In this task, you are given a question and answer for that. The answer will fill in the blank or will complete the unfinished question. Your task is to provide an explanation based on the given question or fill-in-the-blank statement, and answer.

Question: An increase in birth rates indicates a/an _____ in the food supply. 
 Answer: increase
Low food supply or a lack of space can lower birth rates, increase death rates, or lead to emigration.

Question: When quarks are taken further apart, they experience minimal attraction, but when they're brought together, they have an attraction that is 
 Answer: smaller
Gluons make quarks attract each other more strongly the farther apart the quarks get.

Question: Kira is noting how valence electrons might be attracted by the nucleus. She sees that currently, the valence electrons are closer to the nucleus, which means they are attracted 
 Answer: more strongly

When valence electrons are farther from the nucleus, they are attracted less strongly by the nucleus and more easily removed from the atom.

