Evolution, Morphology and Exobiology

So the saber tooth cat is one of the most successful mammals to live. This is the first time in 11 million years that we haven't had a saber tooth cat. But some say that eventually, in about 7 million, we will have another one. What do you guys think?

Strong selective pressure can lead to rapid and reproducible evolution in bacteria. "Bacteria that lack a vital protein for growing flagella—tail-like structures that enable the microbes to swim—can attain flagella in as little as four days given enough pressure to evolve, according to a paper published in Science today (February 26). Furthermore, this fast fix evolves in nearly the same way in each independent strain: through the repurposing of a distantly related protein. “This is a fascinating set of evolution experiments,” wrote evolutionary biologist Richard Lenski of Michigan State University in an e-mail to The Scientist. “Their experiments show how a biologic…

When DNA/RNA is used to date common ancestors I understand that fossils are needed for calibration since rates of mutation vary considerably. I know fossils can normally be dated accurately but I don't understand how they help. If a fossil is found that resembles what the common ancestor must have been like I assume it cannot be known for sure if it came before or after the split in evolutionary lines, so I don't see that that helps. Can anyone explain?

what books can learn about A B .. evolution ? what websites give clear information about evolution ?? .. an active websites .. (talkorigin) is some kind old .. i have random questions Are the similarities between humans and chimpanzees 98% ؟ I intend to search in evolution .. but .. i want to know if what i quote is false or true .. is it just claims ?? is there websites answer it ?? .. i hope someone explain what i quote and sorry about weak english

This is a question asked in my science class today, as we watched a show on evolution. Asian, Caucasian, african, Mexican, Latino? And are mixed races hybrids. Like someone like me, where my mom is jamaican and my dad is Caucasian

So, we are organisms of three dimensions. QM shows us that there are more than ten dimensions. Anyway, this thread is a question. If you believe in fourth dimensional organisms, do you also believe in higher or even lower dimensional organisms. Might sound weird but if there are indeed fourth dimensional beings, could there also be organisms that are limited to two dimensions?

As the human population becomes increasingly interconnected with fewer isolated communities, does the possibility of future speciation disappear? Is geographical isolation a necessary condition of speciation?

Hi everyone, I'd like to do an experiment. I will have 2 groups of organisms. The first will be subjected to small amounts of radiation. The other will be the control. I will then introduce both groups to circumstances that would stress them in the hopes of creating an opportunity for a good mutation to produce offspring that are better equipped for the stressful environment. I hypothesize that the group exposed to radiation will suffer population losses initially, but then enjoy a greater flexibility in handling it's stressful environment due to the increased likelihood of a mutation that might help the organism ot better adapt. I was wondering if you guys could sugges…

Could modern humans like you and me survive without our intelligence. We don't have many natural defenses. No teeth to fight, just to eat. Not made to rip and tear. We don't have speed. Normal people are slow compared to most animals. No claws. Can't swim like a fish. What are your thoughts. Mind you, I'm not saying we are ill suited for survival, but just a thought.

Is that how we get out "mates"?. Lots of animals get theirs by attractions, and that's why flowers evolved. Attraction. Is that why women are considered beautiful, or do we just pick randomly

Good evening. I have recently been in discussion with a chap who is blindingly ignorant of evolutionary theory. In my attempts to educate this whippersnapper, I have linked him to several peer-reviewed articles regarding evolution - none of which he has read, let alone attempted to refute - and attempted to explain to him why he is so very wrong. So great was his confidence in his intellect compared to that of almost every scientist on the planet that I challenged him to present his views on a moderated forum such as this, where people actually care whether the posted content is true. Predictably, he cowered away from such an option in a shower of deflections an…

I noticed Stephen Hubbell has come up in some old threads I thought for those who didn't know who he was it would be nice to post a review. Neutral Theory: A New, Unified Model for Ecology by Scott Norris1 "In evolutionary time, species come and go. In ecological time—anything from days to decades or even centuries—most species, in most places, persist. They do so in complex networks of local communities and extended metacommunities, within and between which even similar and closely related species may vary greatly in abundance. and while processes such as invasion and succession sometimes bring about a rapid reordering of the biological status quo for a part…

My father doesn't believe so... he said: "If we came from monkeys, how come there are still monkeys? Did they not get to evolve? If Evolution really occurred how come they do not just begin as the new species?" If anyone has some real scientific evidence that could prove my father is wrong, (and he never is) I would love to hear about it... Thank you.

Dog breeders have produced a broad range of morphological variation within the species variety Canis lupus familiaris . See attached chart from American Kennel Club. But no one, so far as I know, is claiming that selective breeding has produced a new species within the genus Canis. No natural environment would pull as much phenotypic plasticity out of a species genome as is shown in this chart. And yet, nature is credited with producing all the various species of creatures, despite nature's ability to produce only a much narrower range of phenotypic variability from a given species genome, If dog breeders haven't yet produced a new species (or if they have, please …

Say a large group of humans for whatever reason were trapped underground and for say a few generations survived in total darkness would they in time evolve into a different species? I ask because I hear on an episode of The Black List how a group of fish trapped in a cave yet survived becoming completely different in the process. I don't know if it's true but still it makes me wonder. Now hypothetically speaking could something similar happen to a group of human beings?

