The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Based on the context, the word oblivious in paragraph 1 probably means

• fully aware
• lacking knowledge
• interested in
• anxious about

Tags

CCSS.L.9-10.4

CCSS.L.9-10.4A

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

Why are Henrietta Lacks' cells commonly used in laboratory experiments?

• they reproduce very quickly
• they were very healthy
• they were left behind
• they didn't reproduce

Where does the author first learn about Henrietta?

• from a text book

• from a classmate

• in science class

• from a TV documentary

Tags

CCSS.RI.9-10.1

When the author describes the anatomy of a cell in paragraph 10, she says, "The cytoplasm buzzes like a New York city street." What figure of speech is this?

• metaphor
• simile
• hyperbole
• personification

Tags

CCSS.L.9-10.5

CCSS.RL.9-10.4

When told of his wife's death, David heard

• We've got your wife.

• She's alive in a laboratory.

• We've been doing research on her for the last 25 years.

• all of the above

In the sentence "Scientists had been trying to keep human cells alive in culture for decades, but they all eventually died" in paragraph 14, the term "in culture" most likely means what?

• the act of keeping bacteria or cells alive in a laboratory environment
• the customary beliefs and practices of a society
• the act of giving a living organism the appreciation of art 
• none of the above

Tags

CCSS.L.9-10.4

CCSS.L.9-10.6

CCSS.RI.9-10.4

What is mitosis?

• the way in which cells die
• the way in which cells divide
• the way in which cells disappear
• the way in which cells are removed from the body

Henrietta died from cancer of the what?

• liver
• lung
• cervical
• throat

Henrietta Lack's cells have aided scientific research into the study of what disease?

• west nile virus

• polio

• brain tumor

• heart failure

Tags

CCSS.RI.9-10.2

What was probably the real reason that scientists continued to study the cells of Henrietta Lacks' children?

• they wanted to see if her children would die of the same cancer
• they wanted to learn more about Henrietta's cells and how they worked
• they wanted new cells since Henrietta's were getting old and dying
• none of the above

Tags

CCSS.RI.9-10.2

CCSS.RI.9-10.6