AQA GCSE Synergy Paper 2: Life and environmental sciences Foundation November 2021 question paper 8465/2F

Figure 1 shows part of a food web.

What is the source of energy for the nettle plants?

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Caterpillars

Soil

Sun

Which term describes the caterpillars in the food web?

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Primary consumer

Secondary consumer

Tertiary consumer

What is the name of one producer in the food web?

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Blue tits

Greenflies

Sparrowhawks

Wheat plants

Mice eat wheat plants and are eaten by sparrowhawks.

Complete the food web in Figure 1 by adding mice to Figure 1.

A sparrowhawk competes with other sparrowhawks for food.

Give one other factor sparrowhawks will compete for.

Do not refer to food in your answer.

The nettle plants were removed.

Explain how removing the nettle plants will affect the number of caterpillars.

Use Figure 1 on page 2.

A student investigated how the temperature of water changed as it was heated.

Figure 2 shows some of the apparatus used.

The student switched the heater on then recorded the temperature of the water every 5 minutes.

Table 1 shows the results.

What was the resolution of the thermometer used in the investigation?

Use Table 1.

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0.1 °C 1 °C 10 °C
100 °C

Calculate mean value X in Table 1.

Draw a ring around the anomalous result in Table 1.

What should the student have done with the anomalous result?

Give two ways to reduce energy transfer from the apparatus to the surroundings.

The water in the beaker had a mass of 0.20 kg.

The temperature increase of the water was 33 °C.

specific heat capacity of water = 4200 J/kg °C

Calculate the change in thermal energy of the water.

Use the equation:

change in thermal energy = mass × specific heat capacity × temperature change

Choose the unit from the box.

Explain what happens to the mass of water in the beaker during a test.

Figure 3 shows a tomato plant.

A leaf is a plant organ.

Name one other plant organ shown in Figure 3.

A student investigated the effect of different colours of light on the growth of tomato plant seedlings.

Figure 4 shows the apparatus used.

This is the method used.

1. Place three tomato plant seedlings under each colour of light.

2. Water each seedling every day.

3. Measure the height of each seedling after 30 days.

Give two control variables the student should have used in their investigation.

The student repeated the investigation using a valid method.

Table 2 shows the results.

Give two conclusions from the results in Table 2.

Another student investigated the effect of light intensity on the rate of photosynthesis.

The student counted the number of bubbles of oxygen produced by pondweed at different light intensities.

Figure 5 shows some of the apparatus used.

Describe how the student could change the light intensity.

The pondweed did not produce many bubbles.

How could the student change the investigation to increase the number of bubbles produced?

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Add more water to the test tube.

Use a smaller piece of pondweed.

Use water at a higher temperature.

The student calculated the rate of photosynthesis.

Which equation is used to calculate the rate of photosynthesis?

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rate of photosynthesis = number of bubbles × time

Figure 6 shows the rate of photosynthesis at different light intensities.

Describe the pattern in Figure 6.

Use data from Figure 6.

Two students investigated the effect of exercise on breathing rate.

Breathing rate was measured by counting the number of times a student breathed in during 1 minute.

This is the method used.

1. Measure the breathing rate at rest before exercise.

2. Run on the spot for 5 minutes.

3. Measure the breathing rate every minute during exercise.

4. Measure the breathing rate every minute after exercise for 10 minutes.

The students had different breathing rates at rest.

Suggest two factors that could cause the students’ breathing rates at rest to be different.

Suggest one reason why the measurements for breathing rate may not be accurate.

Figure 7 shows the results.

What time did the students start exercising?

Use Figure 7.

Time exercise started = _________________ minutes

Describe two differences between the results of student X and of student Y.

Use Figure 7.

Why does breathing rate change during exercise?

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To increase the uptake of carbon dioxide and oxygen from the air

To increase the uptake of carbon dioxide from the air

To increase the uptake of oxygen from the air

The breathing rate of the students stayed high after the exercise stopped.

Why does breathing rate stay high after exercise has stopped?

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To break down amino acids

To break down fatty acids

To break down lactic acid

Give one other change that happens in the body during exercise.

Do not refer to breathing rate.

Proteins are an important part of the human diet.

Proteins are large food molecules that must be broken down in the digestive system.

Which enzyme breaks down proteins?

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Carbohydrase

Lipase

Protease

Proteins are digested into amino acids.

The body breaks down unwanted amino acids.

Which organ breaks down unwanted amino acids?

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Brain Liver Lung

What is produced by the breakdown of unwanted amino acids?

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Fat Starch Urea

Mycoprotein is a protein made from a fungus.

Table 3 shows information about mycoprotein sausages and meat sausages.

