Evolution Works
Software for Science Education
Summary
Students will participate in a simulation where they change the genes of organisms in pursuit of the most adaptive gene set. Students will actually "engage" in the process of evolution, and this simulation should form their basis for their understanding of evolution.
Note: This experiment is best done in a computer lab or in a classroom where at least 8 computers will be available. Students will spend some time working on the computer by themselves. If you don't have access to such equipment, you could modify the lesson accordingly.
Implementation
To Students: Last lesson we learned that when two organisms with different genes are placed in the same environment, one organism becomes extinct. The organism that prevails is likely the organism that is best suited to survive in the environment. That organism will be more likely to eat and reproduce and over time, and the other organism's inability to compete will slowly compound deaths and ultimately result in the organisms extinction.
Today your job is to create the organism most adapted to survive in the jungle. I want you to think about how much energy the organism should spend in searching, gathering, and reproducing. You already have some idea of what the organism should look like. It can't have zero in any of the genes because it needs to search, gather, and reproduce to some degree in order to survive. The question that you must solve is: "What is the best balance?"
When you create different gene sets, test them against each other. Do your own min-experiments on your own ideas to see which gene set is most adaptive. When we are done, we will have your different organisms compete against each other to see which is the most adaptive.
Teacher: Allow the students to break up into groups. As you float around the room, talk to students about what they have been finding is the most adaptive gene set. When the students decide upon their final gene sets, have a class discussion about what they learned about the distribution of gene points for organisms living in the jungle.
To see which organism is most adaptive, place all of the organisms in the world at one time (if you have less than 8 groups, you should be able to put 10 of each organism in the world). Start advancing turns. Eventually, one of the organisms will be the most adaptive.
To Students: What have you learned about surviving in the jungle? What genes are important? Do you think that the same genes are adaptive in different environments?