VCE Biology Question Thread

[Domek]

So would you use the p1000 pipette and set it to 180
Not sure when to go to first or second stops

You're on the right track. Because you want to transfer 1080 無 I would first use the p1000 pipette to transfer 1000 無 as the p1000 pipette has an accurate range of 200-1000 無. To transfer the remaining 80 無 I would use the p200 pipette which has a range of 20-200 無. In each case I would set each pipette to the desired volume, and place the appropriate tip on the pipette. Then I would press the plunger down to the first stop, insert the pipette vertically into the solution and slowly lift my thumb of the plunger to allow the pipette to aspirate the solution. To dispense the solution into the test tube, I would gently place the pipette tip against the test tube wall at an angle and drag the tip slightly up along the wall, with the plunger pressed to the second stop so that the last amount of liquid comes out.

[Chocolatepistachio]

Which of the following amino acids is not inside an alpha helix?
A alanine
B glycine 
C phenylalanine
D proline

Would this be both c and d

[Rose34]

Hello,

Does anyone from previous years recommend a website where I can find free questions for each topic in units 3&4 bio? I want a website that helps with SAC practice and Exams as well.
Also, can anyone advice me of how to get full answers on long answer questions? Is there a specific structure I should be following? Last year I lost most marks becuase I could not write the answer well even though I knew the concept. (since I do legal when we see questions like "discuss, evaluate.." we know that we should be defining any key words in the question and give advantages and disadvantages as well as a conclusion, so I was wondering if there is something like this in bio too)

Thanks in advance,
Rose.

[Frostflake]

Hi !!

Could someone tell me what topics from 1/2 are needed for 3/4? I'm in year 10 and I'm not taking 1/2 bio this year but I want to take 3/4 next year so I was wondering what topics to study on my own. Also, do you think getting a score above 40 or even 45 is achievable if you haven't done 1/2? Thanks!

[Sine]

Hi !!

Could someone tell me what topics from 1/2 are needed for 3/4? I'm in year 10 and I'm not taking 1/2 bio this year but I want to take 3/4 next year so I was wondering what topics to study on my own. Also, do you think getting a score above 40 or even 45 is achievable if you haven't done 1/2? Thanks!

Yes definitely, you can still get even a 50 if you haven't done 1/2. Not much of 1/2 content is that relevant apart from those larger biological concepts. You could even just started off studying 3/4 bio rather than starting with 1/2 since the topics vary quite a bit and what is taught during 1/2 biology is largely school dependent.

[Frostflake]

Yes definitely, you can still get even a 50 if you haven't done 1/2. Not much of 1/2 content is that relevant apart from those larger biological concepts. You could even just started off studying 3/4 bio rather than starting with 1/2 since the topics vary quite a bit and what is taught during 1/2 biology is largely school dependent.

Thank you so much!

[tash.barron]

How do you describe CRISPR in terms of how it works?

[insanipi]

How do you describe CRISPR in terms of how it works?

CRISPR does take time to get your head around. I do recommend watching some YouTube videos about the basics of CRISPR and CRISPR-Cas9 to get a better understanding because just reading text may not be the easiest thing to help conceptualise this topic. (It helped me with my honours in the area, I went into that with the knowledge that it existed, but not the how I needed so I definitely understand haha)

click for a brief description

Assuming you mean how it works with bacteria defense (I believe this is at the VCE level, someone else can correct me if it's above that level):
- A bacteriophage inserts its nucleic acids into the bacterium.
- Bacterium takes a portion of viral nucleic acid and stores it in its own genome (these areas are called spacers. This is important for CRIPSR function).
- When the same virus attacks again, bacterium transcribes the stored viral DNA, and forms a complex structure with an endonuclease called Cas9.
- The transcribed strand is complementary to the viral nucleic acids, and helps Cas9 to recognise the viral sequence and cut it.

[evassmith]

how do you do well?

[lm21074]

how do you do well?

Hi Eva and welcome to ATAR Notes!

Plenty of guides on how to do well in bio here.

My three top tips for VCE bio (which might overlap with some of the guides) would be:

1. Understand the content. Clarify any points of confusion online or with a teacher. Make sure you really get the concepts because that's pretty much the first step in applying them to questions in exams.

2. Test yourself. This could be as simple as using flashcards, past SACs, or exam questions like those featured in checkpoints books.

3. Keywords. Yes, you can know the content inside and out but if you don't include some keywords in your answers, you might not get the marks. My teachers like the inclusion of 'specific' (e.g. specific antibody, enzyme, etc.). Have a look at past SAC and VCAA mark schemes and ask your teacher about these.

Good luck

[Amadas_]

Hi!
I would like some advice. On my first bio sac I got 62%. I am not quite happy with it
If I got 85% on my next 4 sacs and got the same for the exam, what study score can I expect to get?
I know that this year 50% of the sac marks contribute to the overall study score.

[lm21074]

Hey,

It's really hard to say what SAC marks you need to get particular study scores. Your raw marks get moderated up or down and your raw SAC marks don't really end up being the marks that show up on your statement of results. Depends on factors like your cohorts' performance, SAC difficulty and exam difficulty.

For example, I got in the 60s for most of my bio SACs and they ended up scaling up to A and A+. My school had super hard bio SACs (at least IMO) and so they moderated up. This might be similar or different to what occurs with your cohort. I think I ended up with a B+ on the exam and got a 35. Not sure what percentages a B+ on the exam correlate to but I remember an 80 being an A+ on the exam most years - you'd have to double check the grade distributions to be sure. If you get 85 in the exam and your GA1 and GA2 (U3 and U4 SAC marks) are also 85, you should have a good shot at getting above 40.

I know it's not nice to have that uncertainty of not knowing what score you could expect. We have a section on the forum called Victorian Technical Discussion that has some guides on how you could  predict your study score.


Good luck, keeping pushing through

[Amadas_]

Hey

Would I be able to know what are the inputs and outputs that I have to know for glycolysis, Kreb cycle, and electron transport chain?
I use the edrolo textbook and the textbook has different ones from the edrolo videos, I'm not sure which one to go by?

Thankss!

[valjaybj]

hey does anyone know where i can find answers to the short answer section of the 2022 sample exam? thanks

[valjaybj]

Hey

Would I be able to know what are the inputs and outputs that I have to know for glycolysis, Kreb cycle, and electron transport chain?
I use the edrolo textbook and the textbook has different ones from the edrolo videos, I'm not sure which one to go by?

Thankss!

hey, for sure!
Inputs:
Glycolysis - glucose, ADP + Pi, NAD
Krebs - pyruvate / acetyl coa (vcaa accepts both answers here; if you've learned about the linking reaction then feel free to say acetyl coa, but if you haven't then pyruvate is still correct (and in most examination reports vcaa uses pyruvate as the answer), NAD, FAD, ADP + Pi
ETC - NADH, FADH2, oxygen

Outputs:
Glycolysis - 2 pyruvates, NADH, 2 ATP
Krebs - 2ATP, CO2, NADH, FADH2
ETC - NAD, FAD, H2O, 26-28 ATP (vcaa has specified for the new study design, the number of ATP made in the ETC is 26-28 so stick to these numbers!)

Hope this helps!