Modeling Evolution Activity

The Modeling Evolution activity uses plastic disks to represent bacteria. There are as many as a billion kinds of bacteria and archaea in the ocean. They have important roles in the ocean including decomposition, photosynthesis, and nutrient cycling, especially nitrogen.  Modeling Evolution allows students to experience how the process of natural selection is the result of:

1. the potential for a individuals with a mutation to increase in number,
2. the heritable genetic variation (mutation) of individuals, and
3. the proliferation of those organisms that are better able to survive and reproduce in the environment.

This activity is adapted from the Exploring Our Fluid Earth curriculum developed by the University of Hawai‘i and is designed to help learners build conceptual understanding of evolution through modeling and experimentation.