Theory of Evolution
This past Friday the Linnaean Society had a meeting talking about a hypothesis on what they call evolution. They also spoke about natural variation, “Life evolves by means of changes in an organism's hereditary information, random change in the genetic variation of a population from generation to generation, the non-random and gradual process of natural variation.”(Darwin)
Evolution is the process by which modern organisms have descended from ancient organisms. More individuals are produced each generation that can survive. Individuals that are better suited to their environment survive and reproduce most successfully is called survival of the fittest. The one that is the fittest, survives, reproduces, and lives on.
Individuals compete among members of a species for food, living space, and other requirements of life. A key of factor in the struggle for existence was how well suited an organism is to its environment. An adaptation is any inherited characteristic that increases an organism’s chance of survival. Adaptations can also be physical characteristics.
In both artificial and natural selection, only the certain individuals of a population produce new individuals. Each living species has descended, with changes, from other species over time. It is referred to the principle called descent with modification. All living and extinct were derived from common ancestors.
Living things have been evolving on Earth for millions of years. A single ‘tree of life’ that links all living things on Earth. Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace were the main brains to these conclusions. Their findings could help lead us to a path of new ancestral findings and how we as humans evolved over time. Hopefully within a few years they will have new research to present in the meeting.