SUPPORT MATERIAL

CLASS-X
HEREDITY AND VARIATIONS
Importance of Variation :
(i) Depending upon the nature of variations different individuals would
have different kinds of advantage.
Example, Bacteria that can withstand heat will survive better in a heat
wave.
(ii) Main advantage of variation to species is that it increases the chances of
its survival in a changing environment.
Free ear lobes and attached ear lobes are two variants found in human
populations.
Mendel and His Work on Inheritance
• Gregor Johann Mendel (1822 & 1884) : Started his experiments on
plant breeding and hybridisation. He proposed the laws of inheritance in
living organisms.
Mendel was known as Father of Genetics.
• Plant selected by Mendel : Pisum sativum (garden pea). Mendel used a
number of contrasting characters for garden pea.
CHARACTER DOMINANT TRAIT RECESSIVE TRAIT
Flower colour Violet White
Flower position Axial Terminal
Seed colour Yellow Green
Seed shape Round Wrinkled
Pod shape Inflated Constricted
Pod colour Green Yellow
Height of plant Tall Dwarf/Short
Seven pairs of contrasting characters in Garden Pea.
Medel’s Experimental Material : He chose Garden Pea (Pisum sativum) as
his experiment material because of :
(i) Availability of detectable contrasting traits of several characters.
(ii) Short life span of the plant.
(iii) Normally allows self-fertilisation but cross-fertilisation can also be
carried out.
(iv) Large no. of seeds produced.
• Mendel’s Experiments : Mendel conducted a series of experiments in
which he crossed the pollinated plants to study one character (at a time).
Monohybrid Cross
Cross between two pea plants with one pair of contrasting characters is called
a monohybrid cross.
Example : Cross between a tall and a dwarf plant (short).
MONOHYBRID CROSS
PARENT → Tall plant × Dwarf plant
ALLELIC PAIR → TT × tt
OF GENES
GAMETES → T T × t t
F1 GENERATION → Tt All tall plants
(First filial generation)
Heredity and Evolution 111
SELF POLLINATION → Tt × Tt
of F1 gametes
GAMETES T t T t
F2 GENERATION → Gametes → T t
TT Tt
T tall tall
Tt tt
t tall dwarf
Phenotypic ratio → 3 : 1 Tall : Dwarf
3:1
Genotypic ratio → 1 : 2 : 1 TT : Tt : tt
1:2:1
CHARACTER DOMINANT TRAIT RECESSIVE TRAIT
Conclusions
1. TT and Tt both are tall plants while tt is a short plant.
2. A single copy of T is enough to make the plant tall, while both copies have
to be ‘t’ for the plant to be short.
3. Characters/traits like ‘T’ are called dominant trait (because it express
itself) and ‘t’ are recessive trait (because it remains suppressed).
Dihybrid Cross
A cross between two plants having two pairs of contrasting characters is
called dihybrid cross.
Phenotypic Ratio
Round, yellow : 9
Round, green : 3
Wrinkled, yellow : 3
Wrinkled, green : 1
Observations
(i) When RRyy was crossed with rrYY in F1 generation all were Rr Yy
round and yellow seeds.
(ii) Self pollination of F1 plants gave parental phenotype and two mixtures
(recombinants round yellow and wrinkled green) seeds plants in the
ratio of 9 : 3 : 3 : 1.

Conclusions
1. Round and yellow seeds are Dominant characters.
2. Occurrence of new phenotype combinations show that genes for round
and yellow seeds are inherited independently of each other.
How do these traits get expressed
Cellular DNA (Information source)
↓ For synthesis of
Proteins (Enzyme)
↓ Works efficiently
More Hormone
Heredity and Evolution 115
↓ produced
Tallness of plant
Therefore, genes control characteristics/traits.
SEX DETERMINATION
Determination of sex of an offspring.
FACTORS
Responsible for Sex Determination
Environmental Genetic
In some animals, the temperature In some animals like humans
at which gender or
the fertilized eggs are kept decides individual is determined by a
the gender. pair of
E.g., in turtle chromosomes called sex
chromosome.
