High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
Choose the one alternative that BEST completes the statement or answers the question. Please note
that choice E) is NOTA "None of the above answers is correct".
1) Familial hypercholesterolemia is characterized by which of the following?
A) poor attachment of the cholesterol to the extracellular matrix of cells
B) defective LDL receptors on the cell membranes
C) inhibition of the cholesterol active transport system in red blood cells
D) a poorly formed lipid bilayer that cannot incorporate cholesterol into cell membranes
E) NOTA
2) Organic chemistry is a science based on the study of
A) carbon compounds.
B) water and its interaction with other kinds of molecules.
C) inorganic compounds.
D) vital forces interacting with matter.
E) NOTA
3) What are the products of the light reactions that are subsequently used by the Calvin cycle?
A) water and carbon
B) ATP and NADPH
C) carbon dioxide and RuBP
D) oxygen and carbon dioxide
E) NOTA
4) What are scaffolding proteins?
A) ladder-like proteins that allow receptor-ligand complexes to climb through cells from one
position to another
B) relay proteins that orient receptors and their ligands in appropriate directions to facilitate
their complexing
C) large molecules to which several relay proteins attach to facilitate cascade effects
D) microtubular protein arrays that allow lipid-soluble hormones to get from the cell membrane
to the nuclear pores
E) NOTA
5) Asexual reproduction results in identical offspring unless which of the following occurs?
A) Natural selection
B) Environmental change
C) Mutation
D) Cloning
E) NOTA
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High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
6) A gene's location along a chromosome is known as which of the following?
A) Sequence
B) Trait
C) Variant
D) Locus
E) NOTA
7) Which of the following is the correct sequence of these events in the origin of life?
I.
II.
III.
IV.
formation of protobionts
synthesis of organic monomers
synthesis of organic polymers
formation of DNA-based genetic systems
A) II, III, I, IV
B) IV, III, I, II
C) III, II, I, IV
D) I, III, II, IV
E) NOTA
8) Which of the following are primarily responsible for cytokinesis in plant cells?
A) centrioles and basal bodies
B) kinetochores
C) cyclin-dependent kinases
D) Golgi-derived vesicles
E) NOTA
9) Of the following molecules of the ECM, which is capable of transmitting signals between the ECM and
the cytoskeleton?
A) integrins
B) fibronectin
C) proteoglycans
D) middle lamella
E) NOTA
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High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
Use what you know about ecosystem stability and the information provided in the graph below to
answer the following question.
10) Which community (A-E) would likely be the most "biodiverse"?
A) A
B) B
C) C
D) D
E) NOTA
11) Which of the following is true about "hot spots"?
A) All of the plants and animals containing genes that may be useful to humankind are located in
the Earth's hot spots.
B) As conservation measures improve over the next ten years hot spots will likely disappear.
C) The hot spots that are in most dire need of remediation are located in the tundra.
D) 1/3 of all species on Earth occupy less that 1.5% of the earth's land area.
E) NOTA
12) What is the reason that linked genes are inherited together?
A) The number of genes in a cell is greater than the number of chromosomes.
B) Chromosomes are unbreakable.
C) Alleles are paired together during meiosis.
D) They are located close together on the same chromosome.
E) NOTA
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High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
13) Starting with a fertilized egg (zygote), a series of five cell divisions would produce an early embryo
with how many cells?
A) 4
B) 16
C) 64
D) 8
E) NOTA
14) Mendel and Morgan did not know about the structure of DNA; however, which of the following of
their contributions was (were) necessary to Watson and Crick?
A) the usefulness of peas and Drosophila
B) the particulate nature of the hereditary material
C) dominance vs. recessiveness
D) genetic distance and mapping
E) NOTA
15) Males are more often affected by sex-linked traits than females because
A) males are hemizygous for the X chromosome.
B) mutations on the Y chromosome often worsen the effects of X-linked mutations.
C) female hormones such as estrogen often compensate for the effects of mutations on the X.
D) X chromosomes in males generally have more mutations than X chromosomes in females.
E) NOTA
16) The sodium-potassium pump in animal cells requires cytoplasmic ATP to pump ions across the
plasma membrane. When the proteins of the pump are first synthesized in the rough ER, what side of
the ER membrane will the ATP binding site be on?
A) It will be on the cytoplasmic side of the ER.
B) It could be facing in either direction because the orientation of proteins is scrambled in the
Golgi apparatus.
C) It will be on the side facing the interior of the ER.
D) It doesn't matter, because the pump is not active in the ER.
E) NOTA
17) Which of these is a correct representation of the hierarchy of biological organization from least to
most complex?