You, experienced in biogenesis or biochemistry!: I have this one guy whom opened a conversation (text) like this: "There aren't enough atoms in the universe for life to arise by chance according to science." As a student in his last year in finnish "lukio", I pretty well knew that this wasn't true so I managed to write an answer: "Hey dude you got this one wrong. Life is possible to form "accidentally": There are about 3.0 x 10^23 stars in the observable universe, a big portion of them have planetary systems orbiting them. Lets say about 1/100 of them. Now we have 3 x 10^21 planetary systems out there. It's a fucking big number. Now out of all those plane…

Every time I'm asking, why almost every woman have almost no mental srengths; they have big problems to be courageous, there are almost no women in military institutions, almost no female Heavy Metal bands, etc. Moreover, women compared with men are physically weak. I have set my thoughts here: http://linkerdynamics.wordpress.com/2014/05/09/why-men-are-the-better-soldiers-and-women-are-the-better-nurturers/ But now I offer my question: What are the molecular, not evolutionary reasons for that women feel fear more intense or why there is a "Tend or be friend" syndrome in women when they are under stress? I search for answers for example like this: "Women feel fear mo…

The basic definition of consciousness is the state of being awake or aware of ones surrounds. Many biological processes respond to surrounding environments. Single cell organisms respond to there surroundings yet responses do not neccessarily imply any sense of awareness as it applies to the definition of consciousness. Plants move in response to the sun. Are plants aware of the suns position in the sky? Where do we draw the line between chemical triggers, automatic biological responses, and our understand of awareness (consciousness)? *I am not implying or interested in the thought that plants and cells all have feelings.

Hi. Unsure if this is the best place for the subject, but, which animal shows the most 'intelligent' behavior ? (life, strategies, skills, self-sufficiency, activities... at its animal level) Miguel

What is with people today? Some people discount hundreds of years of scientific research and data. They think the greatest minds in science have flaws in their reasoning. We have morons like this woman. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=32mxZxv3dYM I get aggravated just watching this woman. She says she doesn't want to hear scientific theories. She only wants to be shown fossils and let her make up her own opinion of what the fossils mean. She constantly says "how do they know this?" "Did they have a video camera?" "This is all guessing" I really think the problem is education. As an American I am ashamed to show this graph but the problem is worse in the U.S. …

Hi folks. I have a specific application in microbiology that I am investigating. I found this forum so I joined so that I could put it forward. Hopefully someone has some insight. I'm looking for a way to separate filial generations in a microbiological propagation environment. I'm searching for a way to follow the maximum F(x) through isolation and propagation. The issue is a bit fuzzy. Bacterial (or Fungi) generations result from division. Daughter cells are obviously children, but are in the same culture media as the parent cell. I need to have a way of separating those. It's been some time since I've studied lab techniques and thought there migh…

I would like to ask a couple of questions regarding the vestigial strucure known as the Coccyx. Some people deny its vestigiality arguing that it serves as an anchor point of nine - 9 - muscles. My questions are: 1) How do these 9 muscles and their functions compare to the muscles attached on the tailbone of caudate animals? For example (please correct me if I'm wrong!): One of the 9 muscles attached on the human Coccyx is the Levator Ani muscle, which in caudate animals serves to the motion of the tail, whereas in humans it plays a role in defecation. It stroke me though noticing more than one of the cats that live in my garden moving their tail like the handle …

I say no. What say you? Here's my reasoning: evolution takes place more so in smaller populations. We have heavily populated earth. We can easily travel the whole world over. Native Americans can marry orientals. Africans can marry Europeans. We are blending our genes. That makes the population more bland (for lack of a better word). Now if a small group of humans were to be dropped off on an island without any technologies they would evolve over generations. Also it is no longer 'survival of the fittest'. It is now survival of everyone! If someone is in a horrible accident it is amazing what modern medicine can do. We are also curing diseases. Also the most …

I read this somewhere... "Natural selection is a scientific fact but the trouble with darwinian evolution is that you have creatures turning into other creatures such as a dog turning into a whale which is beyond ridiculous. There is no scientific evidence that a species can change the number of chromosomes within the DNA. The chromosome count within each species is fixed. This is the reason a male from one species cannot mate and evolve successfully with a female of another species. Man could not evolve from apes. Each species is locked into its chromosome count that cannot change. If an animal developed an extra chromosome or lost a chromosome because of some deform…

This is a scenario I've been wondering about related to a character I'm working on. She is from a civilization of anthropomorphic creatures with similar properties to dromaeosauridea (Velociraptor, Utahraptor, and Deinonychus just to name a few). Their native environment is essentially the same as the thick jungles in Africa, South America, and South East Asia. They mostly live in tree houses. With those factors in mind, what would need to change in their body structure for them to work? EX: Their head shape, would it stay the same? Or would the nasal bones be narrower to give the eyes better capabilities?