Metaphors for Biology: Evolution

To determine which is faster, natural or artificial selection, one might select examples to compare: while wolves and wild jackals branched off from a common ancestor 3.5 million years ago (natural selection), arctic foxes were domesticated within a couple of decades (artificial selection). The oldest moth species appeared in the fossil record around 200 million years ago (natural selection), while the peppered moth changed from a light-colored to a primarily dark-colored one in just 47 years (a...