Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Q5 The chance of all the chromosomes in two sperm cells being the same is 1 in 2 or 1 in 8 388 608.
(Incidentally, this means that, because the average ejaculation contains about 250 000 000 sperm, each
ejaculation is likely to contain 30 sperm with identical chromosomes. The female, on the other hand, produces
only one egg every month. The chances of her producing two identical eggs is also only one in 8 388 608. Thus
the chance of an identical sperm fertilising an identical egg (identical to those that gave rise to an existing
sibling) is vanishingly small; 1 in about 70 000 000 000 000).
Q6 It might be expected that traits with a large number of possible alleles might show greater variation than those
with only a few possible alleles. (But this is also subject to other factors such as how widespread each of the
different alleles is in the population.)
Ff
Ff
Ff
Ff
Q5 Provide parents with information about how likely it is that their children would suffer from a genetic disorder.
Ethical considerations: family members might not want others to know their genotype.
Worksheet answers
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
Q1 Dd, Dd, Dd, Dd; all would have dimples.
Q2 Ff, Ff, ff, ff; two out of four, i.e. half, would have freckles.
Q3 CC, CC, Cc, Cc; all would have a cleft chin.
Worksheet answers
Activity 3 (High demand)
Q1 Prevents the blood clotting properly. It often leads to an early death.
Q2 Because it is caused by a gene on the X chromosome. Since males have no allele on the matching Y
chromosome, if they have one allele for haemophilia, they have the disease.
Cc
Cc
Cc
Cc
None of the offspring would have genotype cc, so none would have cystic fibrosis (but they would all be
carriers).
Q5 Might include ideas about patient confidentiality, emotional support being provided where required, and
ensuring that patients understand the implications of testing.
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
c
cc
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cc
CC
CC
Cc
Cc
Cc
Cc
cc
cc
CC
CC
CC
CC
Cc
Cc
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CC
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Cc
cc
Worksheet answers
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
Q1 Fewer side effects, more accurate ways of determining dosage, more powerful medicines, reduced overall cost
of healthcare.
Q2 a) Chorionic villus sampling: a sample of the cells of the fetus (from the placenta) are taken using a long
needle, through the stomach wall of the mother. Amniocentesis: a sample of the fluid with which the fetus is
b1_10 Cloning
Student Book answers
Q1 Sexual reproduction involves the genes of two parents the offspring receives half its genes from each parent.
Asexual reproduction involves only one parent; the offspring is genetically identical to the parent.
Q2 40
Q3 The new plants might have different sizes and states of health due to different availability of light, nutrients or
water. Height differences may also be due to different levels of root penetration, if the soil depth is different. The
offspring may have more or fewer fruits or flowers due to a different location.
Q4 In isolated habitats it can be difficult to reproduce sexually because there may not be another plant of the same
species close by. Stable environments also reduce the disadvantages of the lack of variation caused by
asexual reproduction.
Q5 This uses genetic material from an individual and a donated egg. The resulting embryonic stem cells have the
potential to develop into any cells in the body and are a perfect match for the individual.
Q6 Possible responses: many people have religious beliefs, or the gut feeling that tells them human cloning is
wrong; cloning animals is very unsafe at the moment most attempts are unsuccessful; many embryos would
be created and destroyed in the process; there is concern whether or not cloned individuals would be seen as
having the same rights as everyone else; a cloned child might have a great weight of expectation on it; a cloned
individual might miss out on the chance of a normal family life with two parents and siblings; there may be a
disadvantage to the health of an individual who has been produced by cloning.
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
Q1/2 Viral diseases: flu; common cold; viral meningitis; chicken pox; mumps. Bacterial diseases: septicaemia;
streptococcus (sore throat); bacterial meningitis; diphtheria; botulism.
Activity 3 (High demand)
Q1 Initially the number of bacteria is low and steady and then there is a rapid increase in the population of bacteria.
After this rapid growth, the population stabilises and remains the same for a time and then drops again to
slightly lower than its starting value.
Q2 As many bacteria are being produced as are dying, so the population is quite stable.
Q3 The bacteria begin to be poisoned by their own waste products.
b2_03 Vaccination
Student Book answers
Q1 It produces very large numbers of antibodies that are specific to an antigen on the surface of a pathogen that
has invaded the body before. In this way the memory cells enable the body to mount a very quick response to
the known pathogen.
Q2 They introduce a small amount of inactive pathogen into the body so that the body can create antibodies to it.
Memory cells remember the pathogen so that many antibodies can be produced rapidly if the pathogen is
encountered again.
Worksheet answers
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
antibiotics
Population of
taken
bacteria. Some
have more
resistance to
antibiotics than
others.
bacteria
multiply
There is now a
population of
bacteria more
resistant to
antibiotics than the
starting population.
Population of
resistant bacteria is
difficult to treat. A
different antibiotic
could be
prescribed.
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
In flow chart: human cells, animals, humans, clinical.
