Applied Anatomy and Physiology | AQA GCSE Physical Education (8582)

Applied Anatomy and Physiology

157 questions
10 subtopics
Paper 1
Paper 1

Applied Anatomy and Physiology is examined in Paper 1, The human body and movement in physical activity and sport.

It covers bones and the functions of the skeleton, joints, joint actions, ligaments and tendons, muscles and antagonistic pairs, the pathway of air and gaseous exchange, blood vessels, the heart, the cardiac cycle and cardiac output, Mechanics of breathing and spirometer traces, aerobic and anaerobic exercise, recovery from exercise and EPOC and short- and long-term effects of exercise.

Sample questions from Applied Anatomy and Physiology

Answer each one closed book first, then open the answer.

Bones and the functions of the skeleton

Which bones form the knee joint, and where does the patella sit?

Show the answer
The femur and the tibia form the knee joint. The patella sits at the front of the knee joint.
Joints, joint actions, ligaments and tendons

How does cartilage protect a joint?

Show the answer
Cartilage covers the ends of the bones and stops them rubbing together. Cartilage also absorbs shock, such as on landing from a jump.
Muscles and antagonistic pairs

Which two muscles work as a pair at the ankle?

Show the answer
The gastrocnemius and the tibialis anterior work at the ankle. The gastrocnemius causes plantar flexion and the tibialis anterior causes dorsiflexion.
The pathway of air and gaseous exchange

What is gaseous exchange?

Show the answer
Gaseous exchange is the swap of gases between the alveoli and the blood. Oxygen diffuses into the blood and carbon dioxide diffuses out.
Blood vessels

Describe the structure of a capillary.

Show the answer
A capillary is a very narrow vessel with walls only one cell thick. Red blood cells pass through a capillary in single file.
The heart, the cardiac cycle and cardiac output

What makes the valves of the heart open and close?

Show the answer
Heart valves open when the blood pressure behind them is higher than the pressure in front. Valves close to prevent blood flowing backwards.
Mechanics of breathing and spirometer traces

How do the abdominal muscles help a performer breathe out during exercise?

Show the answer
The abdominal muscles contract to pull the rib cage down more quickly. Air is forced out of the lungs faster.
Aerobic and anaerobic exercise

Why can aerobic exercise be kept up for a long time?

Show the answer
Aerobic exercise produces no lactic acid to cause fatigue. The carbon dioxide and water it makes are easily removed from the body.

The 10 subtopics

One subtopic is one session. Work down the list.

Subtopic	What it covers	Questions
Bones and the functions of the skeleton	The bones at the head, shoulder, chest, elbow, hip, knee and ankle, how long, short and flat bones allow movement and protection, and the six functions of the skeleton.	16
Joints, joint actions, ligaments and tendons	Synovial joints and their parts, cartilage, ligaments and tendons, hinge and ball and socket joints, and flexion, extension, abduction, adduction, rotation, circumduction, plantar flexion and dorsiflexion.	16
Muscles and antagonistic pairs	Agonists and antagonists, the antagonistic pairs at the elbow, knee, hip, ankle and shoulder, and concentric, eccentric and isometric contractions applied to sporting actions.	16
The pathway of air and gaseous exchange	The pathway of air from mouth to alveoli, the features of the alveoli that help gaseous exchange, diffusion of oxygen and carbon dioxide, and haemoglobin.	15
Blood vessels	The structure and function of arteries, veins and capillaries, blood pressure, the vessels entering and leaving the heart, and vasodilation and vasoconstriction during exercise.	15
The heart, the cardiac cycle and cardiac output	The chambers of the heart, the pathway of blood, diastole and systole, heart rate, stroke volume and cardiac output with worked calculations, and heart rate graphs.	16
Mechanics of breathing and spirometer traces	How the diaphragm, intercostals and rib cage work at rest and in exercise, tidal, inspiratory reserve, expiratory reserve and residual volumes, and reading a spirometer trace.	16
Aerobic and anaerobic exercise	Aerobic and anaerobic exercise and their word equations, lactic acid, why each can be sustained for longer or shorter, and classifying sporting activities by intensity and duration.	15
Recovery from exercise and EPOC	EPOC and the oxygen debt, why breathing and heart rate stay raised after exercise, and recovery methods including cool downs, rehydration, carbohydrates, ice baths and massage.	16
Short- and long-term effects of exercise	Immediate effects such as sweating and faster breathing, effects hours later including DOMS and cramp, and long-term adaptations such as cardiac hypertrophy and bradycardia.	16

Applied Anatomy and Physiology is 157 of the 653 questions in the guide.Get the guide, £7

How the guide is worked

Answering a question from memory stores it far better than reading the answer again. The guide runs that as a fixed procedure on one subtopic at a time, about twenty minutes a session.

Step 1 · Closed book
Cover the answers. Work through one subtopic and write down what you can. Leave blanks where you have nothing.
Step 2 · Open book
Go back to the top. Read each printed answer and write it out in full, including the ones you had right.
Step 3 · Closed book again
Same questions, same order, from memory. The gap between pass one and pass three is the session result.

Read the full method, the return schedule and the research behind it.