After reading the paragraphs below, answer the questions that follow.
Bats and marine mammals are well-known examples of animals that produce high-frequency sound waves beyond the range of human hearing. The high-frequency waves are used for echolocation, the process of emitting high-frequency sound waves and using both the time it takes for the waves to bounce back to the caller and the direction from which the waves return to the caller to locate distant objects. Research has shown that bats can send and receive sounds as high as 100,000 Hertz (Hz).
On the other hand, some mammals, such as elephants and whales, produce extremely low-frequency sounds. For example, elephant calls range from 5 to 50 Hz. Low-frequency sounds have long wavelengths, which means they are less likely to be distorted or interrupted by features in the environment. In favorable weather conditions, low-frequency sound waves can be transmitted over several kilometers.
If you were observing two elephants separated by a distance of 4 miles, could the sensory receptors of your ear receive signals passing between them?
◦ No. Elephants have a much wider range of high-frequency hearing.
◦ Yes. Human ears have sound reception over the same range of frequencies as elephants.
◦ Yes. The organ of Corti in humans is more highly evolved than the comparable organ in elephants.
◦ No. Human ears cannot hear sounds with frequencies below 20 Hz.