5x-3=12
what is this answer

the old alchemists made significant contributions to science even though there starting premises were off a bit. their conclusions after failure would steer them into better directions for investigation. science is no more than close observation and the initial mistakes result in rethinking and retrying experiments.

substituting a hydrogen atom with a halogen in a hydrocarbon:

- the single bond remains single. a is wrong.

- the bond with hydrogen is as strong as with a halogen. c is wrong

- a hydrocarbon is saturated if there is no double bond. we do not know that so d is wrong.

- carbon will always have four valence electrons. e is wrong.

by elimination, the correct answer is b. the boiling point of the new compound increases.