Why won't a single cell ever grow large enough to devour New York City? There may be more than one correct answer.
A. The larger the cell, the lower the ratio of surface area to volume.
B. The amount of cell membrane around the cell is too large to support the volume of the cell.
C. The volume inside the cell is too large to be supported by the amount of cell membrane around the cell.
D. The larger the cell, the higher the ratio of surface area to volume.
E. The exchange of gases, water, and other molecules through the cell membrane will not occur fast enough to support such a large cell.
I have no idea : | Please HELP!!!
2007-03-16 07:03:43 · 11 answers · asked by Kendra 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Biology
Wow, what a sucky question. Multiple choice implies one choice... But anyway, the definite answers are A and E. Cells tend to be very small because smaller things have a larger surface area to volume ratio. Cell membranes need to be able to transport materials into and out of the cell, so if a cell has too great of a volume, it will not be able to move materials in and out quickly enough and the cell will die. This is why evolution has created beings to have very small cells. It is much more efficient to have several organ systems containing billions of cells than to have one cell that is sure to die quickly.
2007-03-16 07:12:29 · answer #1 · answered by F1reflyfan 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The correct answer would be A.
It's the same reason insects can't grow that large. A cell 'breathes' through it's skin, and it does not have a vascular system. Therefore if it gets to large, gases cannot reach the interior and it will suffocate.
E would be the other answer you could argue for, but the problem is not the exchange of gases at the membrane, but rather the speed of transport through the cytoplasm...
2007-03-16 09:12:53 · answer #2 · answered by S1LK 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
a is definitely true (spherical geometry), and causes e to also be true (because the substances needed from outside the cell take time to diffuse across the cell, and the greater the distance, the longer the time, so the center of the cell will die out before it gets its supplies if the cell is too large) - c could also be a factor (if the internal pressure is too great, the cell breaks/lyses)
2007-03-16 07:13:49 · answer #3 · answered by Megs 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's E
2007-03-16 07:13:05 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Duh,.....don't know. Ask a New Yorker?
2007-03-16 07:07:26 · answer #5 · answered by Ahab 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The answer is E, which is largely the result of A also being true
2007-03-16 07:15:47 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Either A or C
2007-03-16 07:11:42 · answer #7 · answered by James C 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
E and A are correct
2007-03-16 07:23:12 · answer #8 · answered by Franklin 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
E makes more sense.
2007-03-16 07:07:36 · answer #9 · answered by sunflare63 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I AM GUESSING B
2007-03-16 07:07:55 · answer #10 · answered by xeashuff 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