Question 2 of 21

What exactly does palynology study?

... Aside from pollen and spores, palynology also studies fossil palynomorphs (fossil pollen and a few other microfossils).

Question 3 of 21

What do zoologists use pollen to help them understand?

... Zoologists use pollen to understand details such as how and where insects and birds find their food, how far away they go for it and where they nest away from home.

Question 4 of 21

In paleoecology, pollen can help determine the paleoenvironmental conditions of an area almost perfectly.

... The pollen can help determine what plants grew in an environment, which in turn helps determine which insects were there. This leads to understanding what birds were there (based on what insects they could eat), and so on. A large ecological chain can be built based just on the area's pollen.

Question 5 of 21

Pollen is very rich in ________ .

... Pollen is rich in bioflavonoids, a type of antioxidant. Antioxidants protect your body against the effects of free radicals, which age your cells and your body.

Question 6 of 21

Pollen found in the soil near a lake in Iran showed that a civilization that lived there in about 4300 B.C. was ________ .

... The discovery of grape pollen right next to food processing utensils and other items indicates that grape was being processed, most likely into wine. And who said ancient civilizations were about all work and no play?

Question 7 of 21

Bee pollen was taken during Roman times as a remedy for ________ .

... Bee pollen was considered a tonic for health and was known as the "life-giving dust," helping to pump up some Romans' waning energy levels.

Question 8 of 21

What fact about people can pollen help a forensic biologist determine?

... Different regions of the world have different species of pollen, so pollen found on a person's clothes can help determine where that person has been.

Question 9 of 21

If a person says he's a biostratigrapher, he probably uses pollen to do what?

... Biostratigraphy is the science of determining how old strata are using a number of methods, including analyzing any pollen found on the rocks.

Question 10 of 21

What effect is climate change possibly having on pollen?

... Spring bursts of pollen -- maybe better known to seasonal allergy sufferers, but important to palynologists -- have extended. They used to make us sneeze for about four to six weeks each spring, but now typically last six to eight weeks. This extended cycle might be the result of climate change.

Question 11 of 21

Some of the oldest bacterial spores found on Earth are ________ old.

... Studying these spores can help determine just how long life has existed on this planet. Although spores that are at least 40 million years old have been confirmed, it's possible that even older spores exist.

Question 12 of 21

Probably the most lucrative use of pollen happens in the ________ industry.

... Pollen can help determine the age of sedimentary rock, which in turn can help determine whether fossil fuel -- or oil -- might be present in the area.

Question 13 of 21

Analyzing pollen can tell forensic investigators where a crime took place. What else can it tell them?

... The amount and type of pollen in the air changes from one season to the next, so the type of pollen found on the victim can point to a specific time of the year.

Question 14 of 21

As palynomorphs (pollen, spores and other small particles) are heated during rock sedimentation, they change what?

... Studies looking at the geothermal alteration of pollen and other particles use the particles' changes in color to determine the temperature of the rocks at the time of sedimentation and how long it took for the sediment to cool down and set.

Question 15 of 21

A group of scientists has suggested mixing pollen additives with ________ so they can be traced.

... British researchers have suggested that coating bullets with pollen additives could help solve crimes by tracing where the bullets were bought and what batch of ammunition they came from.

Question 16 of 21

Which of the following is NOT a possible use for pollen?

... Preliminary studies show that properties in pollen might help rejuvenate the skin and get rid of wrinkles, and ease symptoms of allergies. So far, pollen hasn't been studied as a headache cure.

Question 17 of 21

Studying pollen found at archaeological digs can help determine ________ .

... Archaeological palynology looks at remnants of pollen and spores to try and identify what plants were used by a certain civilization, along with information such as how important the plants were to past people.

Question 18 of 21

Preliminary research shows that a combination of pollen and royal jelly can help with symptoms of this condition.

... When study participants were given a combination of pollen extract and royal jelly, they had reduced bloating, irritability and other classical symptoms of PMS.

Question 19 of 21

Which of the following can pollen help determine?

... By examining pollen found in sedimentary rocks, scientists can determine what plants lived in a specific area. Each type of plant requires a specific climate to thrive, so the pollen clues help determine what the weather was like in a particular area millions of years ago.

Question 20 of 21

Melissopalynology is the study of pollen to determine ________ .

... Melissopalynology studies where a specific type of honey is made using the plant mentioned on the label or another plant as the source of a honey sample. Honey can cost much more if it comes from a certain area -- and is made from a certain type of pollen -- and fraudulent companies have been known to use fake labeling for profit.

Question 21 of 21

The presence of palynomorphs in a lake is studied to determine ________ .

... Scientists can determine whether a lake used to be higher or lower than the present level, depending on how deep or how far from the coast the palynomorphs are found.

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