Evolution Biological
In biology , evolution refers to the transformation of species living manifested by changes in their phenotypic characteristics over generations. The successive changes can lead to the formation of new species. The theory of evolution is an explanation scientific diversification of forms of life that appear in nature. This diversification since the earliest forms of life is the origin of the biodiversity present. The history of species can be written and is represented in the form of a phylogenetic tree.
The idea of evolution is old and can already be found among some philosophers of antiquity ( Lucretius , 98-54 BC. in particular), but it was not until the nineteenth century that theories proposing a scientific explanation of the phenomenon of species have been developed. The theory of transmutation of Lamarck has opened the door. Then, starting in 1859 with the publication of the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin . To explain the necessary changes gradually in a population it proposes the idea of natural selection. The species are profoundly conditioned by their natural environment, now called ecosystem.
With the discovery of genetics by Mendel 's theory of evolution has gradually refined . Since the 1930s, the synthetic theory of evolution is the subject of a broad scientific consensus on its foundations and its main mechanisms . Current research continues to focus on mechanisms that explain the evolution . Processes discovered after 1950 as the gene architect, co-evolution and endosymbiosis are useful in understanding the genetic mechanisms in action, to understand the evolution of species against each other or to describe more precisely the different rhythms evolution.
Evolution is caused, firstly by the presence of variations among the heritable traits such as plumage color, with a population of individuals during the phases of reproduction with the onset times of change , and other by various mechanisms that will change the frequency of certain hereditary traits in the population. Among these mechanisms, natural selection is the difference between propagation hereditary traits caused by their effect on survival and reproduction of individuals: if a certain hereditary trait promotes survival or reproduction, then it automatically follows that increased frequency of this trait from one generation to another. In a population of finite size, a trait can also be spread or removed by the fact that random fluctuations ( genetic drift ). At the geological time scale, the evolution led to changes morphological , anatomical , physiological and behavioral of species. The evolutionary history of strepsirhines on the island of Madagascar is a striking example illustrating the theory of evolution on a specific ecosystem.
The theory of evolution is studied and applied in fields as diverse as agriculture , the anthropology , the conservation biology , the ecology , the medicine , the paleontology , the philosophy , and psychology.
History of evolutionary theory
Although men were seeking the origin of the diversity of life from the ancient period , the idea of evolution, that is to say, change in species over time, has been slow to take hold. If the idea of evolution of life is already present in some Greek philosophers and Roman ( Democritus , Epicurus , Lucretius ), the one that has most marked the western world Aristotle , had design creationist 's lifetime, and that vision has remained dominant in Western thought until the eighteenth century. The influence of the religion monotheistic Abrahamic is predominant in the dissemination of these ideas creationists, a new form: the creationism. Indeed the Koran and stories Bible , especially those of Genesis , contend that all species were created as such by God , again, the man would occupy a special place in the living as it would be to image of God and be morally superior to all other species .
During the Middle Ages , scientific advances in Western Europe are becoming limited by the dominance of fundamentalist Christian who preaches a literal interpretation of sacred texts . While religious authorities strongly condemn any scientific idea challenging the biblical writings, the idea of evolution is found among some scholars as Jerome Cardan and Giulio Cesare Vanini . Meanwhile, the idea of evolution appears in the world Muslim , and it is from the ninth century not only the idea that species evolve over time, but also a first theory seeking to explain this trend . In the thirteenth century , the philosopher Nasir ad-Din at-Tusi offers several centuries before Charles Darwin , the selection of the best and the adaptation of species to their environment . However, these ideas have had a low popularity, including within the Muslim world . To reconcile these findings with the biblical texts, Georges Cuvier 's theory exposes catastrophic that there had been a succession of divine creations interspersed with sudden extinctions over geological time . They admit as well as terrestrial species were not always those observed today, without accepting the evolution of species, and that 6000 years previously estimated for the age of the Earth are too short to be integrate these successive extinctions .
If the idea of evolution has re-emerged in the mid eighteenth century with Maupertuis and Buffon , the first truly scientific theory considering an evolution of living species, the Lamarckism , was founded by the naturalist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck.
Lamarck considered that species can evolve according to two principles:
- Diversification or specialization, of living in multiple species, reflecting different circumstances they face in various environments to which they are forced to adapt by modifying their behavior or their bodies to meet their needs usually referred to as "the use and non-use";
- the increasing complexity of organizing living things under the influence of the internal dynamics of their own metabolism.