XX – Female
XY – Male
Sex Chromosomes : In human beings, there are 23 pairs of chromosome.
Out of these 22 chromosomes pairs are called autosomes and the last pair of
chromosome that help in deciding gender of that individual is called sex chromosome.
XX – Female
XY – Male
Sex determination in Human Beings
This shows that half the children will be boys and half will be girls. All children
will inherit an X chromosome from their mother regardless whether they
are boys or girls. Thus, sex of children will be determined by what they inherit
from their father, and not from their mother.
EVOLUTION
Evolution is the sequence of gradual changes which takes place in the primitive
organisms, over millions of years, in which new species are produced.
Situation I
Group of red beetles
↓
Colour variation arises during reproduction
All beetles red except One beetle green
one that is green
↓ ↓ Reproduction
Crows feed on red beetle Progeny beetles green
↓↓
No. of beetles reduces Crows could not feed on
green beetles as they got
camouflaged in green bushes
↓
Number of green bettles increases
Conclusion
Green beetles got the survival advantage or they were naturally selected as
they were not visible in green bushes. This natural selection is exerted by crows
resulting in adaptations in the beetles to fit better in their environment.
Heredity and Evolution 117
Situation II
Group of red beetles
↓ Reproduction
All beetles are red except one that is blue One blue beetle
↓ Reproduces ↓ Reproduces
Number of red beetles increases No. of blue beetles increases
↓
Crows can see both blue and red beetles and can eat them
↓
Number reduces but still red beetles are more and blue ones are few
↓
Suddenly elephant comes and stamps on the bushes
↓
Now beetles left are mostly blue
Conclusion
Blue beetles did not get survivals advantage. Elephant suddenly caused major
havoc in beetles population otherwise their number would have been considerably
large.
From this we can conclude that accidents can change the frequency of some
genes even if they do not get survival advantage. This is called genetic drift and
it leads to variation.
Situation III
Group of red beetles
↓
Habitat of beetles (bushes)
suffer from plant disease
↓
Average weight of beetles
decreases due to poor nourishment
↓
Number of beetles kept on reducing
↓
Later plant disease gets eliminated
↓
Number and average weight of beetles increases again
Conclusion
No genetic change has occurred in the population of beetle. The population
gets affected for a short duration only due to environmental changes.
ACQUIRED AND INHERITED TRAITS
Acquired Traits &Inherited Traits
1. These are the traits which are
developed in an individual
due to special conditions.
2. They cannot be transferred to
the progeny.
3. They cannot direct evolution.
E.g., Low weight of starving
beetles.
1. These are the traits which are
passed from one generation
to the next.
2. They get transferred to the
progeny.
3. They are helpful in evolution.
E.g., Colour of eyes and hair.
WAYS BY WHICH SPECIATION TAKES PLACE
Speciation takes place when variation is combined with geographical isolation.
1. Gene flow : Occurs between population that are partly but not completely
separated.
2. Genetic drift : It is the random change in the frequency of alleles (gene
pair) in a population over successive generations.
3. Natural selection : The process by which nature selects and consolidate
those organisms which are more suitable adapted and possesses favourable variations.
4. Geographical isolation : It is caused by mountain ranges, rivers etc.
Geographical isolation leads to reproductive isolation due to which there is no
flow of genes between separated groups of population.
Heredity and Evolution 119
Genetic drift takes place due to :
(a) Severe changes in the DNA
(b) Change in number of chromosomes
Evolution and Classification
Both evolution and classification are interlinked.
1. Classification of species is reflection of their evolutionary relationship.
2. The more characteristic two species have in common the more closely
they are related.
3. The more closely they are related, the more recently they have a common
ancestor.
4. Similarities among organisms allow us to group them together and to
study their characteristic.
Homologous organs of some vertebrates
Analogous organ of flying birds
TRACING EVOLUTIONARY RELATIONSHIPS
(Evidences of Evolution)
I. Homologous Organs : (Morphological and anatomical evidences). These
are the organs that have same basic structural plan and origin but different functions.
