Kenny Brawner

Period 1
POW: Evolution

A) Darwins theory of evolution by natural selection explains how we descended

into a divergent evolutionary pattern from common ancestors.
Overproduction is the overproducing of offspring to ensure survival of some,
which would be the fit. There is a constant struggle for food and resources,
and those that win live. Sometimes, these offspring are selected for an
adaptation that increases its chances of survival, whether it is for protection
or reproduction. This is gradually selected for in a population over time which
causes speciation, a development in a completely different species. This
occurring over hundreds of millions of years causes a great diversity in
organisms.
B) 1. Convergent evolution is the meeting in the middle, so to speak, of two
unrelated organisms. If they live in the same biome or environment, they
may adapt similar structures because of similar resources. These are also
what you would call analogous structures, or things that have different
structural components but share the same functions.
2. Insecticide resistance is obviously an advantageous trait to have for the
insects. If 1 percent has this resistance and the rest of the population doesnt,
the other insects being killed will slowly select for the resistance trait in the
new population.
3. Speciation occurs when barriers are put up, such as reproductive or
geographical. Either way, a population cant give its traits into the gene pool
of the main population. This causes diversity in the two populations and they
cant reproduce viable offspring even if they were in the same area. This is
speciation.
4. This is when heterozygotes have a distinct advantage over homozygous
dominant or recessive. For example, the homozygous for sickle cell creates a
terrible disorder and causes death. The homozygous for normal hemoglobin
gives normal blood, but the malaria parasite can kill easy. With the
heterozygotes, some cells are sickle shaped and some are normal. The
malaria parasite actively uses oxygen in the infected cells, which then sickle
and die. The parasite dies, too. Protection is offered against malaria and there
is not a serious case of sickle cell anemia.