PRAXIS PRACTICE 5236 EXAM
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Which of the following terms indicates the ecological role that an organism plays in a
community?
A. Biome
B. Niche
C. Ecotone
D. Territory - Correct Answers -B. Niche
Which of the following characteristics distinguishes members of the domain Eukarya
from members of the domains Archaea and Bacteria?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The ability to perform photosynthesis
B. The ability to replicate chromosomes
C. The presence of RNA polymerase
D. The presence of a nuclear envelope - Correct Answers -D. The presence of a
nuclear envelope
Valine is typically classified as a hydrophobic amino acid because a valine molecule has
which of the following types of side chains?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Polar and neutral
B. Nonpolar
C. Positively charged
D. Negatively charged - Correct Answers -B. Nonpolar
A teacher asks students to describe how the data collected in an experiment are
typically used as evidence. Which of the following responses is the most accurate?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. "The data are used to confirm an existing belief."
B. "The data are used as facts that cannot be questioned or criticized."
C. "The data are used to support or reject a hypothesis."
D. "The data are used to make a theory into a law." - Correct Answers -C. "The data are
used to support or reject a hypothesis."
,Which of the following biomes is characterized by long winters and short summers,
snow as the predominant form of precipitation, soil that is acidic and poor in nutrients,
and wooded areas made up mostly of evergreen trees with needlelike leaves?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Savanna
B. Boreal forest
C. Hot and dry desert
D. Tropical rain forest - Correct Answers -B. Boreal forest
One strand of a certain segment of DNA has the following nucleotide sequence.
5 prime, A G A T G T C C A G T A, 3 prime5′−AGATGTCCAGTA−3′5′-
AGATGTCCAGTA-3′
The complementary strand in the same segment of DNA most likely has which of the
following nucleotide sequences?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. 3′-TCTACAGGTCAT-5′
B. 3′-CTCGTGAACTGC-5′
C. 3′-GAGCACTTGACG-5′
D. 3′−AGATGTCCAGTA−5′ - Correct Answers -A. 3′-TCTACAGGTCAT-5′
The overall process of aerobic cellular respiration is best described as the oxidation of
glucose to produce carbon dioxide and the reduction of oxygen to produce which of the
following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. ADP
B. NADH
C. Sucrose
D. Water - Correct Answers -D. Water
The overall process of aerobic cellular respiration is best described as the oxidation of
glucose to produce carbon dioxide and the reduction of oxygen to produce water.
Oxygen acts as the final electron acceptor in oxidative phosphorylation, resulting in the
production of water.
A student uses stationary fans to investigate the effect of wind on water loss by plants.
The student divides the plants into three treatment groups and places each group in
front of a fan. The student sets the fan for each group to one of three different levels:
low, medium, or high. After 24 hours, the student determines the amount of water that
was lost by each plant. To create a bar graph of the results, the student should make
the height of each bar represent which of the following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The fan speed for each treatment group
B. The number of plants in each treatment group
C. The average water loss for each treatment group
D. The duration of wind exposure for each treatment group - Correct Answers -C. The
average water loss for each treatment group
,Interphase is the part of the cell cycle that includes which of the following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Cytokinesis
B. Synapsis of homologous chromosomes
C. Replication of DNA
D. Condensation of chromosomes - Correct Answers -C. Replication of DNA
A model of secondary succession typically includes which of the following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The arrival of pioneer species
B. Changes in species composition over time
C. A community structure that remains stable over time
D. The addition of rock to Earth's surface as a result of a volcanic eruption - Correct
Answers -B. Changes in species composition over time
Which TWO of the following are typically present in a bacterial cell but not in a virus?
Answer the question by selecting the correct responses.
A. Ribosomes
B. DNA replication machinery
C. A genome
D. Reverse transcriptase - Correct Answers -A. Ribosomes
B. DNA replication machinery
Which TWO of the following ecological benefits are typically associated with frequent
low-intensity wildfires?
Answer the question by selecting the correct responses.
A. Recycling of nutrients
B. Removal of dead underbrush
C. Formation of new topsoil from exposed rocks
D. Establishment of shade-tolerant plant species - Correct Answers -A. Recycling of
nutrients
B. Removal of dead underbrush
Which of the following is most likely true about the first cells that arose on Earth?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. They used cilia for locomotion.
