BIO112 Spring 2024 Exam 1 Terms
radiometric dating
general approach used to determine the age of specimens using the rate of decay of radioactive isotopes
radiocarbon dating
a chemical analysis used to determine the age of organic materials based on their content of the radioisotope carbon-14...
BIO112 Spring 2024 Exam 1 Terms
radiometric dating
general approach used to determine the age of specimens using the rate of decay of
radioactive isotopes
radiocarbon dating
a chemical analysis used to determine the age of organic materials based on their
content of the radioisotope carbon-14
potassium-40 dating
radiometric dating method often used in the assessment of volcanic intrusions in
sedimentary layers. It is based on measurement of the product of the radioactive decay
of an isotope of potassium (K) into argon (Ar).
half-life
length of time required for half of the radioactive atoms in a sample to decay
punctuated equilibrium
Pattern of evolution in which long stable periods are interrupted by brief periods of more
rapid change
Cambrian explosion
A burst of evolutionary origins when most of the major body plans of animals appeared
in a relatively brief time in geologic history; recorded in the fossil record about 545 to
525 million years ago.
macroevolution
Evolutionary change that produces new species
microevolution
Evolutionary change/adaptation below the species level; change in the allele
frequencies in a population over generations.
Linnaeus
Father of taxonomy
Lamarck
Proposed theory that organisms pass on traits they acquire in their lifetime.
Cuvier
catastrophism: believed that the extinction of species was caused by catastrophic
events such as floods
Lyell and Hutton
scientists who said the world was old and slowly, but constantly changing
Malthus
an English economist and demographer; suggested populations have a potential for
increase that exceeds the actual rate of increase, and the resources for the support of
increase are limited
descent with modification
process by which descendants of ancestral organisms adapt to different/changing
habitats and accumulate structural and functional adaptations
selective breeding
The process of humans intentionally selecting a few organisms with desired traits to
serve as parents of the next generation, over time producing organisms with altered
characteristics
, species
a group of related organisms sharing a distinctive form. If sexually reproducing,
individuals can interbreed to produce viable, fertile offspring.
vestigial structures
remnant of a structure that may have had an important function in a species' ancestors,
but is suggested to have no clear function in the modern species.
homology
Similarity in structural, embryological or DNA or RNA sequence characteristics
attributed to shared ancestry.
anatomical homology
similar body structures among different species attributed to a common ancestor with
that feature
developmental homology
similarities in the development of embryos between different species that share a
common ancestor
genetic homology
Similarities in DNA sequences or amino acid sequences that are due to inheritance from
a common ancestor.
analogy
similar structures that are proposed to have arisen due to similar selective pressures
rather than inheritance from a common ancestor with that structure
morphological species concept
characterizes a species by body shape and other structural features
biological species concept
Definition of a species as a group of populations whose members have the potential to
interbreed in nature and produce viable, fertile offspring, but do not produce viable,
fertile offspring with members of other such groups.
ecological species concept
A definition of species in terms of ecological niche, the sum of how members of the
species interact with the nonliving and living parts of their environment.
evolutionary species concept
Defines species according to evolutionary history and common ancestors, distinctive
lineages in phylogenetic trees
reproductive isolation
Separation of species or populations so that they cannot interbreed and produce fertile
offspring
prezygotic reproductive barriers
factors that prevent mating or fertilization between species
postzygotic reproductive barriers
factors that prevent the hybrid zygote from developing into a viable, fertile adult
radiometric dating
general approach used to determine the age of specimens using the rate of decay of
radioactive isotopes
radiocarbon dating
a chemical analysis used to determine the age of organic materials based on their
content of the radioisotope carbon-14
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