Some scientists believe that animals on earth have evolved over time. This evolution theory says that survival of the fittest is what has made animals evolve. Evidence can be gained to prove and disprove this theory. Three areas that this evidence can be gathered are from anatomy, molecular biology, and paleontology.

In anatomy there are a few facts that support the theory of evolution. One of these facts is that different species have similar features based on their surroundings. An example of this would be that the whale’s ancestors used to live on land. This is because as the habitat changed for a whale, the bone structure also changed. Anatomists can see that the bone structure changed from a land animal to one that lives in the water. Also this is seen in animals that have arms, fore limbs, flippers, and wings. All of these share the same bones. Another fact would be that human and primate records compare to each other. This is another clue that humans have evolved from primates.

There is also information that supports evolution from molecular biology. Humans today share the same DNA as Neanderthals. This is a major clue that humans have evolved over time. Another fact is that all life forms have a similar chemical make up as the early species. An example of this would be that the marine worm and the segmented worm shared the same HOX gene.

Paleontologists have been able to find that fossils that are deeper in rocks show progress over time in the same species. This means as the newer rock layers come the same species have changed. Paleontology has also been able to find that sharks have been around twice as long as the dinosaurs had. This means that there was life before the dinosaurs and that they are still alive today.

A piece of evidence can also go either way. One fact is that in a layer of rock there is no sign of life form but when you go one layer up there is an explosion of life. This can be said to be proof of evolution or against evolution. To say it is for evolution there could have been only bacteria living during this time. Bacteria do not fossilize. To say that this is against evolution this evidence says that there was no life before this time and life just started here.

How we became who we are today is one of the greatest mysteries of life. To try and solve the theory of evolution all you can do is gather evidence.