Experiments That Hint of Longer Lives (Listening)

1) What is the lecture mainly about?

A) The reason that different animals have different life-spans.
B) Researchers have found a way to make the C. elegans worm live longer.
C) Implications of her research for humans.
D) The genetics of life-spans.

2) At 03:15, the lecturer says, "But it's really more like this: let's say you're a 30 year-old guy -- or in your 30s -- and you're a bachelor and you're dating people. And you meet someone you really like, you get to know her. And you're in a restaurant, and you say, "Well how old are you?" She says, "I'm 60." That's what it's like. And you would never know. You would never know, until she told you."

Why does she say, "But it's really more like this"?

A) She is making a joke for the audience.
B) She is explaining what dating will be like in the future.
C) She is clarifying a common misconception.
D) She is explaining one of the steps in the experiment.


3) What can be inferred from the lecture?

A) Worms, flies, mice and people share a common gene.
B) Gene mutation in the studies harmed the animals.
C) The lecturer does not believe all animals can be affected by gene mutation.
D) She believes that quality of life may decrease when life-span increases.

4) Why is the speaker optimistic?

A) There is already a drug available for people that helps them live longer.
B) She believes that she will live longer because of her research.
C) She is excited about the ability to extend the lives of animals.
D) She believes that she can now help elderly people resist diseases better.

5) Mark True or False beside each of the following statements about the daf-2 gene:
- A daf-2 mutation can cause slower aging in people.
- Mutation of the daf-2 gene has quite different results in different animals.
- A mutated daf-2 gene causes defects in the cells of the animal.
- A daf-2 mutation can result in lower risk of age-related diseases.