Astronomy current events question: metal-poor star

Astronomy 210L, fall semester 2011
Cuesta College, San Luis Obispo, CA

Students are assigned to read online articles on current astronomy events, and take a short current events quiz during the first 10 minutes of lab. (This motivates students to show up promptly to lab, as the time cut-off for the quiz is strictly enforced!)

Elisabetta Caffau, Piercarlo Bonifacio, Lorenzo Monaco, and Richard Hook, "The Star That Should Not Exist," August 31, 2011
http://www.eso.org/public/news/eso1132/

The European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope investigated a star that "should not exist" in currently understood models of star formation, because this star ___________ for its mass and size.
(A) contains few heavy elements.
(B) fluctuates rapidly in brightness.
(C) is not radioactive enough.
(D) is rich in precious metals.
(E) has large sunspots.

Correct answer: (A)

Student responses
Sections 70178, 70186, 70200
(A) : 21 students
(B) : 2 students
(C) : 1 student
(D) : 1 student
(E) : 0 students