Recent data suggests that the Theory of Evolution is still poorly understood in the Western world - some surveys suggest that less than half of all adults in the U.S believe it to be true, despite the fact

that it is the unifying theory of biology.

The theory of evolution is that every organism on Earth is a descendant of those that lived millions of years ago. Species change and evolve, and two different species may be related, through many, many generations. When these ideas were first presented they were very controversial. This article will give you an easy to understand explanation of the theory of evolution and will dispel some common myths surrounding the theory. We will explain 5 key elements and provide a case study of human evolution.

Biological Evolution is a key part of the evolution but is a commonly misunderstood part of the theory. It is defined as the process through which the characteristics of organisms change over successive generations, by means of genetic variation and natural selection. Biological evolution is a genetic change in a population that is inherited over several generations. The idea of biological evolution is that all life on Earth shares a common ancestor, just as you and your cousins share a grandmother. Over time, the first ancestor of life on Earth gave rise to the diversity that we see documented in the fossil record and around us today.

What is the fossil record? Well, the fossil record simply put is the place of fossils throughout the surface layers of the Earth. Older fossils are buried deeper than younger ones. Scientists use the placement of fossils as a guide for determining when life forms existed, and how they evolved. It also gives us an insight into how old the Earth is. Fossil records show what were the first living animals on the Earth and how they lived. The fossil record can also help with the study of palaeontology by studying pockets of air within the ground. We can tell the evolution of a particular species by the fossil

has changed over time. For example we have reason to believe that whales may have been land animals long ago. It has been found in whale fossils that the have a set of front legs with all the developed bones for hands. This is just one of many instances of incredible genetic change.

Scientists use a few different dating methods to tell what time period the organism was killed and became a fossil. This method indicates that one layer of rock is younger or older than another. It does not give the exact age of a fossil or rock in years, rather giving a time period. Determining the age of a rock involves finding minerals that contain naturally occurring radioactive elements and measuring the amount of change in those elements over time. There are two common ways scientists use to date rock, like radiometric dating and dendrochronology. Radiometric dating discovers radioactive impurities and individually finds out when they formed. Dendrochronology, also known as tree-ring dating, is the method of dating based on the analysis of patterns of tree rings, also known as growth rings. It discovers the rate of the growth as the tree ages and it also tells how old the tree is by its growth rate and amount of rings.

Natural selection is the reason that some organisms are not extinct and the reason that diseases and viruses adapt to your body when it tries to fight it. It is outlined, as the process in nature where only the organisms best adapted to their environment tends to survive and transmit their genetic characteristics, therefore

completely separated by a physical barrier, such as aseparated populations adapt to their own isolated environmentsthe other species that they were previously a part of.

Natural selection changes the environment and organisms that live in it and the Peppered Moth is perfect example of how a change in the environment can affect a certain population of a species.

Speciation is the evolutionary process by which reproductive isolated biological populations evolve to become distinct species. This commonly means that species that have had little or no diversity among its population begins to split into two or more genetically independent lineages. Species are isolated in different ways. The most common way for species to become isolated is geographical. This occurs when parts of a population are

The theory of evolution is that every organism on Earth is a descendant of those that lived millions of years ago. Species change and evolve, and two different species may be related, through many, many generations. When these ideas were first presented they were very controversial. This article will give you an easy to understand explanation of the theory of evolution and will dispel some common myths surrounding the theory. We will explain 5 key elements and provide a case study of human evolution.

Biological Evolution is a key part of the evolution but is a commonly misunderstood part of the theory. It is defined as the process through which the characteristics of organisms change over successive generations, by means of genetic variation and natural selection. Biological evolution is a genetic change in a population that is inherited over several generations. The idea of biological evolution is that all life on Earth shares a common ancestor, just as you and your cousins share a grandmother. Over time, the first ancestor of life on Earth gave rise to the diversity that we see documented in the fossil record and around us today.

What is the fossil record? Well, the fossil record simply put is the place of fossils throughout the surface layers of the Earth. Older fossils are buried deeper than younger ones. Scientists use the placement of fossils as a guide for determining when life forms existed, and how they evolved. It also gives us an insight into how old the Earth is. Fossil records show what were the first living animals on the Earth and how they lived. The fossil record can also help with the study of palaeontology by studying pockets of air within the ground. We can tell the evolution of a particular species by the fossil

has changed over time. For example we have reason to believe that whales may have been land animals long ago. It has been found in whale fossils that the have a set of front legs with all the developed bones for hands. This is just one of many instances of incredible genetic change.

Scientists use a few different dating methods to tell what time period the organism was killed and became a fossil. This method indicates that one layer of rock is younger or older than another. It does not give the exact age of a fossil or rock in years, rather giving a time period. Determining the age of a rock involves finding minerals that contain naturally occurring radioactive elements and measuring the amount of change in those elements over time. There are two common ways scientists use to date rock, like radiometric dating and dendrochronology. Radiometric dating discovers radioactive impurities and individually finds out when they formed. Dendrochronology, also known as tree-ring dating, is the method of dating based on the analysis of patterns of tree rings, also known as growth rings. It discovers the rate of the growth as the tree ages and it also tells how old the tree is by its growth rate and amount of rings.

Natural selection is the reason that some organisms are not extinct and the reason that diseases and viruses adapt to your body when it tries to fight it. It is outlined, as the process in nature where only the organisms best adapted to their environment tends to survive and transmit their genetic characteristics, therefore

completely separated by a physical barrier, such as aseparated populations adapt to their own isolated environmentsthe other species that they were previously a part of.