary traits demonstrating relationships between different taxonomic groups, where smaller clades are contained within larger ones.

Clades

Groups of taxa that include a common ancestor and all of its descendants.

Synapomorphy

Another term for a shared derived character, used as evidence to define and unite clades.