A) organelle of an intestinal cell, digestive system, small intestine, large intestine, intestinal
tissue, organism
B) molecule, intestinal cell organelle, intestinal cell, intestinal tissue, digestive system, organism
C) organelle of a stomach cell, digestive system, large intestine, small intestine, intestinal tissue,
organism
D) molecule, digestive system, digestive cell organelle, small intestine, large intestine, intestinal
cell, organism
E) NOTA
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High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
18) A biologist is studying kidney tubules in small mammals. She wants specifically to examine the
juxtaposition of different types of cells in these structures. The cells in question can be distinguished by
external shape, size, and 3-dimensional characteristics. Which would be the optimum method for her
study?
A) light microscopy using living unstained material
B) light microscopy using stains specific to kidney function
C) cell fractionation
D) transmission electron microscopy
E) NOTA
19) A defining characteristic of allopatric speciation is
A) artificial selection.
B) large populations.
C) the appearance of new species in the midst of old ones.
D) geographic isolation.
E) NOTA
20) Which of the following describes peristalsis in the digestive system?
A) a process of fat emulsification in the small intestine
B) smooth muscle contractions that move food through the alimentary canal
C) a common cause of loss of appetite, fatigue, and dehydration
D) voluntary control of the rectal sphincters regulating defecation
E) NOTA
21) Which term most precisely describes the cellular process of breaking down large molecules into
smaller ones?
A) catabolism
B) anabolism
C) dehydration
D) metabolism
E) NOTA
22) Rank the following from most general to most specific:
1. gametic isolation
2. reproductive isolating mechanism
3. pollen-stigma incompatibility
4. prezygotic isolating mechanism
A) 4, 1, 2, 3
B) 2, 1, 4, 3
C) 2, 4, 1, 3
D) 2, 3, 1, 4
E) NOTA
Page 5 of 11
High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
23) Which of the following correctly lists the order in which cellular components will be found in the
pellet when homogenized cells are treated with increasingly rapid spins in a centrifuge?
A) chloroplasts, ribosomes, vacuoles
B) nucleus, mitochondria, ribosomes
C) vacuoles, ribosomes, nucleus
D) ribosomes, nucleus, mitochondria
E) NOTA
24) An organism is discovered that consumes a considerable amount of sugar, yet does not gain much
weight when denied air. Curiously, the consumption of sugar increases as air is removed from the
organism's environment, but the organism seems to thrive even in the absence of air. When returned to
normal air, the organism does fine. Which of the following best describes the organism?
A) It is a facultative anaerobe.
B) The organism obviously lacks the citric acid cycle and electron transport chain.
C) It is an anaerobic organism.
D) It is a normal eukaryotic organism.
E) NOTA
25) Hydrangea plants of the same genotype are planted in a large flower garden. Some of the plants
produce blue flowers and others pink flowers. This can be best explained by which of the following?
A) The allele for blue hydrangea being completely dominant
B) The fact that a mutation has occurred
C) Environmental factors such as soil pH
D) Acknowledging that multiple alleles are involved
E) NOTA
26) Chromosomes first become visible during which phase of mitosis?
A) metaphase
B) anaphase
C) telophase
D) prometaphase
E) NOTA
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High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
27) Which of the following people used this apparatus to study formation of organic compounds?
A) Stanley Miller
B) August Kekulé
C) Jakob Berzelius
D) Hermann Kolbe
E) NOTA
28) What is the primary function of the Calvin cycle?
A) synthesize simple sugars from carbon dioxide
B) transport RuBP out of the chloroplast
C) use NADPH to release carbon dioxide
D) use ATP to release carbon dioxide
E) NOTA
29) Which of the following is a statement of the first law of thermodynamics?
A) The entropy of the universe is constant.
B) The entropy of the universe is decreasing.
C) Energy cannot be transferred or transformed.
D) Energy cannot be created or destroyed.
E) NOTA
30) Paracrine signaling
A) requires nerve cells to release a neurotransmitter into the synapse.
B) involves mating factors attaching to target cells and causing production of new paracrine
cells.
C) involves secreting cells acting on nearby target cells by discharging a local regulator into the
extracellular fluid.
D) occurs only in paracrine yeast cells.
E) NOTA
Page 7 of 11
High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
31) In terms of the hierarchical organization of life, a bacterium is at the __________ level of
organization, whereas a human is at the __________ level of organization.
A) single-celled organism; multicellular organism
B) tissue; organism
C) organelle; organ system
D) single organelle; organism
E) NOTA
32) Where are the molecules of the electron transport chain found in plant cells?
A) stroma of chloroplasts
B) outer membrane of mitochondria
C) thylakoid membranes of chloroplasts
D) matrix of mitochondria
E) NOTA
33) Cells can be described as having a cytoskeleton of internal structures that contribute to the shape,
organization, and movement of the cell. Which of the following are part of the cytoskeleton?
