A baby is born with zones of cartilage in its bones that allow growth of the bones. These areas, called growth plates , allow the bones to grow longer as the child grows. By the time the child reaches an age of about 18 to 25 years, all of the cartilage in the growth plate has been replaced by bone. This stops the bone from growing any longer. Even though bones stop growing in length in early adulthood, they can continue to increase in thickness throughout life. This thickening occurs in response to strain from increased muscle activity and from weight-lifting exercises.
Two brothers, Tom, aged 26, and Paul, aged 16 were into sports. Tom started weight-lifting to gain more muscle mass. Three years later he was 20-25 lbs. heavier. Paul started track and field, he liked running.
Which brother's bones had stopped growing?