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Introduction This experiment was conducted to investigate the following hypothesis: Fresh fruits contain more proteases than canned fruits, thus resulting in better digestion. Digestion is the breaking down of food into separate molecules for the body to use (Dickey, 1998). Protein is very important in the function of the body. It is broken down into amino acids, which go to different parts of the body. The enzymes that digest proteins are called proteases. Gelatin is a protein made with animal hooves and hides. It is used to make a very common dessert known as “Jell-O”. However, if a certain chemical or if an enzyme digests it, then it will not harden. Some fruits also seem to have more protease than canned fruits. In this experiment, different fruits were added to gelatin and observed to see if proteases were present in the designated fruit. We predicted that the fresh pineapple would keep the gelatin from solidifying, and the canned pineapple would allow the gelatin to harden. Materials