Arguing for Evolution

This timely encyclopedia presents an arsenal of evidence for evolution that goes beyond the typical textbook examples.

Arguing for Evolution: An Encyclopedia for Understanding Science provides readers with a single source for the scientific evidence supporting evolution. The book shows how scientists have tested the predictions of evolutionary theory and created an unshakeable foundation of evidence supporting its truth. As such, it demonstrates how evolution serves as a case study for understanding the scientific method and presents a logical model for scientific inquiry.

The evidence for evolution is presented historically and topically in an accessible, example-rich, and logical format, using an arsenal of examples that goes beyond the typical textbook matter. The chapters are structured around a series of hypotheses that the authors put to the test, amassing evidence on fossils, comparative anatomy, molecules, and evolutionary biology in order to conclude that evolution is scientific fact. Learning about this fascinating field is enhanced through "see for yourself" examples that include original data and figures from key historical and contemporary papers in evolutionary biology.

Quick A-Z Guide to the Evidence
Acknowledgments
Introduction: Evolution as a Predictive Science
1 Understanding the Natural World: Evolution and the Process of Science
Definitions of Science and Scientific Theory
Definition of Evolution
How Evolution Occurs
Adaptation and Natural Selection
Natural Selection and Fitness
Proximate versus Ultimate Causation
Products of Evolution
Transitional Forms
Complexity
Extinction
Artificial Selection
Adaptive Radiation
Homologous and Analogous Features
Exaptations
Vestigial Traits
Evolution in Action: The Modern Threat of Antibiotic Resistance
Summary
2 Age of Earth
Prediction
Theories of Earth's Age
Scriptural Claims about Earth's Age
Using Seas and Salt to Estimate Earth's Age
Sedimentation Rates as a Measure of Time
Geological Formations as Evidence of Earth's History
Earth's Age as a Function of Temperature
Radioactivity and Radiometric Dating
Radioactivity
Radiometric Dating
What Isotopes Occur in Nature?
Using Radioactivity to Determine the Ages of Rocks
Other Radiometric Methods
Fission-Track Dating
Thermoluminescence
Paleomagnetism
Creationists' Claims about Radiometric Dating
The Age of Earth
Summary
3 Fossils
Predictions
We See Direct Evidence of the History of Life on Earth
How and Where Do Fossils Form?
Is the Fossil Record Complete?
The Fossil Record Can Be Matched with Geologic Evidence to Describe the History of Life on Earth
Fossils in the Sediments and Biostratigraphy
Creationists' Objections to Biostratigraphy
Fossilized Invertebrates
Evolutionary Lineages for Vertebrates
The Fossil Record, "Sudden Appearance," and the Cambrian Explosion
The Fossil Record Includes Transitional Forms Linking Different Groups of Organisms
Missing Links
Transitional Forms
Archaeopteryx: From Dinosaurs to Birds
Tiktaalik: From Fish to Land Vertebrates
Environmental Changes and Competition Inherent in Natural Selection Produce Extinctions
Fossils as Evidence of Extinction
Cuvier's Theory of Extinction
Background Extinction
Mass Extinction
The K-T Extinction
The Permian-Triassic Extinction
Human-Caused Extinction
Summary
4 Biogeography
Predictions
Darwin's Observations of Life's Diversity
Life Is Extremely Diverse, and This Diversity Is Influenced by Geologic History
Earth's Biodiversity
Biogeography
Early Theories of Biogeography
Species That Are Most Alike Usually Live Near Each Other Geographically, Regardless of Differences in Environment
Biogeography in the Age of Exploration
Biogeography and Geology
Major, Long-term Changes in the Distribution of Life's Diversity Are Influenced by Plate Tectonics
Continental Geography
Continental Drift
Geologic Evidence of Continental Movement
Paleomagnetism
Radiometric Dating of the Seafloor
Pangaea and Biogeography
Tectonic Movement and Evolution
Different Species in Similar Habitats Often Evolve Similar Adaptations
Convergent Evolution
Isolated Habitats Such as Oceanic Islands Are Populated by Descendants of Organisms from the Nearest Mainland
Continental and Oceanic Islands
Colonization of Oceanic Islands
Island Species and Mainland Species
Adaptive Radiation
Unique Features of Island Biogeography
Creationists' Explanations for Biogeography
Summary
5 Molecular Evidence for Evolution
Predictions
Common Ancestry Is Revealed by a Common Hereditary Material (DNA or RNA)
Related Organisms Reveal Their Genetic Similarity through Protein Similarity
Antigen Specificity
Protein Relatedness
Ubiquitous Proteins Exist in Seemingly Disparate Taxa
Ubiquitous Proteins
Cytochrome c
Hemoglobin
Organisms with More Recent Common Ancestry Have More Hereditary Material in Common Than Organisms Further Removed Evolutionarily
DNA Hybridization
Genetic Sequence Data
Genomes and Genetic Timelines
Comparing the Coding Regions of Ubiquitous Proteins Confirms Common Ancestry
Genes as Evidence of Common Descent
Heat-Shock Proteins and Adaptation
Organisms with Common Ancestry Share Randomly Generated Transposable Elements and Homologous Genes
Transposable Elements and Shared Ancestry
