Evolution Blog

 A phylogenetic tree is a diagram that shows evolutionary relationships among organisms. There are many different phylogenetic trees because there are SO many different species of organisms. The branching pattern on these "trees" represents how a species evolved from a series of common ancestors.  The diagram shown above is an example of a monophyletic tree. The group that is circled is the monophyletic group, who all came from the same ancestor. However, each one of these organisms has a characteristic that makes it different than the other organisms in this group. (Note that this is not an accurate representation of the actual genetic relationships of these animals) The diagram shown above is an example of a paraphyletic tree. All of the animals listed make up a paraphyletic group. Paraphyletic groups do not share a common ancestor. For example, the panda and its descendants are not genetically related to the ostrich and its descendants.

       I was not aware that evolution occurs on both macro and micro scales. It does make sense that the two scales are intertwined though, because if they weren’t, all of the evolutionary history would be completely random and wouldn’t be traceable. The part I do wonder about, however, is at what point does the evolution of an organism transition from micro to macro. I understand microevolution is what is happening “now,” but how long is actually considered “now” and when does it become macroevolution?      In the video with Grant Ernhart, I was completely blown away by the visuals he used. It is easy to think about how long the Earth has been alive, but seeing it on that scale, I realized I truly had no idea. The biggest thing that surprised me was how long photosynthesis had been taking place with no other real life-forms. Also, what an absolute “short” period of time that humans have been around. I would love to learn more in depth about how after ...

       I found the first set of lectures very interesting. I enjoyed how I was able to learn something new to get my mind back in the swing of things without having to fully jump into learning the course material right away. Specifically, what I learned was the science behind hand-washing. It never occurred to me that there was such a detrimental effect that took place before Dr. Semmelweis finally realized and hypothesized that having dirty hands was the root of such a high maternal death rate. After learning about this, it made me wonder who else in history had similar realizations and normalized behaviors we do habitually today, such as brushing our teeth.       Another part of the lectures I found interesting, and surprisingly related to, were the different mindsets we have in relation to learning. Throughout high school I always considered myself to be more of a “math person” compared to any other subject. With wanting to go to dental hygiene...

My name is Jessica Venard. I am a senior studying Biology with a minor in Microbiology and plan to attend dental hygiene school after graduation. I currently work as a dental assistant at an office here in Stillwater and I love it. In my free time I enjoy hanging out with my friends and in the summer I especially enjoy reading a good book by the pool. Even with this world pandemic, I was fortunate enough to get to go on vacation to the beach which was a much needed get-away with all the stress surrounding life in general right now.