His theory has often been unfairly reduced to that of the transmission of acquired characters , which means that changes acquired during the life of an organism is hereditary, but in fact does not Lamarck theory of heredity of acquired (contrary to what would Darwin in 1868), it merely reproduces the ideas listed on this point since Aristotle. The fact remains that Lamarck was the first to propose a theory explaining the living beings from which he tries to understand the evolution of species. The publication in 1809 , Philosophy in zoology, his theory -change causes virulent debates in the Academy of Science because it contradicts the ideas into effect at the time, including immutability. Despite criticism from the scientific and religious circles, especially from Cuvier becomes the main opponent of processors, the processors receive ideas growing support from 1825 and help make the debate more responsive to naturalistic theories evolutionary although Lamarck never see his work recognized by the scientific community .
However, the first satisfactory theory to explain the adaptation of species is published in 1859 by Charles Darwin in his book On the Origin of Species. This theory, which underpins the current theory of evolution, considers that, given that all individuals of a species differ at least slightly, and only some of these individuals managed to reproduce only the descendants of individuals better adapted to their environment will attend the next generation. Thus, as individuals selected transmit their characters to their offspring, species evolve and adapt continuously to their environment. He named the name of natural selection that selection of individuals best suited . Darwin, however, had no idea of the mechanism allowing the transmission of characters Evolution and Species There are many species in nature, the cats , the dogs , the whales , the mouse ... all mammals , but also the trees , the flowers or the bacteria. Some species, like dinosaurs or mammoths vanished from the face of the earth. Evolution is the scientific theory that focuses on species and explain why they appear or disappear. The concept of species is important for understanding evolution. A species is a population whose individuals can reproduce and produce viable offspring. Thus there are commonly pink of tulips , the whales of dolphins , commonly because, unlike the bean or pea , each of these categories is in fact a genus (biology) involving many species. The science of species classification is called taxonomy. By observing the different species we see that some are closer to each other, men and monkeys , and chickens and pigeons. There are different criteria for separating species. For example we can distinguish the living being that has a skeletal bone, the vertebrates , those who do not, then specifically distinguish those who are nursing their children, mammals. Make an inventory and classification of all living species is a long process because we regularly discovers new species and differences between two species can be very subtle. In the same way as a sister and brother look alike and have certain traits of their parents, it is possible to establish links between different species of familiarity. By studying their characteristics, it is possible to reconstruct the history of a species. For example, whales are mammals, not fish because they suckle their young. Moreover, their skeleton has remarkable features, especially the presence of bones corresponding to the pelvis (pelvic girdle). Thus the study of their skeletons, which closely resembles those of quadrupeds, can confirm that whales have a terrestrial mammal ancestor , for details see the article Evolutionary history of cetaceans . Additionally, at molecular species all have a genetic code. More species are close to each other over their genetic codes are similar. The study of genome analysis thus allows for very fine changes, including cetaceans . If we can establish a relationship between two different species, then it means that ancestral species evolved into at least one of these two species. There has therefore been an evolution. A relationship between fossil species and current can be highlighted by the sharing of at least one character counterpart , that is to say from an ancestor. These indices of kinship are detectable at the morphology at the molecular level and sometimes even for closely related species, in terms of behavior. It is virtually impossible to assert that a fossil species is the ancestor of extant species, because it will never be guaranteed that the present species has not differentiated from other closely related species, but which would not have been discovered. Indeed, the conservation of remains of extinct species is a relatively unlikely event, especially for earlier periods. One can only estimate kinship with other species already known, current or fossil. For example, the fossil flower the oldest has been dated to 140 million years. This body therefore appeared on Earth, there are at least 140 million years. But other closely related species, with flowers, as certainly existed at that time. Nobody can say which of these species is the ancestor of flowering plants present. We do not seek relations of kinship, ancestor descendant relationships can never be reconstituted. The age of a fossil species, however, indicates the minimum age of appearance of characters it possesses. It is then possible to reconstruct the history of evolution, by placing on a time scale the occurrence of different characters. Fossils indicate that the order of appearance of evolutionary innovations are quite consistent with the idea of evolution, which in a general scheme, from simple structures to more complex structures. It is also consistent with an origin of aquatic living beings. In some species of Lacertidae American genus Cnemidophorus , or whip-tailed lizards, there are more than females. These species therefore use asexual reproduction. However mock couplings remain: to breed a female mounts another in a pattern similar to that of sexual species. This behavior is caused by hormones in relation to a recent origin of these parthenogenetic