Understanding Evolution: your one-stop source for information on evolution
Welcome to Understanding Evolution
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Dive right in: for basic information on how evolution works, start with Evolution 101.

Browse by topic

How evolution works What is evolution and how does it work?
Detailed explanations of the mechanisms of evolution and the history of life on Earth
Includes: Examples of evolution, Genetics, History of life on Earth, Macroevolution, Microevolution, Natural selection, Speciation ...
Relevance of evolution How does evolution impact my life?
The relevance of evolutionary theory to our everyday lives
Includes: Agriculture, Conservation, Medicine ...
Evidence and examples What is the evidence for evolution?
Multiple lines of scientific evidence relating to evolution
Includes: Homology and analogy ...
History of evolutionary thought What is the history of evolutionary theory?
The history of ideas, research, and contributors in the study of evolution


Looking for information on controversies in the public arena relating to evolution? See our frequently-asked questions.


Teaching evolution

Understanding Evolution for teachers

Explore the ultimate evolution resource for K-12 teachers, including:

• lesson plans

• conceptual framework

...and more.

Teachers click here >>

Evo in the news
fossa Oxygen as an evolutionary constraint - November 2009
It's now clear that humans have dramatically changed Earth's atmosphere. More than 30 years ago, scientists realized that our production of chlorofluorocarbons was destroying Earth's protective ozone layer; as we burn fossil fuels for energy, we inadvertently release chemicals like sulfur dioxide, which react with other atmospheric compounds and end up acidifying rainwater; and of course, our production of greenhouse gases, like carbon dioxide, is shifting the makeup of Earth's atmosphere in a direction that actually changes the climate on a global scale. Many of our recent Evo in the News stories have chronicled how human-caused changes in Earth's atmospheric chemistry and environment are affecting the evolution of life on earth ...

Read the whole story to see the evolution connection >>

highlights

Ancient fossils and modern climate change: The work of Jennifer McElwain Ancient fossils and modern climate change: The work of Jennifer McElwain
This research profile examines how scientist Jennifer McElwain studies plant evolution in order to understand the history and patterns of global climate change.
Angling for evolutionary answers: The work of David O. Conover Angling for evolutionary answers: The work of David O. Conover
This research profile examines how scientist David O. Conover studies the impact of fishing practices on fish evolution and investigates why the "big ones" simply don't exist anymore.




Phylogenetic systematics, a.k.a. evolutionary trees Phylogenetic systematics, a.k.a. evolutionary trees
All life on Earth is united by evolutionary history; we are all evolutionary cousins — twigs on the tree of life. Phylogenetic systematics is the formal name for the field within biology that reconstructs evolutionary history and studies the patterns of relationships among organisms.
Evo in the News archive Evo in the news archive
Many exciting newspaper headlines result from the application of evolutionary theory to scientific research. Every month we examine the evolution angle behind these current news stories. Browse our archive to see past stories.

This site was created by the University of California Museum of Paleontology with support provided by the National Science Foundation (grant no. 0096613) and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (grant no. 51003439).