Name ______________________________ Period ______
Environmental Science
Date _________ /Due Date: __________
Manuel
Reading Comprehension Assignment #4 – What is The Evidence for Evolution
This reading assignment is worth one test grade. This week, however, instead of a reading you will be
watching a video.
Watch the video found at any one of the links below. You will probably have to watch the video several
times or stop and start to get complete answers. Answer all of the questions that follow in complete
sentences for full credit. Each question is worth 3 points.
Video Links
http://statedclearly.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIEoO5KdPvg
http://omgsciencerocks.weebly.com/environmental-science.html
http://observationdeck.io9.com/what-is-the-evidence-for-evolution1645290114?utm_campaign=socialflow_io9_facebook&utm_source=io9_facebook&utm_medium=socialflow
Glossary of terms – as you watch the video, write down the definition for each of the following terms based on
the video.
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Independent Lines of evidence –
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Cetaceans –
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Comparative anatomy –
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Embryology –
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Fossil Record (from your earlier reading) -
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DNA –
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Analysis questions – Answer the following questions in complete sentences for full credit.
1. What are the two very bold claims” the Theory of Evolution makes about life on Earth?
2. What caused the crickets on the branch to be different colors?
3. What are the 8 “lines of evidence” used to categorize the facts of biological evolution?
4. How many species are known to exist on the planet today?
5. What examples of anatomy does the video give to support the Theory of Biological Evolution?
6. What is it about the anatomy of the whale’s forelimbs that support the Theory of Biological Evolution?
Embryology 3:52
7. What are the similarities between dolphin embryos and human embryos mentioned in the video?
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8. What are the differences?
9. What is it about a dolphin’s nostrils that support the Theory of Biological Evolution?
10. What does this evidence plus the evidence from comparative anatomy tell us about the ancestors of whales
and dolphins?
Fossil Record 4:57
11. What 2 extinct sea creatures does the video show as an example of evidence from the fossil record? Roughly
when did they live?
12. One the image of the two extinct creatures, the video uses three different colors for the animals. What is the
significance of each color?
13. What is it about the skulls of these creatures that provide evidence for the Theory of Biological Evolution?
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14. What other lines of independent evidence support the fossil record evidence?
15. What may have been the use for the extinct creatures’ tiny back legs?
16. Why does Maiacetus appear to have been able to walk on land?
17. However, what fossil evidence supports the categorizing of these creatures as whales?
18. “Maiacetus appears to be a _________________________ __________________.”
19. How many other fossilized sea creatures does the video show between Maiacetus and the Dolphin?
20. What are their names?
DNA Comparisons 7:14
21. How do researchers use DNA when studying evolution?
22. Researchers have found that the closest genetic match to whales is the ___________________________.
23. Does this mean that whales evolved from this closest genetic match? What does it mean?
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24. What differences between whales and hippos made this genetic match a surprise to researchers?
25. What “strange similarities” provide evidence that the whale and the hippo share a common ancestor? List all
that the video name.
26. Besides whales, chickens also provide evidence for the Theory of Biological Evolution? What is the
evidence, and what line(s) of evidence does it fall under?
27. What is the name of the ancestor of the chicken shown in the video?
28. What is it about bat wings that also provide evidence? What line of evidence would this be?
29. “_________________________ evolved from _____________________________________ creatures,
those….evolved from ___________________________________________ creatures, those’’’’evolved
from ________________________________ creatures, and _____________ if you go back far enough,
share a common ancestor with _____________________________________.”
Post-Video Analysis Questions
30. What class of model is the theory of evolution?
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31. The video mentions one of the claims made by the Theory of Biological evolution is that evolution is
powered by natural processes. You already know what two of those processes are. What are they?
32. What evidence that was presented in this video seems to you to be the weakest? Explain why that is.
33. What evidence seems to be the strongest? Explain why that is.
Several lines of independent evidence were not covered in this video. Give your best educated guess as to what
each of these independent lines of evidence might be. In other words, what do these terms mean?
34. Species Distribution ___________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
35. Evolution Observed ___________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
36. Predictive Power of Evolution ___________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
37. Nested Hierarchies of Traits _____________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
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