Jake and Alice

Jake and Alice

JakeandAlicearesiblings.Alicewasbornin1988,andJakewasbornin1992.Althoughthere
isafouryeardifferenceinage,theygetalongwell.WhenJakewasinhighschool,Alicehelped
himchooseclassesshehadenjoyed,withteachersthatshelikedandthoughthewouldfind
interesting.Naturally,JakeandAlicedontshareallthesameinterests.Aliceisfascinatedwith
naturalscienceandtookalltheadvancedbiologycoursesinhighschool,eventuallyselectinga
majorinplantbiologyincollege.Jakelikessciencebuthesmoreinterestedinmakingthings,
likecomplicatedrecipeshefindsinhiscollectionofcookbooks,andpaintingoverthemuralin
hisbedroom.Theremustbeatleast16layersofmuralonthelargestwallofhisroomhejust
cantseemtosettleonadesign.
When Alices friends threw her a surprise 20th birthday party, Jake helped them coordinate
withhisandAlicesparentstomakesurethepartywaskeptasecretuntilthebigday.Alice
recommendsnewmusictoJake,andhedoesthesameforAlice.BothAliceandJakesfriends
areimpressedthat they havesuchabroadknowledgeofobscurebands in different musical
genres.Jakeisinterestedinbecomingachefsomedayheoftentriesoutnewrecipesonhis
family. Alice likes to cook, but doesnt get as excited about new food combinations like her
brother.
Bothsiblingsaremediumheight,withdarkblondehairandhazeleyes.Theirmother,Rachel,
has dark brown hair, and Pete, their father, when he had hair on his head, was blonde. The
whole family is lightly freckled. While they all love music, none are particularly excellent
singers,andonlyJakeknowshowtoreadmusicandplayaninstrument:thetrumpet.Theyall
have small feet except Rachel, who wears a size 10 womens sneaker when she jogs on the
treadmill.
Jake and Alice each have a collection of traits that make them unique that distinguish them
fromtheirfamilyandfriends.Someofthesetraitsarephysicaldarkblondehair,lighteyes,
frecklesandsomearebehavioralcuriousabouttheworldaroundthem,generous,heavy
sleepers.
Wheredotraitscomefrom?
What would Alice and Jake be without their traits? Is there some essential Aliceness or
Jakenessthatwouldstillexistwithoutblondehair,hazeleyes,agentledemeanorandgreat
tasteinundergroundfolkmusic?

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Jake and Alice

Whentwoorganismsinthiscase,thoseorganismswouldbeAliceandJakesparents:Pete
andRachelcreateathirdorganismthroughreproduction,manyvariablescomeintoplay.Its
a complex lottery in which an offspring of the first two organisms inherits a combination of
their genetic material. The possible variations inherent in recombining the parents DNA is
very,verybroadlargerthanthepoolofentriesinthestatelottojackpot!Andthatswhere
we get so much variation even within the population of a particular sexually reproducing
species.
AlthoughAliceandJakesuniquecollectionoftraitsisoriginallytheproductofchance,there
are systems to which every freckle, hair, and skin tag can be traced. Personality quirks are
anotherstoryaltogether.
Whenwe thinkabouthowourpersonalitiesareformed,wecancertainlythinkaboutgenes
weacquiredfromourparentsbutwealsohavetothinkaboutothercomplexlyintertwined
factorslikeenvironmentandupbringing.Fornow,wellsimplifythingsbyjustfocusingonthe
physicalaspectofinheritedtraits.
Itwouldbevery,veryunlikelyfortwoparentswithidenticallycodedchromosomestosexually
reproduce.Eveninthecaseofintrafamilial(orconsanguine)pairings,whicharediscouragedin
oursociety,thechromosomepairingswouldneverbeperfectlyidenticalthatsagoodthing
forusasacivilization!Theworstthingforoursurvivalisforliketobepairedwithlike.Itsin
the best interest of our population that lots of different genes are mixed together in an
evolutionary soup, so that many new variations on living organisms can be exposed to the
environment; develop adaptations to changing conditions; and promote the survival of the
species.
Anotherinterestingvariablethatletsorganismpopulationsadapttochangingenvironmentsis
mutation in genes. Sometimes, unpredictable changes in genetic code will appear within a
newgeneration,nottraceablebacktoaparentalsource.
Our blondehaired, tonedeaf siblings, Alice and Jake, almost definitely have some sort of
mutationsomewherewithintheirrespectivemakeups.Amutationcanbeastinyasafreckle,
or as conspicuous as an extra finger. As long as a trait has never appeared in an organisms
lineagebefore,itisamutation.Jake,forexample,hasanoddlyshapedtoeinhisleftfoot.It
cleaves down the center. It doesnt hurt, and hes never had an infection or needed to buy
specialsocksforthecondition.Itsjustabenignmutationthatexistsbecausesomethinginhis
DNA has instructed that mass of protein to cleave. If he has children someday, they may

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Jake and Alice

inheritthistrait.ButitdidntcomefromPete,hisfather,anditdidntcomefromRachel,his
mother.Itisamutation.
Mutation is a fascinating concept, so its not surprising that artists and writers have latched
onto it as a metaphor. Creators of superheroes like the Xmen and Teenage Mutant Ninja
Turtleshaveusedtheideaofextrememutationasanarrativedevicetoprovidecommentary
on racism. Mutations are where new adaptations to existing or dynamic conditions are field
testedincompetitiontowhateverhasworkedforapopulationinthepast.Ifamutationpops
up that happens to be advantageous for a particular organism within a population, that
organismismorelikelytosurviveandthereforemorelikelytoprocreate.
Whoknows?MaybeJakesfunnybigtoenailwillcomeinhandysomeday.

