8B

Classification and Biodiversity

Accuracy and Estimates
Types of Reproduction
Pollination
 8Ba Classification and Biodiversity
We use different characteristics of organisms to classify them into groups. The five largest
groups are the kingdoms, and they are:
• Animals- They have no cell walls, they are multicellular, and they feed on other
organisms.
• Plants- Their cell walls are made of cellulose, they are multicellular, and they make
their own food.
• Fungi- They have cell walls made of chitin, they are mostly multicellular, and they feed
on other organisms.
• Protoctists- Their cells are mostly unicellular
• Prokaryotes-Their cells have no nucleus, and they are unicellular.
 8Ba Classification and Biodiversity
Plants
Flowering plants- Roots, xylem tissue, flowers, and large, flat leaves. They do not have cones.
Conifers- Roots, xylem tissue, cones, and needle-shaped leaves. They do not have flowers.
Ferns- Roots, and xylem tissue. They do not have flowers or cones
Mosses- Thin leaves that lose water. They do not have roots or xylem tissue

Scientific names for bluebells in different countries:

• England: Hyacinthoides non-scripta
• Australia: Sollya heterophylla
• USA: Mertensia virginica
(The Scientific names are in Latin)

Biodiversity
Habitats countaining many different species have greater biodiversity. If an organim becomes extinct, it will affect
other organisms in that habitat and may cause them to become extinct too.Areas with greater biodiversity recover
faster from disasters.
 8Ba Accuracy and Estimates
Accuracy is a measure of how close a value is to its real value. The closer a measure is to the real value,
the more accurate it is. Estimate is an approximate value. We use estimates when we do not need
accurate values to explain or describe something.
How to use a sample to estimate a size
Worked example: A jar is 30 cm tall. We take out the seeds from the top 1 cm (a sample). There are 46 of them. Now, we
work out how much bigger the whole jar is compared with the sample
1 cm contains      46 seeds
×30                                                         ×30
30 cm contains      1380 seeds
This is an estimate because we have assumed there are exactly 46 seeds in every 1 cm section of the jar.
 8Ba Accuracy and Estimates
Sampling Organisms
Scientists use samples to estimate populations. Samples can be taken using a square frame called a quadrat, which is placed
in different plces around a habitat. In each place, the organisms inside it are observed, and thoes of intrest are counted. A
quadrat needs to be placed at random. Worked example: We want to estimate the number of dndelions in a lawn. The lawn
is a rectangle 20 m long and 12.5 m wide:
Area of lawn= 20×12.5= 250m² | A quadrat is a square with sides 0.5m: area of quadrat= o.5×0.5= 2.25m² | Quadrat placed 20
times. 4 dandilion counted: total are sampled= 20×0.25= 5m². Now, we work out how much bigger the whole lawn area is
compared with the sample:
5m² contains     4 dandilions
250m² contains     200 dandilion
Estimated number of dandilions: 200. We have assumed there are 4 dandilions in every 5m² of lawn
 8Bb Types of Reproduction 
Sexual reproduction is when two organisms breed and produce new organisms. Members of the same
species canreproduce sexually to produce offspring that can also reproduce sexually. Members of two
different species cannot usually reproduce, but if they do, the offspring are called hybrids. Hybrids
cannot reproduce sexually; they are not fertile. Example: a plumcot is a fruit from a hybrid of a plum
tree and an apricot tree.
Sexual reproduction produces offspring that do not look exactly like their parents; they have different
characteristics from each parent. These characteristics are inherited and so variation these
characteristics is called inherited variation.
In sexual reproduction, the parents produce sex cells or gametes. A male gamete and a female gamete
join to form fertilised egg cell or a  zygote.
 8Bc Pollination
What are flowers for?
Flowering plants use flowers for sexual reproduction. Most flowers contain both male and female
reproductive organs.
What is pollination?
Each pollen grain contains a male sex cell. Pollen grains rippen inside anthers, which then split open. The
grains are then transferred to the stigmas. This is called pollenation.
Pollination can occur by:
• Wind
• Water
• Animals
• The plant that is insect pollinated has bright, colourful petals. Plants pollinated by water has stamen and
pollen grains that are spongy and water-proof, and light weight. The plant that is wind pollinated has
no petals.
 8Bd Fertilisation and Dispersal
How does fertilisation lead to the formation of a seed?
If  a pollen grain reaches a stigma of the same spieces, it can grow a pollen
tube. The stigma makes a sugary solution, providing a source of energy for the
pollen tube to go down the style and into the ovary. It eventually reached the
ovule
The next stage is fertilisation, when the egg cell and male gamete from the
pollen grain join and the nuclei fuses into one. This forms a zygote.
The zygote splits into two using cell division, These cells keep on dividing to
form and embryo. The embryo develops a tiny root and shoot.
 8Bd Fertilisation and Dispersal

