6 exam-style questions with full mark schemes and model answers. Write your own answer and the AI examiner marks it against the mark scheme.
Learn this properly: Structure of the HeartMara is a 15-year-old club swimmer. As she swims a hard 200 m, the rate of gaseous exchange at her alveoli rises far above its resting value.
Explain how the structure of the alveoli, together with the changes that happen during exercise, allows oxygen to be exchanged efficiently between the air in the lungs and Mara's blood. (6 marks)
During a rowing session, Tomás has a heart rate of 165 bpm and a stroke volume of 130 ml per beat.
(a) Define cardiac output and calculate Tomás's cardiac output during the session, using Q=SV×HR. Give the unit. (3 marks)
(b) Tomás's resting heart rate is 52 bpm, lower than that of an untrained classmate. Give one reason why a trained performer typically has a lower resting heart rate. (1 mark)
A sports science technician records the minute ventilation of a hockey player, Esme, before and during a match. Minute ventilation is found using breathing rate × tidal volume.
| Stage | Breathing rate (breaths/min) | Tidal volume (litres) |
|---|---|---|
| At rest | 14 | 0.5 |
| During play | 35 | 2.4 |
(a) Calculate Esme's minute ventilation at rest and during play, showing your working. (2 marks)
(b) Using your figures, state how many times greater her minute ventilation is during play than at rest, and explain in one sentence why her body needs this increase. (1 mark)
Blood vessels differ in structure according to their function. A coach is explaining the cardiovascular system to a netball squad.
(a) State one structural difference between an artery and a vein, and explain how that difference suits the vein to its function. (2 marks)
(b) Name the type of blood vessel where gaseous exchange takes place at the muscles, and give one structural feature that makes it suited to this role. (1 mark)
When Dev begins a sprint, blood is redistributed so that a greater proportion flows to his working leg muscles and less flows to organs such as his stomach.
Describe the roles of vasodilation and vasoconstriction in redistributing Dev's blood during the sprint. (2 marks)
Air follows a fixed pathway into the lungs each time a performer breathes in.
Name the muscle, dome-shaped and located beneath the lungs, that contracts and flattens to help draw air into the lungs during inspiration. (1 mark)