Topic 1

Topic 1

:  High Altitude Adaptation. In the recorded interview (1)*, Emilia Huerta-Sanchez describes some research her team conducted. Watch the video, then address the following issues:

• (a) What data did they collect, who did they collect it from, and what were they looking for?
• (b) Which gene was implicated as a gene associated with high altitude adaptation, and what does it do?
• (c) Why do they think that the high incidence of this gene in populations who live at high altitudes is due to natural selection?

Topic 2 [reading]: Co-evolution of rattlesnakes and squirrels. Read at least one of the following articles (2)* and/or (3)*, and then address the following issues:

• (a) How do squirrels adapt to rattlesnake venom?
• (b) How do rattlesnakes adapt to squirrel’s defenses against rattlesnake venom?
• (c) What do the results of this research tell us about evolution?

Topic 3 [reading];  Resistance to Rodenticides in Wild Rat Populations. Refer to the ‘Digging into Data’ box on page 216 of the textbook.  Review the situation and the address the following:

• (a) In which town do you think that past application of the rodenticide bromadialone was most intensive?  Explain.
• (b)  Suppose that a group of rodenticide-resistant rats hitches a ride on a grain truck from Olfen to Ludwigshafen, where they start to breed with the Ludwigshafen rats.  Which of the following concepts (genetic drift, gene flow or founder effect) is most applicable to this situation?
• (c)  Make a prediction about the future status of rodenticide resistance in Ludwigshafen after the hitchhiker rats from Olfen arrive. Explain.