I need some help, this is fairly confusing to me. ______ Allows traits favorable for survival to be passed from parents to offspring. I could not find the answer to this in my textbook, any help?
inheritance
Please hurry, this is very urgent.
エヴァは正しい
Of course, I can help you with that! The concept you are referring to is known as "heredity" or "inheritance." Heredity is the process by which traits, or characteristics, are passed from parents to their offspring.
To understand how heredity works, we need to look into the field of genetics. Genetics is the study of genes, which are segments of DNA that contain the instructions for building and maintaining an organism.
In sexual reproduction, where offspring are produced by two parents, heredity occurs through the transmission of genetic material. Each parent passes on half of their genetic material to their offspring. This genetic material is packaged in chromosomes.
Chromosomes carry genes, which determine specific traits such as eye color, hair texture, and height. Each gene has two copies, or alleles, which can be the same or different. When offspring are conceived, they inherit one allele from each parent for each gene.
The passing of alleles from parents to offspring is an essential process in evolution. Traits that increase an organism's chances of survival or reproduction are considered favorable. Over time, Darwin's theory of natural selection explains that these favorable traits become more common in a population, as individuals with these traits have a higher probability of passing them on to future generations.
To summarize, heredity allows traits favorable for survival to be passed from parents to offspring through the transmission of genetic material, carried by chromosomes and genes. Natural selection acts upon these traits, leading to evolutionary changes in populations over time.