A scientist designs an experiment to test the hypothesis that exposure to more sunlight will increase the growth rate of elodea, a type of aquatic plant. The scientist has accumulated data from previous experiments that identify the average growth rate of elodea exposed to natural sunlight in the wild.
In the experiment set up, there are three tanks housing ten elodea each. Tank A is positioned in front of a window to receive natural sunlight similar to what elodea are exposed to; tank B is positioned in front of the same window but has an additional sunlight-replicating lamp affixed to it; and tank C is positioned in a dark corner with no exposure to natural sunlight.
Which of the following is the control group in the above experiment?
Correct Answer: D
Rationale: The correct answer is D: There is no control group in this experiment. A control group is a group in an experiment that does not receive the treatment being studied in order to serve as a baseline for comparison. In this case, all three tanks (A, B, and C) are being treated with different amounts of fertilizer, and there is no group that is left untreated to serve as a control for comparison. Choices A, B, and C are incorrect because they all represent tanks that are part of the experimental groups receiving different amounts of fertilizer, thus none of them can be considered the control group.
Nokea