VARIATION, SELECTION & TIME
In our ever-changing world, a naturally occurring genetic difference in an individual can become an advantage or a fatal flaw in the struggle for survival. Those who live to reproduce pass their favorable genes to future generations. Certain characteristics become more or less prevalent over time as the group as a whole evolves.
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RECIPE FOR EVOLUTION: VARIATION, SELECTION & TIMEThe ingredients that drive evolution.
CHANGE OVER TIME
Through the process of natural selection, ancestral life forms give rise to new species.
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GEOLOGIC TIMEScroll through the span of geologic time from the Earth's origin to the present day.
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TRACKING TRAITS THROUGH TIMESee when and where new characteristics evolved in the animal family tree.
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EYE EVOLUTIONNatural selection has generated a diverse collection of eyes, from simple to complex, that help animals sense their surroundings.
EVOLUTION STARTS WITH DNA
Natural selection acts on variations in genes.
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OLD GENES, NEW TRICKSChanges to regulatory switches give old genes new functions.
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FOUNDATIONAL TOOLKIT GENESLearn about some basic genetic components for building an eye.
EVOLUTION IN ACTION
Leave the fossil record behind! Selection is happening now.
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STICKLEBACK EVOLUTIONWatch the features in a population of fish evolve in response to pressure from a predator.
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ARTIFICIAL VS. NATURAL SELECTIONHumans have been selecting for desirable traits in organisms throughout history.
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THE EVOLUTION OF CORNSmall changes in genes of a wild grass have yielded one of today's most vital crops.