Reference no: EM133369703
Questions
What is a phylogenetic tree?
What are the basic elements of a tree (terminal taxa, internal nodes, root node, etc.)?
Distinguish between cladograms, phylograms and chronograms.
In what way is a tree a simplification of a more complex evolutionary process?
How does a monophyletic group (=clade) differ from a non-monophyletic group (paraphyletic group or polyphyletic group)?
What is a synapomorphy? Why are monophyletic groups characterized by synapomorphies?
Explain how an attribute (character) that is an ancestral state in one context can be a derived state in another context. Understand why the synapomorphy of a clade is an ancestral state within that clade.
Distinguish between convergence, reversal, and homology.
What is the relationship between phylogeny and classification?
Define the following: sister groups, ingroups and outgroups.
Understand why branch rotation does not change meaning of the tree. Be able to determine if two trees are equivalent.
Understand the concept of phylogenetic relatedness.
What do we mean when we say that taxon A is more closely related to taxon B than to taxon C? It indicates that taxon A and taxon B share a more recent common ancestor than taxon A and taxon C.