Natural Selection and Gummy Bears

The video demonstrates natural selection using a classroom activity with gummy bears. Students act as predators, selecting gummy bears to eat based on taste. Over multiple rounds, the less tasty gummy bears survive and reproduce, illustrating how beneficial adaptations can lead to population changes. The activity mirrors real-world examples, such as the peppered moths during the Industrial Revolution, where environmental changes led to shifts in population traits.

What is the primary concept of natural selection?

• Natural selection is unrelated to evolution.

• All organisms in a population have identical traits.

• Adaptations decrease an organism's chance of survival.

• Organisms with adaptations survive and reproduce more successfully.

In the gummy bear activity, what role do the students play?

• They are the predators selecting gummy bears.

• They are the gummy bears.

• They are observers only.

• They are the ones doubling the gummy bear population.

What happens to the gummy bears that are not selected by students?

• They double in population.

• They are removed from the activity.

• They become predators.

• They change color.

What was the first color of gummy bear to go extinct in the activity?

• Red

• Green

• Blue

• Yellow

During the second round, how many gummy bear extinctions were observed?

• Three

• Four

• One

• Two

What adaptation helped some gummy bears survive better than others?

• Being faster

• Being larger in size

• Being less tasty

• Being more colorful

How does the gummy bear activity relate to the peppered moths in England?

• Both are examples of artificial selection.

• Both show how less desirable traits can lead to extinction.

• Both involve changes in population due to human intervention.

• Both demonstrate natural selection through environmental changes.

What environmental change affected the peppered moths during the Industrial Revolution?

• Change in tree color due to soot

• Decrease in food supply

• Increase in predators

• Introduction of new moth species

What was the result of the environmental change on the peppered moth population?

• The dark-colored moths increased in population.

• The light-colored moths thrived.

• The moths stopped reproducing.

• The dark-colored moths were more easily preyed upon.

What is the main lesson from the gummy bear activity?

• Adaptations do not affect survival.

• Natural selection can lead to rapid population changes.

• All gummy bears have the same chance of survival.

• Human intervention is necessary for natural selection.