Questions - Biology

Cells & Respiration

1) What is an Organism ?
It is another word for something that is a living thing.

2) What are organisms made up of ?
They are made up of cells (which can only be seen under a microscope).

3) What are the different types of Cells ?
Animal and Plant

4) Can you describe the different parts of an Animal Cell ?
Nucleus - controls what the cell does
Cytoplasm - the inside where the chemical reactions take place
Membrane - the skin that holds the cell together
Mitochondria - for aerobic respiration

5) Can you describe the different parts of a Plant Cell ?
nucleus, cytoplasm, membrane, mitochondria
Cell Wall - outer later around the membrane for extra support
Vacuole - the middle which is fluid with a sap liquid (sugar and salt)
Chloroplasts - for photosynthesis

6) What is a Multicellular Organism ?
An organism that is made up of lots of cells.

7) What is a Unicellular Organism ?
An organism that is made up of just one cell (eg Bacteria, Euglena)

8) Can you describe the different groups of cells in a multicellular plan (or animal) organism
Tissue - a group of similar cells
Organ - a group of different cells
Organ System - a group of organs
Organism - several organ systems

9) Are Humans a type of Organism ?
Yes

10) How do substances move in and out of cells, what is the process called ?
Diffusion - particles move from a high concentration to a lower concentration.
For example this is how glucose moves around between cells.

11) Can you describe Respiration ?
This is a chemical reaction in which one substance gets changed into a new substance.
Respiration happens in every cell to change glucose/sugar into a new substance and at the same time some energy is released.

12) Can you describe the two different types of Respiration ?
Aerobic - glucose + oxygen = carbon dioxide + water + energy
Both plant and animal cells perform this in the mitochrondria
Aerobic means In the presence of oxygen.
Anaerobic - without oxygen and produces less energy that aerobic
glucose = lactic acid + energy

13) When do humans perform anaerobic respiration ?
When they are doing hard/physical exercise

14) What is a MicroOrganism ?
Micro organisms are organisms that can ony been seen with a Microscope, they include bacteria, protozoa, algae, and fungi.

15) Can you give some examples of MicroOrganisms ?
Yeast

16) What is Fermentation ?
When anaerobic respiration produces ethanol
glucose = carbon dioxide + ethanol + energy

Humans as Organisms

17) How many organ systems are there in a human body ?
(1) Digestive - stomach, mouth, gullet, small + large intestines (removes solid waste)
(2) Respiratory - breathing, lungs, nose, gas exchange
(3) Circulatory/Cardiovascular - heart, blood vessels, blood circulation, pumps blood from heart to lungs to get oxygen
(4) Reproductive - menstrual cycle, gestation
(5) Muscular - muscles, muscle fibre
(6) Nervious - messaging, pain
(7) Urinary - filters blood, kidneys, bladder (removes liquid waste)
(8) Skeletal - 206 bones in an adult
Lymphatic, Endocrine, Integumentary

18) What is the Digestive System ?
This is the breaking down of food and extracting the five nutrients.

19) Can you describe the eight different components in the digestive system ?
Mouth - food is mixed with saliva (which contains enzymes) to help break down carbohydrates
Tongue -
Gullet - (or oesophagus) connect the mouth to the stomach
Stomach - food mixes with enzymes that breaks down proteins. It contains acid to kill harmful bacteria
Liver - contains bile to break down fats
Pancreas - creates enzymes to break down food
Small Intestine - food is absorbed into the blood. Creates enzymes to break down proteins, carbohydrates and fats. The walls are covered with millions of Villi.
Large Intestine - water is absorbed into the blood.

20) What are the five different nutrients your body needs for a balanced diet ?
Carbohydrates - provide energy (bread, potatoes, cereals)
Proteins - for growth and repair (meat, eggs, beans)
Lipids - (fats & oils) provides reserve energy (butter, cream)
Vitamins - (A, C) needed for body processes (vegetables, fruit)
Minerals - (calcium, iron, potassium) for strong bones & teeth, healthy blood (milk, meat)

21) What happens if you do not get enough vitamins and minerals ?
This will cause deficiency diseases.
A lack of vitamin C will lead to problems with the skin and gums

22) What is your Basic Energy Requirement (BER) ?
This is the minimum amount of energy you need every day just to survive.
Daily BER (kJ/day) = 5.4 x 24hrs x body mass (kg)

23) What is your Total Energy Requirement ?
Total = BER + Energy for exercise/activities

24) What causes Obesity ?
When you are taking in more energy than you are using

25) Are there any problems if you become obese ?
Yes. It will lead to health problems, such as heart disease