B. They were eukaryotes.
C. They were photosynthetic.
D. They were anaerobes. - Correct Answers -D. They were anaerobes.
The first cells that arose on Earth, a process that occurred at least 3.5 billion years ago,
were most likely anaerobic prokaryotes. Oxygen entered Earth's atmosphere only after
bacteria similar to cyanobacteria arose and split water as they carried out
photosynthesis.
, Which of the following properties of water is responsible for the solubility of many
different molecules in aqueous fluids such as blood and urine?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The low density of solid water in comparison to liquid water
B. The polarity of water molecules
C. The high specific heat of water
D. The approximately neutral pH of water - Correct Answers -B. The polarity of water
molecules
Water molecules are polar because oxygen is more electronegative than hydrogen. The
oxygen region of a water molecule has a partial negative charge, and the hydrogen
regions have partial positive charges. The separately charged regions enable water to
hydrate molecules that also have partially charged regions, which increases the
solubility of the molecules.
Wind turbines are used for which of the following activities?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Maintaining a breeze over crops growing in an arid environment without using a lot of
farm machinery
B. Generating electricity without burning fossil fuels
C. Pumping natural gas without injecting chemicals into groundwater
D. Circulating water and nutrients in some seas without installing ocean floor pumps -
Correct Answers -B. Generating electricity without burning fossil fuels
The nucleotides of a single strand of DNA are linked together by which of the following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Ionic bonds
B. Peptide bonds
C. Hydrogen bonds
D. Phosphodiester bonds - Correct Answers -D. Phosphodiester bonds
Which of the following pathways is common to both fermentation and aerobic cellular
respiration?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Glycolysis
B. Electron transport chain
C. Photophosphorylation
D. Citric acid cycle - Correct Answers -A. Glycolysis
In a germinating seedling, the root grows downward into the soil. Which of the following
correctly explains this phenomenon?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The root exhibits positive gravitropism.
B. The root exhibits positive phototropism.
C. The root cells respond to water in the soil.
QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Which of the following terms indicates the ecological role that an organism plays in a
community?
A. Biome
B. Niche
C. Ecotone
D. Territory - Correct Answers -B. Niche
Which of the following characteristics distinguishes members of the domain Eukarya
from members of the domains Archaea and Bacteria?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The ability to perform photosynthesis
B. The ability to replicate chromosomes
C. The presence of RNA polymerase
D. The presence of a nuclear envelope - Correct Answers -D. The presence of a
nuclear envelope
Valine is typically classified as a hydrophobic amino acid because a valine molecule has
which of the following types of side chains?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Polar and neutral
B. Nonpolar
C. Positively charged
D. Negatively charged - Correct Answers -B. Nonpolar
A teacher asks students to describe how the data collected in an experiment are
typically used as evidence. Which of the following responses is the most accurate?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. "The data are used to confirm an existing belief."
B. "The data are used as facts that cannot be questioned or criticized."
C. "The data are used to support or reject a hypothesis."
D. "The data are used to make a theory into a law." - Correct Answers -C. "The data are
used to support or reject a hypothesis."
,Which of the following biomes is characterized by long winters and short summers,
snow as the predominant form of precipitation, soil that is acidic and poor in nutrients,
and wooded areas made up mostly of evergreen trees with needlelike leaves?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Savanna
B. Boreal forest
C. Hot and dry desert
D. Tropical rain forest - Correct Answers -B. Boreal forest
One strand of a certain segment of DNA has the following nucleotide sequence.
5 prime, A G A T G T C C A G T A, 3 prime5′−AGATGTCCAGTA−3′5′-
AGATGTCCAGTA-3′
The complementary strand in the same segment of DNA most likely has which of the
following nucleotide sequences?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. 3′-TCTACAGGTCAT-5′
B. 3′-CTCGTGAACTGC-5′
C. 3′-GAGCACTTGACG-5′
D. 3′−AGATGTCCAGTA−5′ - Correct Answers -A. 3′-TCTACAGGTCAT-5′
The overall process of aerobic cellular respiration is best described as the oxidation of
glucose to produce carbon dioxide and the reduction of oxygen to produce which of the
following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. ADP
B. NADH
C. Sucrose
D. Water - Correct Answers -D. Water
The overall process of aerobic cellular respiration is best described as the oxidation of
glucose to produce carbon dioxide and the reduction of oxygen to produce water.
