Neanderthals, 35

North America, mammals, 27–28

Nuclides, defined, 20

O

Opossums, 27, 28

P

Paleontologists/paleontology, 2–3, 23.

See also Fossil record

Paranthropus robustus, 35

Pennsylvania laws, 44, 45

Pets, generations per million years, 7.

See also Domestication of species

Planetary motion, 12

Planetesimals, 19

Plate tectonics, theory of, 11, 53

Populations of organisms

defined, 4

DNA variations, 29

evolution of, 5, 6, 7–8, 28–29, 50

extinct, 33, 35

highly conserved genes, 6

human, 29, 35

neutral mutations in, 29

Porpoises, 32

Primates, 8, 9, 24, 25, 31, 32–33.

See also Humans

Proconsul, 25

Proteins, 4, 21, 22, 31–32, 40–41

Protocells, 22

Public school science curriculum

creationism in, xii–xiii, 43–45, 53

critical thinking in, 52

evidentiary standard for, 53

role of evolution, xi–xii, 43, 47

teaching the “controversies,” xiii, 52

R

Radioactive decay, 20

Radiometric dating, 17, 20, 51

Religion

compatibility of evolution with religious faith, 12–14, 49

science and, xi, xiii, 12, 15, 47, 54

Reproductive

isolation, 7–8

success, 4, 5, 8–9, 50

Reptiles, 3, 8–9, 23, 41

RNA, 22, 31

S

SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), 5

Scaptomyza, 27

Science

contributions of, xi

defined, 10

empirical evidence, 10, 12

hypotheses, 41–42, 43

and religion, xi, xiii, 12, 15, 41–42, 47, 54

theory, generally, xii, 11, 42, 51

Scopes, John, 44

Sea turtles, 8

Self-replication, 22

Solar system, 19, 20, 51

South America, mammals, 27–28

Speciation, 7–8, 26, 27

Species

defined, 1

extinct, 33

generations per million years, 7

geographic distribution, 17, 26–28

highly conserved elements, 6

intermediate/transitional, 1–3, 22, 23

new (see Speciation)

Stars, origin of, 19, 20

Stromatolites, 21

Supernovas, 20

T

Tennessee laws, 44

Tetrapods, 2–3, 4, 8–9, 11, 23, 24, 30, 31–32, 38

Theory, defined, 11

Tiktaalik, 2–3, 4, 11, 23, 30, 38

Traits, 4, 5, 6, 7, 24, 28–29, 31, 50

U

Universe

age of, 19–20, 38, 51

expansion, 18–19

origin of, 18–19, 57–58

University of California, San Francisco, 5

V

Viruses, 4, 5, 39

W

Wallace, Alfred Russel, 12, 22–23

Warm-bloodedness, 9

Whales, 23, 24, 26, 32

Wheat domestication, 6

Wolves, 24, 27

Front Matter (R1-R16)

1 Evolution and the Nature of Science (1-16)

2 The Evidence for Biological Evolution (17-36)

3 Creationist Perspectives (37-46)

4 Conclusion (47-48)

Frequently Asked Questions (49-54)

Additional Readings (55-59)

Committee Member Biographies (60-63)

Staff and Consultant Biographies (64-66)

Index (67-69)

Photo and Illustration Credits (70-72)