Question

David Blehert and his research team captured 117 healthy bats to study in the laboratory and divided them into four groups. Group 1 was housed in an area free from Geomyces destructans. Group 2 was housed in an area that shared the same air as bats infected with WNS, but these bats did not have direct contact with the infected bats. Group 3 was housed in direct contact with other bats infected with WNS. Bats in group 4 were directly exposed to Geomyces destructans when it was applied to their wings. During the study period the bats were monitored for signs of WNS. In this experiment, the independent was ________ and the dependent variable was ________.
a) the type of exposure to Geomyces destructans; whether the bats became sick with WNS.b) whether the bats became sick with WNS; the type of exposure to Geomyces destructans.c) whether the bats became sick with WNS; the number of bats included in the study.d) the number of bats included in the study; the type of exposure to Geomyces destructans.

Answer 1

Answer: a) the type of exposure to Geomyces destructans; whether the bats became sick with WNS

Explanation: The independent variable refers to the variables employed by the experimenter to use as a tool to observe changes in the dependent variable. In an experimental study, the independent variables are usually the different controls adopted for the experiment. In the scenario above, the independent variable is the type of exposure to Geomyces destructans which each of the groups are exposed to. These variation in control in which the different groups are exposed to may result in different response within the group which is the change in WNS. These response due to exposure to different control is called the dependent variable.