Oxygen acts as the final electron acceptor in oxidative phosphorylation, resulting in the
production of water.
A student uses stationary fans to investigate the effect of wind on water loss by plants.
The student divides the plants into three treatment groups and places each group in
front of a fan. The student sets the fan for each group to one of three different levels:
low, medium, or high. After 24 hours, the student determines the amount of water that
was lost by each plant. To create a bar graph of the results, the student should make
the height of each bar represent which of the following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The fan speed for each treatment group
B. The number of plants in each treatment group
C. The average water loss for each treatment group
D. The duration of wind exposure for each treatment group - Correct Answers -C. The
average water loss for each treatment group
,Interphase is the part of the cell cycle that includes which of the following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Cytokinesis
B. Synapsis of homologous chromosomes
C. Replication of DNA
D. Condensation of chromosomes - Correct Answers -C. Replication of DNA
A model of secondary succession typically includes which of the following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The arrival of pioneer species
B. Changes in species composition over time
C. A community structure that remains stable over time
D. The addition of rock to Earth's surface as a result of a volcanic eruption - Correct
Answers -B. Changes in species composition over time
Which TWO of the following are typically present in a bacterial cell but not in a virus?
Answer the question by selecting the correct responses.
A. Ribosomes
B. DNA replication machinery
C. A genome
D. Reverse transcriptase - Correct Answers -A. Ribosomes
B. DNA replication machinery
Which TWO of the following ecological benefits are typically associated with frequent
low-intensity wildfires?
Answer the question by selecting the correct responses.
A. Recycling of nutrients
B. Removal of dead underbrush
C. Formation of new topsoil from exposed rocks
D. Establishment of shade-tolerant plant species - Correct Answers -A. Recycling of
nutrients
B. Removal of dead underbrush
Which of the following is most likely true about the first cells that arose on Earth?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. They used cilia for locomotion.
B. They were eukaryotes.
C. They were photosynthetic.
D. They were anaerobes. - Correct Answers -D. They were anaerobes.
The first cells that arose on Earth, a process that occurred at least 3.5 billion years ago,
were most likely anaerobic prokaryotes. Oxygen entered Earth's atmosphere only after
bacteria similar to cyanobacteria arose and split water as they carried out
photosynthesis.
, Which of the following properties of water is responsible for the solubility of many
different molecules in aqueous fluids such as blood and urine?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The low density of solid water in comparison to liquid water
B. The polarity of water molecules
C. The high specific heat of water
D. The approximately neutral pH of water - Correct Answers -B. The polarity of water
molecules
Water molecules are polar because oxygen is more electronegative than hydrogen. The
oxygen region of a water molecule has a partial negative charge, and the hydrogen
regions have partial positive charges. The separately charged regions enable water to
hydrate molecules that also have partially charged regions, which increases the
solubility of the molecules.
Wind turbines are used for which of the following activities?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Maintaining a breeze over crops growing in an arid environment without using a lot of
farm machinery
B. Generating electricity without burning fossil fuels
C. Pumping natural gas without injecting chemicals into groundwater
D. Circulating water and nutrients in some seas without installing ocean floor pumps -
Correct Answers -B. Generating electricity without burning fossil fuels
The nucleotides of a single strand of DNA are linked together by which of the following?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Ionic bonds
B. Peptide bonds
C. Hydrogen bonds
D. Phosphodiester bonds - Correct Answers -D. Phosphodiester bonds
Which of the following pathways is common to both fermentation and aerobic cellular
respiration?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. Glycolysis
B. Electron transport chain
C. Photophosphorylation
D. Citric acid cycle - Correct Answers -A. Glycolysis
In a germinating seedling, the root grows downward into the soil. Which of the following
correctly explains this phenomenon?
Answer the question by selecting the correct response.
A. The root exhibits positive gravitropism.
B. The root exhibits positive phototropism.
C. The root cells respond to water in the soil.
