The question asks about the specific time period during which Gregor Mendel conducted his groundbreaking hybridisation experiments with pea plants. This is a factual recall question related to the history of genetics.
B) 1856-1863. This period accurately reflects the years Mendel actively conducted his hybridisation experiments on pea plants, leading to his seminal work on the laws of inheritance.
The question asks to identify which trait was NOT studied by Gregor Mendel in his experiments with pea plants. To answer this, we need to recall the seven pairs of contrasting traits that Mendel investigated.
Correct Option: C) Leaf size
Mendel did not study leaf size as one of his seven contrasting traits in pea plants. While pea plants have leaves, their size was not a characteristic Mendel focused on for his genetic inheritance studies.
The question asks about James Watson's undergraduate field of study. To answer this, one needs to recall biographical details of James Watson, particularly his academic background before his groundbreaking work on DNA.
Correct Option: C) Zoology
The question asks about Francis Crick's Ph.D. subject. To answer this, one needs to recall his academic background and the specific field of his doctoral research, which was crucial to his later work on DNA structure.
Correct Option: D) X-ray Diffraction of Polypeptides and Proteins
The question asks about a major contribution of Gregor Mendel to biology. We need to evaluate each option based on Mendel's historical work and its impact on the field of genetics.
C) Application of statistics to inheritance — Mendel's groundbreaking contribution was his quantitative approach to studying heredity. He systematically counted and analyzed the ratios of traits in successive generations of pea plants, using statistical reasoning to deduce the fundamental laws of inheritance. This was a novel approach at the time and laid the foundation for modern genetics.
The question asks about the characteristics of the traits Mendel studied in his experiments. To answer this, recall Mendel's experimental design and the nature of the traits he selected for his pea plant studies.
C) Pairs of contrasting traits — Mendel specifically chose traits that existed in two clearly distinguishable, contrasting forms (e.g., tall vs. dwarf, yellow vs. green seeds). This simplified his analysis and allowed him to formulate the laws of inheritance.