Martin Keeps a Worm Bin in His Basement Because They

question 28

Multiple Choice

Martin keeps a worm bin in his basement because they need cooler temperatures to survive. He feeds them about 1 pound of kitchen scraps each week. One summer the temperatures rise above the optimal temperature for the red worms (~ 85°F) and many in his colony die. However, those that survive continue to reproduce and within 6 months his colony is again thriving. The next summer, unusually warm temperatures again cause the basement temperatures to rise above 85°F for 2 days in a row. Surprisingly, Martin noticed that only a small portion of the worm colony died. What is the best explanation for this?

• A) After the first summer a new species of worm evolved.
• B) The worms sensed that the temperature was going to be hot in the future and adapted.
• C) The worms learned how to tolerate higher temperatures.
• D) The worms surviving the first year had a higher heat tolerance and passed this trait to their offspring.
• E) Worms are insensitive to heat changes.

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Definitions:

ANOVA

A statistical method (Analysis of Variance) used to compare the means of three or more samples to see if they come from the same population.

Regression

A statistical method used to examine the relationship between one dependent variable and one or more independent variables.

Intercept Term

In statistics, the intercept term is a constant value that represents where the estimated regression line crosses the y-axis.

Stepwise Regression

An approach to constructing regression models where the selection of predictor variables is performed through an automated process.