Directly Observed Mutation

There was a whole thread which never finished asking what the difference is between macro and micro evolution.The term is used occasionally in biology where micro is anything under the level of a species and macro is everything from speciation and up.With these definitions there is evidence of both.Now what is the definition of the two that you use?What, very precisely, is the distinction between the two? How do I tell if a change is just under the "line" and is still micro and when it is just over the "line" and is called macro?What mechanism is there that stops a lot of smaller changes cummulating in a totality which is a larger change?

Please read Message 4 by moi. Would you say that those examples were micro or macro evolution?

---

He's not dead. He's electroencephalographically challenged.The longest word in the English language is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.

Ned, I suppose micro-evolution would be under the level of species.

I've heard that a lot of changes that life goes through to adapt to environment aren't really new mutations but activations of recessive genes........

Can you give us an example so we can go from there?

---

He's not dead. He's electroencephalographically challenged.The longest word in the English language is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.

Because there's no such thing as "macro" or "microevolution"; there's just evolution.It's all the same thing - natural selection and random mutation changing allele frequencies.

Recessive genes don't get "activated." They're already activated; they're just not expressed if their counterposing allele is dominant.

Damn, crash. I was hoping that he'd find that out by himself and see how silly his statements are.

---

He's not dead. He's electroencephalographically challenged.The longest word in the English language is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.

That makes things easy then, if you use the "normal" biological definition.Creationists, mostly, don't agree since there are lots and lots of examples of speciation and even new genera. IIRC there might even be examples of family crossing.At the higher taxa new examples of arising aren't seen in current time, of coursem obviously. These though, being larger changes are preserved in the fossil record where something as subtle as a speciation event would not show.

I've heard variation of color in plants and animals in adaptation to environment isn't caused by new mutation.

Ned, different species can't produce fertile offspring with one another, correct? Therefore, at that time, the genetic destinies of the original animal and the newer evolutionary form have become mutually exclusive.......I'd have to say that's definitely macroevolution.But is there any evidence for it occuring?

quote:

---

I've heard variation of color in plants and animals in adaptation to environment isn't caused by new mutation.

---

This is very true. In humans, skin color is determined by the number of copies of a certain gene. What we are talking about is new mutations previously not found in the gene pool of a species. One example is hemoglobin C, a new type of hemoglobin created by a single mutation. This protein allows resistance to malara without the side effects associated with sickle cell anemia (hemoglobin S). Right now, this gene is found in a very small population where the mutation first occured. It is expected to spread rapidly through Africa in areas with endemic malaria. This is evolution in action.

Contrary to this (and despite Crash and Lam playing dumb), micro-evolution is no evidence for the unlimited variablity of living things.

Please be more specific.I'm not sure what you are talking about, but that doesn't sound to me like "activation" of recessive alleles. Sounds more adaptation due to seasonal variations to me. Either that or you are thinking about co-dominance or incomplete dominance. Without anything specific, I don't really know what you are talking about.

---

He's not dead. He's electroencephalographically challenged.The longest word in the English language is pneumonoultramicroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis.

http://EvC Forum: What is your favorite example of speciation? -->EvC Forum: What is your favorite example of speciation? We have had a whole thread on it. I haven't reviewed it to see what is in there. I suggest that you post detailed questions to there.Having just reviewed it I see it is a bit sparse. I'll bump it for more examples. There are a number scattered all over threads here.