species . Introduced in 1971 by the team of Prof. Eviatar Nevo Island Dalmatian Prod Mrcaru offshore Adriatic , the lizard Podarcis sicula known in France as the "lizard of the ruins, there was left to itself for nearly four decades, access to the island having been banned by the Yugoslav authorities, and by conflicts over the breakup of that country. In 2004 , a scientific team led by Anthony Herrel and Duncan Irschick could return to the island and discovered that Podarcis sicula had changed in 36 years, about thirty generations, very significantly. The lizard grew up, his jaw became more powerful, and above it changed diet: of insectivorous became herbivorous , and cecal valves appeared in the intestines, allowing it to digest the grass ... This finding confirms, if confirmation were needed, that evolution is a theory among many, but a biological phenomenon actually observed, not only in viruses, bacteria or domesticated species . If you want to transcribe the concepts systematically , we must consider the theory cladistics , that the evolutionary grades (which induce a vision for the evolution now obsolete . Paleobiology, study of the life of times past, can reconstruct the history of living things. This history also provides clues about the evolutionary mechanisms involved in the evolution of species. The paleontology specifically involved remains fossils of living creatures. Palaeogenetics, new science, is interested in the genetic material that have survived until today . Both approaches are limited by the degradation of biological material over time. Thus, information from the remains are even rarer than the former living being is concerned. In addition, some conditions are more conducive than others to the conservation of biological material. Thus, anoxic environments or cold impede the degradation of the remains. The remains alive are incomplete and are often insufficient to trace the evolutionary history of life. All living things today are derived from a common ancestor, they share features inherited from this ancestor. Analysis of the similarities between living things much information about their family relationships, and can trace the evolutionary history of species. The phylogeny is the scientific discipline that seeks to trace the relationships between living and existing fossil from the comparative analysis of morphological, physiological or molecular. The comparative analysis allows us to trace the evolutionary history of various characters in the lineages of living. The evolution of characters does not necessarily follow that of species, some characters (known as convergent ) may have appeared several times independently in different lineages. The evolution of characters and lines may be associated with biological or geological events marking the history of the Earth, which allows to propose hypotheses about the mechanisms behind the evolution of species. The nature of characters that can be analyzed is extremely diverse and can be either character morphological (size, shape or volume of different structures), anatomical (structure and organization of organs), tissue , cellular or molecular (sequences protein or nucleic / A>). These characters bring different and often complementary information. Currently, the molecular characteristics (particularly DNA sequences) are preferred because of their universality, reliability and low cost associated technologies. They can not however be used in the study of fossils for which only morphological characters are generally informative. The modeling in evolutionary biology is based on the mechanisms of evolution has been highlighted to develop theoretical models. These models can produce results that depend on the assumptions of this model, these results can be compared to actual observed data. We can test the model's ability to reflect reality and, to some extent, the validity of the theory underlying this model. Models often depend on parameters, which may not always be determined a priori. Modeling to compare the results of those models and the reality for many different values of these parameters, and determine what combination of settings that allow the model to better describe reality. These parameters often correspond to biological parameters and can be estimated from the model some biological parameters difficult to measure. The accuracy of estimating these parameters, however, depends on the validity of the model, which is sometimes difficult to test. Modeling allows finally to predict some future developments, using the current data as baseline data model. The experimental evolution is the branch of biology that studies the evolution of real experiences , in contrast to the comparative study of characters who only look at the current state of living beings. The experiments generally involve the isolation of one or more species in a biological environment controlled. Then allowed these species to evolve for some time, possibly by applying controlled changes in environmental conditions. Finally we compare some characteristics of species before and after the period of evolution. The experimental evolution can not only observe the current trend, but also to test some predictions outlined in the framework of the theory of evolution , and test the relative importance of different evolutionary mechanisms. The experimental evolution can only consider the characters rapidly evolving, and is therefore limited to bodies, reproducing rapidly, including viruses or unicellular , but some organizations such as longer generation Drosophila or some rodents. An example: the experience of Luria and Delbrck. Because individuals in a population have traits heritable different, and that only a portion of these individuals access to reproduction , the characters are best suited to the environment are preferentially preserved by natural selection. Moreover, the chance of sexual reproduction makes partially random characters that will be transmitted by the effect of genetic drift. Thus, the proportion of different characters in a population varies from one generation to another, leading to the evolution of populations. This occurs by mutation and genetic