I read this background article the other day: Air pollution is harmful to human beings and other living things. About 22 million people die from air pollution each year. Breathing polluted air increases the risk of developing lung diseases such as asthma and lung cancer. Breathing bad air also increases the chances of dying from other diseases. Children are most likely to be affected by air pollution. That's because their lungs are still developing and growing. Children also take in more air for their size than adults do. Some air pollutants damage the environment as well as the health of living things. The type of damage depends on the pollutant. Air pollution can also harm the environment. I am facing a new situation today: Tree city and Leaf city were the two biggest cities in Boulderland. Tree city burned lots of gas and other fossil fuels, while Leaf city was very protective towards its environment. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which city caused more air pollution?
Ans: Tree

I read this background article the other day: Saturated hydrocarbons are given the general name of alkanes . The name of specific alkanes always ends in - ane . The first part of the name indicates how many carbon atoms each molecule of the alkane has. The smallest alkane is methane. It has just one carbon atom. The next largest is ethane, with two carbon atoms. The chemical formulas and properties of methane, ethane, and several other alkanes are listed in Table below . The boiling and melting points of alkanes are determined mainly by the number of carbon atoms they have. Alkanes with more carbon atoms generally have higher boiling and melting points. I am facing a new situation today: Vic and Joe studied chemistry in school. Joe studied alkanes, while his friend Vic studied other acyclic hydrocarbons. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which friend studied more about ethane gas?
Ans: Vic

I read this background article the other day: Generally, nearsightedness first occurs in school-age children. There is some evidence that myopia is inherited. If one or both of your parents need glasses, there is an increased chance that you will too. Individuals who spend a lot of time reading, working or playing at a computer, or doing other close visual work may also be more likely to develop nearsightedness. Because the eye continues to grow during childhood, myopia typically progresses until about age 20. However, nearsightedness may also develop in adults due to visual stress or health conditions such as diabetes. A common sign of nearsightedness is difficulty seeing distant objects like a movie screen or the TV, or the whiteboard or chalkboard in school. I am facing a new situation today: Two siblings were going to school. Mary experienced headaches, so he was sent to the eye doctor. The doctor concluded she was nearsighted and prescribed her eyeglasses. Ben had normal vision. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which sibling spent a lot of time on the computer?
Ans: Mary

I read this background article the other day: The body's second line of defense against pathogens includes the inflammatory response. If bacteria enter the skin through a scrape, the area may become red, warm, and painful. These are signs of inflammation. Inflammation is one way the body reacts to infections or injuries. Inflammation is caused by chemicals that are released when skin or other tissues are damaged. The chemicals cause nearby blood vessels to dilate, or expand. This increases blood flow to the damaged area, which makes the area red and slightly warm. The chemicals also attract white blood cells called neutrophils to the wound and cause them to leak out of blood vessels into the damaged tissue. I am facing a new situation today: A team of researchers named Alpha did some research on the inflammatory response in humans for a science contest. A competing team called Omega did research on the human genome. Team Omega lost. Using the knowledge I acquired from the background article, how should I answer correctly the following question regarding my new situation: Which team studied more about chemicals that are released when skin or other tissues are damaged?
Ans: Alpha