Presentation for a biology lesson in 9th grade on the topic “Main directions of evolution”

An important human ability in all centuries has been adaptation. To survive, to get used to something new, to learn something, a person must adapt. There are types of adaptation that depend on the factors of their formation. The very concept of adaptation is relevant today in the light of an ever-changing world.

Man has always been forced to adapt. To catch a mammoth, he needed to create weapons and develop a hunting strategy. To survive in cold or hot conditions, he had to create certain means of protecting his body. Modern man, for example, needs to constantly adapt to new laws or rules of society. And if a person leaves for another country, then adaptation is considered an important element in the process of organizing a new life.

Adaptation is the main stage that allows a person to quickly get used to it and develop habits, according to the online magazine psytheater.com. We can say that even in the process of growing up and living, a person is constantly forced to adapt. This concept should be associated with terms such as change and flexibility. A person must change himself in order to adapt. At the same time, he must flexibly perceive surrounding circumstances in order to undergo the adaptation process favorably for himself.

What is adaptation?

What does the concept of adaptation mean? This is a person's adaptation to the environment. This is done at one of or at all levels at once:

• Physiological.
• Behavioral.
• Genetic.
• Personal.

This looks like a person changing his behavior in accordance with surrounding circumstances. The individual strives to maintain harmony in the conditions of the environment to which he adapts, plus the people who are in it and also adapt to it.

1. Adaptation is the ability of an organism to maintain constant characteristics in changing environmental conditions.
2. Adaptation is the process of getting used to changing circumstances in the environment.

Man as a social being undergoes adaptation at three levels: physiological, psychological and social. Sometimes they influence each other, and sometimes they are not reflected.

Many people talk about adaptability to life. Successful people are proud of this quality. In the literature, you can increasingly read about various kinds of people adapted to life. But what is meant by this phrase?

To answer this question, we should turn to a life example that clearly demonstrates the phenomenon of adaptability to life. Many people may notice that students who studied excellently in schools and universities occupy lower levels of professions than those who were famous for being “low students” during their school years. Cases when once beautiful women suddenly turned into “gray mice”, and successful men into poor people are no exception. Why is this happening? Why do some continue to maintain their status or develop, while others, on the contrary, degrade and fall from their pedestal as kings?

Everything is quite simple. The life of any person is divided into periods: infancy, childhood, school years, adolescence, student life, growing up, etc. Periods can also consist of life events: marriage, birth of a child, new acquaintances, change of place of work, separation from a loved one or starting a new love relationship. By periods we can understand everything that affects the way of life to a greater or lesser extent. Some periods are easily perceived by the individual, while others are difficult. For example, the death of a loved one is more difficult to bear than meeting a new partner whom you will see only once in your life.

So, every period that changes a person’s habitual way of life affects him. It is at this very moment, when a person’s life changes in the slightest way, that changes occur in his personality: he can remain the same, begin to develop, or, conversely, degrade. Simply put, the past lifestyle (period) helped a person to be successful and beautiful, and the new period does not correspond to the person’s usual actions. Everything that worked before has ceased to work, and if a person is unable to change his habits in accordance with changed circumstances, then he turns into a failure.

Many can attribute this to the following factor: previously a person had a goal for which he did something and developed, but when the goal was achieved, a new goal did not appear. Therefore, the person has lost his former ardor, activity or success. Added to all this is the loss of activity of a person who previously was constantly doing something and was passionate about something, but now, due to new circumstances, has become passive, not interested in anything.

This is why some “A” students work for “B” students when they become adults; This is why former businessmen cannot always start a new business; that’s why some former beauties become boring and “gray”, etc. Their lives have changed (they are no longer in school; there is no more business; the woman has reached marriage) and has moved to a new stage of its formation. But the people themselves were not ready for such changes: they did not set new goals for themselves that would lead them to new growth, and they also stopped being active.

What may have come to the fore is depression from the loss of former glory, the opinions of people around him rather than one’s own, the desire to achieve something, fight one’s own laziness and live in accordance with one’s desires. Periods of life constantly replace each other, but a person is ready for only some periods (and then he becomes a King), and not for others (then he becomes an unhappy and unlucky person).

