CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY SCIENCE 9: END-OF-UNIT TEST ANSWERS

Unit 1
Answers
1 a to make chlorophyll [1]
b The more magnesium a plant is given, the more new leaves it produces. [1]
c Table drawn with ruled columns and rows and all entries correct. [1]
Each column with a full heading, including units. (Units not to be in cells.) [1]

mass of magnesium in g number of new leaves

0.5 3

1.0 5

1.5 6

2.0 4

2.5 1

2 67 million years ago, an asteroid collided with the Earth.

This filled the air with dust. Less light could reach the ground, so plants could not photosynthesise.
The climate of the Earth changed, as it became cooler.
Many animals could not survive, because they did not have enough food. There was a mass
extinction.
One mark for any two correct words [2]
3 a Decomposers obtain their carbon from dead animals and plants. [1]
Combustion of fossil fuels adds carbon dioxide to the air. [1]
b Chloroplast is part of a plant cell where photosynthesis takes place. [1]
Chlorophyll is a green pigment / substance that absorbs light energy for photosynthesis. [1]

[Total: 10 marks]

Cambridge Lower Secondary Science 9 – Mary Jones, Diane Fellowes-Freeman and Michael Smyth © Cambridge University Press 2021 1
 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY SCIENCE 9: END-OF-UNIT TEST ANSWERS

Unit 2
Answers
1 a lithium [1]
b potassium [1]
2 a An ion describes an atom that has lost or gained at least one electron and is a particle
that has an electric charge. [1]
b A potassium ion is more stable than a potassium atom because the outer shell or
energy level or its structure is full of electrons. [1]
3 A covalent bond is formed when a pair of electrons is shared by two atoms [1]
Ionic compounds have higher melting and boiling points than covalent compounds [1]
Magnesium chloride and magnesium sulfate are ionic compounds. [1]
4 Answers should state that only ionic compounds conduct electricity. It should include a
description of the equipment to test for electrical conductivity: a cell or battery,
electrical wires, a lamp and carbon electrodes or clips on to solids. Also a brief outline
of how to carry out the test using the apparatus. Credit any useful diagrams. [3]

[Total: 10 marks]

Cambridge Lower Secondary Science 9 – Mary Jones, Diane Fellowes-Freeman and Michael Smyth © Cambridge University Press 2021 2
 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY SCIENCE 9: END-OF-UNIT TEST ANSWERS

Unit 3
Answers
mass
1 a density = [1]
volume
b i air [1]
ii gases have the lowest density / particles in gases are further apart than in solids or liquids. [1]
c It will float [no mark for this statement alone] because it is less dense than water. [1]
2 Match quantities to descriptions [1]
Match descriptions to units [1]
Temperature → average energy of all particles in a substance → °C.
Heat → total energy of all particles in a substance → J
3 1500 – 1300 [1]
= 200 (J) [1]
4 A is at a higher temperature than B. [1]
Because thermal energy flows from hotter objects to colder objects. [1]

[Total: 10 marks]

Cambridge Lower Secondary Science 9 – Mary Jones, Diane Fellowes-Freeman and Michael Smyth © Cambridge University Press 2021 3
 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY SCIENCE 9: END-OF-UNIT TEST ANSWERS

Unit 4
Answers
1 a Both heights are 4.0 cm. [1]
b The more water they are given, the taller the seedlings grow. [1]
c To make her results more reliable. [1]
d root hair, xylem, leaves [1]
2 a to make haemoglobin [1]
to transport oxygen [1]
b To prevent the fetus being exposed to nicotine/carbon monoxide. [1]
This will reduce birthweight [1]

3
C D F B A E

C and D correct [1]

B, A and E correct [1]

[Total: 10 marks]

Cambridge Lower Secondary Science 9 – Mary Jones, Diane Fellowes-Freeman and Michael Smyth © Cambridge University Press 2021 4
 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY SCIENCE 9: END-OF-UNIT TEST ANSWERS

Unit 5
Answers
1 a zinc + copper sulfate → zinc sulfate + copper [1]
b Zn + CuSO4 →ZnSO4 + Cu [1]
c magnesium + iron sulfate →magnesium sulfate + iron [1]
d Mg + FeSO4 →MgSO4 + Fe [1]
2 zinc [1]
3 a H2SO4 [1]
b nitric acid [1]
c zinc chloride [1]
4 Any correct risk [1]
Any correct way of overcoming that risk [1]
Examples of these are given below:
When handling acid, acid could come into contact with eyes or skin. Safety glasses should be worn to
avoid splashes in the eye, care should be taken while pouring the acid into a beaker to avoid spills,
water should be available to dilute any spills.
When heating the solution, it is liable to ‘spit’, which could burn the hands and/or face. Safety glasses
should be worn, care should be taken not to stand too close to the evaporating basin when it is being
heated, the Bunsen burner should be turned off when not in use.
[Total: 10 marks]

