As a cell grows larger, its surface area to volume ratio
- A. increases steadily
- B. remains constant
- C. decreases
- D. first falls and then rises again
Explanation
Volume grows with the cube of the radius while surface area grows only with the square, so a larger cell has proportionally less membrane through which to feed its cytoplasm. This falling ratio is one of the main reasons cells divide instead of growing indefinitely.
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