Seed dispersal
Fruits spread seeds away from the parent plants. This is called seed dispersal. Some fruits
are tasy and fleshy, but many are brightly coloured to attract animals to eat them. The
flesh gets digested, but the seed is protected from the digestive system. The seeds are
egested (passed out) by the animals in their faeces.
Other fruits are dry. They use animals, wind and water to disperse their seeds. Seed
dispersal allows plant species to spread to new areas. It also means that new plants are
not in competition with their parents.
 8B Quiz

1. Name the five kingdoms

2. Which groups can plants be split into?

3. What is sexual reproduction?

4. What three things can pollenation occur by?

 8B Quiz Answers

1. Animals, Fungi, Protoctists, Prokaryotes, and plants

2. Flowering plants, Conifers, Ferns, and Mosses

3. Sexual reproduction is when two organisms breed and produce new organisms.

4. Wind, Water, and Animals

5. When Fruits spread seeds away from the parent plants.

 8C
Aerobic Respiration
Gas Exchange System
Means and ranges
Getting Oxygen
Comparing gas exchange
Anaerobic respiration
 8Ca Aerobic respiration
Living things need energy for everything they do, including growing and reproducing.
This energy comes from glucose. All animals and humans get glucose through eating
it, but plants need to make their own glucose during photosynthesis.
Plants and animals transport glucose and oxygen to tiny structures in their cells, called
mitochondria. Here, the glucose and oxygen take part in a chemical reaction. The
reaction is called aerobic respiration, and it produces energy which transfers to the
cells.
Aerobic respiration makes two waste products:carbon dioxide and water. Animals
remove carbon dioxide from their bodies when they breathe out. In daytime, plants
use some of this carbon dioxide for photosynthesis. At night, they release the carbon
dioxide to their surroundings
 8Cb Gas Exchange system
The human gas exchange system
The human lungs provide an exchange surface adapted for:
• absorbing oxygen – needed for respiration – into the blood from the
air
• transferring carbon dioxide – produced by respiration – from the
blood into the lungs then the air
The lungs are organs enclosed within the chest or thorax. Air needs to
be breathed in to be brought into contact with the exchange surfaces
within the lungs. This process is called ventilation.
 8Cb Means and Ranges
A mean basically means average. It is when there are a few numbers,
and you add them all up and divide it by how many mumbers there
are. E.g. To work out the mean of 123, 456, 789, add them together
which is 1368 and then divide it by , which is 456. The mean is 456.

A range is when you subtract the lowest number from the highest
number. E.g. The range of 123, 456, 789 is 789-123 which is 666.
 8Cc Getting Oxygen
Red blood cells do not contain a nucleus so they can contain more
haemoglobin. Oxygen combines with haemoglobin to form
oxyhaemoglobin: Oxygen binds reversibly to haemoglobin.
When oxygen gets into the blood, it enters the red blood cells where it sticks to
the haemoglobin. This makes the cells change colour, from dark browny-red to
bright red.
Without enough oxygen, your cells start to die. This can happen because of:
• Narrowed blood cells
• Poisons
• Poor gas exchange in the lungs
 8Cd Comparing Gas Exchange
Fish, insects and mammals have all adapted their gas exchange systems
to suit their environment.  But the different environments and
requirements for the animals have caused different adaptations in them.
 

The gas exchange surface must be moist so that gases can dissolve and
then go through the membrane.  Fish live in a moist environment so
do not need to use energy to keep their gas exchange surface moist like
insects and mammals do.  
 8Cd Comparing Gas Exchange
  Both insects and mammals have internalised gas exchange surfaces to
keep them moist and reduce water loss via evaporation.  Mammals
have a mucus lining on the trachea and alveoli to maintain the moist
surface.  Insects have a drop of liquid at the ends of the tracheal so
that gases may dissolve. 
 8Cd Anaerobic Respiration
In anaerobic respiration, glucose breaks down without oxygen. The chemical
reaction transfers energy from glucose to the cell. Anaerobic respiration
produces lactic acid, rather than carbon dioxide and water. Unfortunately, this
can lead to painful muscle cramps. 

• Anaerobic respiration transfers energy from glucose to cells.

• It occurs when oxygen is not present.
• It transfers large amounts of energy quickly.
 8C Quiz
1. Which two things take part in a chemical reaction during aerobic
respiration?

