Natural Selection and Evolutionary Biology Lecture Notes

These flashcards cover vocabulary related to viral variants, Darwinian evolution, the principles of natural selection, and the mechanics of antibiotic resistance.

Variant

A different form of a virus that occurs when there is a mutation in the virus's genes.

Mutation

A change in genetic material that occurs when DNA or RNA is not copied correctly.

RNA

The genetic material utilized by the coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) to produce copies of itself during replication.

Vaccine

A tool designed to prepare the body to attack an infectious agent rapidly by recognizing the genes of the current dominant variant.

Charles Darwin

An English theologian and dedicated naturalist who traveled on the HMS Beagle and proposed the theory of natural selection.

HMS Beagle

The ship on which Darwin traveled around South America to make meticulous observations about living species.

Malthus

An English economist who influenced Darwin by proposing that populations outgrow their environments.

Uniformitarianism

The geological suggestion by Hutton and Lyell that the Earth's surface is a result of changes over long periods of time.

Lamarck

A scientist who suggested that traits an individual acquired during its lifetime could be passed on to its offspring.

Wallace

A contemporary of Darwin who came to the same conclusions about evolution but is often less recognized.

Natural Selection

The process where organisms best suited for their environment perpetuate their genes through reproduction; also known as survival of the fittest.

Artificial Selection

The process used by humans, such as farmers, to perpetuate certain varieties by choosing livestock and crops with beneficial traits.

Fitness

The ability of an organism to survive and reproduce in its specific environment.

Adaptation

Traits that make an organism well-suited or 'fit' for its environment.

Descent with Modification

The theory that as organisms have adapted over time, they have changed from their ancestors.

On the Origin of Species

The book published by Charles Darwin 23 years after his initial observations, detailing his theories of evolution.

Antibiotic

A type of medicine that targets bacterial cells by weakening the cell wall, disrupting genetic machinery, or inhibiting protein formation in ribosomes.

Lysis

The process of a cell bursting, which can occur when an antibiotic like amoxicillin weakens the bacterial cell wall.