Introduction to Life Science

Lesson 4.1 The Evolving Concept of Life (key)

What was the first form of life? Haldane, life started in a primordial soup of
Learn about it! organic molecules. Some form of energy from
Life is believed to have existed on earth for lightning combined with the chemicals in the
billions of years now. Scientists do not know atmosphere to make the building blocks of
exactly when did life begin on Earth. However, protein known as the amino acids.
they are able to trace how life developed and Learn about it!
evolved using some pieces of evidence. Early Forms of Life
The Origin of Life The first form of life is believed to have
There are many theories about the origin of life. appeared some 3.5 billion years ago. The first
Some believed that living organisms were put to evidence of life is found in microfossils.
Earth by some divine forces. Others say that life Microfossils are fossils that contain the remains
did not originate from Earth but from other of tiny plants and animals. They are very small
planets. But among scientists, the most accepted and can be measured in millimeters, and some
theory is that life came from inanimate matter. could only be identified under a microscope.
According to the primordial soup theory Some of the remains of organisms do not have a
proposed by Alexander Oparin and John nucleus so they were called prokaryotes. They
are known to be the earliest forms of life. They specialization brought the emergence of
have survived the extreme conditions of the complex and diverse plants and animals,
early environment. They started to make their including human beings.
own food by utilizing the energy from the sun Evidence from fossil layers proved that different
and the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. These forms of life were present and have evolved
are the photosynthetic organisms. The process through time. According to Charles Darwin,
of photosynthesis produced more oxygen that organisms change over time as a result of
changed the Earth’s early atmosphere. This adaptation to their environment in order to
change in the atmosphere allowed oxygen- survive.
breathing organisms to exist. The cyanobacteria Explore!
are the first photosynthetic organisms to form. Your mother bought some meat from the market
Their microfossils are among the easiest to one day. She placed the meat in a pan but forgot
recognize. Their morphology remained the same to place it in the freezer. After some time,
and they left chemical fossils in the form of maggots were seen crawling from the meat.
broken products from pigments. What can you say about these outcomes?
The first microfossil that showed remains of Try it!
organisms with differences in structure from the Place a piece of bread in a plastic container and
simple form of life was seen in rocks about 1.5 leave it for three days. Observe what would
billion years old. They are larger than bacteria happen to the bread. What do you see on the
and have internal membranes and thicker wall. bread? What brought them there?
These findings marked the beginning of What do you think?
eukaryotic organisms on Earth. If multicellular organisms came from unicellular
Learn about it! organisms, then are all species related?
How did multicellular organisms evolve? Key Points
Multicellular organisms are believed to have  The first forms of life are the bacteria
evolved from unicellular eukaryotes. Some found on microfossils.
single eukaryotic cells, like unicellular algae,  Eukaryotic cells evolved from
formed multicellular aggregates through prokaryotic cells.
association with another cell producing colonies.  Multicellular organisms evolved from
From colonial aggregates, the organisms eukaryotic cells through cell
evolved to form multicellular organisms through specialization.
cell specialization. Protozoans, sponges, and  The evolution of life is brought about by
fungi came to being. the changes in the environment which
The first fossilized animals which were are linked to changes in climate and
discovered 580 million years ago were soft- geology.
bodied. The continuous process of cell  Evidence that life evolved is found in
fossil records and molecular biology.
4.1 The Evolving Concept of Life
1. When did the early forms of life exist?
(The first form of life is believed to have appeared some 3.5 billion years ago.)
A. 1.5 billion years ago
B. 2.5 billion years ago
C. 4.5 billion years ago
D. 3.5 billion years ago*
2. Where is the first form of life seen?
(The first evidence of life is found in microfossils.)
A. layers of rocks
B. microfossils*
C. oceanic crusts
D. sediments
3. Which of the following is the first photosynthetic organism to form?
(Some of the remains of organisms in the microfossils do not have a nucleus so they were called
prokaryotes. They are known to be the earliest forms of life. They have survived the extreme conditions of
the early environment. Some organisms started to make their own food by utilizing the energy from the sun
and the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. These first photosynthetic organisms were the cyanobacteria.)
A. Cyanobacteria*
B. algae
C. fungi
D. gymnosperm
4. Which of the following is not true about the prokaryotes?
(Prokaryotes do not have a nucleus. They are known to be the earliest forms of life. They have survived the
extreme conditions of the early environment. Some started to make their own food by utilizing the energy
from the sun and the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere.)
A. They are simple in structure, small, and unicellular.
B. They do not have nucleus.
C. They survive in extreme conditions.
D. They are not capable of making their own food. *
5. Which of the following processes brought changes in the early atmosphere?
(The process of photosynthesis produced more oxygen that changed the Earth’s early atmosphere. This
change in the atmosphere allowed oxygen-breathing organisms to exist.)
A. Photosynthesis*
B. earthquake
C. extreme condition
D. volcanic eruption
6. Which of the following multicellular organisms first evolved from colonial aggregates?
(From colonial aggregates, the organisms evolved to form multicellular organisms. They are the
protozoans, sponges, and fungi.)
A. Fungi*
B. Protozoans*
C. Sponges*
D. mollusks
7. Which of the following statements is not correct?
(Photosynthetic organisms caused an increase in oxygen in the atmosphere. This change in the atmosphere
allowed oxygen-breathing organisms to exist.)
A. Photosynthetic organisms decreased the amount of oxygen in the atmosphere. *
B. Organisms change over time as a result of adaptation for survival.
C. Multicellular organisms evolved from unicellular eukaryotes.
D. The earliest forms of life were the prokaryotes.
8. All of the following statements are true about the evolution of multicellular organisms except
_______________.
(Multicellular organisms are believed to evolve from unicellular eukaryotes. Some one-celled organisms
form multicellular aggregates like the cells of algae. Their cells form multicellular aggregates through
association with another cell producing colonies. From colonial aggregates, the organisms evolve to form
multicellular organisms through cell specialization. The continuous process of cell specialization brought
the emergence of complex and diverse plants and animals, including human beings.)
A. They are believed to have evolved from single-celled prokaryotes. *
B. They are formed from multicellular colonial aggregates through cell specialization.
C. The process of continuous specialization brought more complex organisms.
D. The single-celled organisms that formed multicellular aggregates were like the cells of algae.
9. Why do you think the emergence of plants and animals came later than simple living organisms?
(Complex organisms like plants and animals have complex cellular structures compared to lower forms of
organisms. These cellular structures undergo a series of changes to adapt to their environment.)
A. Their cell structures are more complex. *
B. They are too big and take time to form.
C. They are the least important factor in the environment.
D. They contain more nucleus compared to lower forms of organisms.
10. Considering the present condition of the environment, do you think living organisms are still
evolving today?
(Evolution is a continuous process that may happen gradually depending on the changes in the environment
in order for the organisms to survive.)
A. Yes, because it is a natural phenomenon which we cannot stop from happening. *
B. Yes, because humans continuously alter the environment that triggers evolution among living
organisms in order to survive.
C. No, because the environment remains favorable to living organisms.
D. No, because there is no condition outside their bodies that will trigger evolution.