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
A clinic would trial a drug (medicine) with no more than 20 patients (subjects) at a time; though there may be
multiple clinics carrying out the trial simultaneously.
Trial subjects have regular observations done as well as checks on their heart rate, blood pressure and blood to
check the drug (medicine) is not having a severe effect on any of their body systems. Subjects are asked about
side effects, such as sleeplessness, anxiety, palpitations, dizziness, sickness etc.
The activities of subjects are usually controlled to some extent; they are usually able to take part in activities in a
games room, watch TV etc. but generally are not permitted to leave the clinic.
A trial is usually stopped if test subjects are suffering from severe side effects or if anyone becomes seriously ill.
Often, side effects such as dizziness and nausea are not considered serious enough to halt the trial.
Activity 3 (High demand)
The most reliable type of study is a double-blind study, where neither the subject nor the doctor knows who is
getting the drug (medicine) and who is having a placebo. A placebo could be used to make sure the effects
seen are due to the drug (medicine) and not just because of the environment the test subjects are in.
Structure
Artery
Vein
Capillary
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
Q4 a) A result that does not fit the general trend or is very different from other results in a set.
b) Because you do not know which of the readings lies close to the true (accurate) value; an average taken
from very different readings will give you an inaccurate answer; averages are only accurate if the repeated
readings have values close to each other.
Activity 3 (High demand)
Q1 Slower resting heart rate because their heart muscle would be stronger and able to pump more blood per beat.
Q2 A suitable method might be to give an individual one point for each hour of exercise they do per week and see
how that relates to the resting heart rate. It might be expected that those who do more exercise would be fitter
and so have a lower resting heart rate because their heart is able to pump more blood per beat and it needs to
beat less often to get the same amount of blood around the body.
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
All the patients are suitable except Helen; she is only visiting the area on holiday.
b2_11 Homeostasis
Student Book answers
Q1 The maintenance of a constant internal environment.
Q2 Temperature; blood sugar; salt and water levels; pH
Q3 The receptor detects any change in the environment; the processing centre receives that information and
determines how the body systems respond; the effector produces the response that brings the system back to
normal (for example normal temperature or water level).
Q4 It would be detected by the receptor (the thermostat); a message would then be sent to the processing centre
(the computer in the water heater); which would direct the effector (the water heater) to switch on.
Q5 The process that reverses any changes to the environment and helps it get back to a steady state.
Q6 Receptors detect the fall below 37 C and send a message to the processing centre in the brain; the processing
centre then directs the effectors, in this case the blood vessels, to vasoconstrict (become narrower and move
away from the skin surface) which results in less heat being lost from the body and the muscles to shiver and
generate heat; once the temperature has risen back to normal, receptors detect this and pass the message to
the processing centre, which direct the effectors (the blood vessels) to return to their normal positions and the
muscles to stop shivering.
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
The thermostat senses the temperature in the incubator and is the receptor; the computer receives the message
from the thermostat and sends a message to the heater to turn on or off; the computer is the processor; the heater
is the effector; it turns on to heat the incubator or off when it receives the message from the computer.
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
The bodys temperature needs to be at or very close to 37 C; if the temperature changes from this, receptors in
the walls of the blood vessels detect the change and send a message to the processing centre of the body (the
brain); the brain then sends a message to the effectors of the body.
Body too hot: effectors sweat glands (increase sweating) and blood vessels near the skin (dilate).
Body too cold: effectors muscles (contract, i.e. shiver, and generate heat); muscles that control the small hairs
all over the skin (contract and hold hairs away from the body, trapping a layer of warm air); blood vessels near
the surface of the skin (contract and move away from the skin surface to reduce heat loss); blood may also be
diverted away from extremities (fingers, toes, nose) to the core of the body.
Activity 3 (High demand)
Q1 The rise would be detected by the receptors. The processing centre would send a message to the heater to
switch off and the windows to open. The heater would switch off. The windows would open.
Q2 The fall would be detected by the receptors; the processing centre would send a message to the heater to turn
on and the windows to close; the heater would turn on; the windows would close.
Q3 Both systems have receptors that detect the temperature (thermostat in incubator and receptors in the
hypothalamus in the body); both have processing centres (computer in the incubator and brain in the body);
both have responses to warm themselves (the heater in the incubator and vasoconstriction and shivering in the
body) and cool themselves (the windows in the incubator and vasodilation and sweating in the body).
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
Polar bear: In order cold, thick fur, insulate, blubber, black, snow, claws, nostrils
Water lily: In order supported, surface, waxy cuticle, absorb sunlight, wind, water movement,
Worksheet answers
Activity 3 (High demand)
Q1 Birds 1016; foxes 12
Q2 As the weedkiller killed the weed plants, the number of insects supported by the weed plants became fewer; so
the number of insect-eating birds supported by the insects became fewer; and the number of foxes supported
by the birds became fewer. As the numbers of weed plants decreased, so the numbers of insects, birds and
foxes decreased in proportion.
