Question

Pregnant women have the option of being scanned for Cystic Fibrosis risks in their unborn babies. If a mother or a father both have a certain recessive gene, the baby is at risk for Cystic Fibrosis.

Given the three events, which of the following statements is true? Select all that apply.

Event A: The mother or father carries the recessive gene.

Event B: The father carries the recessive gene.

Event C: The baby is at risk for Cystic Fibrosis.

Select all that apply:

• Event A and Event B are mutually exclusive.

• Event B and Event C are mutually exclusive.

• Event A and Event C are not mutually exclusive.

Answer 1

Answer: Mutually Exclusive events are those which cannot happen at the same time. In the given problem, the three events are:

Event A: The mother or father carries the recessive gene.

Event B: The father carries the recessive gene.

Event C: The baby is at risk for Cystic Fibrosis.

Here, Events A and B can happen at the same time, as the mother or father carrying the recessive gene is true when the father carries the recessive gene. So events A and B are not mutually exclusive events. Also, when the father carries the recessive gene it may happen the baby is at risk for Cystic Fibroids. So, events B and C are also not mutually exclusive events.

Events A and C are not mutually exclusive as when the mother or father carries the recessive gene the baby may be at the risk for Cystic Fibrosis.

So, option (3) is correct.