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Questions: Jake and Alice

Name:

Date:

1. How are Jake and Alice related?

A
B
C
D

They
They
They
They

are
are
are
are

coworkers.
friends.
siblings.
married.

2. How does the author contrast Jake and Alice?

A
B
C
D

Alice is interested in science, while Jake is more interested in making things.

Alice is interested in making things, while Jake is more interested in science.
Jake is much more athletic than Alice.
Jake is more like his parents than Alice.

3. Sometimes, changes in genetic code will appear within a new generation that cannot
be traced back to a parental source.
What evidence from the text supports this conclusion?
A
B
C
D

Both Jake and Alice are medium height, with dark blonde hair and hazel eyes.
Jake has an oddly shaped toe that did not come from his father or mother.
Jake and Alice do not share all of the same interests.
Alice and Jakes unique collection of traits is largely the product of chance.

4. Based on the information in the passage, what can be concluded about the traits that
siblings have?
A
B
C
D

Siblings
Siblings
Siblings
Siblings

share
share
share
share

all of the same traits.

none of the same traits.
all of the same physical traits, but have different personality traits.
some traits, but each has a unique combination of traits.

5. What is this passage mostly about?

A
B
C
D

how
how
how
how

physical traits are passed down between generations

similar Jake and Alice are
siblings are genetically identical
siblings develop behavioral traits

1
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Questions: Jake and Alice

6. Read the following sentence from the passage: When two organismsin this case,
those organisms would be Alice and Jakes parents: Pete and Rachelcreate a third
organism through reproduction, many variables come into play.
As used in the passage, what does the word organism mean?
A
B
C
D

a sibling
an individual life form
the parent of a child
a mammal

7. Jakes oddly shaped toe is a mutation, _______ he did not inherit it from either of his
parents.
Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.
A
B
C
D

but
although
initially
so

8. What does the word mutation mean as used in the passage?

______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________

2
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Questions: Jake and Alice

9. According to the passage, why is it in the best interest of the human population that
lots of different genes are mixed together?
______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

10. Explain why it is unlikely for children to have an identical combination of traits to
their parents. Use information from the passage to support your answer.
______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________

3
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Teacher Guide & Answers: Jake and Alice

Teacher Guide & Answers

Passage Reading Level: Lexile 1150

1. How are Jake and Alice related?
A
B
C
D

They are coworkers.

They are friends.
They are siblings.
They are married.

2. How does the author contrast Jake and Alice?

A
B
C
D

Alice is interested in science, while Jake is more interested in making things.

Alice is interested in making things, while Jake is more interested in science.
Jake is much more athletic than Alice.
Jake is more like his parents than Alice.

3. Sometimes, changes in genetic code will appear within a new generation that cannot be traced back to
a parental source.
What evidence from the text supports this conclusion?
A
B
C
D

Both Jake and Alice are medium height, with dark blonde hair and hazel eyes.
Jake has an oddly shaped toe that did not come from his father or mother.
Jake and Alice do not share all of the same interests.
Alice and Jakes unique collection of traits is largely the product of chance.

4. Based on the information in the passage, what can be concluded about the traits that siblings have?
A
B
C
D

Siblings share all of the same traits.

Siblings share none of the same traits.
Siblings share all of the same physical traits, but have different personality traits.
Siblings share some traits, but each has a unique combination of traits.

5. What is this passage mostly about?

A
B
C
D

how physical traits are passed down between generations

how similar Jake and Alice are
how siblings are genetically identical
how siblings develop behavioral traits

1
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Teacher Guide & Answers: Jake and Alice

6. Read the following sentence from the passage: When two organismsin this case, those organisms
would be Alice and Jakes parents: Pete and Rachelcreate a third organism through reproduction, many
variables come into play.
As used in the passage, what does the word organism mean?
A
B
C
D

a sibling
an individual life form
the parent of a child
a mammal

7. Jakes oddly shaped toe is a mutation, _______ he did not inherit it from either of his parents.
Choose the answer that best completes the sentence below.
A
B
C
D

but
although
initially
so

8. What does the word mutation mean as used in the passage?

Suggested answer: A mutation is a trait present in a child that was not passed down by either one of
the childs parents.

9. According to the passage, why is it in the best interest of the human population that lots of different
genes are mixed together?
Suggested answer: It is in the best interest of the human population that lots of different genes are
mixed together so that many new variations on living organisms can be exposed to the environment;
develop adaptations to changing conditions; and promote the survival of the species.

10. Explain why it is unlikely for children to have an identical combination of traits to their parents. Use
information from the passage to support your answer.
Suggested answer: Students should explain that when two organisms reproduce, there are so many
variables in the combination of parents traits that it is highly unlikely a child would end up with the same
combination of traits as either parent. Additionally, the chances for variation are enormous, and mutations
are bound to occur.

2
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