2. Aerobic respiration makes two waste products. What are they?

3. The human lungs provide an exchange surface adapted for what?

4. What are some reasons for your cells dying.

 8C Quiz Answers
1. Oxygen and glucose

2. Carbon dioxide and water

3. Absorbing oxygan and transferring carbon dioxide

4. Narrowed blood cells, Poisons, or Poor gas exchange in the lungs

 8E
Burning Fuels
Oxidation
Fire Safety
Air Pollution
Global warming
Reducing Pollution
 8E Burining Fuels
A fuel is a chemical substance from which stored enegy can be transferred usefully to make things
happen. Hydrogen is a gas that can be used as a fuel. 
We can model the reaction in a fuel cell using a word equation:
Hydrogen+ ogygen➜ water
Hydrogen combustion
Combustion does not happen in fuel cells, but hydrogen does also combust with oxygen. For this to
happen, energy from a spark or flame is needed to start the reaction. The reaction continues without
needing any more energy, but the energy is released a nd transferred to the surroundings. Some of the
energy is transferred by heating (we can feel it) and some if transferred by light (we can see it)
Most fules used in car engines also transfer energy during combustion reactions with alcohol. Petrol
and diesel are fossil fules. Fossil fules are fuels produced from living organisms millions of years ago
 8Eb Oxidation
Water is so familiar that we use its everyday name. A chemical name that reffers to the
elements in it would be hydrogen oxide. This name makes it easier to see that hydrogen
reacts with oxygen to form a compound called oxide. This kind of reaction is called
oxidation.
Hydrogen and carbon are both non-metals. However, many metals also react with
oxygen to produce metal oxides:
Metal+ oxygen ➜ metal oxide
Conversion of mass
Mass is never gained or lost in a chemical reaction. This idea is known as the law
conversion of mass. No new atoms are created nor can they disappear.
 8Ec Fire Safety
Combustion reactions are exothermic, which means that they release heat. The heat can
be measured using a thermometer. 
A fire triange has all the factors that starts a fire. They are oxygen, fuel and heat. To put
out a fire, you must remove at least one factor.
Fire extinguishers put out fires. If you use the wrong fire extinguisher, then you might
make the fire worse. Water removes heat from the fire, carbon dioxide can
remove the oxygen from the fire, foam can remove oxygen from the fire, fire blankets can
remove oxygen from the fire. If you use the wrong one, then you can make the fire worse
and that is dangerous.
 8Ed Air Pollution
When carbon carbon burns in pleanty of air, only carbon dioxide is formed. This is called
complete combustion because all the carbon reacts as fully as it can with oxygen.
However, if there is not enough oxygen, the carbon will undergo incomplete combustion.
This can happen in vehicle engines.
Incomplete combustion of carbon results in a mixture of products:
• Carbon dioxide gas from carbon that reacts completely with oxygen
• Carbon monoxide gas from carbon that reacts partly with oxygen
• Soot particle, made up of carbon that has not reacted with oxygen.
Vehicles have catalytic converters to form more carbon dioxide and to break
down nitrogen oxide. The pollutants from the vehicles can affect the environment and
harm the organisms. 
 8Ee Global Warming
Most of the energy that causes the Earth's surface to warm up is trasferred to
the Earth from the Sun. Some of the energy is trapped within the Earth's
atmosphere by greenhouse gases, including carbon dioxide. This warming effect
is called the greenhouse effect. Without it, the surface of the Earth would be too
cold for most living things.
As carbon dioxide is of the greenhouse gases, scientists predict that increasing
the amount of it in the air will increase the greenhouse effect and so make the
Earth's surface warmer. This increase in the greenhouse effect is known as
global warming. This could lead to climate change including changes to
weather patterns, causing more storms, floods or droughts.
 8Ee Reducing Pollution
How can we reduce pollution from cars even further?
Air pollution from transport has been reduced by using filters, catalytic
converters and new engines that use less fuel. To reduce it even further, people
will need to change the way they travel.
How the government tries to persuade people to change the way they travel:
• Road tax
• Annual tests
• Congestion charges
• Fuel prices
•
 8E Quiz
1. What are fossil fules?

2. When hydrogen reacts with oxygen, what is it called?

3. What factor does water remove from a fire?

4. What are catalytic converters for?

5. What is the increase of the greenhouse effect known as?

 8C Quiz Answers
1. Fossil fules are fuels produced from living organisms millions of years ago.

2. This kind of reaction is called oxidation

3. Water removes heat from the fire

4. To form more carbon dioxide and to break down nitrogen oxide.

5. Global warming