Final answer:
To find or add words 'palmistry', 'etymology', 'paleontology', and 'glaciology' to a binary search tree, one must compare them to nodes following alphabetical order, and the number of comparisons will vary based on the tree's structure at that moment.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question pertains to determining the number of comparisons needed to locate or add specific words in a binary search tree (BST) that is constructed by inserting words in alphabetical order. Assuming each comparison counts towards the total number of comparisons, and each of the given words is inserted starting from a fresh tree, we shall analyze each case:
Palmistry: To locate or add 'palmistry,' we would compare it to the root and proceed to the appropriate child nodes based on alphabetical order until the appropriate location is found or until it is determined the word is not in the tree.
Etymology: Similarly, adding 'etymology' would require comparisons starting from the root, moving along the tree based on the alphabetical ordering.
Paleontology: This would follow the same process as the previous words, locating the position in the binary search tree where 'paleontology' would be inserted.
Glaciology: Lastly, 'glaciology' would be compared against the nodes in the tree following the BST rules until its position is found or until it's added if not present.
The exact number of comparisons for each word would depend on the current structure of the BST at the time of each insertion/search.