Total marks: 60 · Duration: 1 hour 15 minutes
Instructions to candidates
- This paper has 60 questions. Answer ALL questions.
- Each question is worth ONE mark.
- For each question there are four options, A, B, C and D. Choose the ONE you think is correct and record it on your answer sheet.
- You may use a silent, non-programmable electronic calculator.
- Where a question describes an organism, a process or a genetic cross in words, you may find it helpful to make a quick sketch.
Paper
Section A — Living Organisms and the Environment
1. Which process is carried out by ALL living organisms?
A) Locomotion from place to place
B) Production of milk
C) Respiration
D) Photosynthesis
2. Which structure is found in a human cheek cell?
A) Cell wall
B) Large permanent vacuole
C) Cell membrane
D) Chloroplast
3. In the food chain phytoplankton → shrimp → snapper → human, the shrimp is a
A) secondary consumer
B) decomposer
C) producer
D) primary consumer
4. The producers in a food chain contain 1000 kJ of energy. About 10% is passed to the next level. How much energy reaches the primary consumers?
A) 100 kJ
B) 10 kJ
C) 900 kJ
D) 1000 kJ
5. The main role of decomposers in an ecosystem is to
A) produce food by photosynthesis
B) remove oxygen from the air
C) feed on living plants
D) break down dead organisms and release nutrients
6. Which process returns carbon dioxide to the atmosphere?
A) Formation of coal
B) Absorption by the oceans
C) Photosynthesis
D) Burning of fossil fuels
7. Untreated sewage released into the sea near a reef is MOST likely to cause
A) an increase in fish populations
B) the growth of algae, which reduces the oxygen in the water
C) clearer water
D) a fall in the number of bacteria
8. Which practice helps to conserve natural resources?
A) Clearing mangroves for building
B) Recycling plastic bottles
C) Burning household waste in the yard
D) Using more pesticides
9. Which gas is mainly responsible for the enhanced greenhouse effect?
A) Oxygen
B) Nitrogen
C) Carbon dioxide
D) Argon
10. Mosquito larvae develop in
A) stagnant water
B) dry soil
C) running streams with fish
D) the air
Section B — Life Processes and Interdependence
11. The incisor teeth are used for
A) tearing meat
B) biting and cutting food
C) grinding food
D) crushing bones
12. Which nutrient provides the MOST energy per gram?
A) Carbohydrate
B) Vitamin C
C) Fat
D) Protein
13. A child whose diet lacks protein for a long time may develop
A) rickets
B) kwashiorkor
C) scurvy
D) goitre
14. Which food is the BEST source of iron?
A) Butter
B) Rice
C) Sugar
D) Red meat and dark green vegetables
15. The enzyme in saliva begins the digestion of
A) starch
B) vitamins
C) fat
D) protein
16. Most of the digested food is absorbed in the
A) large intestine
B) oesophagus
C) stomach
D) small intestine (ileum)
