Study Guide

Field 110: Biological Sciences 
Sample Selected-Response Questions

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General Test Directions

This test consists of two sections: 1) a section with selected-response questions and 2) a constructed-response section that includes two writing assignments.

Each question in the first section of this test is a selected-response question with four answer choices. Read each question carefully and choose the  start uppercase ONE end uppercase  best answer. Try to answer all questions. Even if you are unsure of an answer, it is better to guess than not to answer a question at all. You will  start uppercase NOT end uppercase  be penalized for guessing.

The second section of this test consists of two constructed-response assignments. You will be asked to provide a written response to each assignment. Directions for completing your written responses to the constructed-response assignments will appear immediately before the assignments.

Sample Selected-Response Questions

Competency 0001 
Understand the characteristics and biochemistry of the atoms and molecules necessary for life.

1. The helix and pleated sheet form of proteins and the double helix structure of D N A are the result of which of the following types of chemical bonds?

  1. hydrogen
  2. ionic
  3. metallic
  4. covalent

Correct Response: A. The helix and pleated sheet form of proteins are types of the secondary structure of proteins that result from the pattern of bonds in between non-adjacent amino acids. This includes hydrogen bonds between the carboxyl oxygen atom and the amino hydrogen in the peptide backbone. Similarly, the double helix structure of deoxyribonucleic acid (D N A) is produced when the complementary base pairs of adenine with thymine and guanine with cytosine connect to each other using hydrogen bonds.

Competency 0002 
Understand the characteristics of cells and their structures and processes.

2. During the G 1 checkpoint, gene P 5 3 can identify damage to D N A and halt the cell cycle from proceeding. Which of the following statements is the most likely outcome if the P 5 3 gene becomes mutated?

  1. The cell will enter the G 0 phase.
  2. The cell will begin to divide uncontrollably.
  3. The cell cycle will be halted at the G 2 checkpoint.
  4. The cell will automatically stimulate programmed cell death.

Correct Response: B. At the G 1 checkpoint, several internal cell conditions are monitored to determine whether the cell will continue with cell division. Under normal circumstances, the p 5 3 gene plays a role in repairing damage to the cell's D N A and, if the damage cannot be repaired, triggers the death of the cell. If the p 5 3 gene becomes mutated, however, cell death will not be triggered and instead the cell will begin to divide uncontrollably, potentially resulting in cancer.

Competency 0003 
Understand photosynthesis, cellular respiration, and the flow of energy and matter in cells.

3. A marathon runner trains for a long period of time in order to prepare their body to use the extra energy needed to run 26.2 miles. Which of the following physiological changes occurs to increase energy while training to run a long distance?

  1. mitochondria count increasing in muscle cells
  2. liquid releasing from the body's sweat glands
  3. hard and quick intake and exhalation of air
  4. body temperature increasing

Correct Response: A. The increased exercise associated with training before a marathon race increases the core body temperature and other physiological parameters, such as heart rate and the amount of lactic acid in the blood. In response, the human body begins to increase the expression of genes responsible for making mitochondria, increasing the number of mitochondria in muscle cells.

Competency 0004 
Understand organismal maintenance, growth, and reproduction.

4. The decrease in day length is one stimulus that leads bears to enter a state of torpor, an extended sleeplike condition common during the winter. Which of the following statements best explains the adaptive significance of this behavior?

  1. Torpor allows bears to sleep undisturbed throughout the winter.
  2. Torpor enables bears to conserve energy and survive for many months without additional food intake.
  3. Torpor enables bears to save energy for the mating period that will begin shortly after they awaken in the spring.
  4. Torpor reduces a bear's temperature close to that of its environment, thereby protecting the animal from freezing.

Correct Response: B. Bears that are in a state of torpor have a lower body temperature, metabolic rate, heart rate, respiratory rate, and rate of water loss than they would in a more awakened state. Consequently, they have less need for food during a time when food sources are less accessible and moving about to find food may be more difficult, such as exist during winter weather conditions.

Competency 0005 
Understand the characteristics of biomes, ecosystems, and their inhabitants.

5.  start bold Use the graph below to answer the question that follows. end bold 

An S-curve graph depicting the trend of population size over time

The graph has an X axis labeled time and a Y axis labeled population size. The overall shape of the graph is an S shaped curve. The curve runs from the lower left to upper right of the graph, with the lowest point on the curve shown at the left most portion of the graph, close to the intersection of the X axis and the Y axis, labeled point A. From letter A on the line, the graph is drawn upwards and slightly to the right in an exponential curve. The slope is very steep. Point B is located about one third along the x axis and one third along the y axis on the curve. After point B, the steepness of the curve begins to decrease slightly, and the curve is labeled with point C about two thirds across the x axis and at a similar distance from the origin of the y axis. The curve after point C begins to level off, ending with a point labeled D, where the curve is relatively flat.

The graph shows the population of a species of frog inhabiting a pond. The carrying capacity of this population is best represented by which of the following points on the graph?

  1. point A
  2. point B
  3. point C
  4. point D

Correct Response: D. The carrying capacity of a population refers to the average size of a population that can be supported in a sustainable manner by the resources in a given environment, such as food, shelter, and potential mates. This is represented in the frog population by point D on the graph. Below point D on the graph, population growth occurs at an exponential rate as resources are readily available. If the population size grows beyond the carrying capacity shown at point D, resources may become exhausted and the population of frogs may die off.

Competency 0006 
Understand the flow of matter and energy in organisms and ecosystems.

