A Truck Driver Is Transporting a Load of Unripened Bananas

question 101

Multiple Choice

A truck driver is transporting a load of unripened bananas in an air-tight vehicle, and decides to stop and eat an apple after checking on his cargo. He opens the back of his truck and, while walking around the unripened bananas, he decides the apple is overripe and drops it. When the bananas are finally delivered days later, he is surprised to find that all of his bananas have ripened. Why?

• A)Opening the back of the truck exposed the bananas to CO, which accelerated their ripening.
• B)Exposure of the bananas to the apple (and its ethylene)instigated their ripening.
• C)The bananas would naturally ripen over time, even in an air-tight environment.
• D)Opening the back of the truck exposed the bananas to light of red wavelengths.

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Definitions:

Lateral Roots

Roots that branch off from the main root to increase the plant's ability to absorb water and nutrients from the soil.

Cortex

In biology, the outer layer of an organ or structure, such as the cerebral cortex of the brain or the cortex of a plant root or stem.

Symplast

The network of cytoplasm of multiple plant cells connected by plasmodesmata, facilitating intercellular communication.

Cytoplasm

The jelly-like substance within a cell that contains the cytosol, organelles, and inclusions, exclusive of the nucleus.