Living Environment Translated English 2014 | Page 36

4. Charles Darwin- a scientist who proposed the Theory of Natural
Selection which includes the concepts of overproduction,
variation, and competition
5. Natural Selection – a process by which organisms with traits best
suited to their environment are more likely to survive and
reproduce
6. Variation- an inherited trait that makes an individual different
from other members of the same species and results from a
mutation in the organism’s genes.
7. Adaptation- any variation that makes an organism better suited
to its environment
8. Gradualism- a model describing evolution as a slow process by
which one species changes into a new species through a
continuing series of mutations and variations over time.
9. Punctuated equilibrium- a model describing the rapid evolution
that occurs when mutation of a few genes results in a species
suddenly changing into a new species
10.Fossil- a trace of an organism from the past
11. Overproduction- producing more offspring than can reasonably
survive
12. Geographic isolation- separation between populations due to
physical barriers
13. Sedimentary rock- a type of rock that is most likely to contain
fossils and is formed when layers of sand, silt, clay, or mud are
cemented and compacted together
14. Radioactive dating- a process that measures radioactive
elements in fossils to determine their approximate age
15. Embryology – the study of the stage of development after the
fertilized egg until the fetus is born.
16. Homologous structures- a body part that is similar in structure
on different organisms but performs different functions
17.Analogous structure- a body part that is similar in function as a
body part of another organism but is structurally different