GRADE TWELVE BIOLOGY MODEL QUESTIONS

1) Function of the Acetobacter bacteria:

A. Treatment of Sewage C. Fermentation of Alcohol
B. Production of Vinegar D. Production of Antibiotic
2) Which of the following statements are NOT true about nitrogen-fixing bacteria? They
A. converts nitrogen gas into ammonium ions
B. are found in nodules on the roots of legumes
C. break down nitrate ions into ammonium ions
D. plays a vital role in the nitrogen cycle in nature
3) The only acellular micro-organism is:
A. Fungi B. Bacteria C. Viruses D. Protozoa
4) Which of the following are the most significant factors in determining biome type?
A. Soil type and soil depth C. Temperature and climates
B. Temperature and rainfall D. Climates and grazing animals
5) Biodiversity is:
A. an area with specific biotic and abiotic conditions
B. a measures taken by people to restore an ecosystem
C. replacement of one ecosystem by another ecosystem
D. a measure of the overall variability of life on the Earth
6) The presence of several different biomes within the Ethiopia results in:
A. the high species richness of plants and mammals
B. the low species richness of plants and mammals
C. the high species richness of plants but low mammals
D. the high species richness of mammals but low plants
7) In which of the following the population growth curve, all the organisms are adapted and
reproduce rapidly due to the abundant resources?
A. Lag phase C. Decline phase
B. Log phase D. Stationary phase
8) The genetic code is NOT a:
A. triplet code C. degenerate code
B. universal code D. overlapping code
9) Chromosomes are made from two chemicals:
A. DNA and a set of globular proteins
B. RNA and a set of globular proteins
C. DNA and a set of fibrous proteins
D. RNA and a set of fibrous proteins
10) The traits determined by the genes found only on the X chromosome or on the Y
chromosome are said to be:
A. Sex-linked traits C. Sex-limited traits
B. SRY gene traits D. Sex-influenced traits
11) A woman with unknown blood type and a man also with unknown blood type could
potentially have four children with all blood groups in different years. What are the
possible blood groups of the parents?
A. A and B blood group C. B and O blood group
B. A and O blood group D. AB and O blood group
12) Cytosine makes up 42% of the nucleotides in a sample of DNA from an organism.
Approximately what percentage of the nucleotides in this sample will be thymine?
A. 58% B. 42% C. 16% D. 8%
13) A person who has type O blood has:
A. A antigens on the cell surface C. no surface antigens on the cells
B. B antigens on the cell surface D. both A and B antigens on the cell surface
14) In peas, a pure tall plant (TT) is crossed with a pure short plant (tt). The ratio of pure tall
plants to pure short plants in F2 generation will be:
A. 1:3 B. 3:1 C. 1:1 D. 2:1
15) The four daughter cells produced in meiosis will have a:
A. n number of chromosomes and will differ genetically from each other
B. 2n number of chromosomes and will differ genetically from each other
C. 2n number of chromosomes and will be genetically identical to each other
D. n number of chromosomes and will be genetically identical to each other
16) Which blood type would NOT be possible for children of a type AB mother and a type A
father?
A. A B. B C. O D. AB
17) The codon is found on _________, and the anticodon is found on ________.
A. tRNA, mRNA C. mRNA, tRNA
B. rRNA, mRNA D. mRNA, rRNA
18) In the process of transcription, _____.
A. DNA is replicated C. proteins are synthesized
B. mRNA is synthesized D. mRNA attaches to ribosome
19) What characterizes a prokaryotic cell?
A. the presence of mitochondria C. the membrane bound nucleus
B. the presence of chloroplasts D. the unicellular level of organization
20) A larger brain NOT allows humans to:
A. create life on the planet Earth C. develop and use tools and weapons
B. plan in advance to avoid attack D. run faster in a more upright posture
21) What is the classification criterion of the human races into Negroid, Caucasoid and
Mongoloid?
A. Large brain C. True bipedalism
B. Exact nature D. Genetic analysis
22) When single-stranded DNA from a human is mixed with single-stranded DNA from a
chimpanzee, we find that about 98% of the DNA is homologous. This can be taken as
evidence that:
A. humans evolved from chimpanzees
B. chimpanzees evolved from humans
C. humans and chimpanzees are closely related
D. humans and chimpanzees originated in similar environments
23) Which of following is NOT the observations on which Darwin based his theory of
evolution?
A. The offspring show a great deal of genetic variation
B. Characteristics are inheritable from parent to offspring
C. The inheritance the acquired traits from parent to offspring
D. Competition of offspring for resources (survival of the fittest)
24) Which of the following determines the sex of a child?
A. The length of the mother’s pregnancy period
B. The presence of a Y chromosome in a sperm
C. The presence of a X chromosome in an ovum
D. The length of time between ovulation and copulation
25) A cross between two individuals results in a ratio of 9: 3: 3: 1 for four possible
phenotypes of progeny. This is an example of a:
A. Trihybrid cross C. Test or back cross
B. Dihybrid cross D. Monohybrid cross
26) In the human blood grouping, the four basic blood types are type A, type B, type AB, and
type O. The blood proteins (antigen) A and B are: Use the concept of types of dominance.
A. Sex linked traits C. Incomplete dominant traits
B. Co-dominant traits D. Dominant and recessive traits
27) A pregnant woman has an equal chance of her baby being blood group A or blood group
AB. Which one of the following shows the possible genotypes of the woman and the
father of her child?
A. IA IA and IB IO B. IAIB and IBIO C. IAIO and IBIO D. IAIB and IAIO
28) Functions of transferases enzymes:
A. Change of the molecular form of the substrate molecules
B. Joining of two molecules by the formation of new bonds
C. Transfer of a specific group from one substrate to another
D. Removal of nonhydrolytic group from a substrate molecules
29) Some enzymes have been named based on the source from which they were first
identified. An example of this is:
A. Pepsin B. Papayin C. Nuclease D. Amylase
30) Fermentation of glucose by yeast produces:
A. Lactic acid and oxygen C. Lactic acid and carbon dioxide
B. Ethyl alcohol and oxygen D. Ethyl alcohol and carbon dioxide
The diagram below represents some events that take place in plant cells.

