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Home Q & A Board Biology-Related Homework Help Genetics and Developmental Biology
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fireman fireman
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11 years ago
Now, before I ask my question, it should be known that I know a fair bit about evolution- but one annoying phrase has been bothering me.

Does the coined phrase "descent with modification" imply that INDIVIDUALS descent from a parent, and are modified by mutations? If so, how can this describe evolution, as evolution only happens in populations? Or does the same phrase mean that POPULATIONS descend from previous generations with different gene frequencies? But, then again, differences in gene frequency are not modifications. If I got it all wrong, what does "descent with modification" mean?
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#1
11 years ago
I always took "Descent with modification" to mean a (generally physical) change that is genetic in origin.  

And one has to keep in mind that although evolution is manifested in populations, the actual changes occur with individuals who either have an increased, neutral, or decreased survivability/reproduction rate because of the effect of that change on the INDIVIDUAL.

Individuals benefit.  the population changes as a result.
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#2
11 years ago
It means that offspring are different from their parents. How those differences occur was not known when Darwin used the phrase. Mutations can occur at several stages during meiosis and mitosis of the gametes, fertilization, gene crossover etc. It doesn't matter, in essence, when or how they occur. As long as they are viable, they will survive. If they are advantageous, there is always the chance that they will increase in the population.
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#3
10 years ago
divergent species are related to one another through common descent.
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