How is the tree of life (TOL) organized?

1 Answer
Jan 21, 2018

The Tree of Life is organized to support the idea of descent with modification.

Explanation:

The Darwinian Theory of Evolution postulates that all life began with a single "simple" cell and has progressed outward to ever increasing complexity and diversity. The Tree of Life is an effort to illustrate this theoretical concept.

The simplest animals are placed the closest to the truck of the Tree of Life. The more complex organism are placed on the upper branches of the tree. There is little empirical evidence of the relationships illustrated in the Tree of Life. The Tree is based on the idea of descent with modification, the foundation of Darwinian Evolution.