Top-Rated Free Essay
Preview

NBA2k15

Good Essays
847 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
NBA2k15
Emma Stearns Zoology 10/15/14 Evolution Beginning with bacteria and unicellular organism, through invertebrates, fish and amphibians, on to reptiles, birds, and eventually land mammals, species have evolved in huge leaps and bounds in the millions of years that our planet has been in existence. We have moved out of the water and onto the land, we have developed brains and nervous systems, highly advanced survival instincts and social and behavioral traits that did not exist millions of years ago. Species have evolved to become more diverse and more complex through a number of different biological trends. But as much as we can learn about these phenomena by observing changes over time, in it much more difficult to predict where evolution is heading in the long run. Which species will survive and thrive, and which will find themselves unable to carry on due to changing conditions, threats, and competition? Evolution has allowed humans in particular to thrive and become creatures of choice, freedom, and responsibility. Although other animals have gained somewhat similar traits, it is clear that humans have control in hierarchy of animal society. In our rise to domination, we have created a disadvantage for other species to evolve to their full capacity. It is perhaps hard for more than one species to evolve towards full freedom at the same time. If humans found themselves faced with a dramatic change in environment that they could not survive in, it would give another species the opportunity to evolve to their full capacity and become creatures of choice and responsibility. Evolution is a process towards freedom to a certain extent because it allows for freedom and choice, but not for every organism. The idea of evolution began to emerge in the 1700s with a Frenchman named George Buffon. A nobleman and naturalist, Buffon was the first person to talk seriously bout evolution as a theory of organisms slowly changing over time. James Hutton continued on the study of evolution in the late 1700s by saying that the world is indefinitely old, contradictory to the biblical teachings that were popular at that time. The study of evolution really took off with Charles Darwin, whose contributions to evolution theory hold the foundation of what we know to be true today. Darwin made many observations and inferences about evolution. He noted that species have great fertility, however, counterintuitively, populations remain stable. He observed that resources are limited, and that the struggle for existence is a battle within species, won by the strongest and most advanced. Only the fittest can survive—a process that Darwin called natural selection. These surviving animals pass down their traits though the generations, which produces gradual change over time. Other scientist later introduced other theories that Darwin had overlooked. In the 1970’s, Stephen Gould and Niles Elridge introduced Punctuated Equilibrium. Evolution does not only happen gradually over time; in fact, the most dramatic changes took place over short time periods such as the extinction of the dinosaurs, or the start of an ice age. These bursts in evolution were caused by intense and unpredictable changes in environment and conditions on the planet. As humans evolve further and further, becoming highly advanced and free in our decision making, perhaps we are moving towards an end point brought on by an unforeseeable change in our ecosystem that we will be unable to survive. This may free up other species to evolve towards creatures of freedom as we are today. We can see traits in other animals that are moving in the direction of freedom, that may flourish more and more as humans face an inevitable event that will cause their decline. The three-toed skink, for example, is a lizard that has been slowly evolving from laying eggs to live birth. This may result in a splitting off of two different species—an egg laying skink and a live birth skink. Who is to say which one is more evolutionarily advanced? Some habitats may be designed better for egg-layers, while others may be better for live births. Just as humans evolved from apes and apes still exist, species may evolve into new species better designed for their specific environment, while the old species may still thrive in a different environment. Each one is simply adapted for different conditions. The evolution of humans from chimpanzees was very rapid. The first Homonid lived approximately 5 million years ago, and since that time we have evolved in leaps and bounds, developing took-making skills, communication skills, social skills, and language. Humans advance quickly in the conditions on earth as it is today, and are well suited for these current conitions, but who knows what will happen in the next few million years? Will humans continue to advance, or will another species take over and become the new domineering species of choice, freedom, and responsibility? Perhaps in the event of human extinction, one species will find themselves more equipped for the new conditions, and rise above the other, and they will be the ones that will then be more “free.”

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    NBA 2k13

    • 1789 Words
    • 8 Pages

    5. Which two meanings of the word “long” does Juliet use to make a pun?…

    • 1789 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    unit 4222-265

    • 923 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Every species has a great ability to produce offspring and its population expands until it runs out of food or it is limited by competition, its own waste products, or some other factor. Changes in climate or introduction of a new species from elsewhere can greatly affect the balance of nature.…

    • 923 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Sci/207 Week 4 Lab 4 Report

    • 2956 Words
    • 12 Pages

    Biomes and Diversity. As you have learned in the readings, extinction is a natural selection process. You have also read that humans are often responsible for accelerating this process. Using at least two scholarly sources, address whether or not we as humans should be concerned with the extinction rate. Additionally, discuss whether or not humans strive to preserve representative samples of all biomes on the planet…

    • 2956 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Just months ago, the game developers at 2k Sports released another NBA game to the number one selling basketball franchise in video games. This time it was released as regularly for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 but was also released with the unveiling of the next generation gaming consoles, the Xbox One and the PlayStation 4. This allowing for much advanced changes in graphics and all that they could put into their latest version of the leading video game selling franchise in basketball. All video gamers who enjoy sports games should take a big look into NBA 2k. Up to date, it carries with it the best graphics that I have come across in a sports video game, along with the most incredibly realistic and true gaming experience in comparison to the sports league that it is attempting to reflect.…

