Violin strings often go “dead”—become less responsive and dull in tone

Violin strings often go “dead”—become less responsive and dull in tone—after a few weeks of intense use. A professor whose niece is a classical violinist hypothesized that dirt and oil, rather than changes in the material properties of the string, were responsible.

Which of the following investigations is most likely to yield significant information that would help to evaluate the professor’s hypothesis?


A. Determining if a metal alloy is used to make the strings used by classical violinists

B. Determining whether classical violinists make their strings go dead faster than do folk violinists

C. Determining whether identical lengths of string, of the same gauge, go dead at different rates when strung on various brands of violins.

D. Determining whether a dead string and a new string produce different qualities of sound

E. Determining whether smearing various substances on new violin strings causes them to go dead

[b]KUDOS FOR EVERY EXPLANATION[\b]