Preliminary Biology Exam 2014.docx

2014

PRELIMINARY COURSE FINAL EXAMINATION

Biology

General Instructions

Reading time 5 minutes Working time 2 hours Write using black or blue pen Draw diagrams using pencil Approved calculators may be used

Write your student number in the space providedStudent Name ___________________

Total marks 75

This paper has two parts, Part A and Part B

Part A 20 marks Attempt Questions 1-20 Allow about 35 minutes for this part

Part B 55 marks Attempt Questions 21-30 Allow about 1 hour and 25 minutes for this part

Part A 20 marksAttempt Questions 1-20Allow about 35 minutes for this part

Use the multiple-choice answer sheet.

Select the alternative A, B, C or D that best answers the question. Fill in the response oval completely.

Sample:2 + 4 =(A) 2(B) 6(C) 8(D) 9

A B C D

If you think you have made a mistake, put a cross through the incorrect answer and fill in the new answer.

A B C D

If you change your mind and have crossed out what you consider to be the correct answer, then indicate the correct answer by writing the word correct and drawing an arrow as follows.

A B C D

correct

1.The diagrams below summarise the relationship between zooxanthellae (photosynthetic algae) and coral polyps.

A branching staghorn coralcoral polypstentacleszooxanthellae (not to scale)Zooxanthellae provide the polyp with food, the coral provides the zooxanthellae with shelter.

The relationship between these two organisms is an example of:

(A) parasitism(B) commensalism(C) mutualism(D) allelopathy

2. Two biologists set out to independently determine the population of Pattersons Curse, an introduced plant, on a large cattle station. They each used the quadrat method, but when their results were compared they were found to be quite different.

They decide to modify their method and perform the measurement again.

Which one of the options below contains TWO improvements which should give more reliable results?

Improvement 1Improvement 2

(A)Choose quadrats with both high densities and low densities of Pattersons Curse.Sample more quadrats

(B)Select quadrats from areas which have been grazed less by cattle.Repeat the experiment.

(C)Sample more quadratsUse larger quadrats

(D)Repeat the experiment.Choose quadrats with both high densities and low densities of Pattersons Curse.

Questions 3 and 4 refer to the food web below, which shows the feeding relationships in a NSW coastal forest.blue gumwattlescale insectspidernative beeperegrine falconYellow-tailed black cockatoorainbow bee-eatergrey thrush

3.Which one of the following is a producer?

(A) peregrine falcon(B) yellow-tailed black cockatoo(C) scale insect(D) wattle

4.Which one of the following is a competitor of the scale insect?(A) spider(B) yellow-tailed black cockatoo(C) native bee(D) blue gum

5.Robert Brown was a prominent scientist of the early nineteenth century who, amongst other things, described the nature of particle movement and advised Charles Darwin on microscopy.

Which one of the following contributions is he also known for?

(A) The discovery of the nucleus.(B) The development of the electron microscope.(C) The discovery of natural selection amongst microbes.(D) The discovery that inheritance is controlled by the chromosomes.6.The diagrams below represent two cells drawn to scale.

X Y

Which one of the following statements about these cells is true?

(A)Cell X has a greater surface area to volume ratio than Cell Y(B)Cell X has a smaller volume than Cell Y.(C)Cell X has a greater surface area than Cell Y.(D)Cell X has the same surface area to volume ratio as Cell Y.

7.The photograph below shows some onion root cells undergoing mitosis.

1 23 4

Which one of the following places the four labelled cells in their correct sequence?

(A) 1, 2, 3, 4(B) 4, 1, 3, 2(C) 1, 3, 2, 4(D) 3, 1, 4, 2

Questions 7 and 8 refer to the information about Titan below.

Wikipedia commons

Titan is Saturns largest moon and is regarded by biologists as the object in the solar system which is most similar to the early Earth. For this reason it is of great interest to biologists who are trying to understand the evolution of the first life on Earth.

The average surface temperature on Titan is -179oC.

The atmosphere consists mainly of nitrogen.

Insolation (the amount of solar energy per unit of area) on Titan is about 1% of that on Earth.

There is no liquid water on Titan, just solid ice.

