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The pineal gland produces melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep. Reduced levels of light—most critically, reduced levels of blue light—signal the pineal gland to begin producing melatonin. In the past, the production of melatonin would start at dusk, peak in the middle of the night, and then taper off near dawn. Today, the nighttime use of cell phones, tablets, and computers whose screens emit blue light, has changed the timing of melatonin production, and sleep patterns have been adversely affected. Furthermore, smaller screens viewed at closer range intensify the adverse effects. In a recent study of the nighttime use of screen-based devices by 10,000 teenagers, researchers concluded that the longer the teens viewed their screens before going to bed, the longer they took to fall asleep after going to bed. Thus, the study showed that as the 1 increased, the 2 increased.
Select for 1 and for 2 the phrases that create the statement that most logically completes the passage. Make only two selections, one in each column.
size of the screens the teens viewed
length of time the teens spent viewing their screens before going to bed
use of apps to control the amount of blue light emitted by their screens
delay in melatonin production after the teens went to bed
distance from which the teens viewed their screens
| Passage Statement | Analysis & Implications |
| "The pineal gland produces melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep" |
|
| "Reduced levels of light—most critically, reduced levels of blue light—signal the pineal gland to begin producing melatonin" |
|
| "Today, the nighttime use of cell phones, tablets, and computers whose screens emit blue light, has changed the timing of melatonin production" |
|
| "In a recent study... the longer the teens viewed their screens before going to bed, the longer they took to fall asleep" |
|
"size of the screens the teens viewed"
"length of time the teens spent viewing their screens before going to bed"
"use of apps to control the amount of blue light"
"delay in melatonin production after the teens went to bed"
"distance from which the teens viewed their screens"
The completed statement reads: "Thus, the study showed that as the length of time the teens spent viewing their screens before going to bed increased, the delay in melatonin production after the teens went to bed increased."
This perfectly captures the study's finding and explains the biological mechanism behind it!