    • 866 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Env Sci Study Guid

    • 364 Words
    • 2 Pages

    15. What is the future of evolution, and what role should humans play in this future?…

    • 364 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Miami Heat Video Game

    • 325 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Eastern Conference fourth leading and Southeast Division top team Miami Heat outlasted the East’s fifth ranked Atlanta Hawks 115-111, even playing without key players Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade Friday night at the Philips Arena in Atlanta.…

    • 325 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    By Helen Ying © 2013 Biology Notes – HSC Course 2013 MODULE 9.3 – BLUEPRINT OF LIFE 1. Outline the impact on the evolution of plants and animals of: a. Changes in physical conditions in the environment o Rising and falling sea levels – land and ice bridges across continents have affected distribution and therefore evolution when these bridges disappeared and populations were isolated from the main population. o Fossil evidence indicates mass extinctions resulting from changes in the physical environment e.g. dinosaur extinction from meteor. o Movement of continents. As Australia moved north, it became drier and plants and animals needed to adapt to these new conditions. b. Changes in chemical conditions in the environment o Original anoxic environment. As primitive organisms metabolised, carbon dioxide was released. Over millions of years, carbon dioxide accumulated and at some stage, organisms capable of using carbon dioxide in photosynthesis evolved and became dominant. Oxygen was then released as a product of photosynthesis, and oxygen-using organisms became dominant. c. Competition for resources o During the Cretaceous period, mammals were limited to the niches in which they originally evolved because the world was dominated by dinosaurs. When the dinosaurs died, the mammals were able to populate larger areas of the world as they had few competitors. As they populated these different areas, they evolved into new species to adapt to these new conditions. o Long-term competition usually results in one of the species dying out or evolution of one of the competing species so that they can occupy a different environment.  Organisms alive today have all arisen from simpler organisms that existed millions of years ago.  Evolution is the change in living organisms over many generations.  Changes in the environment of living organisms can lead to the…

    • 6173 Words
    • 25 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In addition, humans alter our environment to suit our needs rather than adapt to our environment based on environmental stressors. Due to this fact, we are unlikely to be affected by the pressures of natural selection. We will not likely be affected by further evolution.…

    • 697 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    We've gone far on the planet, we have traveled to places for survival, hunting & using our knowledge to get us where we are. We are one of the most advanced and smartest of mammals. We are… humans. We started out in the place you'd least expect and by doing so, we depended on whatever the earth gave us. With that, our beliefs formed, and we worshipped what we thought had life. We stayed together in tight groups, protecting one another… until we spread. Within the separation, we meet new dangers and obstacles such as harsh weather, new edible specimens of food, and we even came up with new ideas. For the past 50,000 years human society has changed our location, thoughts, and inventions. And through this we've managed to stay alive.…

    • 747 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    One of the major sources of evidence for evolution is in the comparative anatomy of organisms. Features that look different but have similar structural origin are called…

    • 1576 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    All ecosystems are placed under levels of stress that must be withstood or overcome in the form of evolution in order to adapt and survive. These attributes determine the resilience and vulnerability of each and every ecosystem. These forms of stress fall under two categories; natural and human induced. In regards to natural stress, the term gradual is used as it happens at a slower rate and lesser magnitude than human induced stress. If this occurs, the natural world can adapt to this small amount of pressure over thousands of years through the process of evolution in order to survive. Human induced stress is linked with catastrophic outcomes as…

    • 1912 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    test practice

    • 1347 Words
    • 8 Pages

    __T_ 5. If the climate changes, the species that are best adapted to the new conditions are most…

    • 1347 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Natural Selection Lab

    • 269 Words
    • 2 Pages

    If something happens to the environment that could drastically chance the landscape, the organisms in that environment may or may not survive, depending on the changes. Some organisms will adapt to the changes, and some will not.…

    • 269 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Over long periods of time, newer and better adapted species gradually replace older ones, which become extinct. All species are modified, creating increasingly complex and developed organisms that form new species which are connect to their ancestors through intermediate species. Darwin cannot fully explain what unfavorable conditions cause species to go extinct, but this extinction is definitely a result of the struggle for existence, as well as a necessary part of natural selection. The fiercest competition is usually between similar species, resulting in the eventual extinction of one of them, after which it is improbable that another similar species would come into existence. Darwin also argues that although natural selection does not act on ecosystems, it is possible for species around the world to change at the same time. “Parallel succession” is supported by geological evidence of similar fossils of the same period found in similar limestone formations in different places. However, later changes in these species’ behavior or environment can lead to further natural selection and formation of new species. Changes in one species can also affect changes in another. Natural selection often results in families of species that have been formed from a single parent species over time, the relationship of which can be determined through fossil records. Related…

    • 713 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Human beings being the dominant mammal on earth will try to take advantage of that. Just what happen to the Great Buffalo in North America, it was brought down to the brink of extinction. Between groups of human beings? Like any typical alpha male, there must be tension among who will have control among people or property. Men and women? Men will and has always been placed as the dominant of the two mammals and to this date, we still have these tendencies among people in different countries. Different generations? As the new generations come along their change of views change. So we will always have change among people some good and some bad.…

    • 708 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays