FORM I TOPICS
1. a) Define biology
a. the study of life/living things
b) List the branches of biology
- Zoology (study of animals)
- Botany (study of plants)
- Microbiology (study of microorganisms)
c) Explain the importance of biology
- helps to solve environmental problems
- Helps to learn scientific skills
- For entry into other professions/careers
- To apply knowledge to everyday life situations
- To classify organisms into their right groups
- understanding living organisms
d) State the characteristics of living organisms
- feeding/nutrition
- Growth and development
- respiration (to produce energy)
- sensitivity/irritation/response
- excretion (getting rid of metabolic waste material)
- movement/locomotion
- reproduction
e) State the main differences between plants and animals
Animals Plants
Specialized excretory organs No specialized excretory organs
Respond to stimulus quickly Slow respond to stimulus
All body parts grow equally(intercalary) Grow at shoot tip and root tip only
Move around to look for food Stationery
Heterotrophic Autotrophic
Cells have no cell walls Cells have cell wall made of cellulose
No chlorophyll Contain chlorophyll
Give parental care to young Plants don’t care for their young
www.arena.co.ke 0713779527
, 2. a) i) What is a hand lens?
- Convex lens mounted on a frame and used to magnify small objects for viewing.
-
ii) How is a hand lens used?
- place the lens a short distance from the eye
- Bring the object to be viewed near the lens until an enlarged and clear image can be
seen.
-
ii) When is a hand lens used?
- For reasonably sized objects such as insect wing, leg, flower parts.
- Cannot be used for small objects such as cells, stomata.
-
iv) Explain how to calculate drawing magnification
- drawing magnification equals to length of drawing divided by length of object or image
length divided by actual length i.e. length of drawing or image length
Length of object actual length
b) i) what is classification?
- Orderly arrangement of living organisms into various groups according to their similarities.
ii) List the external features used to classify plants
- rhizoids(e.g. mosses)
- frond (e.g. ferns)
- roots e.g. taproot, fibrous roots, modified roots
- flowers
- leaves
- buds
- seeds
-
iii) List the external features used to classify animals
- horns e.g. cattle, goat, sheep, deer, gazelle etc
- hooves e.g. cattle, sheep, donkey
- mammary glands e.g. cattle, dog, sheep, cat
- hair e.g. human, cat
- Shell e.g. snail, Tortoise
- spines e.g. hedge hog, porcupine
c) Give the reasons why classification is important
- Placing/grouping living organisms into correct groups called taxa
- Identification
www.arena.co.ke 0713779527
,- arrange information about living organisms into orderly and sequential manner i.e. it is easy
to study organisms in groups
-helps in understanding evolutionary relationships
- monitoring disappearance and appearance of organisms i.e. predict characteristics of
organisms
d) i) Name the taxonomic units of classification in descending order
- Kingdom (largest unit)
- Phylum (animals)/division (plants)
- Class
- Order
- Family
- Genus
- Species(smallest unit)
-
ii) What is a species?
- all organisms which can interbreed and give rise to fertile (viable) offspring
iii) Name the major kingdoms used in classification
-monera
-protoctista/protista
-fungi
-plantae
-animalia
e) i) Define the term binomial nomenclature
- a scientific system of naming organisms using the generic/genus and specific/species names
- e.g. for humans, Homo sapiens
ii) State the principles followed during binomial nomenclature
- the first (generic) name should begin with a capital letter while the rest are small
letters
- the two names are printed in italics and if handwritten should be underlined each
separately
-
iii) Give the advantages of using binomial nomenclature
- no confusion about which organism is referred to
- names are internationally accepted regardless of language
- shows evolutionary relationship hence easy to understand
- useful in naming many species unlike use of common names
iv) Name the types of classification
- traditional (using common names)
www.arena.co.ke 0713779527
, - scientific(using binomial nomenclature)
3. a) i) Define the term cell
- it is the basic unit of organization of an organism i.e. the basic functional and
structural unit of an organism.
ii) What is cell biology?
- study of structure and functioning of a cell
- also called cytology
b)i) What is a microscope?
