Instructions:
The thesis for the essay will be : The process of evolution is responsible for all organisms on Earth. (or to that effect)
The essay will follow the “Toulmin” model of argument. It will include these parts: introduction and claim, background, body, and conclusion.
Within the body of the essay, make sure to include the following in any order: support for your claim, opposing or alternate views, scholarly research, and rebuttals.
This essay should be between 600 and 1000 words. There must be at least 5 sources; 3 of the sources must be peer-reviewed. Must have in-text citations and Works Cited page.
Evolution
Evolution is a process through which current organisms descended from ancient ancestors (Boner, 5). It is responsible for the amazing life diversity and the remarkable similarities people see across all life. Fundamental to process is genetic variation through which selective forces takes place for evolution to happen. The evolution of biological populations is via genetic changes that are in correspondence to changes in observable traits of an organism. The genetic changes comprise of mutations that is as a result of replication error or damage in the DNA of an organism (Hall, 85). While populations’ genetic variations drift at random over generations, natural selection slowly makes traits to become less or more common in regard to the relative reproductive success of organism with those traits. In this essay, the focus is on how the process of evolution is responsible for all organisms on earth.
In the present day, the diversity of life on earth is due to evolution. On earth, the beginning of life started around 4 billion years ago, and it has been evolving each year (Ashraf, Muhammad, and Sarfraz). When the earth started, all organisms were single-celled and after some years organisms which were multicellular evolved and years later life on earth rose day by day. Therefore, evolution explains how early forms of life evolved to complex ecosystem witnessed on earth at the present day. Regarding the similarities in all organisms in the present day, all life on earth is believed to have begun through common descent from the one common ancestor where all species diverged through evolution process (Boner, 17). All individuals have hereditary material they get from their parents in the form of genes which they later pass to the next offspring. In the new offspring’s gene variations takes place because of new genes introduction through random changes referred to as mutations or through existing genes reshuffling during sexual reproduction (Bishop et al., 420). The offspring end up being different from its parent in slight random ways and if the differences are helpful its chances of surviving and reproducing are high. This, however, means that the offspring’s in the next generation will have a helpful difference, and there is an equal chance for successful reproduction among the individuals. In this manner traits that make an organism to be well adapted to their conditions of living become more common descendant’s populations. The differences later accumulate and lead to changes in the population. This process is responsible for the numerous forms of lives on earth.
Most of the genetic mutation doesn’t, assist, change individual appearance or bring harm. In the process of genetic drift, mutated genes are sorted by neutral means between populations and by chance alone they end up surviving.
Different to genetic drift, natural selection acts on traits essential for reproduction and survival thus not random (Eden 169). Random genetic shift and natural selection are dynamic and constant life parts, and over time they have shaped tree of life branching structure, which is a research tool and model that used in exploring the evolution of life and give a description of the relationship that exists in organisms both extinct and living.
In conclusion, evolution theory by natural selection was proposed by Alfred Russel Wallace and Charles Darwin. It is presented in detail Darwin’s book on the origin of species. The natural selection theory by Darwin was combined Mendelian inheritance to come up with modern evolution synthesis where the connection between evolution units (genes) evolution mechanism (natural selection) was made. Discovery of fossils in paleontology advances population genetics and scientific research through the global network has given additional details into the mechanism of evolution. A scientist can now understand how new species come into existence (speciation) and have observed this process in laboratories. However, this predictive theory and powerful explanation have been the core organizing principle of modern biology, giving a unifying description of life diversity on earth.
Works Cited
Ashraf, Muhammad Aqeel, and Maliha Sarfraz. “Biology and evolution of life science.” Saudi journal of biological sciences23.1 (2016): S1.
Bishop, Beth A., and Charles W. Anderson. “Student conceptions of natural selection and its role in evolution.” Journal of research in science teaching 27.5 (1990): 415-427.
Bonner, John Tyler. The evolution of complexity by means of natural selection. Princeton University Press, 1988. Pg 5-17
Eden, Murray. “Inadequacies of neo-Darwinian evolution as a scientific theory.” The Wistar Institute symposium monograph. Vol. 5. 1967.pg 169
Hall, Stephen S., and Ewan Birney. “Journey to the genetic interior.” Scientific American 307.4 (2012): 80-89.
