Life Science Capstone: Explain, Test & Revise — Practice · Grade 7 Science

Chapter: Evolution, Evidence & Life History

What this practice covers

By the end of Life Science Capstone: Explain, Test & Revise you should be able to:

8 questions, written answer, multiple choice and numeric, each with a worked explanation.

Vocabulary used: inquiry report, assumption, alternative explanation, qualification, revision.

Problem 1

Why define the population and interval?
Answer and explanation

They determine what the measured change concerns and prevent a local record from becoming a universal claim.

Problem 2

Why must the report explain what each source contributes?
Answer and explanation

Different records answer different questions; combining names without connections does not establish the mechanism.

Problem 3

How should an assumed inheritance rule be reported?
Answer and explanation

State it as a supplied model assumption and distinguish it from measured offspring evidence.

Problem 4

What makes a next test useful?
Answer and explanation

It addresses a defined uncertainty or alternative explanation rather than merely repeating an unsupported conclusion.

Problem 5

Illustrative inherited-seed model: generation one has 30 of 100 plants with Variant A; generation two has 45 of 100. A contributes more surviving offspring under the stated conditions, but movement and other populations were not measured. Calculate the change, explain a selection mechanism, identify an alternative or limit, and propose a next observation.
Answer and explanation

Variant A rises from 30% to 45%, a 15-percentage-point increase. Given the supplied inherited trait and greater surviving-offspring contribution, selection is a supported mechanism in this model. Unmeasured movement or sampling can also affect frequencies. Record reproductive outcomes across more generations and compare movement or matched conditions before generalizing beyond this fictional population.

Find frequencies: 30% and 45%.

Change is 15 percentage points.

Connect inheritance and reproductive contribution; examine movement and other evidence.

Response criteria

  • Explain the relevant biological process accurately.
  • Use the supplied evidence and show calculation steps with units where needed.
  • Connect a labeled model or mechanism with the claim.
  • State an assumption, evidence limitation, or useful next observation.

Problem 6

A project uses only a graph of frequencies and claims a specific new mutation caused the change. What evidence is missing?
Answer and explanation

The graph does not identify a new sequence change or its transmission. Genetic and reproductive evidence, with alternatives such as movement and sampling considered, would be needed.

Response criteria

  • Explain the relevant biological process accurately.
  • Use the supplied evidence and show calculation steps with units where needed.
  • Connect a labeled model or mechanism with the claim.
  • State an assumption, evidence limitation, or useful next observation.

Problem 7

Which improves an inquiry conclusion?
  1. State its evidence and limitation
  2. Omit every assumption
  3. Call one graph universal proof
  4. Copy a model without reading the record
Answer and explanation

State its evidence and limitation

A clear evidence connection and qualification make the conclusion assessable.

Problem 8

A variant share rises from 25% to 40%. Find the increase in percentage points.
Answer and explanation

15 percentage points

40−25=15 percentage points; a relative percent increase is a different calculation.

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