Topic 3 and 4 recent Core Practical Questions

Q1.
 
The photograph below shows apples on a tree. The mass of apples produced by an apple tree depends on the type of fertiliser used. Fertilisers provide inorganic ions required by plants.

(a)  Plants use inorganic ions. Place a cross () in the box that identifies the correct response.

(i)  Plants require the following inorganic ion to make the amino acids required for growth
(1)
       A    calcium
       B    nitrate
       C    phosphate
       D    sulfate

(ii)  Plants require magnesium ions as a component of
(1)
       A    cellulose
       B    chlorophyll
       C    phytochrome
       D    protein

(b)  The graph below shows the effect of different nitrate fertilisers on the mean mass of apples produced by Golden Delicious and Red Delicious apple trees.

(i)  Using the information in the graph, describe the effects of the fertilisers on the mean mass of Golden Delicious apples produced.
(2)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 

(ii)  A farmer has decided to plant apple trees.
Suggest how the farmer could use the information given in the graph.
(2)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 

(c)  Apples with a high proportion of calcium stay firmer and can be stored for longer.
Scientists examined cells from Golden Delicious apples stored for seven months. They compared the cell structure of apples from trees given ammonium nitrate with those given calcium nitrate.

Golden Delicious apples from trees given calcium nitrate were firmer than those from trees given ammonium nitrate.
Using information from the diagrams and your knowledge of the structure of plant cell walls, suggest an explanation for this difference.
(4)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
  
(Total for question = 10 marks)

Q2.
 
Some plants, such as garlic, show antimicrobial properties.
(a)
Explain what is meant by the term antimicrobial properties.
(1)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
(b)
The flow chart below shows some stages in a practical experiment to investigate the antimicrobial properties of garlic.

(i)
Suggest why the bacteria are mixed with the agar in stage 1.
(1)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
(ii)
Explain why the Petri dish must be sterile at stage 2.
(2)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
(iii)
In stage 3, the lid is taped on using two pieces of sticky tape as shown below.

Explain why the two halves of the Petri dish are not completely sealed with sticky tape.
(2)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
(iv)
Suggest a suitable temperature for the safe incubation of the agar plates in a school laboratory. Give an explanation for your answer.
(2)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
(v)
The diagrams below show the Petri dish at the beginning and end of stage 4.

Describe and explain the results shown at the end of stage 4.
(3)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
(Total for question = 11 marks)

Q3.
 
The electron micrograph shows a cross-section through part of a vascular bundle, containing phloem tissue.

A sieve tube element is labelled 'ST'. A cell called a companion cell is labelled 'CC'.
Calculate the magnification of this image.
(1)

 Answer: × ........................................................... 
 
(Total for question = 1 mark)

Q4.
 
*Lead ions can be toxic to plants.
Different plants are killed by different concentrations of lead ions.
The toxic concentrations for different plant categories are shown in the table.

Devise a laboratory investigation to determine the tolerance category of tomato plants to lead ions.
(6)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 
(Total for question = 6 marks)

Q5.
The photograph below shows plant cells at different stages in the cell cycle.

(a)  Name the stage of mitosis shown by each of the cells labelled X and Y.
(2)
X .................................................................................................................................................... 
Y .................................................................................................................................................... 

(b)  Describe what occurs during prophase.
(4)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 

(c)  Cell Z is not undergoing mitosis.

Suggest which stage of the cell cycle it is undergoing. 
Give a reason for your answer.
(2)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 

(Total for Question = 8 marks)

Q6.
 
The photograph below shows a sisal plant. Fibres from its leaves are used to make rope.

Tensile strength is the force required to break a fibre when it is placed under stress. The units used to measure this force are megapascals (MPa).
The graph below shows the mean tensile strength of sisal fibres of different diameters.

(a)  (i)  Using information in the graph, describe the relationship between the diameter and the mean tensile strength of the fibres.
(3)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 

(ii)  Suggest which variables should be controlled when investigating the tensile strength of fibres of different diameters.
(3)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 

(b)  Suggest two advantages of making rope from a sustainable resource, such as sisal, instead of oil-based plastics.
(2)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
(c)  The fibres used from sisal are mainly sclerenchyma tissue. The photograph below shows a group of sclerenchyma fibres labelled S.

Using information in the photograph and your own knowledge, suggest how the structure of sclerenchyma fibres makes them useful for making rope.
(2)
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
 ............................................................................................................................................. 
  
(Total for question = 10 marks)

Topic 3 and 4 recent core practical qu mark scheme

Q1.

Q2.

Q3.

 

Q4.

 

Q5.

Q6.