Science Methods, Ecology & Cells
1.
What is the range of the number of cells that living organisms, from the very smallest to the very largest,
can be made of?
A. From 1 to 100
B. From 1 to many millions
C. From 100 to 1,000
D. From 100 to many millions
2. What is TRUE about the size and shape of cells?
A. All cells are the same size and shape.
B. All cells are the same size, but not all cells are the same shape.
C. All cells are the same shape, but not all cells are the same size.
D. Different cells can have both different sizes and different shapes.
3. Which of the following kinds of cells eliminate their own waste material?
A. Plant cells, but not animal cells
B. Animal cells, but not plant cells
C. Both plant cells and animal cells
D. Neither animal cells nor plant cells
4. In plants, pollination produces fertilized cells. What parts of a plant can eventually develop from a single
fertilized cell?
A. The leaves, but not the roots
B. The roots, but not the leaves
C. Both the leaves and the roots
D. Neither the roots nor the leaves
5. Which of the following parts of an animal's body are made of cells?
A. The muscles, but not the brain
B. The brain, but not the muscles
C. Both the muscles and brain
D. Neither the brain nor the muscles
6. Which of the following parts of an animal's body are made of cells?
A. The skin, but not the lungs
B. The lungs, but not the skin
C. Both the skin and lungs
D. Neither the lungs nor the skin
7. Which of the following parts of plants are made of cells?
A. The flowers, but not the stems
B. The stems, but not the flowers
C. Both the flowers and the stems
D. Neither the stems nor the flowers
8. Proteins are complex molecules needed for the growth and repair of cells. What is TRUE about where these
proteins in multicellular organisms come from?
A. These proteins are built by specialized cells for all other cells in the organism to use.
B. These proteins are built by each cell for its own use.
C. These proteins are not built by the cells; instead, they are taken in from the cell’s environment.
D. These proteins are not built by the cell or taken in from the outside; these proteins are already in the
cell.
9. A farmer thinks that type of soil and amount of water affect the growth of his carrot plants, and he wants to find
out if he is right.
The farmer first tests if the type of soil affects the growth of the carrot plants. He uses three different types of soil,
and he places 10 carrot plants in each type of soil. He uses the same amount of water for all the plants.
Why is it important to use the same amount of water for all the plants?
A. By using the same amount of water, the farmer can learn about both the effect of the amount of water
and the effect of the type of soil.
B. By using the same amount of water, the farmer can learn about the effect of the amount of water.
C. If he does not use the same amount of water, the farmer cannot learn about the effect of the type of
soil.
D. It is NOT important to use the same amount of water because the farmer is not testing the effect of
the amount of water.
10. A swim team thinks that the swimsuits and swim caps they use may affect the team's performance.
The swim team decides to test if the swimsuits make a difference on how fast they can swim.
They split the team in two groups. The two groups wear different kinds of swimsuits and the same kind of swim
caps.
Why is it important that both groups wear the same kind of swim caps?
A. By wearing the same kind of swim caps they can learn about the effect of the swim caps and the
effect of the swimsuits.
B. By wearing the same kind of swim caps they can learn about the effect of the swim caps.
C. If they do not wear the same kind of swim caps they cannot learn about the effect of the swimsuits.
D. It is NOT important to wear the same kind of swim caps because they are not testing the effect of the
swim caps.
11. A student is interested in the behavior of fish. He has 4 fish bowls and 20 goldfish. He puts 8 fish in the first
bowl, 6 fish in the second bowl, 4 fish in the third bowl and 2 fish in the fourth bowl.He places each fish bowl under
light, he keeps the temperature at 75°F for all four bowls, and he observes the behavior of the fish.
What can the student find out from doing just this experiment?
A. If the number of fish in the fish bowl affects the behavior of the fish.
B. If the temperature of the fish bowl affects the behavior of the fish.
C. If the temperature of the fish bowl and the amount of light affect the behavior of the fish.
D. If the number of fish, the temperature, and the amount of light affect the behavior of the fish.
12. A student thinks that there are two variables (X and Y) that may affect the result of her experiment.
She decides to change only variable X and let variable Y stay the same.
What can the student find out about the effects of variables X and Y?
A. If variable X affects the result of her experiment.
B. If variable Y affects the result of her experiment.
C. If both variables X and Y affect the result of her experiment.
D. She cannot find out if either variable X or variable Y affects the result of her experiment.
13. A national park is home to large populations of mountain lions, deer, rabbits, and grass. Recently, park rangers
decided to introduce wolves to the park.
