Hand a kitchen appliance to a child and they’re likely to find a whole new way to use it. This happens in evolution, too – traits adapted for one purpose turn out to be beneficial for a whole other reason, and so the trajectory of natural selection changes. The term for this is exaptation, but it’s a complicated concept, and not everyone even likes using the word. Let’s discuss what this word means, why it exists, and what some people find wrong with it.
In the news: the oldest forest, an ancient parent, young T. rex, and fossil lungfish.
Time markers:
Intro & Announcements: 00:00:00
News: 00:04:30
Main discussion, Part 1: 00:35:30
Main discussion, Part 2: 01:00:00
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The Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome.
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Musical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
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Episode 178 - Ears
Cute-E - Friendly Dragons
Episode 177 - Neanderthals
Spook-E - Turtle Dragons
Spook-E - Wyverns
Episode 176 - Hadrosaurs
Spook-E - East Asian Dragons
Spook-E - European Dragons
Episode 175 - Plant Defenses
Episode 174 - The Mesozoic Marine Revolution
Episode 173 - Herbivores (Plant-Eaters)
Silver Screen Science - 65 (2023)
Episode 172 - Toothed Whales
Episode 171 - The Tethys Sea
Episode 170 - Milk
Snake Stuff with David
Episode 169 - Sea Snakes
Episode 168 – Marine Crocs
Croc Chat with Will
Episode 167 – Geologic Dating
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