Question

Misconceptions in Evolution

Write a misconception and the correct evolutionary interpretation for the following statements:

    Example:

Statement: Over time, the average length of giraffe necks has increased.

Misconception: Short-necked giraffes stretched their necks by reaching for food that was high in trees. They passed this new acquired trait on to their offspring, which were born with long necks.

Correct interpretation: The ancestral giraffe population happened to have some short-necked giraffes and some slightly longer-necked giraffes. The giraffes with slightly longer necks could reach more food (or could win more fights, etc.) and had superior survival and reproduction. Over time, the long-necked giraffes became more common in the population. Repeated over many generations, this resulted in evolution of longer and longer necks.

A) After the Industrial Revolution, moths changed from being mostly light to being mostly dark.

B) The incidence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is on the rise, many bacteria have resistance mutations.

C) Heterozygotes which carry the gene for sickle-cell anemia (but aren't greatly affected by the disease) are resistant to malaria.

Answer 1

A) After the Industrial Revolution, moths changed from being mostly light to being mostly dark.

Correct interpretation: moths with white winged and melanised both were both co exist at a time, but none of them are comletely removed from the ecosystem. after the industrial revolution when most of the tree bark and surfaces becomes black due to depossition of carbon, the moth with blackish wings/ Melanised moths were being most acceptble due to their comoflauge color, they can predate and even protects themselves from predators due to their color. . MARK : none of these both type of moth, completely eradicated, but there no. decreases. due to unfavourable condition. in such industrial revolution no. of melanised moth increases while no. of white moth decreases but not comletely removed from ecosystem.

B) The incidence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is on the rise, many bacteria have resistance mutations.

Correct interpretation: More the rate of reproduction more is the rate of mutation. so in case of bacteria newly mutant variety/strains are already exist, mutant starins are resistant to antibiotic. so when a bacterial culture treated with certain specific antibiotic those mutant bacterial strains are lived, but those bacteria which are normal removed as they died.

not all mutation leads to antibiotic resistance, as we know mutation can be any type and can cause any change in bacterial physiology and morphology, here only those mutations are considered those can cause antibiotic resistance.

C) Heterozygotes which carry the gene for sickle-cell anemia (but aren't greatly affected by the disease) are resistant to malaria.

Correct interpretation: through some genetc experiment it is shown that heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) an enzyme whose expression is strongly induced by sickle hemoglobin. that causes the production of Carbon Monooxide gas. this gas check the growth of plasmodium inside the RBC.