AQA GCSE Biology, Higher tier sample questions and answers (8461)
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35 sample questions and answers
Taken from every topic of AQA GCSE Biology, Higher tier, specification 8461. The full guide has 1,475.
Paper 1
Bioenergetics
95 questions in the guide, across 6 subtopics. More from this topic
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The photosynthesis reaction and the uses of glucose
Into which structures of a plant cell is energy transferred by light during photosynthesis?
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The chloroplasts. -
The photosynthesis reaction and the uses of glucose
Glucose is used by a plant to produce amino acids. What are those amino acids then used for?
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Protein synthesis, that is building the plant's proteins. -
Rate of photosynthesis
On a bright, warm summer afternoon, which factor is most likely to be limiting photosynthesis in a field crop? Explain your answer.
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Carbon dioxide concentration, because light intensity and temperature are both already high so neither is holding the rate back. -
Rate of photosynthesis
How can the heat from the lamp be stopped from warming the pondweed during this investigation?
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Place a glass tank or beaker of water between the lamp and the pondweed to absorb the heat. -
Why organisms respire, and aerobic versus anaerobic
Explain why an organism cannot survive if respiration stops in its cells.
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Respiration supplies all the energy for its living processes, and those processes cannot continue without it.
Paper 1
Cell Biology
202 questions in the guide, across 13 subtopics. More from this topic
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Eukaryotes and prokaryotes
What type of cell is a bacterial cell?
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A prokaryotic cell. -
Animal and plant cells
Describe how a slide of plant cells is prepared for viewing under a light microscope.
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Place a thin piece of tissue on a slide, add a drop of stain, then lower a coverslip onto it at an angle to avoid trapping air bubbles. -
Microscopy
Explain why an electron microscope can show structures a light microscope cannot.
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Its higher resolving power lets two very close points be seen separately, so cells are shown in much finer detail. -
Growing bacteria and aseptic technique
Why must Petri dishes and culture media be sterilised before they are used?
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To kill any microorganisms already on them that would otherwise grow and contaminate the culture. -
Chromosomes, mitosis and the cell cycle
Describe the order of events in the cell cycle.
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The cell grows and copies its DNA, then the nucleus divides by mitosis, and finally the cytoplasm and membranes divide.
Paper 2
Ecology
228 questions in the guide, across 18 subtopics. More from this topic
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Levels of organisation in an ecosystem, and what organisms need
What is an ecosystem?
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The interaction of a community of living organisms with the non-living parts of their environment. -
Abiotic factors
Why is the direction of the wind, as well as its strength, an abiotic factor?
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A steady wind from one direction dries and damages one side of a plant, so growth is lopsided and exposed sides support fewer plants. -
Adaptations
What is a functional adaptation?
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A feature of the way an organism's body works, such as producing very concentrated urine or slowing its metabolism. -
Predators, prey and measuring population size
What is prey?
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An animal that is killed and eaten by a predator. -
Decomposition
Name three conditions a gardener provides in a compost heap to speed up decay.
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Warmth, moisture and a good supply of oxygen from turning the heap.
Paper 2
Homeostasis and Response
246 questions in the guide, across 14 subtopics. More from this topic
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Homeostasis
Apart from enzyme action, what else does homeostasis keep at its optimum?
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All the other functions carried out by the cells of the body. -
The nervous system and the reflex arc
Two schools each find that a caffeinated drink shortens reaction time in the ruler-drop test. What does the agreement between their results show?
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The result is reproducible, because different investigators using different equipment obtained similar results. -
Myopia, hyperopia and how they are corrected
What is the everyday name for myopia?
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Short sightedness. -
The brain and the control of body temperature
What do vasodilation and sweating have in common?
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Both cause energy to be transferred from the skin to the environment. -
Insulin, glucagon and diabetes
What goes wrong in the pancreas in Type 1 diabetes?
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It fails to produce enough insulin.
Paper 1
Infection and Response
169 questions in the guide, across 12 subtopics. More from this topic
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Communicable (infectious) diseases
Describe how a pathogen carried in the air passes from one person to another.
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An infected person coughs or sneezes out droplets containing the pathogen, and another person inhales them. -
Viral diseases
Which type of organism is tobacco mosaic virus, and what does it infect?
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It is a virus, and it is a widespread pathogen of plants. -
Fungal and protist diseases
Give two ways of treating a rose plant with black spot.
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Spraying it with a fungicide, and removing and destroying the affected leaves. -
Human defence systems
Name the three ways in which white blood cells defend the body.
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Phagocytosis, antibody production and antitoxin production. -
Antibiotics and painkillers
What is meant by a resistant strain of bacteria?
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A strain that is not killed by an antibiotic which kills other strains of the same bacterium.
Paper 2
Inheritance, Variation and Evolution
318 questions in the guide, across 23 subtopics. More from this topic
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Sexual and asexual reproduction
Name the male gamete and the female gamete in animals.
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The sperm cell is the male gamete and the egg cell is the female gamete. -
Advantages and disadvantages of sexual and asexual reproduction
Give an example of an organism that uses both types of reproduction, and state what each type gives it.
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A strawberry plant produces seeds sexually, which gives variation, and spreads by runners asexually, which quickly produces many identical plants. -
Protein synthesis and complementary base pairing
Where in the cell are proteins made?
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On ribosomes. -
Genetic terms, dominant and recessive alleles
Under what condition is a recessive allele expressed?
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Only when two copies are present, so that no dominant allele is there. -
Variation
Why do the offspring of the same two parents differ from one another?
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Each inherits a different mixture of the parents' genes, and they may also develop in different conditions.
Paper 1
Organisation
217 questions in the guide, across 12 subtopics. More from this topic
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Levels of organisation, and how enzymes work
List the levels of organisation in a multicellular organism, from the smallest to the largest.
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Cells, then tissues, then organs, then organ systems, then the whole organism. -
Amylase, proteases and lipases
A meal contains a large amount of starch. Name the group of enzymes that will act on it and state what it becomes.
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Carbohydrases, which break it down into simple sugars. -
The heart, the lungs and double circulation
What is a double circulatory system?
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One in which blood passes through the heart twice for each complete circuit of the body. -
The pacemaker, the blood vessels and the blood
What is the role of platelets?
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They help the blood to clot at a wound. -
Health issues
Name three factors other than disease that can have a profound effect on a person's health.
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Diet, stress and a person's life situation.
AQA GCSE Biology, Higher tier Active Recall Guide
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