Evolution Connection #3Objectives: E – 12 Explain the relationship between the environment and living things. Give several examples from deep time when living things changed dramatically as a result of environmental change.

E – 13 Discuss how mass extinctions affect the evolution of organisms that survive the event. Use at least 2 specific examples as evidence.

E – 14 Describe the survival adaptations conferred to organisms that could doa. Photosynthesisb. Aerobic respiration

Background: The entire geologic history of Earth, from its inception 4.6 billion

years ago, is commonly referred to as deep time. Drastic changes have occurred in the geology, the atmosphere, and the oceans of Earth. These changes, in turn, have influenced the evolution of living things. “As much as evolution is about life and its many forms, biology alone cannot fully explain it. By integrating the physical sciences, which include geology, chemistry, and physics, into our study of life on Earth, we can better understand the conditions in which life has evolved.” (PBS)

Scientists organize the history of life on Earth into eons, which can be subdivided into eras. By looking at the graphic organizer on the left,

you can see that we have already discussed the first two eons. Look over the events classified as “Precambrian”; they should all look very familiar. As we continue our study of evolution, we will begin to tackle the third and final eon: The Phanerozoic!

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Task: For this evolution connection you will be studying both abiotic and biotic trends through the Phanerozoic eon (third eon) (500mya-Present). Our goal is to create a comprehensive timeline of trends and events through the period and think about how they all connect. You will also be adding major evolutionary and geographic events to your timeline and study how these events relate to your biotic and abiotic trends.

Define biotic factors:

Define abiotic factors:

Pre-assignment: We will watch “How to Grow a Planet” as a class. As you watch the video, take notes on the events below.• Cyanobacteria alter composition of the geosphere and atmosphere

• Origin of aerobic organisms

• Relationships between plants and animals

• Use of fossils to study evolution

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Part I: Abiotic Factors1. Each member of your group will take a packet from your group

task folder containing research materials. These Packets should contain an intro task page, a research article, and a blank timeline. The packets are labeled as follows:

a. Atmospheric Gasesb. Global Temperature c. Sea Level d. Continental Shift and Changes in Land Formations

2. Each member of your group will take one of these packets, and use the resources to graph a timeline about their data. The timeline is given to you within your research packet. This is a homework assignment.

a. Read all materials b. Create a graph of data using the timeline provided

i. Graph your abiotic factor from 500mya to present ii. Have at least one data point per each 10 million

yeariii. Make sure all data points remain above the bottom

of the timeline even if you have to move the zero point up.

3. The next day all group members will come to class prepared to share their findings and their graph with their group. Groups will discuss all data and answer the following questions while starting to put all the graphs together on a piece of poster board.

Abiotic Factors Questions:

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1. How do atmospheric gases and global temperature relate?

2. Atmospheric gas and sea level? Hypothesize why.

3. How does sea level relate to Global temperature? Explain.

a. Why might this be an important connection to current events?

4. How does continental shift relate to all of the above

factors?

a. What is the significance of pangea?

Part II: The Biotic Factors

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Below, you will find a list of biotic events that occurred during the Phanerozoic eon. Each group will be assigned a chunk of time within the span that you graphed in part I. Your task is to use the list provided (Figure 1) and the resources listed to dig deep into that small chunk of time. You should explore the evolutionary changes such as complexity of living things, ecological niches, extinctions and explosions/ transformations. You must then complete the following:

a. You will place the appropriate important events on your poster board timeline where they belong for your time chunk. Use the iPads and other resources to conduct further research on each event and other happenings within your time.

b. You will create a short (5-7 minute) presentation about the important events within your time chunk and their connection to abiotic factors (atmospheric gases, temperature, Shifting land formations and continental changes, and sea level)

c. You will also create a visual aid that can be distributed to all other groups as a learning tool for when you give your presentation. The visual aid must summarize the key points of your presentation and the connections within your time chunk. You may use whatever artistic means that you would like as long as it fits into the box on the visual aid page (Figure 2).

List of Important Evolutionary Events:(Figure 1)

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● 900mya: Soft bodied animals● 543mya: Vendian extinction● 540mya: Oldest arthropod

fossils● 530mya: The Cambrian explosion● 520mya: Cambrian extinction● 480mya: Land Plants● 480mya: Fishes● 443mya: End Ordovician

Extinction● 425: Vascular Land Plants● 420mya: Arthropods on Land● 375mya: Land vertebrates● Devonian Extinction● 350mya: Reptiles● 280mya: Cycads● 275mya: Mammal like reptiles● End Permian Extinction● 220mya: Dinosaurs● Late Triassic Extinction● 150mya: Birds

● 130mya: Flowering Plants● End Cretaceous Extinction● 60mya: Primates● 50mya: Whales● Late Eocene Extinction● 25mya: Ape/ Human line evolves● 20mya: Kelp Forests● 16mya: Orangutan line separates

from African ape/ hominid line● Miocene extinction● 6mya: Chimpanzee and hominid

lines separate● 5.2mya: Hominids● 2mya: Global Ice age begins● 0.6mya: Early Humans● 0.1mya: Modern Humans● Late Pleistocene Extinction● Holocene Epoch

Resources: Use these as your launching point. You are not limited to these resources.

Plate tectonics and the permian extinction● http://academic.emporia.edu/aberjame/student/kaczor1/rk.htm

Readings about the Permian and Cambrian with lots of other time periods included!