Mountain lions and wolves both eat deer and rabbits. Deer and rabbits both eat grass. If the number of deer and
rabbits eaten by the mountain lions stays the same, what will happen to the grass after wolves are introduced? Use
only the relationships between the plants and animals described above.
A. The amount of grass will increase.
B. The amount of grass will stay the same.
C. The amount of grass will decrease until it is all gone.
D. The amount of grass will decrease, but some will remain.
14. The diagram below shows the feeding relationships between populations of plants and animals in an area. The
arrows point from the organisms being eaten to the organisms that eat them.
A new species that eats only foxes becomes part of this food web. Using only the relationships between the plants
and animals shown in the diagram, which of the following could happen because of this change?
A. The amount of grass and the number of mice, robins, caterpillars, and trees could increase.
B. The amount of grass and the number of mice, robins, caterpillars, and trees could decrease.
C. The number of robins could increase, and the number of caterpillars could decrease.
D. The number of robins could decrease, and the number of caterpillars could increase.
15. The diagram below shows the feeding relationships between populations of plants and animals in and around a
pond. The arrows point from the organisms being eaten to the organisms that eat them.
More people than usual go fishing at the pond this year and take a lot of the large fish out of the pond. Using only
the relationships between the plants and animals shown in the diagram, which of the following is likely to happen
and why?
A. The number of insects is likely to decrease because with fewer large fish to eat the tadpoles, there
would be more tadpoles eating more water plants and fewer water plants available for the insects.
B. The number of small fish is likely to decrease because with fewer large fish for the large birds to eat,
the large birds would have to eat more small fish.
C. The number of large birds is likely to stay the same because large fish and large birds are not
connected by an arrow in the diagram.
D. The number of large fish is all that is likely to change because only large fish were taken out of the
pond.
16. The diagram below shows the feeding relationships between populations of plants and animals in and around a
pond. The arrows point from the organisms being eaten to the organisms that eat them.
More people than usual go fishing at the pond this year and take a lot of the large fish out of the pond. Using only
the relationships between the plants and animals shown in the diagram, what effect is this likely to have on the large
bird population and why?
A. The number of large birds is likely to increase because there will be more small fish for the large
birds to eat.
B. The number of large birds is likely to decrease because there will be fewer large fish for the large
birds to eat.
C. The number of large birds is likely to stay the same because large birds and large fish are not
connected by an arrow in the diagram.
D. The number of large birds is not likely to change because they are higher in the diagram than the
large fish, which means that the large birds will not be affected by changes below them in the
diagram.
17. Lions and cheetahs are living in the same national park in Africa. They both eat antelope that are in the park.
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. The lions compete with other lions, the cheetahs compete with other cheetahs, but the lions and
cheetahs do not compete with each other for the antelope.
B. The lions do not compete with other lions, the cheetahs do not compete with other cheetahs, and the
lions and cheetahs do not compete with each other for the antelope.
C. The lions compete with other lions, the cheetahs compete with other cheetahs, and the lions and
cheetahs compete with each other for the antelope.
D. The lions do not compete with other lions, the cheetahs do not compete with other cheetahs, but the
lions and cheetahs compete with each other for the antelope.
18. Horses and cows are living in the same fenced pasture. The grass is the only source of food available to the
horses and cows. Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A. The cows compete with other cows, the horses compete with other horses, but the cows and horses do
not compete with each other for the grass.
B. The cows do not compete with other cows, the horses do not compete with other horses, and the cows
and horses do not compete with each other for the grass.
C. The cows compete with other cows, the horses compete with other horses, and the cows and horses
compete with each other for the grass.
D. The cows do not compete with other cows, the horses do not compete with other horses, but the cows
and horses compete with each other for the grass.
19. In 1893, a large area of a national forest was home to mountain lions, coyotes, and bobcats as well as about
3,000 deer.
The deer ate grass, and the mountain lions, coyotes, and bobcats ate deer.
Around 1900, hunters began killing large numbers of mountain lions, coyotes, and bobcats. By 1923, there were
100,000 deer in this population.
Using only the relationships between the plants and animals described above, which of the following statements
could explain why the population of deer increased so much?
A. The number of deer increased because without predators, the deer lived longer and had more
offspring that also lived longer.
B. The number of deer increased because populations are always increasing.
C. The number of deer increased because with fewer mountain lions, coyotes, and bobcats, the deer had
more food to eat.
