Yeasts capable of leavening bread are widespread, and in the many centuries during which the ancient Egyptians made only unleave
ned bread, such yeasts must frequently have been mixed into bread doughs accidentally. The Egyptians, however, did not discover leavened bread until about 3000 B. C. That discovery roughly coincided with the introduction of a wheat variety that was preferable to previous varieties because its edible kernel could be removed from the husk without first toasting the grain.Which of the following, if true, provides the strongest evidence that the two developments were causally related?(A) Even after the ancient Egyptians discovered leavened bread and the techniques for reliably producing it were well known, unleavened bread continued to be widely consumed.(B) Only when the Egyptians stopped the practice of toasting grain were their stone-lined grain-toasting pits available for baking bread.(C) Heating a wheat kernel destroys its gluten, a protein that must be present in order for yeast to leaven bread dough.(D) The new variety of wheat, which had a more delicate flavor because it was not toasted, was reserved for the consumption of high officials when it first began to be grown.(E) Because the husk of the new variety of wheat was more easily removed, flour made from it required less effort to produce.
The correct answer is (C) Heating a wheat kernel destroys its gluten, a protein that must be present in order for yeast to leaven bread dough.
Explanation:
Two events are causally related if one of the events causes the other, which means one event originates the other. This relationship is suggested between the use of yeast and the introduction of a new variety of wheat in Ancient Egypt, which is explained in "That discovery roughly coincided with the introduction of a wheat variety". Moreover, this is better supported by the evidence "Heating a wheat kernel destroys its gluten..." because the use of the new variety of wheat caused gluten was not destroyed in the process and this was the origin of leavened bread and the use of yeast.
