The survival of a species is promoted through creation of variations. Illustrate with an example.
Generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 · 2026-06-15 06:43 · grounding rag
Model Answer
Variations in DNA copies created during reproduction help a species survive environmental changes.
Example: A population of bacteria lives in temperate water. Due to global warming, the water temperature rises sharply. Most bacteria die, but a few heat-resistant variants survive and reproduce. Thus, variation ensures the species is not completely wiped out.
Source: Chapter 7, Section 7.1.1 – The Importance of Variation
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Explanation
- The examiner expects: (1) a clear statement linking variation to survival, and (2) the specific textbook example of bacteria surviving temperature increase due to heat-resistant variants.
- Do not use a different example — the bacteria/global warming example is directly from the textbook and is the safest choice.
- The key phrase to include: "variation is useful for the survival of species over time."
- Avoid padding; two tight points earn full marks here.