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Patterns of evolution

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Patterns of evolution

For many years, human beings have been a product of environment. When we consider the development of human intelligence, we can obviously observe how civilizations have been able to change their environment. Before modern civilization, fossil records show that the physical appearances of early human were different. Large jaw bones, as indicated by fossil records allowed chewing of hard food stuffs (Langseth, 2005). Bone samples collected from various sources suggested that human being were many more brute species unlike the present humanoid which have developed resulting to a more desirable trait. Through evolution, human beings have reduced in size, but mental capacity has increased.

Convergent evolution can be defined as a process whereby species that are not related independently develop similar traits. An example of this evolution can be the adaptation of tails between wildcats and dogs and also monkeys. Divergent evolution is the process by which characteristics possessed by a common ancestor develops over time. A good example of this evolution is the limbs that are present in many vertebrates. Whale limbs and frog's forelimbs most likely developed from the fore flippers of an early jawless fish. Co evolution occurs when two, unlike species influences each other’s evolution (Ehrlich, Dobkin, & Wheye, 1988). Good examples of co evolution are predator-prey and host-parasite pairs.

In adaptive radiation, many species shifts to a new region and develops into totally new species. These species most likely originated from a single species, such as the marsupials – kangaroos which have powerful, extended legs which help them to cover wide areas, and koalas with little, centralized bodies which allows them to...