There is a methane cycle, similar to the Earths water cycle. Titan has seas of liquid methane, methane clouds and methane rain.

NASA biochemists have performed experiments similar to those of Urey and Miller, but using the chemicals and physical factors present on Titan. They have produced amino acids and other chemicals of life.

8.There are some obvious similarities between the conditions on Titan and those on the early Earth.

Choose the row in the table below which correctly contrasts a similarity and difference.

SimilarityDifference

(A)Light intensity at surfacePresence of liquid water

(B)Presence of liquid waterNitrogen in atmosphere

(C)Nitrogen in atmospherePresence of methane

(D)Presence of methaneLight intensity at surface

9.The experiments by the NASA scientists would suggest that:

(A) there is likely to be life on Titan.(B) there are likely to be amino acids on Titan. (C) meteorites from Titan might have brought amino acids to the early Earth.(D) Titan is too cold to support life.

10.The diagram below represents one of the important steps in the development of the modern Earth. Process XCyanobacteriaIncreased O2 in atmosphere

Identify process X.

(A) respiration(B) oxidation(C) photosynthesis(D) banded iron formation11.One consequence of the build up of oxygen in the atmosphere was the development of the ozone layer.

Which one of the following was the major consequence of this for the evolution of life on Earth?

(A) The greenhouse effect stabilised temperatures, allowing living things to colonise a greater proportion of the Earths surface.

(B) Living things were able to colonise the land, thanks to protection from UV rays.

(C) Global cooling caused ice caps to form at the poles, causing living things to die out in polar regions.

(D) UV rays no longer reached the Earths surface, causing the rate of mutation to greatly decrease and the evolution of new life to virtually stop.

12.Extremophile bacteria are able to survive in conditions that most living things would find intolerable.

Which one of the following environmental factors would extremophiles NOT have encountered on the early Earth?

(A) high methane concentration(B) high temperature(C) low temperature(D) high oxygen concentration

13.Taxonomists (scientists who classify organisms) are increasingly turning to DNA analysis to help them resolve difficulties in classification.

DNA analysis is a good tool for this because:

(A) Similarities and differences in DNA reflect how closely species are related.(B) DNA analysis is easy and inexpensive.(C) Structural characteristics show too much variation within a species.(D) DNA determines the physical and chemical features of an organism.

Questions 14 and 15 refer to the key to arthropods below.

1aThree pairs of legs Insecta1bMore than three pairs of legs 2

2aFour pairs of legs 32bMore than four pairs of legs 6

3aBody divided into two distinct body segments with a constriction between them. Araneida3bBody not divided into two distinct body segments with a constriction. 4

4aDistinct pincers visible at front of body Scorpionidae4bDistinct pincers not visible at front of body 5

5a Legs more than three times the length of the body Opiliones5bLegs less than three times the length of the body Acari

6aTwo pairs of legs per segmentDiplopoda6bOne pair of legs per segment 7

7aEight body segments Isopoda7bMore than eight body segmentsChilopoda

14.Based on the key, which one of the following would appear to be a characteristic shared by all arthropods?

(A) posession of legs(B) posession of pincers(C) posession of distinct body segments(D) posession of constrictions between segments

15.Use the key to classify the organism shown below.

(A) Araneidae(B) Scorpionidae(C) Acari(D) Isopoda

16.In which one of the following taxonomic groupings are the organisms most closely related?

(A) Kingdom(B) Phylum(C) Class(D) Order

17.On his journey around the world on board HMS Beagle, Darwin made many of the observations that led to his theory of Evolution by Natural Selection.

In which place did he observe what he described as a separate creation, a land where every organism was different to, but had its equivalent species in, the flora and fauna of the Old World?

(A) Australia(B) Tahiti(C) South America(D) GalapagosQuestions 18 and 19 refer to the divided bar graph below, which shows the relative areas of the non-desert parts of the Australian continent occupied by different vegetation types 50,000 years ago.

rainforest fire-sensitive fire-tolerant grassland woodland woodland

18.Which one of the divided bar graphs below best shows the present day distribution?

(A)

(B)

(C)

(D)

19.The changes shown above mainly reflect the influence of one relatively recent factor.

