Chapter 7
The Evolution of Living
Things
A hereditary characteristic that helps
an organism survive and reproduce
in its environment
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Adaptation
A hereditary characteristic that helps an
organism survive and reproduce in its
environment
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The most specific of the seven levels of
classification; characterized by a group of
organisms that can mate with one another
to produce fertile offspring
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Species
The most specific of the seven levels of
classification; characterized by a group
of organisms that can mate with one
another to produce fertile offspring
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The process by which populations
accumulate inherited changes over
time
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Evolution
The process by which populations
accumulate inherited changes over time
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The solidified remains or imprints of
once-living organisms
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Fossil
The solidified remains or imprints of
once-living organisms
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A historical sequence of life indicated
by fossils found in layers of the
Earth’s crust
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Fossil record
A historical sequence of life indicated by
fossils found in layers of the Earth’s
crust
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The remnant of a once-useful
anatomical structure
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Vestigial Structure
The remnant of a once-useful anatomical
structure
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Distinguishing qualities that can be
passed from one generation to another
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Trait
Distinguishing qualities that can be passed
from one generation to another
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Breeding of organisms that have a
certain desired trait
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Selective breeding
Breeding of organisms that have a certain
desired trait
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The process by which organisms with
favorable traits survive and reproduce at
a higher rate than organisms without the
favorable trait
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Natural Selection
The process by which organisms with
favorable traits survive and reproduce
at a higher rate than organisms without
the favorable trait
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A change in the order of the bases in an
organism’s DNA; deletion, insertion or
substitution
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Mutation
A change in the order of the bases in an
organism’s DNA; deletion, insertion or
substitution
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The period between the birth of
one generation and the birth of
the next generation
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Generation Time
The period between the birth of one
generation and the birth of the
next generation
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The process by which two populations of
the same species become so different that
they can no longer interbreed
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Speciation
The process by which two populations of
the same species become so different
that they can no longer interbreed
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