Gene Duplication
Shared Ancestry Is Inferred through the Occurrence of Vestigial Molecular Elements, or Pseudogenes
The Origin of Pseudogenes
Pseudogenes as Evidence of Common Inheritance
Shared Ancestry Is Revealed within a Lineage Showing Evidence of a Shared Viral Pathogen
Endogenous Retroviruses and Common Descent
Summary
6 Anatomical Evidence for Evolution
Predictions
There Are Anatomical Similarities among Related Organisms
Comparative Anatomy
Homologous Structures
Structural Similarities in Plants
Analogous Structures and Convergent Evolution
Organisms Possess Vestigial Structures That Serve as Evolutionary Baggage
Vestigial Structures as Remnants of Ancestral Organisms
Creationists' Criticisms of Vestigial Organs as Evidence of Evolution
There Are Developmental Similarities among Organisms
Developmental Similarities
Embryological Similarities
Development and Embryology as Evidence of Common Ancestry
The Study of Evolutionary Development
Homeotic Genes
Developmental Variation
Eye Development and Animal Evolution
Summary
7 Conflict and Cooperation Part I: Behavior
Predictions
Behavior
Organisms Exhibit Behaviors That Increase Their Chances of Survival
Tropic or Taxic Behavior
Migration
Thermoregulation
Storage and Retrieval
Behavioral Adaptations That Enhance Survival Are Selected over Those That Do Not, Even When a Cost Is Incurred by Other Individuals in the Population
Egg Eviction by Birds
Conspecific Infanticide
Behaviors, Like Other Measurable Adaptations, Can Be Artificially Selected
Experimental Manipulation of Behavioral Traits
Heritability of Behaviors
Individuals Behave Preferentially toward Kin When There Is Likely to Be an Inclusive Fitness Benefit
Altruistic Behavior and Kin Selection
Helping
Alarm Calling
Suicide
Worker Castes
Altruism by Reciprocal Exchange
Individuals Exhibit Behaviors That Serve Simply to Acquire Mates
Sexual Selection
Intrasexual Competition
Intersexual Selection and Behavior
Theories of Female-Choice Mechanics
There Is an Adaptive Advantage in Behaviors That Help Ensure Parentage
Competitive Sperm
Cooperative Sperm
Sperm Competition and Behavior
In a Conflict between Individual Survival and Reproductive Potential, Reproductive Potential Wins
Destructive Reproductive Behavior in an Evolutionary Context
Parents Behave Preferentially toward Those Offspring Most Likely to Augment the Parents' Inclusive Fitness
Differential Treatment of Offspring
Parental Favoritism of the Sexes
Siblicide
Summary
8 Conflict and Cooperation Part II: Coevolution
Predictions
Coevolution
Ecological Relevance
Prey Species Possess Ecologically Relevant Adaptations against Predation
Coloration, Mimicry, and Warning Signals
Toxic Emissions and Secretions
Influence of Predation Pressure
Third-Party Exploitation
Predators Possess Ecologically Relevant Adaptations That Allow Them to Conquer Prey
Coloration in Predators
Odor Used to Attract Prey
Selection for Predatory Ability
Organisms Exploit Different Ecological Niches to Reduce the Negative Effects of Competition
Character Displacement and Niche Partitioning
Displacement from Antagonistic Coevolution
Diversifying Coevolution
Parasites Evolve Strategies That Allow Them to Exploit Host Resources
Reciprocal Adaptations
Selection-Driven Virulence in Parasites
Parasite-Mediated Behavior and Coevolutionary Escalation
Host Species Evolve Ways to Minimize the Costs of Being Parasitized
Parasite-Host Coevolution in Avian Brood Parasites
Specificity of Hosts and Intensity of Reciprocal Adaptations
Host Tolerance
Host Responses to Parasitism
Symbiont Species That Serve a Life-History Function Are Rewarded and Continue
Mutualism
Obligate Mutualism
Mutualism in the Oceans and Atmosphere
Rewarded Symbionts Are Penalized for Cheating
Penalties in the Cleaner-Fish Symbiosis
Penalties in the Yucca-Yucca Moth Symbiosis
Summary
9 Human Evolution
Predictions
Human Evolution: Biogeographic Evidence
Sites of Origin
Darwin's Prediction: The African Origins of Humans
Human Evolution: Fossil Evidence
Dart's Discovery of Hominin Fossils
Other Hominin Discoveries in Africa
Africa as the Birthplace of Humanity
Human Evolution: Molecular Evidence
Universal Homology, Ubiquitous Proteins, and Human Evolution
Fossil Genes in the Human Genome
Humans and the MC1R Gene
Humans and Endogenous Retroviruses
Human Evolution: Anatomical and Developmental Evidence
Vestigial Body-Parts
Human Development and Evolutionary History
Human Behavior from an Evolutionary Perspective
Behavior as an Adaptation in Humans
Kin Preference in Human Behavior
Mating in the Evolved Human
Paternity Assurance in the Human Male
Parental Favoritism as an Adaptation
Human Evolution: Coevolutionary Evidence
The Shared Evolution of Humans and Plasmodium
Coevolution with Pathogens and HIV Resistance
Coevolution with Pathogens and Urban Living
Human Exploitation of Third-Party Organisms
The Coevolved Human and Mate Choice
Human Coevolution and Lactose Tolerance
Summary
Appendix 1. Charles Darwin's On the Origin of Species (1859, first edition), Chapters IV ("Natural Selection") and XIV ("Recapitulation and Conclusion")
Appendix 2. The Geologic Timescale
Appendix 3. Major Species of Known Hominins
Glossary
References
Index