ISS 210 1st Edition Lecture 1 Outline of Current Lecture I. ParadigmsII. The Modern SynthesisIII. Why it MattersCurrent LectureI. Paradigms– Is a set of assumptions that provides a fundamental image of the subject matter within science– Determines• what should be studied • what questions to ask• what rules to follow in interpreting the data.– Is a lens that both enhances and distorts perception.– Barbara McClintock’s discover of “jumping genes” that did not fit the Mendelian model of inheritance.II. The Modern Synthesis – Reduced evolutionary phenomena to generation by generation changes in gene frequencies within populations, under the guiding hand of natural selection– Created the expectation that evolutionary change in the fossil record would be a gradualaffair – Species changed slowly over time as they tuned to their old ones– Discontinuities in the fossil record due to “gaps”– Replaced by model of Punctuated EquilibriumIII. Why it Matters– Evolutionary principles influenced our lives – Comparative genomics – DNA sequences help diagnosis and treatment of hereditary disease– Decipher microbes responsible for infectious disease– Doonesbury: Treating an evolved drug resistant strain of TB (18/12/2005)– Develop environmentally friendly microbial energy
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