D. There is not enough information to tell why the deer population increased.
20. In 1893, a large area of a national forest was home to mountain lions, coyotes, and bobcats as well as about
3,000 deer.
The deer ate grass, and the mountain lions, coyotes, and bobcats ate deer.
Around 1900, hunters began killing large numbers of mountain lions, coyotes, and bobcats. By 1923, there were
100,000 deer in this population.
Using only the relationships between the plants and animals described above, which of the following statements
could explain why the population of deer increased so much?
A. The number of deer increased because without predators, the deer lived longer and had more
offspring that also lived longer.
B. The number of deer increased because populations are always increasing.
C. The number of deer increased because with fewer mountain lions, coyotes, and bobcats, the deer had
more food to eat.
D. There is not enough information to tell why the deer population increased.
21. Which of the following statements is TRUE about competition between organisms with the same needs when
resources are limited?
A. Animals are the only organisms that compete for resources.
B. Plants are the only organisms that compete for resources.
C. Neither plants nor animals compete for resources.
D. Both plants and animals compete for resources.
22. Which of the following statements about competition between plants is TRUE?
A. Plants compete for water when it is limited, but they do not compete for space when it is limited.
B. Plants compete for water and space when they are limited, but they do not compete for light when it
is limited.
C. Plants compete for water, space, and light when they are limited.
D. Plants do not compete for any resource, even when it is limited.
23. Which of the following statements about competition between animals is TRUE?
A. Competition may involve two lions fighting over prey but not two cows eating grass in the same
field.
B. Competition may involve two birds fighting over a nesting site but not one bird placing its eggs in the
nest of another.
C. Competition may involve two birds fighting over a nesting site, two lions fighting over prey, or one
bird placing its eggs in the nest of another but not two cows eating grass in the same field.
D. Competition may involve two birds fighting over a nesting site, two lions fighting over prey, one bird
placing its eggs in the nest of another, or two cows eating grass in the same field.
24. Which of the following is food for a plant?
A. Sugars that a plant makes
B. Minerals that a plant takes in from the soil
C. Water that a plant takes in through its roots
D. Carbon dioxide that a plant takes in through its leaves
25. Which of the following statements is TRUE about the carbon dioxide that is used by plants?
A. It is combined with oxygen to make sugar molecules.
B. It is absorbed through the roots of plants.
C. It comes from the air.
D. It is food for plants.
26. What do plants use as food?
A. Plants use sugars that they make as food.
B. Plants use substances that they take in from the soil as food.
C. Plants use both sugars that they make and substances that they take in from the soil as food.
D. Plants do not use sugars that they make or substances that they take in from the soil as food.
27. Which of the following could be food for plants?
A. Molecules made of two oxygen atoms linked to each other
B. Molecules made of a single oxygen atom linked to two hydrogen atoms
C. Molecules made of a single carbon atom linked to two oxygen atoms
D. Molecules made of several carbon atoms linked to each other and to hydrogen and oxygen atoms
28. Milk contains water, carbohydrates, proteins, minerals, and fat. Is milk food for people?
A. No, because liquids cannot be food, and milk is a liquid
B. No, because for something to be food it must provide both energy and building materials, and milk
does not provide energy
C. Yes, because for something to be food it must provide energy, and the minerals in milk provide
energy
D. Yes, because food is a source of energy and building materials, and milk provides energy and
building materials
29. Which of the following is a source of food for animals?
A. Fat
B. Water
C. Oxygen
D. Minerals
30. Is water a source of food for plants and animals? Why or why not?
A. Yes, because food is anything that is needed by plants and animals, and water is needed by plants and animals
B. Yes, because food is anything that provides energy to plants and animals, and water provides energy to plants
and animals
C. No, because liquids cannot be food for plants and animals, and water is a liquid
D. No, because food must contain molecules that have carbon atoms linked to other carbon atoms, and water
molecules do not have carbon atoms linked to other carbon atoms
Answer Sheet
Name:
Date:
1. A B C D
2. A B C D
3. A B C D
4. A B C D
5. A B C D
6. A B C D
21. A B C D
7. A B C D
22. A B C D
8. A B C D
23. A B C D
9. A B C D
24. A B C D
10. A B C D
25. A B C D
11. A B C D
26. A B C D
12. A B C D
27. A B C D
13. A B C D
28. A B C D
14. A B C D
29. A B C D
15. A B C D
30. A B C D
16. A B C D
17. A B C D
18. A B C D
19. A B C D
20. A B C D