31) In which organelle would the above events most likely occur?
A. Lysosome B. Ribosome C. Mitochondrion D. Chloroplast
32) In cellular respiration process, the carriers for the electron transport system are located:
A. within stroma of chloroplast C. within matrix of mitochondria
B. on the critae of mitochondria D. within the cytoplasm of a cell
33) Which of the following pathways will use coenzyme A during aerobic cellular respiration?
A. Glycolysis C. Kreb cycle
B. Link reaction D. Calvin cycle
34) How many times does the Krebs cycle turn per glucose molecule break down?
A. Five times C. Two time
B. Four times D. Three times
35) Which one of the following metabolic pathways is common in aerobic and anaerobic
respiration?
A. the glycolysis C. the citric acid cycle
B. the chemiosmosis D. oxidative phosphorylation

36) The light reactions occur in the _____ while the Calvin cycle occurs in the ______
 A. cytosol of cytoplasm . . . stroma C. stroma . . . thylakoid membranes
B. thylakoid membranes . . . stroma D. cytoplasm . . . thylakoid membrane
37) Which of the following processes produces the most ATP per molecule of glucose
oxidized?
A. Aerobic respiration C. Alcoholic fermentation
B. Anaerobic respiration D. Lactic acid fermentation
38) What are the products of the light reactions that are subsequently used by the
independent reaction of photosynthesis?
A. Carbon dioxide and RuBP C. ATP and NADPH
B. Oxygen and carbon dioxide D. Electrons and photons
39) The immediate products of C3 and C4 photosynthesis in the light-independent reactions of
the Calvin cycle are, respectfully:
A. Ribulose bisphosphate and malic acid
B. Carbon dioxide and glucose molecule
C. Phosphoglycerate and oxaloacetate
D. Glyceraldehydes phosphate and phospho-enol-pyruvate
40) In which of the following type of dominance, both extremes have a selective advantage
compared with the mean and the two distinct types begin to emerge showing the extreme
values of the original population?
A. Disruptive selection C. Artificial selection
B. Stabilising selection D. Directional selection
41) The structure of a protein that describes the overall shape formed by several polypeptide
chains which compose the protein?
A. Primary structure C. Secondary structure
B. Tertiary structure D. Quaternary structure
42) All the following reactions involve condensation reactions, EXCEPT?
A. the formation of a disaccharide C. the digestion of a polysaccharide
B. the production of a polypeptide D. the production of a complex sugar

43) Which pairs of element is required in order for the compound to be considered organic?
 A. Carbon and hydrogen C. Nitrogen and oxygen
B. Hydrogen and oxygen D. Carbon and nitrogen
44) All of the following are storage carbohydrates, EXCEPT?
A. Starch B. Glycogen C. Amylose D. Cellulose
Based on the following structure below to identify this monosaccharide

45) Which of the following is the correct name for the above monosaccharide structure?
A. -glucose C. Fructose
B. -glucose D. Galactose
46) Which of the following organisms have the greatest problem with photorespiration?
A. C2 plants B. C3 plants C. C4 plants D. CAM plants
47) Which of the following diagrams represents the correct cycling of gases?
A. C.

B. D.

48) Which of the following is NOT archaebacteria?

 A. Sulphobacteria B. Methanobacteria C. Halophilic bacteria D. Cyanobacteria
49) Intra-specific competition is:
A. competition between members of different species in the same habitat
B. competition between members of the same species in the same habitat
C. competition between members of the same species in the same ecosystem
D. competition between members of different species in the same ecosystem
50) Which of the following is abiotic factors that influence how quickly a population of the
same species or of a different species increases in size or decreases in size?
A. Predation B. Pathogens C. Temperature D. Competition
51) Which of the following is NOT true about importance of water? Water is a (an):
A. essential requirement of respiration
B. essential requirement of photosynthesis
C. basis of all transport systems in organisms
D. provides a means of removing excretory products
52) Which of the following carbon cycle process increases the carbon dioxide concentration
in the atmosphere?
A. Feeding, respiration and photosynthesis
B. Combustion, fossilisation and respiration
C. Assimilation, feeding and photosynthesis
D. Combustion, fossilization and decomposition
53) Which of the following is most diverse of all marine habitats?
A. Coral reef B. Estuarine C. Wetlands D. Freshwater
54) A disease that is caused by a disease causing micro-organism infecting the body is called:
A. Social diseases C. Infectious disease
B. Genetic diseases D. Deficiency diseases