Study Guide

Field 239: Science: Biology 
Sample Multiple-Choice Questions

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Each multiple-choice question has four answer choices. Read each question and its answer choices carefully and choose the ONE best answer.

During the test you should 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 NOT be penalized for choosing an incorrect response.

The following reference material will be available to you during the test:

Periodic Table PDF opens in a new window.

Objective 0001 
Understand practices of science and engineering.

1. Use the information below to answer the question that follows.

Alcohol % Water % Measured Freezing Point (°C)
10 90 25
20 80 20
30 70 5
40 60 0
50 50 −5
60 40 −10
70 30 −20
80 20 −35
90 10 −70
100 0 −130

A student designs a study to determine how adding isopropyl alcohol to water changes the freezing point of the solution. The table shows the freezing points measured by the student for each condition. The student uses this information to draw a number of conclusions. The teacher, however, notices that the student measured the freezing points in Fahrenheit and not in Celsius as labeled in the table. Which of the following conclusions by the student is most affected by the student's mislabeling of the temperature unit?

  1. Increasing the percentage of alcohol in a solution decreases the freezing point of water.
  2. The freezing point of pure water is different from the freezing point of pure isopropyl alcohol.
  3. A solution of 40 percent isopropyl alcohol and 60 percent water has the same freezing point as pure water.
  4. Changing the percentage of water in the solution results in an inversely linear change in the measured freezing point.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C.
The freezing point of pure water is 32 degreesF or 0 degreesC. When analyzing the table, a student might conclude that a solution of 40 percent isopropyl alcohol and 60 percent water has the same freezing point as pure water. This type of misconception is formed when data is mislabeled. In this case, the table is labeled in Celsius but the data were measured in Fahrenheit. Therefore, in reading the table, the student will infer that the 40/60 solution has a freezing point of 0 degreesC, when in actuality the freezing point is 0 degreesF, which is not the freezing point of pure water.

Objective 0002 
Understand crosscutting concepts and their applications across science and engineering disciplines.

2. Which of the following sequences best describes the changes in energy forms as first a plant grows, then it is consumed by a rabbit, and finally the rabbit runs through a field?

  1. radiant energy becomes chemical energy becomes kinetic energy
  2. geothermal energy becomes radiant energy becomes chemical energy
  3. potential energy becomes mechanical energy becomes kinetic energy
  4. geothermal energy becomes potential energy becomes chemical energy
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A.
The radiant energy from the sun is transferred into chemical energy during the process of photosynthesis when sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide are taken in by the plant to produce sugar and oxygen. The energy is stored as a sugar and can be either used for the function and/or growth of the plant. When the plant is consumed by the rabbit, the plant is digested as food and converted into chemical energy through metabolic processes. These chemical reactions produce and store energy in the form of macromolecules. As the rabbit begins to run, that stored chemical energy is converted into kinetic energy, enabling the rabbit to move and function.

Objective 0003 
Understand the process of reading, and apply knowledge of strategies for promoting students' reading development in the science classroom.

3. Students in a chemistry class will be reading a text that focuses on the complex process of reaction mechanisms and transition states. The teacher wants to teach students how to use visualization as a strategy to improve their comprehension of the text. The teacher begins by explaining that visualization is used to create a mental picture of an object, concept, or process described in a text. Which of the following steps should the teacher take next in teaching this comprehension strategy?

  1. reading aloud a section of the text to students and prompting them to make a detailed drawing of the text's main idea
  2. using think-aloud to model the strategy while reading a section of the text aloud to students
  3. asking students to read the text and analyze how the author uses graphic features to support comprehension
  4. having students read the text silently and then point to a key illustration or graphic in the text
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: B.
A think-aloud process allows teachers to describe things they are doing to monitor comprehension while reading a text orally. By modeling how to use visualization as a comprehension strategy, the teacher shows students how skilled readers construct meaning from a text by generating mental images as they read. The students can then apply the teacher's visualization strategy to create their own images to help them understand the text they are reading.

Objective 0003 
Understand the process of reading, and apply knowledge of strategies for promoting students' reading development in the science classroom.

