Question

Read the excerpt from Neil deGrasse Tyson’s “Death by Black Hole.” Black holes are regions of space where the gravity is so high that the fabric of space and time has curved back on itself, taking the exit doors with it. Another way to look at the dilemma: the speed required to escape a black hole is > the speed of light itself. . . . light travels at exactly 299,792,458 meters per second in a vacuum and is the fastest stuff in the universe. If light cannot escape, then neither can you, which is why, of course, we call these things black holes. Which of the following features would best enhance the reader’s understanding of this excerpt?

a photograph of a black hole
a demonstration of the speed of light
an interactive animation of a black hole
a definition of the term black hole

Answer 1

An interactive animation of a black hole would best enhance a reader's understanding due to its dynamic representation of gravitational effects.

Step-by-step explanation:

The student is seeking to understand which features would enhance the reader’s understanding of a passage about black holes. In Neil deGrasse Tyson’s description, black holes are characterized by their intense gravitational pull that even light cannot escape. Given the complexity of the concept, an interactive animation of a black hole is arguably the most effective tool for understanding, as it would visually demonstrate how gravity affects space-time and objects around a black hole. A photograph provides a static image lacking explanatory power. On the other hand, while a demonstration of the speed of light informatively highlights a physical constant, it does not directly illustrate why light cannot escape. A definition of a black hole, while foundational, does not provide the dynamic understanding that an animation would.