The answer should be D, cells can only create an identical copy of the original cell.
<h2>Answer : Law of conservation of mass</h2><h3>Explanation :</h3>
The law of conservation of mass states that in any reaction mass is neither created nor lost it has to remain constant in a system.
In this case, when the reaction setup was done in normal way the mass was lost in surrounding was not considered nor being calculated; whereas when the reaction was studied in a closed system where the gas was collected after the reaction the mass changes was noted down which helped to prove the point of law of conservation of mass and energy.
One can consider an example of soda can where the carbonated drink contains pressurized carbon dioxide gas. when opened the gas bubbles gets lost into the surroundings and we don't measure the mass changes. Instead if the soda can was opened in such a way where the gas evolved was measured then the mass changed would remain the same.
Liquid water turning into vapor.
CxHy + O2 --> x CO2 + y/2 H2O
Find the moles of CO2 : 18.9g / 44 g/mol = .430 mol CO2 = .430 mol of C in compound
Find the moles of H2O: 5.79g / 18 g/mol = .322 mol H2O = .166 mol of H in compound
Find the mass of C and H in the compound:
.430mol x 12 = 5.16 g C
.166mol x 1g = .166g H
When you add these up they indicate a mass of 5.33 g for the compound, not 5.80g as you stated in the problem.
Therefore it is likely that either the mass of the CO2 or the mass of H20 produced is incorrect (most likely a typo).
In any event, to find the formula, you would take the moles of C and H and convert to a whole number ratio (this is usually done by dividing both of them by the smaller value).