The divided bar graph for twenty million years ago is below.

Which environmental change is most responsible for the change in vegetation since then?

(A) increasing temperature(B) increasing soil degredation(C) decreasing soil fertility(D) decreasing rainfall20.Most aquatic organisms release their gametes into the water where they are fertilised externally to the body of the mother.

The young then normally develop externally as well and receive much less parental care than the young of most terrestrial organisms.

What is the advantage of external over internal fertilisation?

(A) It is asexual.(B) More fertilised eggs can be produced.(C) The fertilised eggs stand a better individual chance of survival.(D) There is a chance that the eggs will be fertilised by a different species.

Part B 55 marks Attempt Questions 21 30

Allow about 1 hour and 25 minutes for this part

Answer the questions in the spaces provided.

Question 21 (7 marks)

The diagram below represents a transect taken on a South facing slope.Marks

Tree sp.1

Tree sp.2

Grass sp.1

Shrub sp.1

Shrub sp.2South

(a) Describe the distribution of plants shown in the transect.

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Question 21 continues on page 14.

Question 21 (continued)

(b) Explain how a named biotic factor might influence the distribution of Grass species 1.

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(c) A biologist measured the soil depth at 1 meter intervals along the transect from North to South. His results are given below.

Distance along transect (m)Depth of soil (cm)

06.0

22.5

46.5

612.5

815.0

1018.5

1221.5

Use the grid below to draw a line graph of this data2

Marks

2

3


The photomicrograph below shows a cell organelle.

(a) Identify the organelle and state its function within the cell.

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(b) Estimate the length of this particular specimen.

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Outline TWO advantages of the electron microscope over the light microscope. In your answer name an organelle or other structure which is only visible with the electron microscope.

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2

1

3


The photograph below shows the fossil skeleton of a Diprotodon, a marsupial member of Australias megafauna, believed to have become extinct about 15,000 years ago.

(a) Diprotodon was a herbivore. Explain how its digestive system would have reflected its diet.

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Question 24 continues on page 17.

Question 24 (continued)

(b) Explain why it is difficult to classify extinct organisms such as Diprotodon to species level.

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(c) Outline ONE of the two main theories concerning the extinction of Australias megafauna, and describe a piece of evidence which supports it.

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Explain why the change in Earths atmosphere from anoxic to oxic was significant in the evolution of living things.

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Marks

4

Marks

2

2

3


(a) The events below are listed in the wrong order. Number them 1-5 in the order in which they occurred during the evolution of life on Earth.

________ first eukaryote

________ first membranes

________ first organic molecules

________ first multicellular organisms

________ first autotrophic prokaryote

(b) The evolution of the first membranes was a critical step. Membranes control the movement of substances.

Make a drawing below to show the internal structure of a membrane and annotate your drawing to explain how its structure suits it to its function.

Marks

2

3


The photograph below shows an Eastern Spinebill, an important pollinator of Australian heathland plants.

(a) Describe one way in which you might expect the flower of a bird pollinated plant to be adapted to help it achieve pollination.

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(b) Flowers facilitate sexual reproduction.

Complete the table below to compare sexual and asexual reproduction.

Sexual ReproductionAsexual Reproduction

Advantage to the species

Disadvantage to the species

Australian example of a plant employing this form of reproduction.

Marks

2

3


(a) Explain why multicellular organisms need transport systems.

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(b) Compare the vessels through which water and sugars are transported in plants.

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(c) Discuss how technologies such as radioisotopes have been used to trace the movement of elements through plants.

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Marks

2

3

3

Question 29 (6 marks)A student set up the apparatus below to demonstrate the action of osmosis. (a) Two solutions need to be added to the experiment to demonstrate osmosis. Name each solution AND where it needs to be added.

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(b) Describe what you would expect to happen to the level of solution in the thistle funnel after a few hours. Explain your answer.

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(c) How does this osmotic process differ from diffusion?

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continue on to next page(d) Why do scientists use models such as this to explain osmosis?

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2

2

1

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Explain how geological and biological evidence supports the idea that Australia was once part of Gondwana.

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End of the paper

Marks

6

21

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