Final answer:
Genomics is the study of whole genomes, aiming to understand the genetic sequencing within a species. It uses methods such as reverse genetics and high-throughput screening to assign functions to proteins and explores evolutionary relationships through DNA sequence homology.
Step-by-step explanation:
The goal of genomics is to elucidate the roles of genetic sequences—DNA, RNA, and amino acid sequences—in a given species. The field of genomics involves the study of entire genomes, including complete sets of genes, their nucleotide sequence, organization, and their interactions within a species as well as with other species.
Approaches such as reverse genetics help in determining the function of the gene by techniques like RNAi to silence the gene. Data collection for assigning function to the protein encoded by a sequence would involve synthesizing dsRNA from a DNA segment and employing high-throughput screening for large-scale experiments. These would help in understanding the genetic basis of phenotypes and the evolutionary history of life on Earth inferred from nucleotide sequences of genes.
Genomic data further contribute to evolutionary studies by comparing DNA sequence homology and constructing refined molecular databases that aid in constructing phylogenetic trees. An analysis of sequence homology is instrumental in estimating evolutionary distances and understanding evolutionary kinship by measuring similarities or differences among various species' DNA or protein sequences.