- an instrument used to magnify objects and make them appear bigger.
ii) Name the types of microscope
- the light microscope
- the electron microscope
-
iii) State the purpose of using a light microscope
- it magnifies and reveals the structure details of tiny objects such as the cell, that
cannot be seen by the human eye directly
-
iv) Draw a labeled sketch of a light microscope
www.arena.co.ke 0713779527
1. a) Define biology
a. the study of life/living things
b) List the branches of biology
- Zoology (study of animals)
- Botany (study of plants)
- Microbiology (study of microorganisms)
c) Explain the importance of biology
- helps to solve environmental problems
- Helps to learn scientific skills
- For entry into other professions/careers
- To apply knowledge to everyday life situations
- To classify organisms into their right groups
- understanding living organisms
d) State the characteristics of living organisms
- feeding/nutrition
- Growth and development
- respiration (to produce energy)
- sensitivity/irritation/response
- excretion (getting rid of metabolic waste material)
- movement/locomotion
- reproduction
e) State the main differences between plants and animals
Animals Plants
Specialized excretory organs No specialized excretory organs
Respond to stimulus quickly Slow respond to stimulus
All body parts grow equally(intercalary) Grow at shoot tip and root tip only
Move around to look for food Stationery
Heterotrophic Autotrophic
Cells have no cell walls Cells have cell wall made of cellulose
No chlorophyll Contain chlorophyll
Give parental care to young Plants don’t care for their young
www.arena.co.ke 0713779527
, 2. a) i) What is a hand lens?
- Convex lens mounted on a frame and used to magnify small objects for viewing.
-
ii) How is a hand lens used?
- place the lens a short distance from the eye
- Bring the object to be viewed near the lens until an enlarged and clear image can be
seen.
-
ii) When is a hand lens used?
- For reasonably sized objects such as insect wing, leg, flower parts.
- Cannot be used for small objects such as cells, stomata.
-
iv) Explain how to calculate drawing magnification
- drawing magnification equals to length of drawing divided by length of object or image
length divided by actual length i.e. length of drawing or image length
Length of object actual length
b) i) what is classification?
- Orderly arrangement of living organisms into various groups according to their similarities.
ii) List the external features used to classify plants
- rhizoids(e.g. mosses)
- frond (e.g. ferns)
- roots e.g. taproot, fibrous roots, modified roots
- flowers
- leaves
- buds
- seeds
-
iii) List the external features used to classify animals
- horns e.g. cattle, goat, sheep, deer, gazelle etc
- hooves e.g. cattle, sheep, donkey
- mammary glands e.g. cattle, dog, sheep, cat
- hair e.g. human, cat
- Shell e.g. snail, Tortoise
- spines e.g. hedge hog, porcupine
c) Give the reasons why classification is important
- Placing/grouping living organisms into correct groups called taxa
- Identification
www.arena.co.ke 0713779527
,- arrange information about living organisms into orderly and sequential manner i.e. it is easy
to study organisms in groups
-helps in understanding evolutionary relationships
- monitoring disappearance and appearance of organisms i.e. predict characteristics of
organisms
d) i) Name the taxonomic units of classification in descending order
- Kingdom (largest unit)
- Phylum (animals)/division (plants)
- Class
- Order
- Family
- Genus
- Species(smallest unit)
-
ii) What is a species?
- all organisms which can interbreed and give rise to fertile (viable) offspring
iii) Name the major kingdoms used in classification
-monera
-protoctista/protista
-fungi
-plantae
-animalia
e) i) Define the term binomial nomenclature
- a scientific system of naming organisms using the generic/genus and specific/species names
- e.g. for humans, Homo sapiens
ii) State the principles followed during binomial nomenclature
- the first (generic) name should begin with a capital letter while the rest are small
letters
- the two names are printed in italics and if handwritten should be underlined each
separately
-
iii) Give the advantages of using binomial nomenclature
- no confusion about which organism is referred to
- names are internationally accepted regardless of language
- shows evolutionary relationship hence easy to understand
- useful in naming many species unlike use of common names
iv) Name the types of classification
- traditional (using common names)
www.arena.co.ke 0713779527
, - scientific(using binomial nomenclature)
3. a) i) Define the term cell
- it is the basic unit of organization of an organism i.e. the basic functional and
structural unit of an organism.
ii) What is cell biology?
- study of structure and functioning of a cell
- also called cytology
b)i) What is a microscope?
- an instrument used to magnify objects and make them appear bigger.
ii) Name the types of microscope
- the light microscope
- the electron microscope
-
iii) State the purpose of using a light microscope
- it magnifies and reveals the structure details of tiny objects such as the cell, that
cannot be seen by the human eye directly
-
iv) Draw a labeled sketch of a light microscope
www.arena.co.ke 0713779527
