Natural selection is the cornerstone of Darwin's theory of evolution; adaptations are the traits that allow organisms to survive the selection process. This set of resources includes books, articles, and Web links that explore various aspects of these pivotal interrelated concepts.
This unit provides three games for students to learn genetic variations and the selective pressure in three different populations (fish, bacteria, flowers). Students will need to select an individual and decide whether the individual has high or low fitness under certain environment. Then students will need to decide whether the change (like mutations of mating) can improve the fitness of that...
This unit aims to help students understand how How natural selection can lead microevolution and results in populations that are better adapted to their environment. Students will first play like a bird that eat moths. Two phenotypes of moths are presented, and it is likely that students will eat mostly visible moths and therefore create a selective pressure. Then, students are guided to...
This web unit introduces two kinds of speciation (allopatric and sympatric) through an interactive task: the speciation of a group of tropical angiosperms called Fuchsia. Before starting the task, students are advised to review the definition of allopatric and sympatric speciation by entering "click here".
In the Fuchsia task, the website presents observations and then ask students to...
Video showing actors playing Charles Darwin and Robert Fitzroy bartering for lizard skeletons in Ecuador. Provides a link to Darwin as a person with conflicting views, rather than just a name associated with natural selection. Commentary from scientists enhance his accomplishments.
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