UNIT 3: LIVING THINGS & THEIR ENVIRONMENT How to determine the age of fossils:

Module 3: Biodiversity & Evolution

1. RELATIVE DATING – the age of rock is compared to the rock layers.
“The lowest layer is the oldest, and the highest layer
EVOLUTION – the change in inherited traits over successive generations
is the youngest”.
in population of organisms.
-this allowed organisms to adapt & survive in their
2. RADIOACTIVE/ RADIOMETRIC DATING – method used to determine the
Environment.
age of rocks using the decay of radioactive isotopes of Carbon-14 which is
present in rocks when the organism died.
EVIDENCES OF EVOLUTION
Carbon Dating – used to tell the age of organic materials. Art collectors use
A. Fossil Records
carbon dating to determine if a piece of artwork is genuine or not.
B. Comparative Anatomy
C. Embryonic Development One way scientists determine the age of fossils is by
D. Genetic Information checking the amount of radioactive carbon-14 in the fossil.
Carbon-14 breaks down or decays to form Nitrogen-14 and the
A. Fossil Records rate of this decay is constant.
Fossils – traces of organisms that lived in the past and were For example, half of the remaining carbon-14 breaks
preserved by natural process or catastrophic events. down every 5,730 years. When this fossil breaks again its age is
- fossils document the existence of now extinct past species that 11,460 years.
are related to present day species.
- found in sedimentary rocks
Paleontologist – a person who studies fossils.

Types of Fossil Records

1. IMPRINTS – are shallow external molds left by animal

or plant tissues with little or no organic material present.

2. COMPRESSIONS – are animal or plant tissues preserved

in sedimentary rocks & is formed with more organic material.

Guide Questions:
1. What is the oldest fossil?
2. How many years do half of the carbon-14 breaks down or decay?
GEOLOGIC TIME SCALE – shows the major events in the Earth’s history.
- shows the appearance of various kinds of organisms in B. Comparative Anatomy- study of the similarities & differences in the
a particular period of time on Earth. structures of different species.

Types of Structures
1. HOMOLOGOUS
– body parts of organisms that may perform different functions, but are
of the same origin.

- similar to divergent evolution (refers to when two species diverge from

a common ancestor and develop different characteristics.)

Ex: dog species descend from wolf Zebra, donkey & horse are related

2. ANALOGOUS – body parts of organisms that may perform the same

function but are of different origin.

Ex: Bird, bat & insect belong to the

same Kingdom but different classes.
They have wings for flying.

- similar structures in organisms without shared ancestry.

This structures evolved independently to serve the same purpose.
 - related to convergent evolution (when two species with
different ancestral origins develop similar characteristics)
3. VESTIGIAL
C. Embryonic Development – the portion of the life cycle that begins just
after fertilization.
- many organisms have similar embryo
supporting the idea of common ancestors.
D. Genetic Information – small mutations or changes in DNA eventually
lead to the evolution of new species.
- the greater the similarity in amino acid
sequence, the closer the relationship of the organisms.
Ex: human vs. chimpanzee
46 48 chromosomes
98.8% similar DNA
THEORIES OF EVOLUTION
JEAN BAPTISTE de LAMARCK was the first evolutionist to believe that
organisms change over time. Using fossil records as a guide, he was able to
develop three (3) theories;
a) Theory of Need – states that organisms change in response to their
environment. Their ability to survive helped them develop characteristics
necessary for them to adapt in a given environment.
b) Theory of Use & Disuse – organs not in use will disappear while
organs in use will develop.
c) Theory of Acquired Characteristics – acquired characteristics are
inherited by off springs and propagated by the next generation.
CHARLES DARWIN – suggested the Theory of Natural Selection, after his
voyage to the Galapagos Island in HMS Beagle. He was fascinated by the
diversity of organisms he found along the journey.
He observed that finch species have different
beak structures for different food types.
The abundance of certain finch species in
an island somehow related to the type
of available food for these birds.
Organisms struggle for existence in order to survive; they compete for food
and space. Organisms with favorable and advantageous characteristics survive and
reproduce.
Fitness refers to the ability of an organism to survive and produce offsprings.
Different individuals in a population posses a different characteristics and
abilities. This is called Variation.
Variation among individuals in the populationwould likely bring greater
chance of survival. An organism that is adapted and has structures fitted to survive in
a given environment would likely produce offsprings.