The factors that drive natural selection are virtually impossible to observe directly in a traditional lab because evolution occurs over such long periods of time. With EvolutionLab students can simulate experiments that demonstrate how an organism can change in response to different biological and environmental conditions. In this brief sample of 15 screens, you'll see how students can manipulate environmental factors and various traits on different populations of birds to gain a vivid, first-hand understanding of adaptation by natural selection.

This lab demonstrates the many different combinations of variables that can be manipulated, the great variety of experiments that can be performed and some of the graphing and data collection functions of the labs. In the actual labs on the Web, the experiments are run dynamically, with the student playing an active role.