Question

Onion root tips are often used to study mitosis because they grow very rapidly, which means that many cells are dividing. The very tip of the onion root ends in a structure called the root cap. The other end of the root attaches to the onion. A scientist is interested in determining whether an onion root tip grows from the base of the root or from the tip near the root cap. She counts the number of cells that are in one of the phases of mitosis at different distances from the root cap. What is the dependent variable in her experiment

Answer 1

Answer:

- Dependent variable: number of cells that are in one of the phases of mitosis

Explanation:

In an experiment, the independent variable is the variable that is not changed by the other variables that are being measured during the experiment (in this case, the independent variable is represented by the distances from the root cap). On the other hand, the dependent variable is the variable that is being measured/tested during the experimental procedure and, therefore, is 'dependent' on the independent variable. In consequence, in an experiment, the dependent variable is expected to change as a result of the manipulation of the independent variable.