● http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/prehistoric-world/ permian/

http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/prehistoric-world/cambrian/

● http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/outreach/floridaseagrant/pdf_files/ TropicalConnections_GeologicalTimeWithMajorEvolutionaryEventsInFossilRecord_KruczynskiFletcher.pdf

Interactive prehistoric timeline ● http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/prehistoric-world/

prehistoric-time-line/

Mass extinctions

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● http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/prehistoric-world/ mass-extinction/

Super Clear Graphic Overview● http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/outreach/floridaseagrant/pdf_files/

TropicalConnections_GeologicalTimeWithMajorEvolutionaryEventsInFossilRecord_KruczynskiFletcher.pdf

In depth description of every time period. A great place to start.● http://palaeos.com/phanerozoic/phanerozoic.htm

Visual Aid Parameters (Figure 2)This can be as artistic or text focused as you would like as long as you are able to display your major connections between your time chunks abiotic and biotic factors and major evolutionary points. It will be distributed to all the other groups so they may add it to their timeline poster as you present. This page needs to be handed in a day before your presentation so that copies can be made for your classmates

Part III: Summary Questions

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After all of the groups have presented, you will reconvene with your group and answer the following summary questions. Please submit all questions from part 1 (Both the individual article questions as well as the group questions) and the questions from part 3 via the assignment on google classroom. You will also hand in your final poster board with your trend timelines and the collection of visual aids from the class presentations.

1. Discuss the relationship between geology and evolution (Use at least 3 concrete examples relating abiotic and biotic factor from the presentations)

2. How might mass extinctions affect the evolution of organisms that survive the event. Use at least 2 pieces of specific evidence from presentations

3. What survival adaptation was conferred to organisms that could do

a. Photosynthesis, why?

b. Aerobic respiration, why? (give 2 examples)

4. Based upon what you know about the role of oxygen in aerobic respiration, make a hypothesis about why larger, more complex organisms seem to evolve in times of higher atmospheric oxygen

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Appendix A: Atmospheric Gases

Resource 1:

Oxygen and carbon dioxide levels are graphed from 570 Ma – present day. Notice that they are recorded in different units, and that a y-axis has been plotted at both ends of the graph. Using the checkboxes below the graph it is possible to see where ice ages occurred.

From: Cambridge University. Plant Evolution Timeline. Available at http://www.plantsci.cam.ac.uk/timeline/

There is more info about each trend if you click on “source info” for each option. Look at the units of measurement and make sure you have O2 and Co2 measurements checked off.

Resource 2:

Oxygen in the atmosphereShort article about the origin and significance of oxygen prevalencehttp://www.scientificamerican.com/article/origin-of-oxygen-in-atmosphere/

Questions1. What relationship seems to exist between O2 and CO2 levels? How

might you explain this?

2. What relationship seems to exist between O2 levels and diversity/complexity of living things? How might you explain this?

3. Which area of the graph or part of the articles was most surprising or interesting to you and why?

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Appendix B: Temperature Change

Resource 1:

Use this site to analyze changing temperature during the Phanerozoic eonhttp://www.plantsci.cam.ac.uk/timeline/Make sure you only have paleo temperature checked off to get an accurate graph. You can also look at the ice ages. There is more info about each trend if you click on “source info” for each option

Resource 2:

This is a very very comprehensive account of global temperature . Please focus on the following sections4. “Photosynthesis Cooled the Planet.”11. “Oxygen, Ozone and the Cambrian Explosion”12. “Solar and Biological Interactions”http://journalofcosmology.com/ClimateChange116.html

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Questions: 1. How is paleotemperature measured? What other abiotic factor

could this connect to and why?

2. What type of geographic events does temperature change relate to?

3. What part of your research did you find most surprising or interesting and why?

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Appendix C: Sea Level

Resource 1:

Use the attached article“SEA LEVEL VARIATIONS OVER GEOLOGIC TIME”Identify the images that may be most helpful but don’t worry about understanding every word or concept within the article

Resource 3:

This is a comprehensive chart covering sea level changes across the eon. You may want to download as a PDF so you can zoom in and rotate the image.http://www.searchanddiscovery.com/pdfz/documents/2010/40594snedden/ndx_snedden.pdf.html

Questions: 1. What other biotic factors may sea level relate to and how?

2. Why are estimates of sea level change sometimes uncertain?

3. What part of your research did you find most surprising or interesting and why?

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Appendix D: Continental Shift

Resource 1:

Use the following site to start your graphic of continental shift. You may do this through pictures to represent the different transformationshttp://bio1152.nicerweb.com/Locked/media/ch25/drift.html

Resource 2:

The following is a web article about plate tectonics and the history of their movement on earthhttp://io9.gizmodo.com/5744636/a-geological-history-of-supercontinents-on-planet-earth

Resource 3:

Also use the attached article to track elevation through the Phanerozoic eon. This is in addition to your continental drift drawings. Attached are the introduction, section 4 and section 5 of the article“Global tectonic and climatic control of mean elevation of continents, and Phanerozoic sea level change”

Questions: 1. What is the connection between moving land masses,

elevation, and sea level? Why is this important?

2. Where might volcanoes and mountains fit in with the evolution of land masses and continental shift?

3. What part of your research did you find most surprising or interesting and why?

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