Q3 Organic farms do not use drastic methods of human intervention such as the use of weedkiller; they use natural
methods of pest control that do not have a devastating effect on all the species in the food web of the habitat.
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
energy from Sun
Q1
carbon dioxide + water
glucose + oxygen
Q2 Photosynthesis, carbon, water, glucose, glucose, eating
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
Q1 a) 10%; b) 4%; c) 25%
Q2 The snail is cold-blooded so no energy is transferred to heat to keep the snail warm. The cow has to keep itself
warm and move about, and also many parts of the cow such as the hair, horns and hooves are indigestible and
not available to the next level of the food chain; this reduces percentage efficiency. The maize plant is low down
the food chain and most parts of the plant are edible; thus the percentage efficiency is higher.
Activity 3 (High demand)
Q1 Honey fungus breaks down dead wood; a tree with honey fungus is likely to have a proportion of dead wood in
it; this can be dangerous because it can cause branches to fall or the tree to tilt or fall over; this could cause
injury to someone in a public place.
Q2 After detritivores have broken the dead matter into smaller pieces, there is a larger surface area for the
decomposers to act on; this means they will be able to break down the dead matter more quickly.
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
a) Photosynthesis; b) combustion; c) respiration; d) decomposition
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
Plants absorb nutrients from the soil for growth
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
Q1 a) A living indicator is an organism that responds in a particular way to environmental change in its habitat.
A non-living indicator is a way of monitoring the environment that shows the level or value of a particular
physical factor in the environment under study.
b) They are very sensitive to changes in their environment.
Q2 Living: A, B, F; Non-living: C, D, E
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
Q1 In 1975 there was no growth of lichens that grow in the most polluted air, but there were lichens that grow in
less polluted air, so sulfur dioxide levels were likely to be low. In 1980 lichens that could withstand high levels of
pollution dominated and there were no lichens that could live only in unpolluted air. The sulfur dioxide levels
were likely to be high at this time. In 1985 the lichens were those that need cleaner air, so sulfur dioxide levels
COLLINS NEW GCSE SCIENCE
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
3500 million; simple; millions; complex; fossils; variation; evolution
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
B, E, D, A, C
Activity 3 (High demand)
a) although; b) as a result; c) for instance; d) unlike; e) however
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
Students can choose any of the features.
A Likely to be the first to a kill or able to outrun other lions if running away with meat; being better fed means
survival to reproduction more likely.
B Lions often hunt in packs so the lion might get more food by working in a pack with other lions.
C This might make the lion more likely to have more or better quality mates, resulting in more offspring or
offspring that are more likely to survive.
D Prey less likely to spot the lion waiting to ambush it , so the lion is likely to catch more prey.
E Good at avoiding injury from other lions or prey; better at catching prey such as impala that are very quick
moving
F Prey can be quickly killed, avoiding a prolonged chase; the lion wastes as little energy as possible in the hunt
and so maximises the gain from the prey it catches
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
Row 1: Retrieving wildfowl shot by owner, sometimes over water
Row 2: Border terrier
Row 3: Stamina, striking looks
Row 4: Companion or lap dog
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
a) genes; b) offspring; c) more often than other genes; d) very long periods of time; e) fertile offspring; f) species
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
A4; B1; C2; D3
Activity 3 (High demand)
Q1 About 3500 million years ago.
Q2 There is such a vast range of habitats available on Earth.
Q3 Scientists have been able to pinpoint using DNA the points at which organisms shared a common ancestor.
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
True statements:
A is the common ancestor of B, C and D; B and C are more closely related than B and D.
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
A5; B4; C1; D2; E3
Q2 100020 000
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
Food: eat seasonal produce; eat local produce; reduce air miles.
Clothes: recycle and re-use where possible; replace only if outgrown or worn out; buy fewer.
Purchases: buy only if essential; replace only if broken or worn out; recycle and repair where possible; buy secondhand.
Transport: reduce car use; use public transport; use bike or go on foot.
Activity 2 (Standard demand)
Q1 Prairie dogs maintain grassland by fertilising and aerating the soil; the holes they make provide valuable
nesting habitats for other species.
Q2 Tiger sharks keep the numbers of grazing turtles and dugong down; if the shark population declines, the seagrass beds are over-grazed; these beds are where the fish lay their eggs, so this leads to limited egg-laying
sites and so rapid decline in fish populations.
Q3 African elephants weed out and eat young trees and shrubs in the grassland; if these were allowed to grow the
grassland would become wooded; herds of grazing animals such as impala would disappear; and also the
carnivores such as lions that prey on them.
Worksheet answers
Activity 1 (Low demand)
resources; generations; sustainability; energy; packaged; pollution.
Activity 3 (High demand)
Natural materials are most sustainable; minimally processed materials (such as paper) are less sustainable than
natural materials, but still preferable to plastics.
Suppliers should let customers know which parts of the packaging are made from recycled materials and how
they can be recycled after use.
The minimum amount of packaging that keeps the product in a good condition should be used.