David Baltimore — Questions and answers
Read the full story
What important enzyme did David Baltimore and Howard Temin discover in 1970?
Choices
- A. A new type of plant
- B. An enzyme called reverse transcriptase ✓
- C. A faster way to travel
- D. A different kind of rock
Answer: B. An enzyme called reverse transcriptase
From page 1
What was the 'Central Dogma' mainly about before 1970?
Choices
- A. How animals sleep
- B. The flow of genetic information ✓
- C. How to build tall buildings
- D. The history of the world
Answer: B. The flow of genetic information
From page 2
What puzzling thing did some RNA viruses do that seemed to go against the Central Dogma?
Choices
- A. They made funny noises.
- B. They could disappear and reappear.
- C. They put their RNA into the host cell's DNA. ✓
- D. They changed colors when they were happy.
Answer: C. They put their RNA into the host cell's DNA.
From page 3
What did Howard Temin think might be needed for retroviruses to put their RNA into DNA?
Choices
- A. A secret code book
- B. A special type of food
- C. An enzyme called reverse transcriptase ✓
- D. A tiny rocket ship
Answer: C. An enzyme called reverse transcriptase
From page 4
Where did David Baltimore work while he was searching for this special enzyme?
Choices
- A. At a big farm
- B. At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology ✓
- C. In a giant library
- D. On a different planet
Answer: B. At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
From page 5
What did David Baltimore's experiment prove?
Choices
- A. That cats like to play with string
- B. That the enzyme reverse transcriptase really exists ✓
- C. That plants need sunlight to grow
- D. How to build a strong fence
Answer: B. That the enzyme reverse transcriptase really exists
From page 6
Besides finding reverse transcriptase, what other big scientific areas did David Baltimore contribute to?
Choices
- A. Discovering new planets in space
- B. Inventing new types of cars
- C. Understanding cancer (oncogenes) and the immune system ✓
- D. Writing popular children's books
Answer: C. Understanding cancer (oncogenes) and the immune system
From page 10