Survival of The Fittest - Toppr Tutors
Biology literally means “the study of life”. Life Sciences attempt to untie the mysteries behind living things; right from the working of protein ‘machines’, to the growth of an organism from a single cell to the majesty and intricacy of a whole ecosystem. Questions about life sciences are as diverse and fascinating as life itself. Say, how a single cell knows to build up complex organism? How the interpretation of genetic information takes place?
How the properties of organisms are affected due to gene mutation? How ecosystem changes due to climate?
What can human genetic variation tell us about the history of human evolution and migration? Evolution is the change in heritable traits of biological populations over successive generations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every biological organization level. All life on earth shares a common ancestor known as the last universal ancestor. In the mid-19th century, Charles Darwin formulated the scientific theory of evolution by natural selection, while in the early 20th century the modern evolutionary synthesis integrated classical genetics with Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection through the discipline of population genetics. Evolution is the cornerstone of modern science, accepted as one of the most reliably established of all facts and theories of science, based on evidence not just from the biological sciences but also from anthropology, psychology, astrophysics, chemistry, geology, physics, mathematics, and other scientific disciplines, as well as behavioral and social sciences.
THEORY OF EVOLUTION ON EARTH
Today’s life diversity on earth is the result of evolution. On Earth, life began at least 4 billion years ago and it has been evolving every year. In the beginning, all living things on earth were single-celled organisms, after several years multicellular organisms evolved after that diversity in life on earth increased day by day.
Charles Darwin’s observations and how they support the theory of evolution and the idea of natural selection.
The role of natural selection in adaptation.
Characteristics of microevolutionary and macroevolutionary processes.
Is this accurate for Darwin’s theory of Natural Selection?
Fact 1 — The population tends to remain stable.
Fact 2 — Organisms reproduce more offspring than could be supported.
Inference 1 — Not all the offsprings live long enough to reproduce.
Fact 3 — Resources are limited
Fact 4 — Individuals within a population differ in individuality.
Fact 5 — Inherited characteristics are more.
Inference 2 — There will be differential survival and reproduction.
This is Natural Selection.
Inference 3 — Over time these differences will shift the makeup of the population.
This is decent with modification. Evolution will occur.
*‘Fit’ organisms will live & thrive to pass their genetic material to the next generation.
*Fitness depends on reproducing & ensuring the survival of population rather than strength, speed or length.
If we observe closely, this isn’t just limited to scientific or academic study. We can relate it to any organization out there. An organization, say Toppr, is a complex creature, where each part is essential for its functioning. It’s not just the head or the heart that’s important. You take away any part, and the body will be crippled. The team of tutors, freelancers, supervisors or others are a very essential part of this body and we need you. This relation, that we have is symbiotic in nature and that’s how life is.
Like life, only the fittest organizations survive, and the fact that we stand today points at the fact that we have evolved and our foundation, of which you are an integral part is strong and that’s what helps us in evolving.
If we get down to the individual level, then we have got to evolve too, for our own good. We need to look at ourselves and compare us, not with someone else and but the “we” of yesterday. We need to see how we are better today than yesterday, how we could have been better or what went wrong yesterday. And after learning from this, we need to evolve. Else, we will go extinct! Likewise, while working with our dear students, we have got to see their problems from different perspectives, see what they need and understanding what they want is a behaviour that we got to adapt.
We have got the opportunity to take control of our life, the opportunity to evolve, be a better version of ourselves every day; then why let this opportunity go in vain?
