In 1668, Francesco Redi did some experiments to disprove spontaneous generation. He began by putting pieces of meat into identical jars. Some jars were left open to the air, and some were sealed. He then did the same experiment with one variation: instead of sealing the jars completely, he covered them with gauze (which kept out flies while allowing the meat to be exposed to the air). In both experiments, he checked if fly maggots appeared in the meat or not. What hypothesis was being tested?
A) Spontaneous generation is more likely to occur during the hot days of summer.
B) Maggots do not arise spontaneously but from eggs laid by adult flies.
C) The type of meat affects whether spontaneous generation occurs.
D) Spontaneous generation can occur only if air is present.
E) Flies will develop from rotting meat if the meat is exposed to air.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Redi's experiment was designed to test the hypothesis that maggots arise spontaneously from rotting meat, rather than from eggs laid by adult flies. By covering some jars with gauze, which allowed air but not flies to reach the meat, Redi was able to show that adult flies were necessary for maggots to appear. This experiment provided evidence against the idea of spontaneous generation.

In 1668, Francesco Redi Did Some Experiments to Disprove Spontaneous