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Anthropology chapter 2
n/a
25
Anthropology
Undergraduate 2
09/15/2012

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Term
fossils
Definition
physical remains of part or all of once-living organisms, mostly bones and teeth, that have become mineralized by the replacement of organic with inorganic materials
Term
species
Definition
a group of related organisms that can interbreed and produce fertile, viable offspring
Term
habitat
Definition
the specific area of the natural environment in which an organism lives
Term
adaptation
Definition
changes in physical structure, function, or behavior that allow an organism or species to survive and reproduce in a given environment
Term
natural selection
Definition
the process by which some organisms, with features that enable them to adapt to the environment, preferentially survive and reproduce, thereby increasing the frequency of those features in the population
Term
endemic
Definition
refers to a characteristic or feature that is natural to a given population or environment
Term
catastrophism
Definition
the doctrine asserting that cataclysmic events (such as volcanoes, earthquakes, and floods), rather than evolutionary processes, are responsible for geologic changes throughout Earth's history
Term
genus
Definition
a group of related species
Term
gemmules
Definition
as proposed by Darwin, the units of inheritance, supposedly accumulated in the gametes so they could be passed on to offspring
Term
blending inheritance
Definition
an outdated, disreputed theory that the phenotype of an offspring was a uniform blend of the parents' phenotype
Term
gene
Definition
the basic unit of inheritance; a sequence of dna on a chromosome, coded to produce a specific protein
Term
allele
Definition
one or more alternative forms of a gene
Term
dominant
Definition
refers to an allele that is expressed in an organism's phenotype and that simultaneously masks the effects of another allele, if another one is present
Term
recessive
Definition
an allele that is expressed in an organisms phenotype if 2 copies are present, but is masked if the dominant allele is present
Term
Mendelian inheritance
Definition
the basic principles associated with the transmission of genetic material, forming the basis of genetics, including the law of segregation and the law of independent assortment
Term
genotype
Definition
the genetic makeup of an organism; the combination of alleles for a given gene
Term
phenotypes
Definition
the physical expression of the genotype; it may be influenced by the environment
Term
chromosomes
Definition
the strand of dna found in the nucleus of eukaryotes that contains hundreds or thousands of genes
Term
evolutionary synthesis
Definition
a unified theory of evolution that combines genetics with natural selection
Term
population genetics
Definition
a specialty within the field of genetics; it focuses on the changes in gene frequencies and the effects of those changes on adaptation and evolution
Term
mutation
Definition
a random change in a gene or chromosome, creating a new trait that may be advantageous, deleterious, or neutral in its effects on the organism
Term
gene flow
Definition
admixture, or the exchange of alleles between two populations
Term
genetic drift
Definition
the random change in allele frequency from one generation to the next with greater effect in small populations
Term
deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)
Definition
a double-stranded molecule that provides the genetic code for an organism, consisting of phosphate, deoxyribose sugar, and four types of nitrogen bases
Term
pandemic
Definition
wide regional or global spread of infectious disease
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