Video Transcript
Some traits are passed from parents
to offspring. An example of this is that a child
may have the same eye color as one of their parents. What term is given to these
traits? (A) Hereditary, (B) acquired, (C)
determined, (D) characteristic, (E) dominant.
This question asks us about
traits. Traits are variations in an
organism’s characteristics. An example of this is with the
characteristic of eye color. There are different traits
associated with this characteristic, such as blue eyes or green eyes. Traits can be passed on between
parents and their offspring because they have a genetic basis. This means that a certain gene in
DNA is responsible for these traits, and this can be inherited by the offspring. Because these traits are inherited,
these traits are said to be hereditary.
On the other hand, some traits
develop as a result of an organism interacting with its environment. For example, working out or lifting
weights might enhance a person’s muscle tone over time. Since this physical trait was not a
result of inheriting genetic material from the parents, it is not considered
hereditary. Instead, this is called an acquired
trait, since the organism acquires it over its lifetime interactions with its
environment.
After reviewing the two main types
of traits, hereditary and acquired, let’s answer our question. The child in the question has the
same eye color as the parents, which is a trait that is inherited and not
acquired. Therefore, the type of trait that
this is is given by answer choice (A), hereditary.
