Theory of Evolution

Please answer these questions using your own words and post them here the day before class. You won’t copy and paste from elsewhere because that only harms your own understanding. These questions are your best practice on how to apply the concepts from this module to new scenarios. Take it seriously so you can do well on the exams. You will be discussing your answers with your peers in class and coming up with a consensus answer.

Answer ALL six (6) questions and post the answers in a single post:

1. A) What observations lead Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace to propose the Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection? B) What inferences did they come up with?
2. Natural Selection doesn’t produce the perfect solution. A) What are the limitations of Natural Selection? B) What are the three types of selection? Give an example of each one.
3. A) Explain how lack of genetic variation limits evolution and provide an example.
4. A) Explain how the Hardy-Weinberg equation allows us to find evidence of evolution. B) Could processes other than Natural Selection result in deviation from the Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium? List and explain each one: C) define what the process is and D) the effect it has on the allele frequency.

Questions 5-6 are based on the following: Let’s say you are studying a population of Japanese four o’clock plants. In these plants, the allele for red color flower shows incomplete dominance over the allele for white flowers. This is very convenient for this experiment because you can distinguish the heterozygous (CRCW pink flowers) from the homozygous dominant (CRCR red flowers). For your experiment, you produced a large number of plants, 25% had red flowers (CRCR), 25% had white flowers (CWCW) and 50% had pink flowers(CRCW). Calculate the allele frequency of this population, what is the value of p & q? You transplanted them into different habitats and left some in the lab (using the same proportions in all the habitats). You waited a few years, while plants reproduce for a few generations and then you go back and resample the populations you’ve transplanted.

1. In the lab, you ensured that all individuals receive all requirements to grow and reproduce and mate randomly. A) Is the lab population in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium? Yes/No, explain B) If the population is in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, what do you expect the distribution of the phenotypes after a few generations breeding in the lab? C) Calculate the value of p and q.
2. In habitat A, you find that half of the population have red flowering plants (CRCR), and the other half have white flowering plants (CWCW) but there are no pink flowering plants (CRCW). A) What is the value for p and q in this population? B) Is the population in habitat A in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium? Yes/No, explain. C) Which one(s) of the five agents of evolutionary change could be responsible for these results? Explain. D) What type(s) of selection (stabilizing, disruptive, directional, oscillating, etc…) could be responsible for the results in habitat A? Explain.