The living world

Question 1

Describe the different levels within the animal kingdom

Answer 1

The animal kingdom has been broadly classified into two, based on the presence or absence of notochord- Non-Chordata and Chordata. Chordates possess notochord while non-chordates lack it. Animals belonging to the Phylum Porifera to Phylum Echinoderms are non-chordates.

Question 2

Apply the classification systems

Answer 2

animals (all multicellular animals)

plants (all green plants)
fungi (moulds,

mushrooms, yeast)
protists (Amoeba,

Chlorella and Plasmodium)

prokaryotes (bacteria, blue-green algae)

Question 3

State why new organisms need to be classified

Answer 3

Living organisms are classified into groups depending on their structure and characteristics. This system was developed in the eighteenth century by Carl Linnaeus.

Question 4

Problems with classification

Answer 4

However, there are several major problems with this approach… The diagnostic classification systems are notoriously unreliable.

Question 5

Contrast plant and animal cells

Answer 5

The main difference between plant and animal cells is that plant cells are rigid and autotrophic, while animal cells are flexible and heterotrophic

Question 6

Explain why plants are called producers

Answer 6

When we talk about plants as producers, we are referring to their ability to produce their own food through a process called photosynthesis.

Question 7

Word equation for photosyntesis

Answer 7

6 CO 2 + 6 H 2 O → C 6 H 12 O 6 + 6 O 2

Question 8

Describe the differences between monocot and dicot plants

Answer 8

of seed leaves 2 seed leaves 1 seed leaf

Monocots (or monocotyledons) are plants which have seed with one cotyledon. When the seed germinates, the embryo has one seed leaf. There are around 65,000 species of monocots.

A dicot (or dicotyledon) has seeds which have two cotyledons. The plant embryo has two seed leaves, which differ in appearance from the mature leaves

Question 9

Differences between fungi and plants

Answer 9

One of the main differences between plants and fungi is that fungi have chitin as a component of their cell walls instead of cellulose. Both chitin and cellulose are comprised of polysaccharide chains. In plants the monomer in this chain is glucose and in fungi it is a modified form of glucose called N-acetylglucosamine.