In order not to “fall from the peak” that you have climbed in the future, you should understand that life will not always be stable and constant. You need to be flexible and adaptable to change. The normal course of life will change, but you can set new goals for yourself that will contain everything that is important to you and what you still want to achieve, and also be active in their implementation. Remember, only you can raise yourself up or bring yourself down. Do not succumb to factors that may deprive you of the necessary qualities and abilities. Adapt to life: take care of what you have, set new goals and actively achieve them.

Adaptation often becomes necessary during the period of achieving a goal. This is where barriers and difficulties arise. These are the very external circumstances to which you need to adapt. In what ways?

• Gain new knowledge.
• Set a clear goal.
• Adequately assess the situation.
• Make your actions such that the barrier is removed.

Adaptation mechanisms are:

1. Social intelligence is the perception of relationships and connections between objects.
2. Social imagination - creating experience by being aware of oneself, one's own capabilities and resources, placing oneself in current circumstances and predetermining the future.

Defense mechanisms during adaptation are:

1. Denial is ignoring the traumatic and unpleasant.
2. Regression is a manifestation of infantile behavior.
3. Repression is the erasing of unpleasant memories from memory.
4. Formation of a reaction is a change in emotional states and irrational impulses to the opposite.
5. Suppression is the same as repression, only conscious.
6. Projection is the endowment of others with qualities that a person himself possesses, but is not aware of them.
7. Rationalization is an attempt to interpret an event in such a way as to alleviate the traumatic element.
8. Identification is the attribution to oneself of the qualities of another real or fictitious person.
9. Humor – reducing emotional tension through funny stories.
10. Sublimation is the transformation of instincts into socially acceptable forms of behavior.

Emotions are a regulator of how well a person adapts. Successful adaptation is a feeling of physical and mental balance in the external environment. In this case, a person experiences balanced and calm emotions.

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Chapter 6. Biological consequences of adaptation. Macroevolution

3) List the main directions of the evolutionary process.

• Answer:
• 1- Aromorphosis.
• 2- Idioadaptation.
• 3- General degeneration.

4) Give a definition of aromorphosis.

• Answer: Aromorphosis is a complication of the structural and functional organization, raising it to a higher level.

5) List the main properties of aromorphoses (using the text of the textbook, pp. 60, 63). Underline the correct words.

• Answer:
• 1- Aromorphoses (increase, decrease) the structural and functional organization of organisms.
• 2- Aromorphoses (are or are not) adaptations to specific environmental conditions.
• 3- Aromorphoses (allow, do not allow) to make fuller use of environmental conditions.
• 4- Aromorphoses (increase, decrease) the intensity of vital activity of organisms.
• 5- Aromorphoses (reduce, increase) the dependence of organisms on living conditions.
• 6- Aromorphoses (preserved, not preserved) in the course of further evolution.
• 7- Aromorphoses lead to the emergence of new (small, large) systematic groups.

6) Give examples of aromorphoses in:

• Answer:
• motor system of vertebrates – increase mobility (appearance of a skeleton);
• in the digestive system of vertebrates – the transition from passive to active nutrition (the appearance of jaws).

7) Give examples of aromorphoses in:

• Answer:
• respiratory system of vertebrates - the appearance of gills, lungs;
• the circulatory system of vertebrates - the appearance of the heart in fish, the separation of arterial and venous blood flow in mammals and birds.

Define idioadaptation.

• Answer: Idioadaptation is an adaptation to special environmental conditions, useful in the struggle for existence, but does not change the level of organization of animals or plants.

9) Characterize the evolutionary results of idioadaptations. Give two examples each from zoology and botany.

• Answer: Each species of organism develops adaptations to the environmental conditions where they live. For example, animals from wild places brought to zoos adapt to environmental conditions. In zoology - the flat body shape of stingrays and other bottom-dwelling fish, the protective coloration of animals.

10) Answer what the extreme degree of idioadaptation is called, and what are its consequences for the species. Give two examples.