A) lysosomes
B) the nuclear envelope
C) mitochondria
D) microfilaments
E) NOTA
34) If we say a species is endemic to a certain area, we mean that
A) it has been introduced to that area.
B) it is found only in one particular area of the world.
C) it is endangered in that area.
D) it is threatened in that area.
E) NOTA
35) Mendel's second law of independent assortment has its basis in which of the following events of
meiosis I?
A) Separation of homologs at anaphase
B) Synapsis of homologous chromosomes
C) Separation of cells at telophase
D) Alignment of tetrads at the equator
E) NOTA
36) Foods eaten by animals are most often composed largely of macromolecules. This requires the
animals to have methods for which of the following?
A) elimination
B) dehydration synthesis
C) regurgitation
D) demineralization
E) NOTA
Page 8 of 11
High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
37) Introns are significant to biological evolution because
A) they protect the mRNA from degeneration.
B) their presence allows exons to be shuffled.
C) they are translated into essential amino acids.
D) they correct enzymatic alterations of DNA bases.
E) NOTA
38) In autotrophic bacteria, where are the enzymes located that can carry on organic synthesis?
A) along the outer edge of the nucleoid
B) along the inner surface of the plasma membrane
C) chloroplast membranes
D) nuclear membranes
E) NOTA
Refer to the following figure to answer the following questions.
39) The molecule shown here could be described in chemical symbols as
A) C4H4.
B) CH4.
C) C2H3.
D) H2O.
E) NOTA
40) The free energy for the oxidation of glucose to CO2 and water is -686 kcal/mole and the free energy
for the reduction of NAD+ to NADH is +53 kcal/mole. Why are only two molecules of NADH formed
during glycolysis when it appears that as many as a dozen could be formed?
A) Glycolysis consists of many enzymatic reactions, each of which extracts some energy from the
glucose molecule.
B) Glycolysis is a very inefficient reaction, with much of the energy of glucose released as heat.
C) Most of the free energy available from the oxidation of glucose remains in pyruvate, one of
the products of glycolysis.
D) There is no CO2 or water produced as products of glycolysis.
E) NOTA
41) The process of transduction usually begins
A) when the signal molecule changes the receptor protein in some way.
B) after the target cell divides.
C) when the hormone is released from the gland into the blood.
D) after the third stage of cell signaling is completed.
E) NOTA
Page 9 of 11
High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
42) Where does glycolysis takes place?
A) mitochondrial intermembrane space
B) mitochondrial matrix
C) mitochondrial outer membrane
D) mitochondrial inner membrane
E) NOTA
43) Approximately what percent of the world's land area has been established as reserves to protect
biodiversity?
A) less than 1%
B) 3%
C) 12%
D) 20%
E) NOTA
44) Why does the oxidation of organic compounds by molecular oxygen to produce CO2 and water
release free energy?
A) Electrons are being moved from atoms that have a lower affinity for electrons (such as C) to
atoms with a higher affinity for electrons (such as O).
B) The oxidation of organic compounds can be used to make ATP.
C) The covalent bonds in organic molecules are higher energy bonds than those in water and
carbon dioxide.
D) The electrons have a higher potential energy when associated with water and CO2 than they
do in organic compounds.
E) NOTA
45) Some photosynthetic organisms contain chloroplasts that lack photosystem II, yet are able to
survive. The best way to detect the lack of photosystem II in these organisms would be
A) to test for liberation of O2 in the light.
B) to do experiments to generate an action spectrum.
C) to test for CO2 fixation in the dark.
D) to test for production of either sucrose or starch.
E) NOTA
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High School Biology
FGCU STEM Competition
March 2014
Figure 8.3
46) Which of the following is the most correct interpretation of the figure?
A) ATP is a molecule that acts as an intermediary to store energy for cellular work.
B) Pi acts as a shuttle molecule to move energy from ATP to ADP.
C) Energy from catabolism can be used directly for performing cellular work.
D) ADP + Pi are a set of molecules that store energy for catabolism.
E) NOTA
47) Which of the following results from a transfer of electron(s) between atoms?
A) hydrophobic interaction
B) nonpolar covalent bond
C) ionic bond
D) polar covalent bond
E) NOTA
48) What is a chromatid?
A) a replicate chromosome
B) another name for the chromosomes found in genetics
C) a special region that holds two centromeres together
D) a chromosome found outside the nucleus
E) NOTA
49) Relatively small geographic areas with high concentrations of endemic species are known as
A) biodiversity hot spots.
B) bottlenecks.
C) critical communities.
D) endemic metapopulations.
E) NOTA
50) Early 19th-century scientists believed that living organisms differed from nonliving things as a result
of possessing a "life force" that could create organic molecules from inorganic matter. The term given to
this belief is
A) vitalism.
B) mechanism.
C) organic evolution.
D) inorganic synthesis.
E) NOTA
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