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Given below are two statements: Statement I : For all elements, greater the mass of the nucleus, greater is the binding energy per nucleon. Statement II : For all elements, nuclei with less binding energy per nucleon transforms to nuclei with greater binding energy per nucleon. In the light of the above statements, choose the correct answer from the options given below: (1) Both Statement I and Statement II are true (2) Statement I is true but Statement II is false (3) Both Statement I and Statement II are false (4) Statement I is false but Statement II is true

1. Both Statement I and Statement II are true
2. Statement I is true but Statement II is false
3. Both Statement I and Statement II are false
4. Statement I is false but Statement II is true

Correct answer: Statement I is false but Statement II is true

Solution

Statement I is incorrect because the binding energy per nucleon does not consistently increase with nuclear mass; it varies across different elements. Statement II is correct as it reflects the tendency of unstable nuclei to undergo transformations to achieve a more stable state with higher binding energy per nucleon.

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