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Anatomy, DNA, embryos and fossils display similarities among all species. Evolution elucidates that these similarities are due to common ancestry. View this video to learn how all of these factors contribute to the unity of life. Also included in this website are five HHMI Holiday Lecture Connections videos. In the Fossils, Genes and Mousetraps 12:14-14:43 video, Dr. Kenneth Miller describes what we can learn from transitional fossils and reviews when major phyla first appeared in the fossil record. In the second video, Lecture 3 43:46-44:59, Dr. David Kingsley uses chick embryos to explain that all vertebrates use similar genes and pathways to form limbs, suggesting common ancestry. In the third video, Lecture 4 41:03-45:46, Dr. Sean Carroll talks about what we can learn by comparing our DNA to the chimp genome. In the fourth video, Fossils, Genes and Mousetraps 20:45-23:03, Dr. Kenneth Miller discusses the origins of modern whales and describes a series of transitional fossils that shows how land mammals transitioned back to the sea. And in the final video, Lecture 3 38:52-41:37, Dr. David Kingsley describes how the same gene directs eye development in humans, mice, and fruit flies, suggesting common ancestry. 

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