Maths questions
Maths questions will appear throughout both exam papers (Breadth and Depth), and at both Foundation tier and Higher tier.
Don't forget to take a ruler and a calculator into the exams.
Maths questions often start with the command word 'calculate', followed by a blank space for your working. It is important that you show your working - don't just write the answer down. You might earn marks for your working even if you get the answer wrong.
Always include the correct units for your answer, unless they are already given on the answer line. This may earn you an additional mark.
Check carefully to see if the question tells you to round your answer to a particular number of significant figures or decimal places. And don't forget to check your rounding.
If the question does not tell you to round your answer but it has lots of decimal places, you should give your answer to the same number of significant figures as the data in the question. For example, if two significant figures are used in the question, then usually your answer should also be given to two significant figures.
Other command words you might see in maths questions include:
- 'predict' (look at some data and suggest an outcome - don't just guess, look at trends in the data and use your scientific knowledge and understanding to make a sensible suggestion)
- 'estimate' (suggest a rough value without doing a calculation - don't just guess, use your scientific knowledge and understanding to make a sensible suggestion)
- 'show' (write down the details, steps or calculations to prove that an answer is correct)
Maths questions might include tables and graphs as well as calculations. When drawing a graph, make sure you:
- put the independent variable (the factor you changed) on the x-axis
- put the dependent variable (the factor you measured) on the y-axis
- construct regular scales for the axes
- label each axis with the quantity and units, eg time (s)
- plot each point accurately
- decide whether the origin (0,0) should be used as a data point
- draw a straight or curved line of best fit if appropriate.
Sample question 1 - Foundation
Question
The table below shows some information about red blood cells and the cells taken from the cheek of a human.
| Red blood cell | Cheek cell | |
| Surface area (μm2) | 136 | 7,854 |
| Volume (μm3) | 90 | 65,450 |
| Surface area:volume ratio | 0.12:1 |
| Surface area (μm2) | |
|---|---|
| Red blood cell | 136 |
| Cheek cell | 7,854 |
| Volume (μm3) | |
|---|---|
| Red blood cell | 90 |
| Cheek cell | 65,450 |
| Surface area:volume ratio | |
|---|---|
| Red blood cell | |
| Cheek cell | 0.12:1 |
Calculate the surface to volume ratio of the red blood cell.
Show your working.
Give your answer to two significant figures. [1 mark]
OCR 21st Century, GCE Biology, Paper J257 - Higher, 2016.
Make sure you give your answer to two significant figures as stated in the question.
Surface area to volume ratio of red blood cell = 136:90 = 1.5:1
Sample question 2 - Foundation
Question
One product of aerobic respiration is the gas carbon dioxide.
Carbon dioxide can be collected over a certain period of time and then the amount collected used to calculate the rate of respiration.
If 23 cm3 of carbon dioxide gas was collected in 5 minutes, what was the rate of respiration in cm3/min? [1 mark].
This question has been written by a Bitesize consultant as a suggestion to the type of question that may appear in an exam paper.
23 ÷ 5 = 4.6 cm3/min
Sample question 3 - Higher
Question
Cells come in different shapes and sizes.
Look at the diagrams of two spherical cells A and B.
Estimate how many times larger cell B is than cell A.
Describe the method you used to make your estimation. [3 marks]
OCR 21st Century, GCE Biology, Paper J257 - Higher, 2016.
Note how in the question the word spherical is highlighted. This means you need to work out how much bigger cell B is compared to cell A in terms of the 3D volume of the cell. You also need to say how you came to your answer - is your estimate based on the width or the area or the volume?
1 mark - answers related to width only, ie 4 times larger
2 marks - answers related to the area of the cells, ie 12-20 times larger
3 marks - answers related to the volume of the cells, ie 60-70 times larger
Sample question 4 - Higher
Question
New body cells are created as part of the cell cycle. This is represented in the diagram below.
The whole cell cycle, in this example, takes 141 minutes.
Calculate the length of time spent in mitosis.
Give your answer to two decimal places.
OCR 21st Century, GCE Biology, Paper J257 - Higher, 2016.
This question already gives you the units in the space where you write your answer. If the units are not written then you need to make sure that you include them to get the maximum number of marks.
(141 ÷ 360) × 70 [1 mark]
= 27.42 (minutes) [1 mark]
