Class Objectives for chapters 22, 23, 24, and 26 (up to the first exam)

Chapter 22 Objectives

After reading this chapter and attending lecture, you should be able to:

Describe the relationship of Linnaeus' classification system to Darwin's theory of evolution
Contrast catastrophism and uniformitarianism 
Describe Lamarck's model for evolving adaptations
Generally describe Darwin's findings from his voyage aboard the H.M.S. Beagle and how they influenced his thinking
Describe the relationship of Alfred Wallace and his ideas to Darwin
Explain what is meant by the "principle of common descent" and "descent with modification"
Explain what evidence convinced Darwin that species change over time
Describe how Darwin drew inferences from his observations leading him to propose the mechanism of natural selection for evolutionary change
Explain why the existence of variation is essential to Darwin's theory
Explain how the ideas of Thomas Malthus were incorporated into Darwinian theory
Distinguish between artificial and natural selection
Using at least one contemporary example, explain how natural selection produces evolutionary change
Describe the lines of evidence which Darwin used to argue for the principle of common descent
Describe how molecular biology can be used to study the evolutionary relationships among organisms

Chapter 23 Objectives

After reading this chapter and attending lecture, you should be able to:

Explain what is meant by the "modern synthesis" of evolutionary theory
Explain how micro-evolutionary change can affect a gene pool
State the Hardy-Weinberg theorem (HWT) both in words and algebraically
Use the HWT to calculate allele and genotype frequencies
Explain the biological meaning of a HW equilibrium
List the conditions which must be met by a population to remain at HW equilibrium
Explain how genetic drift, gene flow, mutation, non-random mating and natural selection can each cause micro-evolutionary change
Explain the relationship between population size and genetic drift
Distinguish between the founder effect and the bottleneck effect
Explain why mutation has little quantitative effect upon a large population
Describe, in very general terms, how inbreeding and assortative mating affect a population's allele and genotype frequencies
Explain why natural selection is the only evolutionary force which is adaptive
Describe the technique of electrophoresis and explain how it has been used to measure genetic variation
List several factors that can produce geographic variation within a species
Identify the source of genetic variation within a population
Describe what selection acts upon and what factors contribute to the overall fitness of a genotype
Give examples of how a phenotype might be influenced by the environment
Distinguish among stabilizing, directional and diversifying selection
Define sexual dimorphism and explain how it may influence evolutionary change within a species
Explain why natural selection cannot produce perfect organisms

Chapter 24 Objectives

After reading this chapter and attending lecture, you should be able to:

Define morphospecies and why this concept is important to biologists
Describe the biological species concept as developed by Ernst Mayr
Describe the limitations of the biological species concept
Explain how gene flow between closely related species is prevented in nature
Contrast pre- and post-zygotic isolating mechanisms
Identify at least four different categories of prezygotic isolating mechanisms and give an example of each
Generally explain why hybrids are sterile
Explain how hybrid breakdown maintains separate species even when gene flow allows the initial formation of hybrids
Distinguish between allopatric and sympatric speciation
Explain the allopatric speciation model and describe the roles of intraspecific variation and geographical isolation within this model
Describe the model of adaptive radiation and explain how it may produce many sympatric closely related species
Explain how changes in ploidy level can lead to speciation
Distinguish between autopolyploidy and allopolyploidy
Briefly compare the different models for the tempo of evolutionary change, gradualism and punctuated equilibrium

Chapter 26 Objectives

After reading this chapter and attending lecture, you should be able to:

Explain the importance of the fossil record to the study of evolution
Describe how fossils form
Distinguish between absolute and relative dating
Explain how isotopes can be used in absolute dating
Explain how preadaptation can lead to macroevolutionary change
Explain how modification of regulatory genes can result in macroevolutionary change (not required in spring 2009)
Explain how movement into new adaptive zones can lead to macroevolutionary change (not required in spring 2009)
Explain how continental drift has played a role in macroevolutionary change
Explain how patterns of extinction can affect the evolution of surviving forms
Distinguish between systematics and taxonomy (not required in spring 2009)
Describe the Linnaean system of binomial nomenclature
Distinguish between a taxon and a category
Distinguish between analogous and homologous traits and explain why this distinction is critical in evolutionary studies
Distinguish between a monophyletic and a polyphyletic group and explain what is meant by a "natural taxon" (not required in spring 2009)