Give three differences between the nutrient content of mycoprotein sausages and meat sausages.

A student tested the mycoprotein sausage and the meat sausage for protein.

What is used to test for protein?

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Biuret reagent

Iodine solution

pH indicator solution

What colour is the positive result for the test for protein?

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Black

Lilac

Red

White

The student investigated the sugar content of the mycoprotein sausage and the meat sausage.

Figure 8 shows some of the apparatus used.

Describe a method to compare the amount of sugar in the two types of sausage.

Use the apparatus in Figure 8 in your answer.

This question is about the evolution of cats.

Felis lunensis is an extinct cat that lived approximately 2.5 million years ago.

What is the genus name of the cat Felis lunensis ?

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Cat

Felis

Lunensis

Scientists believe that modern-day cats have evolved from Felis lunensis.

How did modern-day cats evolve?

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By cloning

By genetic modification

By natural selection

Give one type of evidence scientists can use to show that modern-day cats have evolved from Felis lunensis.

Scottish wild cats can breed with domestic cats to produce offspring.

The offspring is called a hybrid cat.

Figure 9 shows a Scottish wild cat, a domestic cat and a hybrid cat.

The hybrid cat has inherited genes for different characteristics from both parents.

How has the hybrid cat inherited genes from both parents?

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By genetic engineering

By mitosis

By mutation

By sexual reproduction

Which chemical are genes made from?

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Cellulose

DNA

Lipid

Protein

Give one characteristic that the hybrid cat has inherited from the Scottish wild cat.

Use Figure 9.

Give one characteristic that the hybrid cat has inherited from the domestic cat.

Use Figure 9.

Scientists have investigated the populations of Scottish wild cats and hybrid cats.

Cats hunt for prey at night.

Suggest one reason why scientists find it difficult to identify the type of cat seen at night.

Figure 10 shows where Scottish wild cats and hybrid cats were seen in Scotland in 1987 and 2008.

Describe three differences in the populations of cats between 1987 and 2008.

Use Figure 10.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is caused when fatty material builds up in the coronary arteries.

Scientists investigated risk factors for CHD.

Figure 11 shows the percentage of CHD patients with each risk factor.

Which was the most common risk factor in CHD patients?

Use Figure 11.

What percentage of CHD patients had smoking as a risk factor?

Use Figure 11.

Give one other disease that smoking is a risk factor for.

Do not refer to CHD.

Suggest two lifestyle changes a person can make to reduce the risk of CHD.

Do not refer to smoking in your answer.

The coronary arteries supply the heart muscle with blood.

Figure 12 shows two coronary arteries.

A person with CHD has a risk of having a heart attack.

A heart attack will cause the heart muscle to stop contracting.

Explain how CHD can cause a heart attack.

The model of the atom has changed over time.

Draw one line from each atomic model to the representation of that model.

Scientists investigated the structure of the atom.

The scientists directed alpha particles at a thin sheet of gold foil.

What is an alpha particle the same as?

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A fast-moving electron

A helium nucleus

A radioactive isotope

Electromagnetic radiation

Figure 13 shows:

three of the pathways the alpha particles take

the number of alpha particles detected at positions A, B and C.

Figure 13

Determine the simplest ratio of the number of alpha particles detected at A to those detected at C.

Use Figure 13.

Simplest ratio of A: C = ____________________: 1

The scientists concluded that a gold atom:

is mostly empty space

has a charged nucleus at its centre.

How do the results in Figure 13 show that a gold atom is mostly empty space?

Explain how the results in Figure 13 show that a gold atom contains a charged nucleus.

A gold atom can be represented as:

197 Au 79

Describe the atomic structure of this gold atom.

You should include the numbers of each type of sub-atomic particle.

Some bacteria are pathogens.

What is meant by the term ‘pathogen’?

Bacterial infections can be treated using antibiotics.

Some bacteria are resistant to antibiotics.

Table 4 shows the percentage of bacteria resistant to four antibiotics.

Which antibiotic had the greatest increase in bacteria that were resistant between 2004 and 2018?

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A B C D

One of the antibiotics in Table 4 is only used for serious infections in hospitals.

Suggest which antibiotic is only used for serious infections.

Give a reason for your answer.

Antibiotic A B C D

Many strains of the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus (SA) are resistant to the antibiotic methicillin.

Table 5 shows information on methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections in England.

Calculate value X in Table 5.

The number of people with MRSA infection in hospitals decreased between 2008 and 2018.

Suggest one reason for the decrease.

Scientists are trying to develop a vaccine for MRSA.

Explain how a vaccine for MRSA would make people immune to MRSA.