Question at position 12 The rate of sea-level rise is increasing because ocean basins are like swimming pools.sea water is much warmer and sea ice is melting.the average rise has more than doubled.warm water expands.

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The question asks us to evaluate statements about why the rate of sea-level rise is increasing. 
Option 1: 'ocean basins are like swimming pools.' This is a metaphorical or oversimplified view and does not explain the physics behind rising sea levels. Basins are fixed shapes, but sea-level rise is driven by volume changes in seawater, not by comparing basins to pools. 
Option 2: 'sea water is much warmer and sea ice is melting.' While warming oceans do contribute to sea-level rise through thermal expansion, the part about sea ice melting is misleading. Melting of sea ice that is already floating does not significantly raise sea level because the ice displaces water. Only land-based ice (like glaciers and ice sheets) adds mass to the ocean when it melts. Therefore, this option is partly true but includes a misattribution about sea ice melting affecting sea level rise, making it an inaccurate overall explanation. 
Option 3: 'the average rise has more than doubled.' This claim is a specific statistic that may not be universally accurate across different basins and timescales. It oversimplifies the trend and lacks a mechanism-based explanation for why the rate is increasing. 
Option 4: 'warm water expands.' This describes thermal expansion, a well-established physical mechanism: as temperature increases, seawater expands and takes up more volume, raising sea level. This expansion is a key contributor to the observed acceleration in sea-level rise, especially when combined with melting land ice. 
In summary, option 1 relies on an inappropriate analogy, option 2 is partly true but flawed in attributing sea ice melting as a direct driver of elevated rates, option 3 makes a vague statistical claim without mechanism, and option 4 correctly identifies the fundamental physical cause of the increasing rate: the thermal expansion of warmer seawater.

Question at position 12 The rate of sea-level rise is increasing because ocean basins are like swimming pools.sea water is much warmer and sea ice is melting.the average rise has more than doubled.warm water expands.

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