4. An environmental science teacher would like to promote students' ability to use evidence from a text to support their writing and class discussions about assigned informational and expository texts. The teacher could best achieve these goals by providing the students with explicit modeling and practice in which of the following strategies?

  1. defining new vocabulary in their own words
  2. using visualization during reading
  3. identifying a text's organizational structure
  4. annotating a text during reading
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: D.
The process of annotating a text during reading enables students to engage in a close reading—a thoughtful, critical analysis of a text that focuses on significant details—to develop a deeper understanding of the text. When annotating a text, students highlight/underline key information and make notes of key ideas and questions. These notes help students formulate their thoughts for expression in writing and class discussions.

Objective 0004 
Understand the disciplinary core ideas of chemistry.

5. Use the incomplete chemical equation below to answer the question that follows.

3 M G C L 2 + 2 F E yields 2 F E C L with an unknown subscript  + 3 M G

In order to complete the equation shown, the subscript on chlorine on the product side of the equation must equal which of the following values?

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C.
Chemical equations must follow the law of conservation of mass. Therefore, the number of atoms for each element on the reactant side is equal to the number of atoms for each element on the product side. In this example, magnesium chloride has a coefficient of three and chlorine has a subscript of two. Since there is no subscript on magnesium, the number of atoms is determined by what its coefficient is. In this case, there are three magnesium atoms on the reactant side of the equation. Similarly, there are two iron atoms on both the reactant and product sides. To determine the number of chlorine atoms, the coefficient number and the subscript number of that element are multiplied together, giving a total of six chlorine atoms in this compound. Thus, there needs to be six chlorine atoms on the product side of the equation. As the equation is presented, iron chloride has a coefficient of two, giving a total of two chlorine atoms. However, in order to balance this equation, there needs to be a total of six chlorine atoms. This is achieved by placing a subscript of three on the element chlorine. This will result in there being two molecules of iron chloride that each contain three atoms of chlorine. This equals a total of six chlorine atoms on the product side, which equals the reactant side and balances the chemical equation.

Objective 0005 
Understand the disciplinary core ideas of physics.

6. Use the graph below to answer the question that follows.

graph showing the velocity of a person on a bike

A graph of velocity in M per S versus time in S is shown. From 0 to 3 S, there is a flat line at 2 M per S. Then, there is a line with a negative slope from 3 to 6 S that goes from a velocity of 2 M per S to 1 M per S. Next, from 6 to 9 S, there is a flat line at 1 M per S. Finally, between 9 and 12 M per S, the line has a positive slope that goes from a velocity of 1 M per S to 2 M per S.

The graph shows the velocity of a person on a bicycle traveling on a straight, flat road. Within which of the following ranges is there a net force on the bicycle in a direction that is opposite to the velocity of the bicycle?

  1. 0to3 s
  2. 3to6 s
  3. 6to9 s
  4. 9to12 s
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: B.
On a velocity versus time graph, a negative slope, as shown between 3 and 6 seconds on the graph, indicates a decrease in velocity over time. The bicycle is slowing down because the net force is in the opposite direction of the velocity of the bicycle. This is due to the fact that the magnitude of the frictional force is greater than the magnitude of the applied force. However, the bicycle is still moving forward because velocity is the amount of displacement of the bicycle over a given time.

Objective 0005 
Understand the disciplinary core ideas of physics.

7. A physical science teacher wants to relate motion and kinematics concepts to real-world events that occur in daily life. Which of the following student activities would best accomplish the teacher's goal?

  1. Students carry out an imaginary car ride and analyze changes in displacement and velocity that occur.
  2. Students measure the work done in pulling a box filled with books across a rough floor.
  3. Students analyze the forces acting on a piece of classroom furniture and construct a free-body diagram.
  4. Students visit a commercial power plant and describe the ways in which energy changes forms.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A.
The best activity to demonstrate motion and kinematics concepts in a classroom is to have students relate to these concepts by using real-world experiences. Students can use their real-world experience to perform an imaginary car ride and analyze what will happen to a car's displacement and velocity when it changes speeds, reverses, stops, or maintains a constant speed.

Objective 0006 
Understand the disciplinary core ideas of biology.