recombination , or chromosomal rearrangement. But that does not take place in an individual, not the entire species. It is necessary to spread this new character, the effect of natural selection and / or genetic drift. Most individuals of a species are unique and differ from each other. These differences are observable at all scales, from the perspective morphological scale up the molecular. This diversity of people has two main sources: individuals are dissimilar because they do not have the same genetic information and because they have experienced different environmental influences. The genetic diversity is manifested by local variations in the sequence of DNA , forming different variants of the same sequence called alleles. This variability has several origins. Alleles can be formed spontaneously by mutation of the DNA sequence. Moreover, sexual reproduction contributes to genetic diversity in two ways: firstly, the genetic recombination diversifies the combinations of alleles together on the same chromosome. On the other hand, part of the genome from each parent is randomly selected to form a new individual, whose genome is therefore unique. Diversity acquired from the environment throughout the history of the individual, since the formation of gametes until his death. The environment is unique to each location and each time he has unique effects on each individual, and at all scales, the morphology to molecular biology. Thus, two individuals having the same genetic information (eg is the case for identical twins ) are still different. They may have a particular organization and expression different from the genetic information. Living beings are capable of reproducing , transmitting some of their traits to their offspring. We distinguish asexual reproduction , only involving an individual, the sexual reproduction in which two individuals are sharing some of their genetic material, thus forming a genetically unique individual. Genetic traits, that is to say all the sequences of nucleic acid of an individual, not all transmitted in the same way. In asexual reproduction, which is a reproduction clonal , all nucleic acid sequences are copied and the genetic information contained in the two descendants are identical. However, during sexual reproduction, it often happens that only part of the genetic material is transmitted. In metazoans , the chromosomes are frequently associated in pairs, and only one chromosome of each pair from each parent is transmitted to the child. Moreover, if the parents both provide half the contents nuclear , equipment cytoplasm is often supplied by only one parent (the mother in mammals ). Thus, the genetic material in the semi-autonomous organelles such as chloroplasts and mitochondria , is transmitted by only some individuals of the species (females in mammals). The synthetic theory of evolution , paradigm currently dominant, is based on a deterministic full genetic and therefore rules out any inheritance of acquired characteristics during the life of the individual. However more and more scientific studies are challenging this model and partly restore the idea of inheritance of acquired characters that defended the Lamarckism . The study of epigenetics, long neglected, knows a boom since the end of the sequencing of many genomes, including that of humans. Thus, a study in 2009 of MIT says highlight inheritance of acquired characteristics in some rodents . Moreover, the obesity is not only a direct effect involving individuals with themselves, but also a generational effect. Data in humans and animals suggest that the effects of undernutrition experienced by individuals may indeed be passed on to offspring. In sexual reproduction, transmission of characters (including alleles ) contains a large element of chance due to homologous recombination , and genetic mixing. Thus, there is a random variation of allele frequencies from one generation to another, called genetic drift. Genetic drift therefore generates a random component in the evolution of populations. Thus, two populations of the same species did not exchange genetic material will diverge to form, time of genetic isolation is sufficient, two species differ. Genetic drift is a driving force of speciation. The effect of genetic drift is especially evident when a small number of individuals is at the root of a much larger population. This happens when one forms a bottleneck that is to say that a population is decimated and is reconstituted, or when some individuals in a population migrate to colonize a new space and form a new population ( founder effect ). When such an event occurs, an allele even weakly represented in the starting population can be found in high proportion in the population newly formed under the simple effect of chance in the draw individuals behind the new population. Conversely, an allele highly represented can not be fired, and disappears from the new population. Furthermore, the formation of a new population from a small number of individuals has the effect of increasing inbreeding in the population and increases the percentage of homozygosity , which weakens the population. In the vast majority of species, the number of cells-egg products is far greater than the number of individuals arriving at the age of sexual maturity and among these, only some access to reproduction. Thus, only a portion of individuals trained to reproduce the next generation. So there is a selection of individuals perpetuating the species, only individuals are not eliminated by the conditions environmental can reproduce. This selection has been called natural selection. As there is variability within species, individuals having characters different, and that some of these traits are heritable traits allow the individual to survive and reproduce better be preferentially transmitted to offspring, by among other characters. Thus the proportion of characters within species evolves over time. The natural selection can take many forms. The selection tool is an elimination of the least able to survive and less fertile, while sexual selection preferentially retains the individuals most likely to meet a sexual partner. While these