Modeling Natural Selection
Project #1382 on iSENSEProject.org
In this investigation, students will study the process of natural selection, a process in which organisms that are better adapted to their environment than other members of their species reproduce more successfully. This leads to evolution, a gradual change in the genetic makeup of a population over time. Students will model the changes in population density of brown and white mice over four generations, in both a white sand and dark forest floor environment.
The lesson and extension are attached:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1dkR8dl9_ulnoWDYCbkEbaKF4VxGTFa4WLVW4ZJnXUzQ/edit
Student handout and assessment:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fqG_XzOo1T89Hd2GFBtCsK_EqyG2Jkb5xGifdZ52S4M/edit
For this activity, data has been collected from only one group of students. This investigation is not scheduled to be done for several weeks. At that time, class data will be collected in i-sense via the contributor key and a much larger set of data can be analyzed.
Guiding Questions:
How did the proportion of brown mice produced in the third and fourth generations compare to the proportion produced in the first generation? Did the white mice population change by the same proportion? Can you explain the reason for the difference? Use the bar graph.
Looking at the data, which allele, W or w, was removed from the gene pool by predation?
How does this model simulate real life? What do you think are the limitations of the model?
| Name | Units | Type of Data |
|---|---|---|
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Original Number of White Mice
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None
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Number
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Original Number of Brown Mice
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None
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Number
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Number of White Mice that Lived
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None
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Number
|
|
Number of Brown mice that Lived
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None
|
Number
|
|
Generation
|
|
Text
|
|
Environment
|
|
Text
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| Original Number of White Mice | Original Number of Brown Mice | Number of White Mice that Lived | Number of Brown mice that Lived | Generation | Environment |