8. Students use a molecular model kit with various colors of beads and are asked to create six carbon dioxide molecules and six water molecules. These bead molecules are then used to represent the process of photosynthesis. This bead model directly shows which of the following aspects of photosynthesis?

  1. The number of molecules of water produced in photosynthesis is equal to the number of reactant molecules of water.
  2. The oxygen that is produced as a result of the photosynthetic process is derived from both carbon dioxide and water.
  3. The splitting of water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen in photosynthesis is driven by the absorption of light energy.
  4. There is a conservation of matter during the reaction that produces one glucose molecule.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: D.
The activity described directly shows the conservation of matter because students can observe the number of atoms per element before and after a chemical reaction. When students build the carbon and water molecules, they are able to observe and count how many atoms of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen are present before the reaction occurs. Then, as the students represent the products of these reactions, they can observe that the atoms representing these elements were neither removed nor added but rearranged to form a glucose molecule during the reaction.

Objective 0007 
Understand the disciplinary core ideas of Earth and space science.

9. Which of the following wind patterns is produced when warm air rises under high pressure and deflects right as Earth rotates about its axis?

  1. Doldrums
  2. Polar easterlies
  3. westerlies
  4. northeast trade winds
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: D.
The northeast trade winds, also known as prevailing winds, develop when the warm air at the equator rises under high pressure and Coriolis forces. As the air rises and flows toward the north, Earth is also rotating about its axis, which produces the Coriolis effect and deflects winds to the right. Around 30-degrees North latitude, the air begins to cool and descend, while still continuing to deflect to the right. The wind moves from a northeasterly direction to a southwesterly direction, and eventually returns back to the equator.

Objective 0007 
Understand the disciplinary core ideas of Earth and space science.

10. Use the passage below to answer the question that follows.

When developing earthquake-resistant buildings, many newer designs follow a base-isolation model. This technology enables buildings to remain suspended above the foundation as an earthquake hits, allowing for the foundation to move and not the building. This design relies upon the use of bearings that contain a lead core wrapped in alternating layers of steel and rubber and move with the building and the foundation's movement.

Which of the following improvements would optimize this base-isolation design?

  1. adding shock absorbent materials to the building
  2. changing all metals in the building structure to titanium
  3. surrounding all of the building's bearings with concrete
  4. adding points along the building that can fold with movement
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A.
The base-isolation model is used to prevent damage to a building during an earthquake by displacing and isolating the motion of the building to its foundation. The functioning of this type of design is dependent on the material and height of the building. Shock absorbent materials are added to the design to prevent and minimize further damage to the building in the event that the original design fails and the building would move. The shock absorbent materials function by absorbing the kinetic energy, instead of displacing that energy, in order to protect the building from damage.

Objective 0008 
Understand the disciplinary core ideas of environmental science.

11. Compared with other forms of environmental regulation, policies that promote full-cost pricing, such as taxation of pollutants, have the primary advantage of:

  1. coordinating the efforts of many nations to maximize the global impact.
  2. having more transparent and visible benefits.
  3. relying on the power of incentives to encourage efficient responses.
  4. working in a more time-efficient manner.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C.
Full-cost pricing is a policy wherein the price of a product is adjusted to account for any external costs, such as the costs associated with pollution. The taxation of pollutants has the effect of raising the price paid by consumers for a polluting product, or reducing the revenues and profits that its producers receive, or both. Consumers and producers then respond to these price incentives by finding ways to change the quantity of the product that they buy or sell, which reduces the quantity of pollution in the most efficient possible way.

Objective 0008 
Understand the disciplinary core ideas of environmental science.

12. Students are using the engineering design process to create a filtration system that removes microplastic beads from a local freshwater aquatic ecosystem in order to reduce the presence of these beads in top-level predators. Background research needed to develop this filtration system would most likely include obtaining information about the:

  1. production and use of plastics in various consumer products.
  2. movement of microplastics through the food chain.
  3. availability of alternative plastic-free consumer products.
  4. current sources of microplastic pollution in global ecosystems.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: B.
To accomplish the goal of this activity, the students need to have an understanding of how matter moves through the local watershed, including through the aquatic ecosystem. Therefore, the students must research the movement of microplastics to determine where the microplastics are in the environment and in which organisms they are concentrated. This will allow them to discover the best design and place for the filter.