6.  start bold Use the diagram below to answer the question that follows. end bold 

a food web diagram

The food web diagram used to answer this item consists of a series of letters A through G, which are interconnected by arrows. At the bottom of the diagram is the letter A, with three arrows pointing away from the letter A. One of these arrows points to letter C, another points to letter D, and the third arrow points to letter B. Starting with the letter C, an arrow points to the letter E, and from E another arrow points to the letter F. Starting with letter B, there is an arrow pointing to letter D. Starting from the letter D, there is an arrow that points to the letter F and an arrow that points to the letter G. And finally, there is an arrow from the letter G that points to the letter F.

In the food web, which of the following pairs of organisms are competitors?

  1. A and C
  2. B and D
  3. C and E
  4. D and E

Correct Response: B. In the food web diagram, the arrows indicate the direction of the flow of food and nutrients. As shown in the diagram, organism A is predated upon by B, C, and D. This makes organisms B and D direct competitors.

Competency 0007 
Understand the impact of human activities on the environment and society.

7. Which of the following factors is the largest contributor to the acceleration of global human population growth rates for the past 200 years?

  1. increase in the availability of shelter due to the urbanization of communities
  2. reduction in the death rate due to technological advances in heath and sanitation
  3. increase in food distribution due to advances in infrastructure and use of fossil fuels
  4. reduction in the number of natural disasters that have impacted large communities

Correct Response: B. The acceleration of global human population growth rates for the past 200 years is largely the result of advances in heath and sanitation. Specifically, the use of antibiotics and vaccines, as well as the increased access to clean drinking water and improvements in sewage disposal, are all factors that have combined to reduce death rates and the impact of disease on the population growth rate.

Competency 0008 
Understand the molecular basis of inheritance.

8.  start bold Use the description of an experiment below to answer the question that follows. end bold 

A scientist is studying the effects of cold on the appearance of point mutations in a species of plant. Research has already conclusively demonstrated that low temperatures during flowering often cause the plant to produce seeds that carry a point mutation that alters the color of the flower in the offspring from light pink to white. The scientist would like to determine if the frequency of this mutation varies with different amounts of exposure to cold. In an experiment, the scientist grows fifteen plants to the flowering stage and divides them into five experimental groups. Each group is exposed to 1 degree Celsius temperature for a different period of time, ranging from five hours to two days. After the plants set seeds, two seeds are planted from each group and allowed to flower. When they flower, the number of plants with white, rather than pink, flowers will be determined.

Which of the following changes to this experiment would likely increase the reliability of the results?

  1. increasing the sample size of the experimental groups and the number of offspring grown
  2. collecting the seeds from each plant at the beginning, middle, and end of flowering
  3. varying the temperature as well as the duration of exposure for the experimental groups
  4. including several groups that are exposed to higher than normal growing temperatures during flowering

Correct Response: A. In this experimental set-up, the scientist uses five experimental groups of three flowering plants per group to study the effect of length of cold exposure on flower color. A sample size that is larger than three individual plants with the treatment group will be a better representative of the population and thus be more accurate. Also, a larger sample size increases the precision of values such as the mean, decreases the margin of error, and makes it easier to identify outlying data points.

Competency 0009 
Understand the inheritance and variation of traits.

9. A plant breeder is attempting to determine whether the allele for white flowers is dominant to the allele for yellow flowers in a newly cultivated species of plant. The plant breeder crosses ten white-flowered plants with ten yellow-flowered plants and grows the offspring to the flowering stage in a climate-controlled greenhouse. The breeder expects that either the white- or the yellow-colored flowers will disappear in the F 1 generation in accordance with genetic principles. However, both white- and yellow-flowered plants appear in numbers that don't correspond to the breeder's expected ratio. When members of the F 1 generation are crossed, members of the F 2 generation also occur in a different ratio than seen in the preceding generation. The unexpected results of the experiment are most likely due to which of the following factors?

  1. Differences in flower color are influenced by environmental factors and these were not controlled.
  2. The white and yellow alleles must be codominant.
  3. Some of the parental plants were heterozygous because plants from purebred lines were not used.
  4. Flower color in this species must be determined by multiple genes.

Correct Response: C. This plant breeder is attempting to use the law of dominance to determine which allele is dominant. Homozygous recessive parent plants can be crossed with homozygous dominant plants, producing F 1 offspring that are heterozygotes and are phenotypically similar to one of the parent plants. In this way, one can identify the dominant allele. However, in the case of the plant breeder, the F 1 offspring displayed phenotypes of both parent plants, so it was likely that the original parent plants were not homozygous plants but instead were heterozygous for flower color.

Competency 0010 
Understand natural selection, adaptation, and the diversity of life.

10. A biology teacher is planning a unit about taxonomy. The teacher will cover a number of topics on the subject, including binomial classification and the hierarchical nature of taxonomies, historical and modern criteria used in classifications, the use of dichotomous keys in classification, and the connections between taxonomy and evolutionary history. Which of the following crosscutting concepts in biology would best serve as an underlying theme for this unit?

  1. identifying factors associated with stability and change
  2. analyzing relationships between structure and function
  3. discerning and clarifying patterns in biological data
  4. explaining the connections between cause and effect

Correct Response: C. Taxonomy and the classification of living things is based on the underlying genetic sequences, the evolutionary relationships between organisms, and the characteristics of organisms, including physical characteristics. Recognition of these patterns of similarities and differences allows organisms to be classified in larger groups. For example, organisms classified in the invertebrate phylum start italics Mollusca end italics all exhibit a soft, unsegmented body.