Chapter 15 Reading Guide
15-1 The Puzzle of Life's Diversity
1. The variety of living things is
called __________________________________________
2. What is evolution? _________________________________________________________
3. A scientific theory is a well-_________________________ testable ________________________
of phenomena that have occurred in the natural world.
4. Where was Charles Darwin born? __________________ What year? ___________________
5. During his travels, Darwin made numerous __________________________________
and collected ___________________________________ that led him to propose a
hypothesis.
6. Look at the map in Fig 15-1, After New Zealand, Darwin stopped where?? ___________________________
Darwin used the Cape of Good Hope to pass what continent? ______________________________________
The Galapagos Islands are located to the west of what continent? ___________________________________
7. Darwin collected plant and animal _____________________ at each location
and added them to his collection.
8. What did Darwin collect in the Brazilian rainforest? _________________________________
9. Darwin wondered why there were no __________________ in Australia and no
_____________________ in England.
10. The glyptodont resembles what living animal? __________________________________
(fig 15-2)
11. Define fossil: ___________________________________________________________________________
12. Which tortoise had the longest neck? (fig 15-3) ________________________________________________
13. Which of the Galapagos Islands had rich vegetation? _________________________________________
14. What part of the tortoise could be used to determine what island it came
from? ____________________
15. He noted that many of the birds on the islands had differently shaped _______________________________
16. Darwin wondered if the animals living on the islands were once members of
the same __________________
15-2 Ideas That Shaped Darwin's Thinking
1. Most people in Darwin's day believed
the earth was only a few _____________________________ years old.
2. Most Europeans believed that neither the planet nor its living species had
___________________________.
3. Fossil evidence caused some scientists to conclude that there were several
periods of ____________________.
4. Based on Hutton and Lyell's work, the earth's age is thought to be _______________________
of years old.
5. Name two natural forces that can shape valleys and mountains: ___________________________
6. Lyell stressed that scientists must explain past events in terms of processes
they can ____________________
7. Darwin thought that if the earth could change over time, then why not ________________
Biology and History --- Match the
scientist with the discovery or proposal.
8. __________________ Estimates Earth to be millions of years old.
9. __________________ Set sail on the H.M.S. Beagle
10. __________________ Proposed the idea of inheritance by acquired traits.
11. __________________Predicted that humans would outgrow their space and food.
12. Lamarck was the first to recognize what? ________________________________________
13. Describe Lamarck's hypothesis: ____________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
14. According to Lamarck's hypothesis, what would happen to a bird that did
not use its wings?
_____________________________________________________________________
15. Lamarck's hypothesis was proven to be [correct / incorrect].
16. What did Malthus note about babies? _________________________________________________
17. What would happen if the human population continued to grow unchecked? ____________________
18. Why is the world not covered in maple trees and oysters? _____________________________