selections are complementary, there are often conflicts, each form of selection may favor the evolution of a character in a different direction. It is sometimes observed a selection of individuals that promote survival or reproduction of individuals who are or their not related, as is the case with insect eusocial or when an individual sacrifices for the survival of his group or its progeny. In sociobiology , these behaviors altruistic partly attributable to the controversial theories of kin selection , the group selection and of reciprocal altruism. Kin selection predicts that it may be more advantageous for an individual to promote the reproduction of many related individuals (ie with which it shares characters) to reproduce a little or not at all, group selection is based on the same principle but in terms of the group and may explain some actions in humans such as wars or xenophobia , reciprocal altruism examines the case of altruism between non-related individuals and induces reciprocal contribution which assistance given in return may be delayed in time. Finally, artificial selection is a form of natural selection exerted by the man. As a consequence of natural selection , species preferentially retain the character best suited to their environment , and are becoming better adapted to their environment. The selective pressures at play in this adaptation are numerous and cover all aspects of the environment, the physical to the biological species interacting. The adaptation of many different species as a result of the same pressure environment can lead to repeated and independent occurrence of the same adaptive trait in these species, a phenomenon of evolutionary convergence. For example, in mammals the whales and sea cows have both developed fins independently. The evolution of these fins shows a convergent adaptation to aquatic life. However, the effect of natural selection is reduced by that of genetic drift. Thus, a great character can not be selected because of inertia given by the drift. The evolution of a population as a result of chance and environmental constraints can lead to the disappearance of the population and possibly the species to which it belongs. Conversely, two people can be individualized within the same species to form two distinct species by a process called speciation. The evolution and its mechanisms are still widely studied today, and many points on the mechanisms of evolution are not clarified. Some issues already raised by Charles Darwin did indeed still no definite answer. One of the great questions of the theory of evolution is the origin of higher taxonomic rank than species. In addition, the way appeared the majority of the 33 branches animals from the Cambrian explosion, is still problematic. Thus, the now obsolete gradualist theory believes that changes occur gradually during evolution, whereas the theory of punctuated equilibria , made by Stephen Jay Gould and Niles Eldredge defends the existence of major evolutionary leaps. According to this theory, the mechanism of evolution is sometimes accelerated and sometimes slowed or virtually zero for long periods . Or at Cambrian , paleontologists agree major ecological changes According to this theory that could be causing the appearance of organisms belonging to clades present. Furthermore, the absence of fossil for nearly 100 million years before the Burgess faunas and scarcity of Precambrian fossil sites suggest the existence of ghost lineages before the Cambrian explosion. Forms of life which those animals Burgess simply would not have been found in a fossil state for long periods . The transmission of acquired characters, completely neglected since the discovery of the laws of heredity, is updated by the discovery of phenomena epigenetic. Therefore, the importance of this transmission of characters inherited from parents in the evolution of species should arise. However, our knowledge of epigenetic mechanisms is still too weak to answer this question. In addition, few studies on the role of epigenetics in evolution were carried out at present. It has long been recognized that evolution was accompanied by an increase in the complexity of living beings. However, this idea, largely influenced by anthropocentrism, is highly debated today. Complexity with no clear definition at present, it is difficult to verify a possible increase in complexity. Moreover, when this idea is accepted, the origins of this increased complexity are also a source of controversy. In fact, all this has already been clearly explained by Lamarck. The origin of life would fall to - 3.8 billion years. It was probably organisms prokaryotic unicellular. Assume a single ancestor to all living beings ( LUCA ). From this ancestor have diversified the forms of life. The man was able to quickly use the variability of populations to its advantage: directed evolution by humans, or artificial selection , because of selection by breeders and growers, has been going on for millennia. It had been long observed that livestock inherited, to some extent, the characteristics of their parents and no one would have thought to use its most sickly animals for breeding. Moreover, Darwin uses many observations from the selection of plants and animals in agriculture to support his ideas. Thus, man can create a playlist called artificial environment, for economic reasons, voluntarily or involuntarily through the pressure of hunting, gathering or fishing) . The effectiveness of the process of natural selection inspired the creation of evolutionary algorithms (eg genetic algorithms ) in computer science. These algorithms heuristics modlisent several features of biological evolution (in particular mutations and recombinations ) to find a satisfactory solution to a problem too complex to be addressed by other methods. Evolutionary thinking has spread particularly in the evolutionary anthropology in the nineteenth century. For anthropologists of that time, the human species does that, and therefore, each company follows the same trend, which starts at the state of "primitive" to reach the model of Western civilization. This theory has been strongly questioned. Indeed, it does not