January 2017-2018 Unit 1: Laboratory Skills

Which change is an example of a response to a stimulus?

• The pupil of an eye decreases in size in bright light

• A leaf absorbs sunlight in the morning

• The water level of a pond rises on a rainy day

• A dead tree decays after many years

Scientists who study rock formations in caves describe some of the formations as “living rock” because, under certain conditions, they increase in size. Which statement would best dispute the claim that these rock formations are living?

• Rocks are not composed of cells, while living organisms are

• Rocks perform complex metabolic processes, but cannot grow

• Rocks cannot reproduce sexually

• Rocks remain stable in a wide range of physical conditions

"Before conducting an experiment, two students gathered information about the effect of greenhouse gases on global warming. Student A found information in a newspaper article. Student B found information in several peer-reviewed scientific journals and on three websites."

Which statement most likely describes the reliability of the students’ information?

• Information gathered by student A is more reliable because newspapers are always updated to reflect the most current research

• Information gathered by student B is more reliable because some of it was gathered from peer-reviewed sources

• Information gathered by student A is more reliable because it is from a single source without conflicting information

• Information gathered by student B is more reliable because some of it was found on the internet

"Before conducting an experiment, two students gathered information about the effect of greenhouse gases on global warming. Student A found information in a newspaper article. Student B found information in several peer-reviewed scientific journals and on three websites."

After gathering the information, the students presented the information to their class. The class gave the students suggestions about how to continue with their experiment. How does this step benefit the investigation?

• Feedback from the class will help them design a better experiment

• Feedback creates confusion, and will complicate the investigation

• The students’ investigation will be unaffected because the class is not carrying out the experiment

• The investigation will be unchanged because students can use information only from published sources to design the experiment

A step in a procedure used in the Diffusion Through a Membrane lab is represented in the diagram below.

Which procedure is represented in the diagram?

• adding distilled water to the top of a cover glass on a slide

• making an artificial cell

• adding salt solution to a specimen under the cover glass

• making a thin sample to prepare a slide of red onion cells

In order to be accepted, a scientific theory must be...

• widely tested and supported by extensive data

• based on the results of a single experiment

• controversial and cause debate

• in line with all previous historical ideas

Anoles are a group of lizards consisting of approximately 400 species. A scientist studying them on an island observed two species that live in different habitats and display different behaviors. His observations are listed in the table below.

Based on the scientist’s observations, which statement best describes these two species of anoles?

• Both species evolved through the process of ecological succession

• Each species is adapted to a different niche

• The two species can interbreed

• Species A is an herbivore and species B is a decomposer

In an appropriately designed experiment, a scientist is able to test the effect of...

• a single variable

• multiple variables

• the hypothesis

• scientific observations

Students collected data about the capacities of their lungs by inflating balloons with a single breath. They measured the circumference of the balloons in centimeters. Each student completed three trials and calculated the average.

• student 1

• student 2

• student 3

• student 4

A student collected data from an experiment on muscle fatigue. In order to interpret these data, the student should...

• ignore the data because they do not support their hypothesis

• recalculate the data so that the numbers are easier to work with

• share the data with a student who has none

• organize the data into a table or graph