Recently,beekeepers Have Noticed an Alarming and Sudden Disappearance of Honeybees

question 57

Multiple Choice

Recently,beekeepers have noticed an alarming and sudden disappearance of honeybees from their hives.Some beekeepers and environmentalists worry that crops genetically engineered to produce Bt insecticidal toxin may be killing the bees.Which of these experiments tests the hypothesis that Bt toxin is killing the bees?

• A) spraying Bt toxin on a field and counting the number of bees present before and after spraying
• B) collecting hundreds of bees; half of the bees would be kept in a facility with plants genetically engineered to contain the gene for Bt toxin, while the other half would be kept in a facility with plants not genetically engineered to contain the gene for Bt toxin. The survival rate for both sets of bees would be calculated and compared.
• C) collecting hundreds of bees and spraying only half of them with Bt toxin; the survival rate for both sets of bees would be calculated and compared
• D) The number of bees in two adjacent fields would be counted before and after spraying one of the fields with Bt toxin. The survival rate of bees in both fields would be calculated and compared.

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Definitions:

Estrogen

A group of steroid hormones that promote the development and maintenance of female characteristics in the human body.

Endometrium

Mucous membrane lining the interior surface of the uterus.

Follicular Phase

The stage of a woman's menstrual cycle during which follicles in the ovary mature, ending with ovulation.

Placenta

An organ that develops in the uterus during pregnancy, providing oxygen and nutrients to the growing baby while removing waste products from the baby's blood.