• Answer: The extreme degree of idioadaptation is called specialization. This can lead to the fact that the species cannot exist in other conditions. For example, hummingbirds can only feed on the nectar of tropical flowers, so they can only live in tropical forests. Anteaters cannot live in places where there are no ants.

11) Define general degeneration.

• Answer: General degeneration is a simplification of organization, or regression, leading to the disappearance of organs of active life.

12) Give two examples each from botany and zoology courses that illustrate how a species achieves biological prosperity (biological progress) through general degeneration.

• Answer: Prosperity through degeneration was achieved, for example, in botany - parasitic plants, such as mistletoe and rosewort. In zoology - round and flat parasitic worms.

13) Fill in the missing word(s).

• Answer: General degeneration is characteristic of the parasitic form(s) of organisms.

§ 13- GENERAL REGULARITIES OF BIOLOGICAL EVOLUTION

1) Define divergence and characterize its evolutionary result. Give two examples each from botany and zoology courses.

• Answer: Divergence is the process of divergence in the characteristics of organisms arising from a common ancestor during their adaptation to different living conditions.
• The evolutionary result of divergence is the emergence of new forms: orders, families, genera and species.
• Examples: in botany - modifications of leaves into spines, tendrils, needles; modification of shoots into rhizomes, tubers and bulbs. In zoology, the division of the class mammals into families (primates, rodents, etc.), and families into various orders (even-toed and odd-toed ungulates, etc.).

2) Formulate a definition of convergence and characterize its evolutionary result. Give examples from botany and zoology courses.

• Answer: Convergence is the similarity of the structure of animals with similarity of functions in the same conditions of existence, limited only to those organs directly related to the same environmental conditions.
• The evolutionary result of convergence: physiological improvement of unrelated organisms in similar living conditions in a similar way.
• Examples: in botany - similar adaptations in the same conditions (for example, high humidity, shade - thin dark leaves). In zoology - the wings of a butterfly and an insect, a similar appearance in jumping animals, etc.

3)* Answer, is it possible, based on the similarity in the structure of the flying apparatus of butterflies and birds, to say that in the course of evolution they arose through divergence. Give reasons for your answer.

• The answer (yes, no) is no.
• Evidence: these flight adaptations are a sign of convergence. Butterfly wings are outgrowths on the front wall of the body, and bird wings are modified forelimbs. That is, the wings of butterflies and birds are similar organs, which is characteristic of convergence.

4)* Explain the meaning of the following figurative expression: “Organisms that have convergent similarities are different books in the same binding.”

• Answer: Convergent characters arise in organisms that are evolutionarily distant from each other. These can be completely different species, genera, families and even types. Similar characteristics and structure are formed in them in similar living conditions.

5) Match the beginnings of statements (A, B) and their continuations (1-4).

A. These organs arose in evolution through divergence.

B. These organs arose in evolution through convergence.

1- Pea tendrils, barberry needles.

2- Human eyes, octopus eyes.

3- Rhizome of lily of the valley, bottom of onion.

4- Limbs of a mole cricket, limbs of a mole.

• Answer:
• A: 1.3
• B: 2, 4

6) Expand the content of the principle of irreversibility of evolution.

• Answer: The irreversibility of evolution means that a new, more developed form of life that has arisen cannot return to the beginning of its development.

7)* Explain what fundamental limitation exists for the “reverse motion” of the evolutionary process if organisms return to the environment in which their ancestors once lived.

• Answer: The previous history of the development of a group of organisms does not pass without a trace. Adaptation to the environment in which their ancestors once lived takes place at a different, more complex genetic level.

Adaptation factors

A person has to adapt to many factors, some of them are natural, others are artificially created:

• Natural factors: wildlife, climatic factors, natural disasters.
• Material environment: surrounding objects, cars, equipment and other artificial elements, work, home.
• Social environment: state, ethnic group, people.

Adaptability is the ability of a person to adapt to new conditions. Everyone gets used to the same conditions at different paces. Some adapt quickly, others more slowly. This is influenced by two factors:

1. Subjective. Include physiology, age and psyche of a person. The psychological factor includes a person’s ability to perceive, react emotionally to situations, practically take actions and motivate himself.
2. Environmental. They include the environment in which a person lives: home, people, work, hobbies, economy, etc.

