Evolution

Microevolution

change in allele distribution over time in a population

Mutation

A random change in the genetic composition of an organism due to changes in the DNA base sequence.

Gene flow

The movement of alleles into, or out of, a population due to immigration or emigration.

Genetic drift

Change in the composition of a gene pool resulting from chance or random events.

Natural selection

The change in the gene pool composition due to differential survival and reproduction based on advantageous traits.

Hardy-Weinberg Principle

A principle stating that allele and genotype frequencies in a population remain constant if certain conditions are met.

Genotype

The genetic constitution of an individual, describing which alleles it has.

Phenotype

The observable traits expressed by an individual.

Gene pool

The total collection of genes and their alleles in a population.

Genetic variation

The differences in gene composition within a population.

Founder effect

A form of genetic drift where a small number of individuals start a new population, leading to reduced genetic variation.

Bottleneck effect

A form of genetic drift where a random disaster significantly reduces population size and gene diversity.

Quantitative Data

Information expressed as numbers, counts, or measurements.

Qualitative Data

Information expressed through descriptions and subjective analysis.

Biological replicates

Number of individuals measured to account for natural biological variation.

Technical replicates

Repeated measurements on a single biological sample to confirm technique reliability.

Pseudoreplication

A statistical error that occurs when related data points are treated as independent.

Central tendency

Measures that represent the center of a data set, including mean, median, and mode.

Dispersion

Measures that describe the spread of data, including range, variance, and standard deviation.

Inferential Statistics

Statistics that use probability to draw conclusions about a population based on a sample.

Artificial selection

The process by which humans choose which traits are advantageous for reproduction.

Patterns of Natural Selection

Types of natural selection including directional, disruptive, stabilizing, and sexual selection.