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• Teosinte seeds
(kernels) are covered
by a fruitcase
•In corn, the fruitcase is
part of the corn cob,
leaving the corn
kernels accessible
Why did this happen?
Take a minute to brainstorm what could
have caused these changes, and what
could have made them so widespread
Why did this happen?
• First, genetic mutations occurred naturally in
teosinte
• Native Americans found those mutations were
helpful to them (IMPORTANT: why were
branching, ear structure, and seed structure
beneficial?).
• They saved seed from these better teosinte
plants, and planted more and more each year.
• Eventually these plants no longer looked like
teosinte, and became a new plant…maize.
Artificial Selection
• Human intervention in animal or plant
reproduction to ensure that certain desirable traits
are represented in successive generations.
http://www.answers.com/topic/artificialselection#ixzz2aLLKKeDP