Objective 0009 
Understand biochemistry and energetics.

13. A particular enzyme functions optimally at P H 6 point 5. As the P H increases, the rate of the enzyme-catalyzed reaction quickly drops. Which of the following statements best explains this drop in reaction rate as P H increases?

  1. The weak bonds and interactions that give the enzyme its three-dimensional shape are disrupted, causing the enzyme to lose its active conformation.
  2. The substrate becomes bound to the ions in the surrounding fluid, causing it to precipitate and become unavailable to the enzyme.
  3. The ions in the surrounding fluid occupy the active site, preventing the substrate molecules from binding to the active site and being acted upon by the enzyme.
  4. The enzyme switches its function to that of a buffer to resist the P H change, making it unavailable for catalysis.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A.
The three-dimensional shape of an enzyme allows for at least one functional group to bind with the reacting molecules in its catalytic reaction center. The shape of this center is what allows for the enzyme to function as a catalyst in very specific reactions. The shape is defined by the specific amino acids that comprise the enzyme and any associated metallic atoms. Therefore, each enzyme has its own set of properties and can only function optimally at certain temperatures, acidity levels, and concentrations. Changes in the environmental conditions surrounding an enzyme can, therefore, affect the shape of the catalytic center or the ability of the bonds to form within the catalytic center.

Objective 0010 
Understand cells and cell biology.

14. One of the major differences in the process of binary fission that occurs in bacteria compared to mitosis is that in binary fission:

  1. spindle formation does not occur.
  2. the daughter cells are genetically identical.
  3. division of the cytoplasm occurs along a cleavage furrow.
  4. the chromosome number is reduced by half.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: A.
Both binary fission and mitosis are processes used to carry out cell division in an organism. Prokaryotes use binary fission to divide a cell and reproduce asexually. Binary fission starts with the uncoiling and copying of the organism’s circular chromosome, located in the nucleoid. Then, the D N A begins to replicate at the point of origin and continues to replicate in both directions along the chromosome. As the cell continues to replicate the original D N A, the beginning of the two new D N A strands each migrate toward the opposite sides of the cell. At this point in time, the cell lengthens and starts to cleave at the center of the cell. This will eventually produce two identical daughter cells. Since this process involves only one chromosome and there is no nucleus to divide, there is no need for the spindles to form.

Objective 0011 
Understand molecular biology.

15. Which of the following characteristics of D N A molecules make gel electrophoresis an effective technique for genetic analysis?

  1. the affinity of nucleic acids for fatty acids and their ability to fluoresce with dyes
  2. the different lengths of D N A molecules and the negative charge of their phosphate groups
  3. the hydrogen bonds between nucleic acids and their differing molecular weights
  4. the chemical reactivity of D N A molecules and their varying molecular structures
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: B.
Gel electrophoresis is a process that separates fragments of D N A or other macromolecules according to a molecule’s size and charge. This process involves running a current along a stained polysaccharide gel in a container that contains a buffer solution with salt as a conductor. One end of the container is a positive electrode and at the other is a negative electrode to complete a circuit. The D N A samples are placed in wells within the gel. All D N A fragments carry a negative charge due to their phosphate backbone. Therefore, when placed in the gel, the D N A will travel and be attracted toward a positively charged source. If there are smaller fragments of D N A in the gel, they will move at a faster rate than the larger D N A fragments because they have a larger charge per mass ratio and can move more easily through the pores in the gel matrix. Electrophoresis becomes an effective technique for genetic analysis because the characteristics of the D N A molecules allow for D N A strands present within the sample to differentiate based on size and charge.

Objective 0012 
Understand genetics and patterns of inheritance.

16. Which of the following events represents an exception to the law of independent assortment?

  1. A parent with B superscript I B superscript I blood and a parent with A superscript I A superscript I blood produce a child that has blood type A superscript I B superscript I.
  2. An allele at one locus suppresses the expression of an allele at a different locus.
  3. Nondisjunction of homologous chromosomes occurs during meiosis.
  4. The genes for freckles and red hair are co-inherited.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: D.
The law of independent assortment developed by Mendel states that alleles of two or more different genes do not influence each other when alleles are sorted into gametes. However, red hair and freckles phenotypes are a co-inherited trait; they are both derived from the same gene. Co-inherited traits, therefore, create an exception to the rule.

