The Experiment

The Experiment

“I won’t touch it. It doesn’t look right,” said Joey.

“Don’t ask me, just take it away.” Mom waved her hand at Edward. Then she walked out of the kitchen.

Edward placed the fruit in the middle of the counter. It rolled a bit, wobbled a few times, then remained still.

“I thought we needed to try it. You know, just to say we did.”

“Is it real? It doesn’t look real. It looks like one of those fake wax things.”
Joey grabbed a knife, poked the fruit.

“The people at the store said it was some type of GMO apple. It’s supposed to be sweeter, juicier, and last longer.” Edward stared at the shiny red globe.

“I’ve heard bad things about genetically modified foods. I’m not going to eat it. You be the guinea pig.”

Edward thought for a moment. “I’ve got an idea. Let’s put a regular apple beside it, then mark them to see which one lasts longer. We’ll keep track. It’ll be a test.”

So they set up the experiment. One apple from the refrigerator, non-GMO, was put beside the GMO apple. They placed them on a paper towel, then dated the apples with markers.

Mom wandered in to start lunch. “What the heck are you two doing?”

“A science experiment, so don’t move them.” The boys pointed out the apples.

The apples stayed in place, all through that hot summer in the kitchen. While the non-GMO got mushy and shriveled up after several weeks, the GMO apple looked as fresh as when it first came into the kitchen.

Edward came in one morning, ready to take a picture for biology class. The GMO apple was missing. A note in its place read “Off to conquer the world”.

W/C 297


https://www.nongmoproject.org/gmo-facts/what-is-gmo