Iris Cohen wrote:

So exactly what is the origin of maize? I understand it is supposed to be the
descendant of teosinte, the wild form of the species. How did the habit of
making ears evolve?

First, it's important to note that there are six or seven different
kinds of teosinte, so saying that maize is a descendant of teosinte is
somewhat ambiguous. General concensus nowadays, based on an overwhelming
amount of data, is that maize is a direct domesticate of Z. mays ssp.
parviglumis, the most common and highest-yielding of the Mexican annual
teosintes. Recent genetic studies strongly support that there was a
single domestication event from which all varieties of maize were
derived. There are only about 5 genes different between maize and ssp.
parviglumis, suggesting that maize may have simply been selected for by
conventional crop improvement methods (possibly from an initial mutant).
The number of genes altered throughout the diversification of maize is
far greater than the number of genes altered in the initial transition
from teosinte to basal maize.

The apparent genetic flexibility of Zea is quite impressive, and the
differences between maize and teosinte are fairly superficial. Further,
much of the apparent differences are the result of known breeding
practices which occured after the initial domestication event. Given the
amount of variability seen in modern wild teosinte populations, it is
not hard to imagine maize coming about, with or without human intervention.

Here's a few articles...

http://www.wisc.edu/teosinte/pdfs/Ma...et_al_PNAS.pdf

http://www.wisc.edu/teosinte/pdfs/Lu...oebley2001.pdf

http://www.genetics.org/cgi/reprint/150/2/863.pdf

http://www.genetics.org/cgi/reprint/158/2/487.pdf

http://www.econbot.org/journal/Vol54...t-54-1-007.pdf


Regards

Micah Mabelitini


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