Objective 0013 
Understand biological evolution.

17. A geologic event splits a small population into two isolated populations. When the populations come back into contact many generations later, they can no longer interbreed and produce fertile offspring. This is an example of which of the following processes?

  1. stabilizing selection
  2. allopatric speciation
  3. disruptive selection
  4. sympatric speciation
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: B.
As groups become isolated from each other, the gene flow between the populations is reduced. Over time, each group evolves independently due to environmental influences, mutations, and other changes within the ecosystem. Therefore, the two groups become so genetically different that they each develop into new species, making the groups incapable of interbreeding with each other. This process is called allopatric speciation.

Objective 0014 
Understand ecology.

18. Use the graphic below to answer the question that follows.

Marine Ecosystem Biomass Pyramid

A diagram titled Marine Ecosystem Biomass Pyramid is shown. The diagram shows various sized rectangles of biomasses placed in pyramid pattern. From the bottom to top, the first biomass, labeled primary producers, is smaller than the above layer. The next biomass is the largest layer and is labeled primary consumers. The next biomass is smaller than the primary consumer but larger than the primary producers and is labeled secondary consumers. The next biomass is even smaller than any of the lower layers and is labeled tertiary consumers. The top biomass is the smallest layer and is labeled quaternary consumers.

Which of the following statements best explains how the marine ecosystem represented by the biomass pyramid shown can be maintained with so little biomass in the lowest level of the food chain?

  1. The consumers thrive due to the efficiency of their ectothermic physiology and their generally high reproductive rates.
  2. The large amounts of detritus from dead and decaying primary producers directly support consumers.
  3. The high concentration of nutrients contained in marine producers can support a large number of low-level consumers.
  4. The greater reproductive rate of the primary producers compared with consumers maintains adequate food supplies for low-level consumers.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: D.
The biomass of the primary producers in this ecosystem is smaller compared to primary and secondary consumers, but the organisms within the group have a higher reproduction rate. Since primary producers have a high productivity rate that is driven by solar energy, their resources are not exhausted. Primary producers, such as plankton and cyanobacteria, are generally small in size and are consumed by predators in large quantities. However, primary producers can reproduce and replace these populations in the shortest amount of time, compared to consumer organisms.

Objective 0015 
Understand the unity and diversity of life.

19. Which of the following actions best supports the statement that stomata maintain homeostasis within the entirety of an organism?

  1. Stomata can react to the presence of light.
  2. Stomata can indicate that more pores are needed in the cuticle.
  3. Stomata can exchange gases with the atmosphere.
  4. Stomata can promote the growth of surrounding epidermal cells.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C.
The stomata are pore structures that are located in the outermost layer of a plant's structure. During the daytime, the stomata open to allow for sunlight and carbon dioxide gas to enter the plant, which triggers photosynthesis processes. The opening of the stomata also allows for potential water loss in the plant. However, this can be regulated by controlling the amount of time the stoma is open for during day and night. At night when the stomata close, photosynthesis stops. At this point, there is no longer an exchange of gases, and water can be retained in the plant.

Objective 0015 
Understand the unity and diversity of life.

20. Microscopic examination of an organism reveals that it has a cell wall, is eukaryotic, and is multicellular. Field observations of the organism in its forest habitat have identified it as nonmotile and heterotrophic. The most appropriate taxonomic designation for the unknown organism is Kingdom:

  1. Protista.
  2. Plantae.
  3. Fungi.
  4. Animalia.
Answer and Rationale. Enter to expand or collapse. Answer expanded
Correct Response: C.
Organisms in the fungi kingdom can be classified as heterotrophic, nonvascular, and nonmotile, and consist of unicellular or multicellular eukaryotic cells. These eukaryotic cells must contain a cell wall and reproduce either sexually or asexually. Some common organisms that are generally classified in this kingdom include yeast, molds, and mushrooms.