A scientist constructed the device shown above to model how porous areas of the Earth's surface cause water to soak into the ground (infiltration). An assumption of the model is that a greater amount of connected pore space in a sediment sample means water will infiltrate the sample faster. Which of the following is a result that the scientist could predict in order to test her assumption?
A.
A volume of 500 mL of water will pass through sample Z faster than through any of the other samples.
B.
A volume of 500 mL of water will pass through sample W faster than through any of the other samples.
C.
A volume of 500 mL of water will pass through all of the samples at the same rate.
D.
No more than 500 mL of water can pass through any of the samples.
A. A volume of 500 mL of water will pass through sample Z faster than through any of the other samples.
To test the assumption that a greater amount of connected pore space in a sediment sample means water will infiltrate the sample faster, the scientist can make the following prediction:
A. A volume of 500 mL of water will pass through sample Z faster than through any of the other samples.
Since the assumption is that greater connected pore space leads to faster infiltration, sample Z, which presumably has the highest connected pore space among the given samples, would be expected to allow water to pass through faster compared to the other samples.
To test the assumption that a greater amount of connected pore space in a sediment sample means water will infiltrate the sample faster, the scientist can predict a result based on the volume of water passing through the samples.
If the assumption is correct, the prediction would be that a greater amount of connected pore space in a sediment sample would result in faster infiltration of water.
From the given options, the scientist could predict that a volume of 500 mL of water will pass through sample Z faster than through any of the other samples (option A). This prediction suggests that sample Z has a greater amount of connected pore space, leading to faster infiltration.
To determine the answer, the scientist would need to compare the properties of the different samples, such as their pore size, pore connectivity, and overall porosity. By analyzing these properties and conducting experiments, the scientist can test the assumption and verify the predicted result.