Potential Energy
Study differential survival in natural selection: individuals within a population differ in traits, and those with advantageous traits are more likely to survive and reproduce, shifting trait frequencies over time.
Key Concepts
Objects store energy based on their position or condition . This potential energy gives an object the capacity to move or change at a later time.
A battery holds potential energy in chemical form, ready to power a light. Similarly, a lifted weight possesses potential energy due to gravity . Even stationary objects hold this energy, which remains available for future release to perform work.
Common Questions
What is differential survival in natural selection?
Differential survival means that individuals with traits better suited to their environment survive and reproduce at higher rates than those with less advantageous traits. These differences gradually shift the population's trait distribution.
How does differential survival lead to evolution?
When individuals with a beneficial trait reproduce more, their offspring inherit that trait. Over generations, the trait becomes more common in the population while less beneficial traits become rarer.
How do Grade 8 students observe differential survival?
Students analyze data from real populations — like stickleback fish with varying armor plates — and trace how environmental pressures correlate with which trait variants increased in frequency over time.