Homologous organs provides evidence for evolution by telling us that they
are derived from the same ancestor.
Example :
Forelimb of horse (Running)
Winds of bat (Flying) Same basic structural plan, but
Paw of a cat (Walk/scratch/attack) different functions perform.
II. Analogous Organs : These are the organs that have different origin and
structural plan but same function.
Example : Analogous organs provide mechanism for evolution.
Heredity and Evolution 121
Wings of bat → Elongated fingers with
skin folds Different basic structure,
but perform similar
Wings of bird → Feathery covering along function i.e., flight.
the arm
III. Fossils : (Paleontological evidences)
The remains and relics of dead organisms of the past.
FOSSILS ARE PRESERVED TRACES OF LIVING ORGANISMS
Fossil Archaeopteryx possess features of reptiles as well as birds. This suggests
that birds have evolved from reptiles.
Examples of Fossils
AMMONITE - Fossil-invertebrate
TRILOBITE - Fossil-invertebrate
KNIGHTIA - Fossil-fish
RAJASAURUS - Fossil-dinosaur skull
AGE OF THE FOSSILS
I. Deeper the fossil, older it is. 1. (Top layer of the earth
Recent surface)
II. Detecting the ratios of difference of ISOTOPES
same element in the fossil material i.e.,
Radio-carbon dating [C-(14) dating
Evolution by Stages
Evolution takes place in stages i.e., bit by bit generations.
I. Fitness Advantage
Evolution of Eyes : Evolution of complex organs is not sudden. It occurs
due to minor changes in DNA, however takes place bit by bit over generations.
• Flat worm has rudimentary eyes. (Enough to give fitness advantage)
• Insects have compound eyes.
• Humans have binocular eyes.
II. Functional Advantage
Evolution of Feathers : Feathers provide insulation in cold weather but later
they might become useful for flight.
Example, Dinosaurs had feathers, but could not fly using feathers. Birds
seem to have later adapted the feathers to flight.
Evolution by artificial selection
Evolution by Artificial Selection
Humans have been a powerful agent in modifying wild species to suit their
own requirement throughout ages by using artificial selection. E.g.,
(i) From wild cabbage many varieties like broccoli, cauliflower, red cab
bage, kale, cabbage and kohlrabi were obtained by artificial selection.
(ii) Wheat (many varieties obtained due to artificial selection).
Molecular Phylogeny
• It is based on the idea that changes in DNA during reproduction are the
basic events in evolution.
• Organisms which are most distantly related will accumulate greater
differences in their DNA.
HUMAN EVOLUTION
Tools to study Human evolutionary relationship ,Excavating Time dating Fossils ,Determining
DNA sequences23
Although there is great diversity of human forms all over the world, yet all humans are a single
species.
GENETIC FOOTPRINTS OF HUMANS
Hundreds/thousand of years ago
• They did not go in a single line.
• They went forward and backward.
• Moved in and out of Africa.
• Sometimes came back to mix with each other.
Genetic Terminology
1. Gene : Mendel used the term factor for a gene. A gene is the unit of
DNA responsible for the inheritance of character.
2. Allele : A pair of genes that control the two alternatives of the same
character e.g., TT/tt.
3. Heterozygous : The organism in which both the genes of a character are
unlike e.g., Tt.
4. Homozygous : The organism in which both the genes of a character are
similar e.g., TT, tt.
5. Dominant : The gene which expresses itself in F1 generation is known
as dominant gene.
6. Recessive : The gene which is unable to express itself in presence of the
dominant gene.
7. Genotype : It is the genetic constitution of an organism which determines
the characters.
8. Phenotype : It is the appearance of an individual.
124 Science Class - 10
9. Micro-evolution : It is the evolution which is on a small scale.
10. Species : A group of similar individuals within a population that can
interbreed and produce fertile offspring.
11. Chromosome : Thread like structures present in the nucleus of a cell,
containing hereditary information of the cell.
12. DNA : Deoxyribose Nucleic Acid.
It is present in chromosomes which carries traits in a coded form, from one
generation to the next.