Cambridge Lower Secondary Science 9 – Mary Jones, Diane Fellowes-Freeman and Michael Smyth © Cambridge University Press 2021 5
 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY SCIENCE 9: END-OF-UNIT TEST ANSWERS

Unit 6
Answers
1 As the loudness of a sound increases, the amplitude of the sound wave increases.
As the pitch of a sound increases, the frequency of the sound wave increases. [1]
2 The loudest sound is B and the highest-pitched sound is D. [1]
3 a Wave peaks and troughs in the same positions on x-axis and crosses mid-point at same
positions (any amplitude). [1]
b i nothing / quiet / silence [1]
ii Amplitude and frequency are the same. [1]
4 C [1]
5 a clouds of dust and gas in space [1]
b Any two from: [1]
Stellar nurseries are where stars are formed.
Stars give out their own light.
If a (dark) nebula contained a stellar nursery / formed stars, then it would not appear dark.
6 a convection currents (within the mantle / the layer below the crust) [1]
b The movement of the plates causes the earthquakes.
Earthquakes tend to happen close to plate boundaries / locations of earthquakes are
not random. [1]

[Total: 10 marks]

Cambridge Lower Secondary Science 9 – Mary Jones, Diane Fellowes-Freeman and Michael Smyth © Cambridge University Press 2021 6
 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY SCIENCE 9: END-OF-UNIT TEST ANSWERS

Unit 7
Answers
1 a Nicotine increases the percentage of abnormal sperm cells / the greater the quantity of
nicotine given, the greater the percentage of abnormal sperm cells. [1]
b to get to an egg / to fertilise an egg [1]
c Any three from the following: [3]
each sperm cell contains either an X or a Y chromosome
sperm cell fuses with an egg cell containing an X chromosome
A new cell / fertilised egg / zygote, contains either XX or XY chromosomes
XX gives female and XY gives male
2 DNA: a chemical with molecules shaped like a twisted ladder [2]
chromosome: a thread-like structure contained in the nucleus of a cell
gene: part of a chromosome that helps to determine a characteristic
inheritance: the passing on of DNA from parents to offspring
[Give 1 mark for any two correct]
3 a
D C E A B

D and C correct [1]

A and B correct [1]
b natural selection [1]

[Total: 10 marks]

Cambridge Lower Secondary Science 9 – Mary Jones, Diane Fellowes-Freeman and Michael Smyth © Cambridge University Press 2021 7
 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY SCIENCE 9: END-OF-UNIT TEST ANSWERS

Unit 8
Answers
1 a B [1]
b A [1]
c C [1]
2 She should measure the volume of (carbon dioxide) gas produced. [1]
She should do this every minute (accept any sensible regular length of time). [1]
3 a When you crush solid marble chips into a powder, you increase the surface area. [1]
b Increasing the surface area of a reactant increases the rate of reaction. [1]
c The higher the temperature, the faster the rate of reaction will be. [1]
4 If you increase the concentration of one or more of the reactants, there will be more particles
available to react. More particles mean that there are more likely to be collisions between
the reactants that happen with enough energy for a reaction to take place. Thus, the rate of
reaction increases. (Allow one mark for mentioning that there are more particles and the
other for the increase in collisions.) [2]

[Total: 10 marks]

Cambridge Lower Secondary Science 9 – Mary Jones, Diane Fellowes-Freeman and Michael Smyth © Cambridge University Press 2021 8
 CAMBRIDGE LOWER SECONDARY SCIENCE 9: END-OF-UNIT TEST ANSWERS

Unit 9
Answers
1 A2 = 2.5 (A) [1]
A3 = 2.5 (A) [1]
2 a To measure the current in the lamp, an ammeter is connected in series with the lamp. [1]
b To measure the voltage across the lamp, a voltmeter is connected in parallel with the lamp. [1]
3 a 1.5 (V) [1]
4 voltage = current x resistance or V = IR or 2 × 10 [1]
Answer = 20 (V) [1]
5 circuit drawn with 1 cell, 1 lamp and 1 buzzer in parallel with a switch on each branch [1]
variable resistor in series with the lamp [1]
no gaps at corners and no wires drawn through or into components [1]

[Total: 10 marks]

Cambridge Lower Secondary Science 9 – Mary Jones, Diane Fellowes-Freeman and Michael Smyth © Cambridge University Press 2021 9