The theory addresses an Earth-science topic. The theory may change if new evidence emerges. The theory explains a number of related observations. The theory can be evaluated by a single-variable experiment.
I gave my students this multiple choice question: How is the theory of plate tectonics different from a hypothesis regarding a certain aspect of plate movement?

Only one answer is correct among these 4 choices:
- The theory addresses an Earth-science topic.
- The theory may change if new evidence emerges.
- The theory explains a number of related observations.
- The theory can be evaluated by a single-variable experiment.

Could you tell me which one is correct?

The theory explains a number of related observations.