Analogy & Homology

Broccoli and cauliflower possess the same homologous trait. They are both flower vegetables and share very similar structures. The broccoli and the cauliflower look very similar in texture and shape however, their florets are slightly different. They also differ in color.  Broccoli is green and cauliflower is white. The tips of the broccoli and the cauliflower are actually flowers. These are the homologous trait. Broccolis’ tips are green and cauliflower’s tips are white. They are both actually derived from a mustard plant and have gone through many generations of artificial selection. They no longer have the texture of the flower of the mustard plant or the scent.  Broccoli has a more spread out flower mass with space between each cluster of stalk. The cauliflower has more closely bunched flower mass that is closer to the stems. Both of these flower vegetables contain many vitamins and nutrients that are beneficial to human growth and health.

The sugar glider and the flying squirrel are analogous examples.  They look very similar. They both have big eyes, white bellies and a thin skin that stretches from their arms to their legs, almost like wings. The analogous trait they share is their gliding wings.  The wings help these animals glide from tree top to tree top and help them to stabilize themselves at great heights.  These animals are only distantly related, though. These mammals independently adapted these similar features for similar life styles. They both have big eyes as well, for foraging at night. Their common ancestor was a rat like mammal. This mammal did not possess either the wings or the big eyes. They did not need these traits to survive.

                                        

Protein Synthesis

Can you decipher the code to reveal my sentence?

ATTGGCCGTACAAATTGTCTTAAGGCAGTGCAAGCCCCATCGCCGATTG

Historical Influences on Darwin

     Jean-Baptiste Lamarck had the most influence over Darwin's development the Natural Selection Theory, as he was the first person to attempt to explain the evolutionary process. He believed that species change was influenced by environmental change and that is precisely what the building blocks to Darwin's take on evolutionary theory are. According to the Berkley website, Charles Darwin wrote of Lamarck, "Lamarck was the first man whose conclusions on the subject excited much attention. This justly celebrated naturalist first published his views in 1801. . . he first did the eminent service of arousing attention to the probability of all changes in the organic, as well as in the inorganic world, being the result of law, and not of miraculous interposition.

     

     Jean-Baptiste Lamarck's idea that if the external environment changed then an animal's behavior and physical patterns would also change to accommodate the new environment contributed to the scientific community. This was the connection between the species change and environment change and the basic idea of evolution. It didn't turn out to be exactly correct, but his theory, known as the "inheritance of acquired characteristics," explains that there would be an increase or decrease in the use of specific body parts of an animal based on the biological and environmental need. If the animal didn't use a certain body part, it would disappear over time and the parts that continued to be used would change over time to suit the animals basic needs in its environment. Although Lamarck's theory turned out to be false, he essentially got the ball rolling for future thought and research on the matter. Lamarck also contributed to the scientific community the term "biology." 

    

      "In order for traits to evolve and change, they MUST be heritable," is most directly affected by Lamarck's work. His theory suggested that the trait changes were passed on to the next offspring. We now know this to be untrue because according to the text book, "only the traits that are influenced by genetic information contained within sex cells can be inherited." Therefore, they must be heritable. The "fluid or blending inheritance" theory from Lamarck became a problem for Darwin though, because he did not know how the traits were passed on.

     

      I think Darwin was able to expand into his theories and ideas because of Lamarck's idea that species and environment were linked in regards to evolution. It is possible that Darwin would have come up with his take without this influence, but I really think that Larmarck's suggestions fostered the growth of Darwin's theory.

    

      Darwin held back on publicizing any of his ideas or his book because of the attitudes of Church during this time. The Church was opposed to anything that might contradict the creation of any species by anything other than God. Darwin's ideas suggested that humans were another species,  just like animals and the Church ideas at the time were that humans were unique and unrelated to animals. Since Darwin came from a well known family and his family name was well regarded, he was afraid to share his discoveries publicly.

http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/history/lamarck.html