Problem: I have a new situation: Peter decided to sugar mangoes, ginger, pineapples, peaches to preserve them for next spring. He also bought blueberries and raspberries to eat fresh. But I can use this background: Sugaring is a food preservation method similar to pickling. Sugaring is the process of desiccating a food by first dehydrating it, then packing it with pure sugar. This sugar can be crystalline in the form of table or raw sugar, or it can be a high sugar density liquid such as honey, syrup or molasses. The purpose of sugaring is to create an environment hostile to microbial life and prevent food spoilage. Sugaring is commonly used to preserve fruits as well as vegetables such as ginger. From time to time sugaring has also been used for non-food preservations. For example, honey was used as part of the mummification process in some ancient Egyptian rites. A risk in sugaring is that sugar itself attracts moisture. Once a sufficient moisture level is reached, native yeast in the environment will come out of dormancy and begin to ferment the sugars into alcohol and carbon dioxide. This leads to the process of fermentation. Although fermentation can be used as a food preservation method, it must be intentionally controlled, or the results will tend to be unpleasant. What is an answer for this question: Which fruit had a higher sugar content, ginger or blueberries?

A: ginger

Problem: I have a new situation: Two university students studied different types of drugs for their exams. Kate studied statins, while Carol studied anti-depressants. But I can use this background: Currently, millions of individuals with high cholesterol take a similar type of drug, known as a statin. The drug, an inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase (3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-CoA reductase), the rate limiting enzyme in cholesterol biosynthesis, decreases blood levels of cholesterol by induce the expression of low density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors in the liver. The increased levels of the LDL-receptors stimulate the catabolism of plasma LDL, removing cholesterol from plasma, which is an important determinant of atherosclerosis. You may know of people who take a statin to help with their cholesterol levels. However, these drugs probably work slightly differently in many of those people. In some, it lowers their cholesterol significantly; in others it may lower it only moderately; and in some, it may have no significant effect at all. (Luckily for those individuals, there are multiple versions of the statins, so different drugs can be tested to find the proper combination for that individual.) Why the difference? Because of the genetic background of all people; the different single nucleotide polymorphisms that make us all different. Pharmacogenomics, a combination of pharmacology and genomics (the study of the genome) that refers to the study of the relationship between pharmaceuticals and genetics, may explain and simplify this problem. What is an answer for this question: Which student learned more about an inhibitor of HMG-CoA reductase?

A: Kate

Problem: I have a new situation: Two countries were neighbors, separated by a mountain range. Ghana used fossil fuels to produce energy, but one of the consequences of that was increased air pollution and acid rain. Brunei was a country inhabited by nature lovers and tree huggers, so they were very protective of their environment. But I can use this background: One result of air pollution is acid rain. Acid rain is precipitation with a low (acidic) pH. This rain can be very destructive to wildlife. When acid rain falls in forests, freshwater habitats, or soils, it can kill insects and aquatic life. It causes this damage because of its very low pH. Sulfur oxides and nitrogen oxides in the air both cause acid rain to form ( Figure below ). Sulfur oxides are chemicals that are released from coal-fired power plants. Nitrogen oxides are released from motor vehicle exhaust. What is an answer for this question: Which country had more precipitation with a low pH?

A: Ghana

Problem: I have a new situation: Sarah and Lydia are two sisters that have been learning how to farm since they were kids. After graduating college, they both started their own farms and have been working on their own for several years now. At a family get together, Sarah mentions that her farm is experiencing soil salination. Lydia finishes swallowing her bite of cake and remarks that her farm has never experienced that before. But I can use this background: Soil piping is a particular form of soil erosion that occurs below the soil surface. It causes levee and dam failure, as well as sink hole formation. Turbulent flow removes soil starting at the mouth of the seep flow and the subsoil erosion advances up-gradient. The term sand boil is used to describe the appearance of the discharging end of an active soil pipe.Soil salination is the accumulation of free salts to such an extent that it leads to degradation of the agricultural value of soils and vegetation. Consequences include corrosion damage, reduced plant growth, erosion due to loss of plant cover and soil structure, and water quality problems due to sedimentation. Salination occurs due to a combination of natural and human-caused processes. Arid conditions favour salt accumulation. This is especially apparent when soil parent material is saline. Irrigation of arid lands is especially problematic. All irrigation water has some level of salinity. Irrigation, especially when it involves leakage from canals and overirrigation in the field, often raises the underlying water table. Rapid salination occurs when the land surface is within the capillary fringe of saline groundwater. Soil salinity control involves watertable control and flushing with higher levels of applied water in combination with tile drainage or another form of subsurface drainage. What is an answer for this question: Who will be able to grow more plants?

A:
Lydia