 SUPPORT MATERIAL
OUR ENVIRONMENT

Everything that surrounds us is environment. It includes both living

(biotic) and non-living (abiotic) components.
• Interaction between these biotic and abiotic components form an
ecosystem.
• In an ecosystem living components depend on each other for their food
which give rise to food chains and food webs in nature.
• Human activities lead to environmental problems such as depletion of
ozone layer and production of huge amount of garbage.
Ecosystem
All the interacting organisms in an area together with the non-living
constituents of the environment form an ecosystem. E.g., forest, pond etc.
Types of ecosystem : It is of two types :
(a) Natural ecosystem : The ecosystem which exist in nature on its own.
E.g., forest, lake, ocean.
(b) Artifical ecosystem : Man-made ecosystems are called artificial
ecosystem. E.g., crop field, aquarium, garden.
Components of an ecosystem
Abiotic components Biotic components
(Air, water, land) (Plant, animals)
Producer Consumer Decomposers
Herbivore Carnivore Omnivore Parasites
(a) Abiotic Components : All the non-living components such as air,
water, land, light, temperature etc. form the abiotic components.
(b) Biotic Components : All the living components such as plants,
animals, bacteria, fungi etc. form the biotic components.
On the basis of nutrition biotic components are further divided into :
Producers : All green plants and blue-green algae can produce their own
food using abiotic components (photosynthesis), hence called producers.
Consumers : Include all animals which depend on producers directly or
indirectly for their food.
Consumers are further divided into :
(i) Herbivores : Plant eaters e.g., goat, deer.
(ii) Carnivores : Flash eaters e.g., tiger, crocodile.
(iii) Omnivores : Eats both plants and animals e.g., human.
(iv) Parasites : Live on the body of host and take food from it e.g., lice,
cascuta.
Decomposers : Include organisms which decompose the dead plants and
animals e.g., bacteria, fungi. These help in the replenishment of natural resources.
FOOD CHAIN
• Food chain is a series of organisms in which one organism eats another
organism as food. For e.g.,
Grass → Deer → Lion
• In a food chain various steps where transfer of energy takes place is called
a trophic level.
Flow of energy between trophic levels
• Flow of energy in a food chain is unidirectional.
• Green plants capture 1% of sunlight and convert it into food energy.
• 10 percent law : Only 10% of energy is transferred to the next trophic
level. The remaining 90% energy is used in life processes (digestion,
growth, reproduction etc.) by present trophic level.
Our Environment 193
• Due to this gradual decrease in energy, food chains contain 3-4 trophic
levels.
• Biological magnification : The concentration of harmful chemicals
increases with every next trophic level in a food chain. This is called
biological magnification.
• Maximum concentration of such chemicals get accumulated in human
bodies as human occupy the top level in any food chain.
Food web : In nature large numbers of food chains are interconnected
forming a food web.
Environmental problems : Changes in the environment affect us and our
activities change the environment around us. Human activities leads to pollution,
deforestation etc.
Ozone layer
• Ozone layer is a protective blanket around the earth which absorbs most
of the harmful UV (ultraviolet) radiations of the sunlight, thus protecting
living beings from many health hazards such as skin cancer, cataract,
destruction of plants etc.
• Ozone (O3) layer is present at higher levels of atmosphere (i.e.,
stratosphere). It is a deadly poison at ground level.
Formation of ozone molecule
(i) The high energy UV radiations break down the O2 molecules into free
oxygen (O) atoms
(ii) These oxygen atoms then combine with oxygen (O2) molecule to form
the ozone molecule.
Depletion of ozone layer
• The decrease in the thickness of ozone layer over Antarctica was first
observed in 1985 and was termed as ozone hole.
• This decrease was linked to excessive use of synthetic chemicals
like chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) which are used in refrigerators, ACs,
fire-extinguishers, aerosols sprays etc.
• United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) succeeded in forging
an agreement to stop CFC production at 1986 levels (KYOTO PROTOCOL)
by all countries.
Garbage disposal
Improvements in lifestyle have resulted in accumulation of large amounts of
waste materials.
