Table 1 Organization of concepts for teaching evolution as the unintended consequence of replication, variation, and selection

Replication

The fact that parental DNA builds offspring organisms that are near copies of the parent.

Male and female sperm and egg cells (gametes) fusing and producing the zygote in any mammal.

germ-line self-replicator, DNA, proteins, genes, gene families, gene functions, genotype, phenotype

Variation

The fact that there are differences between (a) parent and offspring and (b) siblings of a given generation.

Visual acuity among sibling cheetahs, auditory acuity among members of a population of woodpeckers, predator-avoiding leap capacity among a population of frogs.

mutation, organism development, mutagenesis, phenotype, gene regulation, sources of variation (e.g., recombination, horizontal gene transfer), constraints on variation (e.g., bauplane or genetic heritage), traits, functional complexes, spandrels

Selection

The fact that not all offspring of a given generation contribute the same amount of DNA to the next generation

High mortality rates of juvenile crocodiles; many are eaten by crabs and birds before sexual maturity.

selective pressures, selective environments, fitness, species interactions, coevolution/symbiosis, predators and prey, evolutionary “arms races,” life history of individuals, invasive species, sexual selection, kin selection, altruism