26) What is Starvation ?
When you do not get enough energy

27) What is the Respiratory System ?
This is the transferring of oxygen into the blood system

28) Why does the body need Oxygen ?
For respiration and to get rid of the carbon dioxide
glucose + oxygon = carbon dioxide + water + energy

29) Can you describe the seven different components ?
Intercostal Muscles - muscles on the side of the lungs used for breathing
Ribcage - protects the lungs
Diaphragm - muscle underneath the lungs used for breathing
Lungs - where the gas exchange takes place
Bronchus - two brongus going into each lung
Bronchioles - bronchi splits into smaller tubes
Alveoli - air sacks attached to the bronchiole where the gas exchange takes place

30) What is the difference between a Vein, Artery and Capillary ?
A vein carries blood away from the heart/lungs
An artery carries blood to the heart/lungs
A capillary allows food and gases to move in and out of the blood

31) Can you describe what happens inside the Alveoli ?
Oxygen comes in and carbon dioxide comes out
The lungs have a very good blood supply with a very large surface area.

32) What is the Bell Jar demonstration ?
This can be used to simulate what is going on when you breathe
When you pull the rubber sheet down (sumulating breathing in, the diaphragm contracts) the volume increases which decreases the pressure
This drop in pressure causes air to rush into the balloons
When you release the rubber sheet (simulating breathing out) the volume decreases which increases the pressure
This rise in pressure causes air to rush out of the balloons.

33) What machine can we use to measure measure lung capacity ?
Spirometer.

34) What is the Circulatory/Cardiovascular System ?
This is everything relating to the heart and blood.

35) What is the Reproductive System ?
Most organisms have different male and female parts.

36) Can you name parts of the male reproductive system ?
sperm duct, penis, testes, scrotum, foreskin, urethra

37) Can you name parts of the female reproductive system ?
fallopian tube, uterus, ovary, vagina

38) What is the Muscular System ?

39) What are Muscles ?
Muscles are attached to bones using tendons.

40) What happens when a muscle contracts ?
It tightens and pulls the bone attached to it

41) What happens when a muscle relaxes ?
It relaxes and lets the bone move away

42) What are Antagonistic Muscles ?
These are muscles that work in pairs.
When one contracts, the other relaxes
Example - biscep & tricep muscle in your arm

43) What are the three different types of joints ?
Fixed Joints - (skull) don't move
Hinge Joints - (elbow, knee) move back and forth
Ball and Socket - (shoulder, hip) move in any direction

44) What is the Nervous System ?

45) What is the Urinary System ?

46) What is the Skeletal System ?

47) What is a Skeleton ?
A skeleton is the structural frame that supports the body of most animals.
It is the name given for all the bones in the organism.

48) What are the four things that a skeleton can do ?
Protection - protect organs (eg skull protects brain)
Support - allows us to stand up
Movement - muscles are attached to bones and can move bones
Blood Cells - many bones contain a soft tissue called bone marrow that creates red & white blood cells

49) Can you give the names of different bones ?
skull, jaw, collarbone, backbone, rib, breatbone, humerus, femur, kneecap, pelvis, fibula, radius

50) What are animals that have a backbone called ?
Vertebrates. Animals that do not have a backbone are called Invertebrates.

Plants and Ecosystems

51) Can you describe the different parts of a flower ?
Flower -
Leaves - makes the food
Stem -
Root - stabilizes and supports the plant, carries water and minerals from the root to the rest of the plant

52) Can you describe the different parts of a flower ?
Stamen -
Carpel -
Petal -
Sepal -
Ovary - when the lower dies the ovary decomes a fruit which contains the seeds

53) Can you describe the different stages in a flower reproduction ?
Pollination
Fertilisation
Seed Production
Seed Dispersal

54) What is Photosynthesis ?
This is the process of making food from sunlight.
This is a chemical process that takes place in all green plants.
This usually happens in the leaves.

55) What four things does a plant need for photosynthesis ?
sunlight, carbon dioxide, water
chlorophyll - (green chemical) this is found in the leaves
sunlight + carbon dioxide = oxygen + glucose + water

56) What are Stomata ?
These are very small holes in the leaf that allow carbon dioxide and oxygen to pass through

57) What are the plant roots used for ?
To absorb minerals and water

58) What is the name of a plants male and female organs ?
Stamen - (male part), anther and filament, anther contains pollen grains
Carpel - (female part), stigm, style, ovary contains ovules

59) What is Pollination ?
This is the name of getting the pollen grains to the stigma

60) Can you describe the two different ways pollination can take place ?
All plants can be grouped into two categories: flowering and non flowering.
Insects - seeds are sticky, have hooks to cling to animal fur
Wind - seeds are light and feathery or have wings

61) Can you describe Insect Pollination ?
Insects visit flowers to get food, when they are there the pollen sticks to them
When they travel to other flowers, the pollen travels with them.
Plants that are pollinated by insects have bright petals (to attract insects) and a sticky stigma.