Garbage contains following type of materials :
(a) Biodegradable : Substances which can be decomposed by the action
of micro-organisms are called biodegradable wastes.
E.g., fruit and vegetable peels, cotton, jute, dung, paper, etc.
(b) Non-biodegradable wastes : Substances which cannot be decomposed
by the action of micro-organisms are called non-biodegradable wastes.
E.g., plastic, polythenes, metals, synthetic fibres, radioactive wastes,
pesticides etc.
Micro-organisms release enzymes which decompose the materials but these
enzymes are specific in their action that’s why enzymes cannot decompose all
the materials.
Our Environment 195
Some methods of waste disposal
(a) Biogas plant : Biodegradable waste can be used in biogas plant to
produce biogas and manure.
(b) Sewage treatment plant : The drain water can be cleaned in sewage
treatment plant before adding it to rivers.
(c) Land fillings : The wastes are buried in low lying areas and are
compacted by rolling with bulldozers.
(d) Composting : Organic wastes are filled in a compost pit and covered
with a layer of soil, after about three months garbage changes to
manure.
(e) Recycling : Non-biodegradable wastes are recycled to make new
items.
(f) Reuse : It is a conventional technique to use an item again e.g.,
newspaper for making envelops.
 SUPPORT MATERIAL
CLASS-X
MANAGEMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES

Natural Resources : Anything in the environment ‘which can be used’

is called natural resource. For example, soil, air, water, forests, wildlife,
coal and petroleum.
Types of Resources
Exhaustible Inexhaustible
These are present in limited quantity. These are present in unlimited quantity.
E.g., Coal, petroleum. E.g., Air, water.
Management of Natural Resources : It is the use of natural resources in such
a way so as to avoid wastage and conserve them for future.
There are national and international laws and acts to protect the environment.
GANGA ACTION PLAN (GAP) : Multi crore project came in 1985 to improve
the quality of Ganga.
Contamination of river water is indicated by :
(i) The presence of coliform (a group of bacteria found in human intestine)
whose presence indicate contamination by disease causing bacteria.
(ii) The pH of water that can be easily checked by using universal indicator.
Management of Natural Resources
Three R’s to save the environment :
REDUCE RECYCLE REUSE
Use less Segregate waste that can Use again
be recycled
1. Switching off Plastic, glass, metal items Instead of throwing
Management of Natural Resources 199
unnecessary lights can be recycled instead of things away, they can
and fans. synthesizing or extracting be used again.
2. Repairing leaky taps. new ones.
3. Not wasting food.
Reuse is better than recycling as it saves energy.
We need to use our resources carefully because
(a) they are limited.
(b) demand for all resources is increasing as human population is increasing
at a tremendous rate due to improvement in health care.
Sustainable Management
Management of resource wisely so that they meet current basic human needs
while preserving them for the needs of future generations.
The management of natural resources require :
(a) Long term perspective so that these will last for generations to come.
(b) Ensure equitable distribution of resources so that all economic sections
benefit from these resources.
(c) Safe disposal of waste.
Forest and Wildlife Conservation
Forest are biodiversity hot spots. Main aim of conservation is to preserve the
biodiversity as loss of diversity may lead to ecological instability.
Biodiversity : Biodiversity of an area is the number of plant and animal
species found in that particular area like bacteria, fungi, insects, birds, plants etc.
Hot spots : It means an area full of biological diversity.
Stake holder : A person having interest or concern for something is called
stake holder.
Stake holders of forests
Local people Forest department Industrialist Wildlife
(Dependent on forest (Govt. who owns the (Who use various
for their survival) land and controls Who want to conserv
nature) forest products resources)
Instances where various people has played an important
role in conservation of forests
(i) Khejri Trees : Amrita Devi Bishnoi, in 1731, sacrificed her life along
with 363 others for the protection of Khejri trees in a village in
Rajasthan.
Govt. of India instituted ‘Amrita Devi Bishnoi’ National award for
wildlife conservation in her memory.
