Name of the Organization : SAASTA – South African Agency for Science & Technology Advancement
Announcement : National Science Olympiad
Year : 2016
Type : Past Papers
Subject : Biology
Website : http://www.saasta.ac.za/competitions/national-science-olympiad/
Download Question Paper :
Biology 2015 : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/7278-Biology2015.pdf
Biology 2014 : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/7278-Biology2014.pdf
Biology 2013 : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/7278-BIOLOGY2013.pdf
Biology 2012 : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/7278-BIOLOGY2012.pdf
Biology 2011 : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/7278-BIOLOGY2011.pdf
Biology 2010 : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/7275-physics-2010.pdf
Biology 2009 : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/7278-biology2009.pdf
Biology 2006 : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/7278-biology2006.pdf
Biology 2005 : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/7278-biology2005.pdf
National Science Olympiad Biology Question Paper
Life Sciences :
** This is a multiple choice paper. Please answer all the questions on the answer sheet provided.
** Each question is followed by answers marked A, B, C and D. Only one answer is correct.
Related : SAASTA National Science Olympiad Physics Paper : www.southafricain.com/7275.html
** Choose the most correct answer and shade the corresponding circle on the answer sheet completely using an HB pencil.
** NB! The answer sheets are marked electronically – do not make any other dots or marks on the answer sheet.
** Select only one answer for each question or your answer will be discarded. Ensure that you shade your selection clearly.
** Note that the question numbers 1 – 100 on the answer sheet moves from top to bottom in several columns.
** Ensure that the number of your selection on the answer sheet corresponds with the number of the question in your examination paper.
** Should you make a mistake, please erase the incorrect answer completely.
** Three hours are allowed to answer the questions
Instructions
** Please read the instructions carefully before answering the questions
** This is a multiple choice paper. Please answer all the questions on the answer sheet provided. Each question is followed by answers marked A, B, C, and D. Only one answer is correct. Choose the most correct answer and shade the corresponding circle on the answer sheet completely, using an HB pencil.
** NB! The answer sheets are marked electronically – do not make any other dots or marks on the answer sheet. Select only one answer for each question or your answer will be discarded. Ensure that you shade your selection clearly.
** Note that the question numbers 1 to 100 on the answer sheet moves from top to bottom in several columns.
** Ensure that the number of your selection on the answer sheet corresponds with the number of the question in your examination paper. Should you make a mistake, please erase the incorrect answer completely.
Sample Questions
1. Which ONE of the following would not be essential in setting up an artificial ecosystem which was self-sufficient in material?
A. Producers
B. Primary consumers
C. Decomposers
D. An energy source
2. Which structures in a plant cell contain DNA and cellulose respectively?
A. Cell wall Cytoplasm
B. Nucleus Cell wall
C. Chloroplast Nucleus
D. Cytoplasm Chloroplast
3. Which statement is a proper expression of cause and effect?
A. Water is absorbed by plants to maintain the turgor of cells.
B. The need for the protection of the young in mammals has led to thee volution of maternal care.
C. The water requirements of plants lead to the growth of roots towards the most suitable regions of soil.
D. The incubation of birds’ eggs promotes embryonic development.
4. Which one of the following carbohydrate molecules has the most carbon atoms?
A. Glucose
B. Starch
C. Sucrose
D. Maltose
5. The biological factor which best accounts for stability of a mature ecosystem such as a deciduous forest is the …
A. complexity of the food chain.
B. rapid adjustment to changes of the environment.
C. high rate of production of the producer organisms.
D. low rate of release of nutrients by the decomposer organisms.
6. Which ONE of the following homeostatic properties of blood is inherited?
A. Oxygen carrying capacity.
B. Speed of circulation.
C. Resistance to infection.
D. Capacity for clotting.
7. The pH scale of 1 to 14 uses a mathematical device which expresses hydrogen ion concentrations as …
A. a logarithmic decrease.
B. a logarithmic increase.
C. an arithmetical increase.
D. an arithmetical ratio of the concentration of H ions to OH ions.
8. Haemoglobin is released from red blood cells when they are placed in a solution of sodium chloride which is at a lower concentration than that of the solutes in the interior of cells.
This is caused by …
A. diffusion of the cell solutes down a concentration gradient.
B. exosmosis of substances from the cells.
C. endosmosis causing rupture of the cell membranes.
D. increased permeability of the cell membranes caused by sodium chloride.
9. A student carries out tests on a food substance using biuret solution and iodine solution. If the food contains proteins only,what colours will be seen in the test-tubes at the end of each test?
Biuret Solution – Iodine Solution
A. Blue – Blue/Black
B. Purple – Brown/Yellow
C. Red – Blue
D. Blue/Black – Milky White
10. The pressure available for effective filtration in the glomeruli of the mammalian kidney is reduced by …
A. re-absorption of the filtrate by the tubules.
B. the size of the protein molecules in the plasma.
C. the osmotic potential of the plasma protein.
D. peripheral resistance of the capillaries in the body.
11. A chemical molecule contains sulphur and phosphorus. Which of the following could it be?
A. A fatty acid
B. Glycerol
C. A protein
D. A carbohydrate
12. A small mammal P was given a skin graft from another individual Q of the same species. The graft was rejected. Skin grafts from from other individuals R and S were then tried on P with the following results:
Graft from R: soon rejected
Graft from S: much later rejected
The choice of donor for a graft for Q would be
A. R because it was most readily rejected by P.
B. S because it is more likely to be accepted by Q.
C. Neither R nor S because they are both ultimately rejected by P.
D. Neither R nor S because the results relate to P and not Q.
13. Each somatic (body) cell in the human has …
A. 23 different chromosomes.
B. 46 similar chromosomes.
C. 23 pairs of chromosomes.
D. 46 pairs of different chromosomes.
14. The name of the one big mass of land that all the present continents originated from, is …
A. Laurasia
B. Gondwanaland
C. Antarctica
D. Pangaea
15. Which is the most likely progression in the development of a relationship between two associated animals?
A. Commensalism, parasitism, symbiosis.
B. Symbiosis, commensalism, parasitism.
C. Symbiosis, tolerant parasitism, parasitism with disease symptoms in the host.
D. Parasitism, predation, commensalism.