UNIT 6 SEMINAR:
NATURAL SELECTION
Molika Chea, MS, CHES
Kaplan University
SC300
UNIT OBJECTIVES
Explain how human activity has forced other
creatures to adapt .
 Interpret how pressures might affect natural
selection in a system.
 Discuss how heredity of traits affects adaptation.
 Assess the human characteristics of good
scientists.

SC300-1: Explain basic scientific principles and
their limitations
 SC300-3: Evaluate how technology has driven
scientific progress throughout history

UNIT 6 ASSIGNMENTS

Reading: Chapter 19 and 25
Evolution Videos

Discussion: Endangered Species & Plants

Seminar: Natural Selection

Project: Impacts of a Borderless Society
Source: Microsoft PowerPoint Clip Art
ADAPTATION

As living things on the planet have changed over millions of years, they
have adapted to their specific environments.

Most features of any living thing have evolved over time to help ensure
survival.
 Cactus plants have evolved their thick, water-trapping cell
structure to help them survive months in the desert without rain.
 Similarly, different species of birds have evolved different beak
shapes that are well-suited to the particular kind of food they eat.

Slow process (thousands of years) to acquire a new adaptive
characteristic. As a result, they become more successful at:
Surviving
Natural Selection
Finding mates
Source:
SC300 Unit 6 Seminar Page (nd). Accessed on March 12, 2012 from
http://kucourses.com/re/DotNextLaunch.asp?courseid=6434487&userid=6326991&sessionid=b2ccf64ee1&tabid=lt7XhqcqZJ/IKnJU5EuJtHOYD/lTgkvUSJ3aG1mIsHuz4Dz
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SEMINAR DISCUSSION

Discuss the weather in your area without using the
letter “e” for 5 minutes.
SEMINAR DISCUSSION

In your new, ‘e’-free environment, what
adaptations to language did you and your
classmates make?
SEMINAR DISCUSSION

What things were more difficult to talk about, and
why?
SEMINAR DISCUSSION

If you were to live in a ‘u’-free environment, what
other letters might struggle and die out?
SEMINAR DISCUSSION

Think about this experiment as a way to show how
changes in environment force creatures (like you) to
adapt and change. Now, think about squirrels.

What might happen to them if all the oak trees (and
therefore acorns) died out?

What adaptations might they have to make to adjust to
the acorn-free world?

How might these changes affect their body structures?

After 50,000 years of living in an acorn-free world, how
might squirrels look? Why does this kind of evolutionary
change take so long?
UNIT 7 PREVIEW

Reading: Chapter 12 (p. 255-259) and 24

Discussion: “Happy Accidents” in Science

Seminar: Science and Ethics
Cloning

Final Project: Science and Everyday Life

Due at the end of Unit 9
UNIT 9 PROJECT: PART I – THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD

Scenario 1: You arrive home late at night. You walk
up to the front door, unlock it, and reach in to
turn on the light switch located just inside the
front door. The light does not come on! Now what?

Scenario 2: Develop your own detailed
problem/observation and apply the scientific
method to solve.
UNIT 9 PROJECT: PART II –
WHY I CAN OR CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT SCIENCE
Describe a typical day in your life from the time
you wake up, until the time you go to bed.
Describe how science impacts you and your
routine throughout the day.
 How has science improved your quality of life and
why?
 Are there any negative impacts that science has
had? What are they and why?
 Do you believe that you could survive without
science? Why or why not?
 How has this course impacted the way you view
science?

CONTACT INFORMATION

Email:

Screen Name: molika.chea@gmail.com

Office Hours

mchea@kaplan.edu
By Appointment