Editing Evolution and Natural Selection (section)

== <span style="color: #FFFFFF;">Understanding</span> ==
Evolution is a simple mathematical inevitability if three conditions are met: **Variation**, **Heritability**, and **Differential Success**.

**The Darwinian Mechanism**:
1. **Overproduction**: More offspring are produced than can survive.
2. **Variation**: Individuals in a population differ in their traits.
3. **Selection**: Those with "advantageous" traits (better camouflage, faster speed, better metabolism) survive the "Struggle for Existence."
4. **Transmission**: Survivors pass these traits to the next generation. Over millions of years, these small changes accumulate into major transformations.

**The Modern Synthesis**: Darwin knew traits were inherited, but he didn't know *how*. The modern synthesis merged Darwin's theory with **Genetics** (Mendel's work). We now understand that evolution is a change in "allele frequencies" within a gene pool over time.

**Sexual Selection**: Darwin realized that some traits (like the peacock's tail) actually *hinder* survival. He proposed Sexual Selection to explain traits that evolve because they increase an individual's success in attracting mates, even if they come at a survival cost.
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