Final answer:
The statement is false. Phospholipids in the lipid bilayer have their hydrophilic heads facing water and hydrophobic tails facing inward, but hydrocarbon chains can become transiently exposed to water during certain processes.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that the hydrocarbon chains of the lipid bilayer are never exposed to the surrounding aqueous solution is false. In a lipid bilayer, phospholipids orient their hydrophilic heads towards the polar molecules, which are water molecules in the surrounding aqueous solution, and the hydrophobic tails, which are the hydrocarbon chains, towards the interior of the membrane. This structure forms a barrier where the hydrophobic tails are protected from the aqueous environment, but it does not mean they are never exposed; during certain cellular processes, like membrane fusion or when proteins interact with the lipid bilayer, the hydrocarbon chains can become transiently exposed to the aqueous environment.