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atavism |
Also found in: Dictionary/thesaurus, Medical, Legal, Financial, Wikipedia, Hutchinson | 0.06 sec. |
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atavism (ăt`əvizəm), the appearance in an individual of a characteristic not apparent in the preceding generation. At one time it was believed that such a phenomenon was thought to be a reversion of "throwback" to a hypothetical ancestral prototype. The term is seldom used today since science has shown that such abnormal characteristics can be explained by the inheritance of a pair of recessive genes gene, the structural unit of inheritance in living organisms. A gene is, in essence, a segment of DNA that has a particular purpose, i.e., that codes for (contains the chemical information necessary for the creation of) a specific enzyme or other protein. ..... Click the link for more information. . See Mendel Mendel, Gregor Johann (grā`gôr yō`hän mĕn`dəl) ..... Click the link for more information. . atavism the recurrence in a plant or animal of certain primitive characteristics that were present in an ancestor but have not occurred in intermediate generations atavism [′ad·ə‚viz·əm] (evolution) Appearance of a distant ancestral form of an organism or one of its parts due to reactivation of ancestral genes. How to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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In our day we have progressed to a point where such sentiments mark weakness and atavism. Perhaps some deeprooted atavism urges the wanderer back to lands which his ancestors left in the dim beginnings of history. What to you the friendship of Lop-Ear, the warm lure of the Swift One, the lust and the atavism of Red-Eye? |
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