Biology 6C : Lecture 9A - Darwinian View of Life

Scala naturae

Aristotle's "ladder of nature" concept where species are arranged in fixed hierarchical order of increasing complexity

Linnaean classification

Nested classification system by Carolus Linnaeus that groups similar species into increasingly inclusive categories

Lamarck's hypothesis of evolution

Theory that organisms evolve through use and disuse of body parts, with acquired characteristics passed to offspring

Descent with modification

Darwin's concept that all organisms descend from common ancestors with gradual accumulation of diverse adaptations

Adaptation

Inherited characteristics that enhance an organism's survival and reproduction in specific environments

Natural selection

Process where individuals with favorable inherited traits survive and reproduce at higher rates, causing evolutionary change

Artificial selection

Human-directed selective breeding of organisms to produce desired traits

Homology

Similar structures in different species inherited from a common ancestor

Analogy

Similar structures in unrelated species that evolved independently due to similar environmental pressures

Convergent evolution

Independent evolution of similar features in unrelated organisms facing similar environmental challenges

Biogeography

Study of geographic distribution of species, providing evidence that related species are found in nearby areas