match the reality historical observed (civilizations follow "paths" divergent, do not pursue the same "objective" and Western civilization, which ought to be the ultimate stage of evolution, however, continues to experience profound changes.) and is a doubtful point of view ethics (whereas Western society as the ultimate achievement of civilization). Contrary to what was practiced until the mid- twentieth century , modern approaches to evolutionary anthropology favor a particular methodology (comparing multiple sources, drawing on the tools of quantitative analysis of social science, trying to dispose of ethnocentrism ) and is based on theories more sophisticated than simplistic evolutionism debut. Theories not only inspired by evolutionary biology but also by modern modeling mathematical and computer and sometimes enriched with contemporary knowledge in psychology. Applying the principles of evolution (including concepts such as adaptive traits, selection pressure, etc..) In psychology gave rise to a current called evolutionary psychology. Even if Darwin had already suggested that natural selection could shape both the anatomical characteristics and psychological, this discipline was really formalized in the early 1990s in the framework of cognitive science. Since then, evolutionary psychology is the focus of intense scientific controversy that has multiple reasons: methodological difficulty in establishing evolutionary history of behaviors that are not material objects, intellectual resistance to consider the human mind as determined in part by evolution, use simplistic and misuse of evolutionary theories, media and the public at large deformation problems scientists ... In scientific circles, however, evolutionary psychology is now a valid scientific paradigms. Reviews of the synthetic theory of evolution They fall into three sources, sometimes combined: Because, inter alia, its implications for the origin of mankind , evolution has been and still is, misunderstood and / or, sometimes, poorly recognized outside the scientific community. In Western societies, the theory of evolution is facing strong opposition from certain religious fundamentalists , including its incompatibility with a literal interpretation of the Bible. His detractors are based on analysis pseudo-scientific or religious to contradict the very idea of species evolution or the theory of natural selection. Evolutionary theory is compatible with belief in God? In fact, Ernst Mayr says about this: "It seems apparent that Darwin lost his faith a year if not two, before formulating his theory of natural selection (which he probably worked more than ten years). Therefore, there is no basis to suggest that biology and adherence to the theory of natural selection may keep you away from God. " The biologist Richard Dawkins in his book For God Delusion (2008), believes that natural selection is "superior" to the "God hypothesis" that he calls "statistical improbability", and defends the atheism. Biologist Kenneth R. Miller (in) believes that evolutionary thinking is not necessarily incompatible with faith in God . To him the writings of the Bible are metaphors. Evolution is still opposed by some religious circles, advocates of creationism , especially Protestants and Muslims. The Catholic Church's position on this issue is more nuanced, while maintaining the Inner Bible , "Today, nearly half a century after the publication of the Encyclical (Humani generis- 1950), new knowledge (the) drive to recognize in the theory of evolution more than a hypothesis ". It declares that God is the only creator, that He created the world out of love, but the spirit can not be the result of an evolution of matter . The controversy spilled over from the 1990's , the simple framework of public debate, including the United States. In some states, advocates of creationism have tried to mandate its teaching in public schools as "competing scientific theory" from that of evolution. However, these measures have been declared unconstitutional vis--vis the First Amendment on freedom of expression , because of the religious character of this theory. Given these efforts, scientists have sarcastically asked what is also taught pastafarism (which was invented at that time). A new concept emerged in the creationist movement, called intelligent design ("Intelligent Design"), which states that "certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause rather than random processes such as natural selection . This thesis is presented as a theory backed by scientific research, and does not deny the existence of any evolutionary phenomenon. American justice, based on the scientific work, but found (see Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School ) that this thesis was religious in nature and unscientific, and that proponents of Intelligent Design does not explain this " intelligent cause "to circumvent the legal problem and to escape religious qualifier. Other groups use the arguments of Intelligent Design, with various functions for the intelligent cause, such as aliens. When there are two dates, the first is the first appearance in the original language. Arguments in favor of evolution
Strategy reasoning
Morphological Indices
Molecular Indices
Behavioural indicators
An example of evolution in human time scales: Podarcis sicula
Methods of studying the evolution
Systematics
The paleobiology
The comparative analysis of characters
Population genetics
Modeling
Experimentation
Mechanisms of evolution
The evolution of populations
The emergence of new characters
Individual variability within populations
Inheritance
The transmission of acquired characteristics, an assumption not entirely rejected
Genetic drift
Natural selection
Evolutionary implications
Adaptation of species
Appearance and disappearance of species
Controversies about the mechanisms of evolution
Evolutionary history of life
Evolution and human societies
Evolution and Agriculture
Evolution and Information
Eugenics
Evolutionary psychology
Evolution and religion
political and legal aspects
References
Books on the topic
Related articles
External Links
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