Natural Selection and Fundamentals of Life

These flashcards cover key concepts from the lecture on natural selection and the fundamentals of life, including the simulation used for demonstration and underlying principles.

Natural Selection

A process by which organisms that are better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring.

Simulation

An imitation of a situation or process, used in this lecture to demonstrate natural selection.

Population

A group of organisms of the same species living in a particular area; in the simulation, it started with 80 organisms.

Predation

The preying of one animal on others, which affects the survival of different organism colors in the simulation.

Survivors

The organisms that remain after a predation round; in the first round, there were 20 blue, 20 red, 28 green, and 12 yellow.

Dominance

When one trait, such as blue color in the simulation, eventually becomes the most prevalent in a population.

Heredity

The genetic transmission of characteristics from parents to offspring, essential for the process of natural selection.

Cell

The fundamental unit of life on Earth, as highlighted in the lecture.

Carbon

A chemical element that can form four bonds, crucial for creating stable and diverse molecules for life.

Traits

Characteristics that can provide organisms with a survival advantage, leading to their prevalence in a population.

Natural Selection

A process by which organisms that are better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring.

Simulation

An imitation of a situation or process, used in this lecture to demonstrate natural selection.

Population

A group of organisms of the same species living in a particular area; in the simulation, it started with 80 organisms.

Predation

The preying of one animal on others, which affects the survival of different organism colors in the simulation.

Survivors

The organisms that remain after a predation round; in the first round, there were 20 blue, 20 red, 28 green, and 12 yellow.

Dominance

When one trait, such as blue color in the simulation, eventually becomes the most prevalent in a population.

Heredity

The genetic transmission of characteristics from parents to offspring, essential for the process of natural selection.

Cell

The fundamental unit of life on Earth, as highlighted in the lecture.

Carbon

A chemical element that can form four bonds, crucial for creating stable and diverse molecules for life.

Traits

Characteristics that can provide organisms with a survival advantage, leading to their prevalence in a population.

Variation

Differences in the characteristics of individuals within a population, which are crucial for natural selection to occur.

Adaptation

A trait that has evolved through natural selection and increases an organism's ability to survive and reproduce in its environment.

Gene Pool

The total sum of all genes, including all the different alleles for each gene, that are present in a population at any given time.

Selective Pressure

Any environmental factor or influence that affects reproductive success in a population, such as predation, competition, or climate.

Mutation

A change in the DNA sequence of an organism, which can introduce new variations and is the ultimate source of new alleles and traits.

Natural Selection

A process by which organisms that are better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring.

Simulation

An imitation of a situation or process, used in this lecture to demonstrate natural selection.

Population

A group of organisms of the same species living in a particular area; in the simulation, it started with 80 organisms.

Predation

The preying of one animal on others, which affects the survival of different organism colors in the simulation.

Survivors

The organisms that remain after a predation round; in the first round, there were 20 blue, 20 red, 28 green, and 12 yellow.

Dominance

When one trait, such as blue color in the simulation, eventually becomes the most prevalent in a population.

Heredity

The genetic transmission of characteristics from parents to offspring, essential for the process of natural selection.

Cell

The fundamental unit of life on Earth, as highlighted in the lecture.

Carbon

A chemical element that can form four bonds, crucial for creating stable and diverse molecules for life.

Traits

Characteristics that can provide organisms with a survival advantage, leading to their prevalence in a population.

Variation

Differences in the characteristics of individuals within a population, which are crucial for natural selection to occur.

Adaptation

A trait that has evolved through natural selection and increases an organism's ability to survive and reproduce in its environment.

Gene Pool

The total sum of all genes, including all the different alleles for each gene, that are present in a population at any given time.

Selective Pressure

Any environmental factor or influence that affects reproductive success in a population, such as predation, competition, or climate.

Mutation

A change in the DNA sequence of an organism, which can introduce new variations and is the ultimate source of new alleles and traits.

Genetic Drift

Random fluctuations in the numbers of allele frequencies in a population, particularly in small populations, due to chance events.

Gene Flow

The transfer of genetic material from one population to another, often by migration, which can introduce new alleles or change existing allele frequencies.

Fitness

An organism's ability to survive and reproduce in its environment, contributing its genes to the next generation.

Natural Selection

A process by which organisms that are better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring.

Simulation

An imitation of a situation or process, used in this lecture to demonstrate natural selection.

Population

A group of organisms of the same species living in a particular area; in the simulation, it started with 80 organisms.

Predation

The preying of one animal on others, which affects the survival of different organism colors in the simulation.

Survivors

The organisms that remain after a predation round; in the first round, there were 20 blue, 20 red, 28 green, and 12 yellow.

Dominance

When one trait, such as blue color in the simulation, eventually becomes the most prevalent in a population.

Heredity

The genetic transmission of characteristics from parents to offspring, essential for the process of natural selection.

Cell

The fundamental unit of life on Earth, as highlighted in the lecture.

Carbon

A chemical element that can form four bonds, crucial for creating stable and diverse molecules for life.

Traits

Characteristics that can provide organisms with a survival advantage, leading to their prevalence in a population.

Variation

Differences in the characteristics of individuals within a population, which are crucial for natural selection to occur.

Adaptation

A trait that has evolved through natural selection and increases an organism's ability to survive and reproduce in its environment.

Gene Pool

The total sum of all genes, including all the different alleles for each gene, that are present in a population at any given time.

Selective Pressure

Any environmental factor or influence that affects reproductive success in a population, such as predation, competition, or climate.

Mutation

A change in the DNA sequence of an organism, which can introduce new variations and is the ultimate source of new alleles and traits.

Genetic Drift

Random fluctuations in the numbers of allele frequencies in a population, particularly in small populations, due to chance events.

Gene Flow

The transfer of genetic material from one population to another, often by migration, which can introduce new alleles or change existing allele frequencies.

Fitness

An organism's ability to survive and reproduce in its environment, contributing its genes to the next generation.

Evolution

The process by which different kinds of living organisms are thought to have developed and diversified from earlier forms during the history of the Earth, driven by mechanisms like natural selection.

Allele

A variant form of a gene, which can arise by mutation and are found at the same place on a chromosome.

Genotype

The genetic makeup of an organism; the inherited genetic code it carries.

Phenotype

The observable physical or biochemical characteristics of an organism, as determined by both genetic makeup and environmental influences.

Speciation

The formation of new and distinct species in the course of evolution.