62) Can you describe Wind Pollination ?
The anthers dangle outside the flower.
This allows the wind to detach the anthers and be blown away.
These flowers have a feathery stigma to catch the pollen as it blows past

63) What is Fertilisation ?
This is the joining of the male and female sex cells.

64) Can you describe the Fertilisation process for a plant ?
In a plant once the pollen lands on the stigma a pollen tube grows out from the pollen grain into the ovary.
The nucleus from inside the pollen grain moves down the tube.
It joins with the nucleus of the female sex cell inside the ovule.

65) What happens after Fertilisation ?
The ovule develops into a seed.
Each seed contains an embryo plant.
The ovary develops into a fruit around the seed.
The seed then needs to be distributed.

66) Can you describe the four different ways seeds are dispersed ?
Wind - parachutes and wings
Animals - seeds are eaten and then poo'ed out
Explosions - pea pods
Drop and Roll -

67) What is the name given to plant reproduction that does not need pollen or an egg ?
Asexual reproduction

68) Can you describe the reproduction process for most plants and animals ?
Pollen from one plant lands on the stigma of another
The pollen and the egg combine to make a seed
The seed grows into a seedling
The seedling grows into a plant.

69) What is an Ecosystem ?
The name given to all the organisms that live in the same area/environment.
All the organisms in an ecosystem are interdependent.
All organisms depend on plants.

70) Where does all the energy come from ?
The Sun.

71) What do plants use the sun's energy for ?
To make food during photosynthesis.
They use the food to build molecules (like proteins) which become part of the plants cells.
These molecules store the sun's energy.
This energy gets passed on from plants to animals when the plants are eaten.
Animals need plants to carry out photosynthesis.

72) If there were no plants, would there be enough Oxygen ?
No. When plants and animals respire they take in oxygen and give out carbon dioxide.
During photosynthesis, plants take in carbon dioxide and give out oxygen.
Without plants there would be too much carbon dioxide in the air.
Without insects a lot of plants would not be able to pollinate.

73) What is a Food Chain ?
??
Producer - all plants are producers
Consumer - all animals are consumers.

74) Can you describe the different types of consumers ?
Primary - an animal that eats producers (or plants)
Secondary - an animal that eats primary consumers.
Tertiary - an animal that eats secondary consumers.

75) Can you give some examples of the different animal groups ?
Mammals - give birth to live young
Birds -
Insects -

Inheritance, Variation, Survival

76) What is DNA ?
This is a list of instructions for how to build an organism.

77) What does the Nucleus of a human cell contain ?
Chromosomes

78) What do Chromosomes contain ?
They contain genes, which are short lengths of DNA.
It is the genes (or DNA) that give humans there different characteristics.

79) What happens to these gense during reproduction ?
Genese from the mother and genes from the father get mixed together.

80) What does a DNA molecule look like ?
It is a spiral, made of two chains twisted together.

81) What is Adaptation ?
This is the process by which a species becomes more suited to its environment.

82) What is a Species ?
A species is a group of living organisms that are all broadly similar and can, at least in principle, breed with one another.

83) Do different species have different genes ?
Yes

84) What does the word Variation mean when talking about DNA ?
Variation is the difference between the organisms.
There is also some variation within a specific species.

85) Can you describe and give an example of a Continuous Variation ?
The feature can be any value within a range. For example height and weight.

86) Can you describe and give an example of a Discontinuous Variation ?
The feature can only take on certain values. For example blood group.

87) What does the term 'Survival of the fitest" mean ?
This refers to the fact that the organisms that are more suited (or adjusted) to their environment will survive for longer than those that are not.
Some oganisms are better at competing with others from their own species.
This is because they show variation due to differences in their genes.

88) Explain how Variation leads to Natural Selection ?
Organisms with characteristics that make them better at competing are more likely to survive and reproduce.
This means they are more likely to pass on these useful characteristics to their offspring/children.
So over time this characteristic will become more common.
And this process is called natural selection.

89) What could happen if an environment changes too quickly ?
Some organisms will become extinct.