(ii) Chipko Andolan : This movement originated in a remote village in
Garhwal. Women of the village reached the forest when contractor’s men
came to cut the trees. Women clasped the tree trunk thus preventing the
workers from felling the trees. The Chipko Movement quickly spread
across communities and forced govt. to rethink their priorities in the use
of forest products.
(iii) West Bengal Forest Department revived the degraded SAL forest of
Arabari.
Water for all
• Water is the basic necessity for all terrestrial forms of life.
• Rain is an important source of water.
• Irrigation methods like dams, tanks and canals have been used in various
parts of India.
Dams
Dams ensure the storage of adequate water for irrigation and are also used
for generating electricity.
Various dams have been built on rivers to regulate the flow of water.
E.g., (a) Tehri Dam − On river Ganga
(b) Sardar Sarovar Dam − On river Narmada
(c) Bhakra Nangal Dam − On river Satluj
Interesting facts :
Hirakud Dam built across Narmada river is the longest man-made dam in the
world – 26 km in length.
Tehri Dam is Asia’s highest dam – 261 m high.
Bhakra Nangal Dam is Asia’s second highest dam at 225.5 m.
Management of Natural Resources 201
Advantages of Dams
(a) Ensures adequate water for irrigation.
(b) To generate electricity.
(c) Continuous supply of water to cities and towns.
Disadvantages of Dams
(a) Social problems :
(i) Many tribals and peasants are displaced and rendered homeless.
(ii) They do not get adequate compensation or rehabilitation.
(b) Environmental problems :
(i) Deforestation
(ii) Loss of biodiversity
(iii) Disturb ecological balance
(c) Economic problems :
(i) Huge amount of public money is used.
(ii) No proportionate benefit to people.
(iii) No equitable distribution of water.
Rain Water Harvesting
Rain water harvesting is to make rain water percolate under the ground so as
to recharge ‘groundwater’.
• Rain water harvesting is an age old practice in India.
• Various ancient methods of water harvesting :
Method State
Khadin, tanks, nadis Rajasthan
Bandharas, tals Maharastra
Bundhis Madhya Pradesh, UP
Pynes, ahars Bihar
Kulhs Himachal Pradesh
Ponds Jammu region
Eris (tanks) Tamil Nadu
Bawlis Delhi
Advantages of storing water in the ground
(a) It does not evaporate.
(b) It spreads out to recharge wells.
(c) It provides moisture for vegetation over a wide area.
(d) It does not provide breeding grounds for mosquitoes.
(e) It is protected from contamination by human and animal waste.
Coal and Petroleum
• Coal and Petroleum are non-renewable natural resources.
• Coal and Petroleum are called Fossil Fuels.
• Formation :
Coal : Coal was formed from the remains of trees buried deep inside the
earth some 300 million years ago.
Petroleum : Petroleum is formed by the bacterial decomposition of dead
marine plants and animals (buried at the bottom of the seas). This decomposition
takes place under high pressure and temperature and formation of petroleum
take millions of years of time.
• Coal and petroleum will exhaust very soon.
(a) Coal : At present rate, coal will last another 200 years.
(b) Petroleum : At present rate of usage, it will last for about 40 years.
Harmful effects of using fossil fuels
Air pollution : Combustion of coal and hydrocarbons release a large amount
of carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, oxides of nitrogen etc. which cause air
pollution.
Diseases : This polluted air causes various diseases like respiratory and
throat problems, congestion etc.
Global Warming : Excessive emission of green house gases like
carbondioxide cause a rise in atmospheric temperature leading to global warming.
• Fossil fuels should be used judiciously.
(a) Because they are limited and exhaustible.
(b) Once exhausted they will not be available in near future because they are
formed very slowly over a period of many years.
• Steps taken to conserve energy resources (like coal and petroleum)
(a) Switch off electric appliances when not in use.
Management of Natural Resources 203
(b) Use electric appliances that are energy efficient like CFL at home.
(c) Use public transport like bus or metro instead of private vehicles.
(d) Use stairs to climb instead of lift.
(e) Whenever possible, use solar cookers.