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Problems with socio-psychological adaptation

A child’s lack of discipline, irresponsibility and inattention are largely due to excessive stress experienced by the psyche. There may be several reasons for this:

• excessively high demands from teachers and parents;
• problems with learning material;
• personal failures;
• dissatisfaction and constant criticism of loved ones, teachers;
• anxiety and vigilance of a first grader.

Additional extracurricular loads lead not only to fatigue, but also to the desire to fulfill the requirements by sacrificing study. Problems in communicating with peers result in a mood of protest and worsening behavior.

Types of adaptation

The adaptation includes:

• Biological adaptation. This is the path of evolution. The human body changes in accordance with the environment where it lives. If the body cannot adapt, then it gets sick.
• Social adaptation. It is the habituation of a person to social routines in order to be able to achieve personal goals. Adaptation can be expressed in various forms - from complete adaptation to reluctance to work or communicate with someone. In this case, a person usually adapts passively. However, the active (conscious, intentional) form of adaptation is considered more acceptable and effective.
• Ethnic adaptation. Adaptation of a person to the society in which he lives.
• Psychological adaptation. This is a person’s adaptation in character, behavior, worldview, values, which will cause harmonious and calm feelings in the world around him.

Unacceptable forms of adaptation are:

1. Deviant behavior is antisocial, directed against society, against its rules and laws.
2. Pathological behavior is neurotic and mental disorders.

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Adaptation and homeostasis

Biological systems are in the process of exchanging substances with the environment, which provides them with the necessary energy and causes the ability to self-renew. As a result, a dynamic renewal of the chemical composition occurs, in which a state of equilibrium is achieved due to the ability of biological systems to maintain homeostasis.

Homeostasis is the constancy of the internal environment of a biological system, achieved through coordinated reactions that make it possible to restore equilibrium.

You studied the mechanisms of maintaining homeostasis in most detail using the example of the human body. This is ensured by regulatory systems: nervous, humoral and immune. Some of these changes are relatively short-lived, such as increased heart rate and breathing during physical activity, which return to normal when the activity stops. Others may be longer lasting - for example, an increase in the volume of muscle fibers and the number of mitochondria in them due to physical training. You can also read more about adaptation mechanisms in the articles Adaptation as a property of biological systems and Biochemical adaptations.

Bottom line

A person is always forced to adapt at different levels of his life. First, a person adapts physiologically, getting used to control of his body, then to the surrounding nature. Social adaptation begins at the moment when parents begin raising a child. At the same time, psychological adaptation occurs when a person develops character traits that will help him feel harmonious in existing conditions.

Adaptation does not always imply exclusively effective and successful, acceptable behavior. You can adapt by developing an illness or bad behavior, which also helps you achieve your goals more quickly under existing conditions.

Scientific approaches to the problem of identifying factors of social adaptation

1. Analysis of a certain factor, its role and influence on social adaptation
2. Considering multiple factors without grouping them into groups
3. Representation of a group of factors as a system of interaction within the framework of social adaptation
4. A systematic approach to considering factors of social adaptation

In the first case, a specific factor influencing the adaptation process is considered, for example, education, cognitive style, etc. It becomes obvious here that isolating one factor cannot provide a complete picture of the conditions that influence the social adaptation process.

The second approach involves listing a number of factors (personal qualities, motivation, achievements, communicative tolerance, etc.), which together influence social adaptation.

One of the most common classifications of social adaptation factors is their dichotomous division into external and internal. External factors refer to the properties and conditions of society; internal factors include the personal characteristics and activity of the individual.

Let's consider one of these classifications.

Levels of adaptation

A. L. Wenger identified 3 levels of school adaptation (low, medium, high) and the following components of school adaptation: attitude towards school, interest in educational activities, behavior, position in the class (see table below).

Levels of school adaptation (A. L. Wenger)

From the table it can be stated that a low level indicates the student’s maladjustment, a medium level indicates mild manifestations of maladjustment and risks, a high level indicates the successful adaptation of a first-grader.