17. Bile helps digestion by
A) absorbing water
B) producing insulin
C) digesting proteins
D) emulsifying fats into small droplets
18. Which word equation shows aerobic respiration?
A) carbon dioxide + water → glucose + oxygen
B) glucose → alcohol + carbon dioxide
C) glucose + oxygen → carbon dioxide + water
D) glucose → lactic acid
19. When a person breathes out,
A) the diaphragm relaxes and the volume of the chest decreases
B) the pressure in the lungs falls
C) the diaphragm contracts and the volume of the chest increases
D) the ribs move upwards and outwards
20. Gaseous exchange in the lungs takes place across the walls of the
A) trachea
B) ribs
C) alveoli
D) bronchi
21. Which effect is caused by the tar in cigarette smoke?
A) It lowers blood pressure
B) It increases the oxygen carried by the blood
C) It can cause lung cancer
D) It strengthens the cilia
22. Which blood cells carry oxygen?
A) Platelets
B) White blood cells
C) Red blood cells
D) Plasma cells
23. The function of the platelets is to
A) help the blood to clot
B) make antibodies
C) carry oxygen
D) carry carbon dioxide
24. Which chamber of the heart pumps blood to all parts of the body?
A) Right atrium
B) Right ventricle
C) Left ventricle
D) Left atrium
25. Which blood vessel carries blood at the HIGHEST pressure?
A) Vena cava
B) Pulmonary vein
C) Capillary
D) Aorta
26. Which change is a long-term effect of regular exercise?
A) A higher resting heart rate
B) Weaker heart muscle
C) A lower resting heart rate
D) Smaller lungs
27. The waste product removed from the blood by the kidneys is mainly
A) bile
B) carbon dioxide
C) glucose
D) urea
28. On a hot day, the body loses heat by
A) sweating, with the sweat evaporating from the skin
B) shivering
C) raising the hairs on the skin
D) narrowing of blood vessels in the skin
29. The part of the eye that contains light-sensitive cells is the
A) retina
B) cornea
C) iris
D) lens
30. A short-sighted person can see near objects clearly but not distant ones. This is corrected by
A) convex (converging) lenses
B) removing the lens
C) wearing sunglasses
D) concave (diverging) lenses
31. The part of the brain that controls balance and coordination is the
A) cerebellum
B) medulla oblongata
C) cerebrum
D) pituitary gland
32. A person touches a hot iron and pulls their hand away before feeling pain. This is
A) a hormonal response
B) a learned response
C) a reflex action
D) a voluntary action
33. Which hormone controls the level of glucose in the blood?
A) Testosterone
B) Insulin
C) Adrenaline
D) Thyroxine
34. A person with diabetes who has not taken their medication is likely to have
A) no urea in their urine
B) very low blood pressure
C) glucose in their urine
D) too many red blood cells
35. The type of joint found at the shoulder is a
A) pivot joint
B) fixed joint
C) hinge joint
D) ball-and-socket joint
36. In the human male, sperm are produced in the
A) testes
B) prostate gland
C) sperm duct
D) urethra
37. During the menstrual cycle, ovulation usually takes place around
A) day 1
B) day 14
C) day 5
D) day 28
38. Which method of birth control is a surgical method for males?
A) Condom
B) Intra-uterine device
C) Vasectomy
D) Contraceptive pill
Section C — Heredity and Variation
39. Mitosis is important in the human body for
A) growth and repair of tissues
B) halving the number of chromosomes
C) producing sperm and eggs
D) producing variation
40. How many chromosomes are present in a normal human egg cell?
A) 23
B) 92
C) 22
D) 46
41. A man has the sex chromosomes
A) XO
B) XY
C) YY
D) XX
42. Two parents who are both carriers of the sickle-cell allele (genotype HbA HbS) have a child. What is the probability that the child has sickle-cell anaemia (HbS HbS)?
A) 75%
B) 50%
C) 0%
D) 25%
43. Which is an example of continuous variation in humans?
A) Sex
B) Height
C) Ability to roll the tongue
D) Blood group
44. An allele that is expressed only when two copies are present is described as
A) homozygous
B) dominant
C) codominant
D) recessive
45. Down's syndrome is caused by
A) a lack of vitamin D
B) an extra copy of chromosome 21
C) a bacterial infection
D) smoking during pregnancy
46. Which of these is caused by environmental factors rather than genes?
A) A scar from an injury
B) Eye colour
C) Natural hair colour
D) Blood group
Section D — Disease and its Impact on Humans
47. Which disease is caused by a deficiency in the diet?
A) Anaemia due to a lack of iron
B) Influenza
C) Diabetes
D) Sickle-cell anaemia
48. Which disease is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito?
A) Dengue fever
B) Gonorrhoea
C) Tuberculosis
D) Malaria
49. The BEST way to control the spread of mosquito-borne diseases in a community is to
A) store water in uncovered drums
B) keep windows open at night
C) remove containers of stagnant water
D) spray water on plants
50. Houseflies spread diseases such as gastroenteritis by
A) laying eggs in blood
B) biting humans
C) breathing on food
D) carrying pathogens from faeces to food on their bodies
51. Leptospirosis can be spread to humans through
A) sneezing
B) water contaminated with the urine of rats
C) shaking hands
D) mosquito bites
52. Which sexually transmitted infection is caused by a virus?
A) Gonorrhoea
B) HIV/AIDS
C) Chlamydia
D) Syphilis
53. A vaccine protects a person from a disease because it
A) kills all bacteria in the body
B) gives the person the full disease
C) contains antibiotics
D) causes the body to make antibodies and memory cells
54. Immunity gained by a baby from antibodies in its mother's breast milk is
A) artificial active immunity
B) natural active immunity
C) artificial passive immunity
D) natural passive immunity
55. Antibiotics are used to treat infections caused by
A) all pathogens
B) bacteria
C) fungi only
D) viruses
56. Which statement about drug abuse is correct?
A) Nicotine is not addictive
B) Long-term heavy drinking of alcohol can damage the liver
C) Marijuana has no effect on the brain
D) Cocaine is a depressant that slows down the heart
57. Water for drinking is treated with chlorine in order to
A) improve the colour
B) remove solid particles
C) kill microorganisms
D) add minerals
58. Which method of preserving fish works by removing water so that bacteria cannot grow?
A) Irradiating
B) Salting and drying
C) Canning
D) Refrigerating
59. Which is a physiological (non-communicable) disease?
A) Ringworm
B) Hypertension (high blood pressure)
C) Influenza
D) Gonorrhoea
60. A person's blood pressure is regularly 160/100 mmHg. A lifestyle change that would help to lower it is
A) reducing salt in the diet and exercising regularly
B) smoking more
C) drinking more sweet drinks
D) eating more fried food
END OF TEST