The cell cycle and why cells divide
Grade 9 Science Worksheet - Challenge Me
Circle the best answer.
Read this first
Onion root tip counts from a slide (model data)
stage cells counted interphase 170 mitosis 24 cytokinesis 6 In all, 200 cells were counted, and one full cycle takes 20 hours.
Ari estimates time from the slide: cells in a stage ÷ total cells × cycle time. About how many hours of the cycle are spent in interphase?
- 0 hours, because interphase is a rest and is not counted
- 8.5 hours
- 17 hours
- 2.4 hours, because mitosis is the whole cycle
Bo uses the same slide. About how long does the mitotic phase, mitosis plus cytokinesis, last?
- 2.4 hours
- 15 hours
- 3 hours
- 17 hours
Esme says cytokinesis takes longer than mitosis because it comes last. Does the slide support this?
- Yes: 6 cells is the shorter count, so that stage lasts longer
- No: 24 mitosis cells to 6 cytokinesis cells means mitosis lasts about 4 times as long
- Yes: the stage that comes last takes the longest
- No: the two last equally long, since both are in the mitotic phase
Cycle wheel (model, not to scale), clockwise from the top
G1, S, G2, mitosis (M), cytokinesis. A model cell has 10 chromosomes in G1 (model data). The cell then goes once around the wheel.
Jun follows the model cell. How many chromatids does it have at the end of G2, and how many chromosomes does each daughter cell have?
- 20 chromatids; 20 chromosomes in each daughter
- 20 chromatids; 10 chromosomes in each daughter
- 10 chromatids; 10 chromosomes in each daughter
- 20 chromatids; 5 chromosomes in each daughter
Cycle wheel (model, not to scale), clockwise from the top
G1, S, G2, mitosis (M), cytokinesis. A human body cell has 46 chromosomes in G1. The drawn cell is in the middle of mitosis: its sister chromatids have just been pulled to opposite ends, each now counted as a chromosome, and the cell has not yet split.
Kira looks at the drawn cell, which has not split yet. How many chromosomes are in the whole cell now, and how many gather at each end?
- 92 in the cell, 46 at each end
- 46 in the cell, 46 at each end
- 92 in the cell, 92 at each end
- 46 in the cell, 23 at each end
Use this
Notebook (model data), 4 rows. Columns: line, what it says. 1, Interphase has three parts: G1, S and G2. 2, DNA is copied during mitosis, so each daughter gets a full set. 3, Mitosis moves the copied chromosomes apart. 4, Cytokinesis divides the cytoplasm after the nucleus has divided.
Milo reviews a classmate's notebook. Exactly one line is wrong. Which line, and why?
- Line 3, because mitosis covers the whole cycle, not one step
- Line 4, because cytokinesis happens before mitosis
- Line 1, because interphase is a rest and has no parts
- Line 2, because DNA is copied in S, before mitosis
Notebook (model data)
line what it says 1 Doubling a cube cell's side makes its surface area 4 times larger 2 The same doubling makes its volume 8 times larger 3 So a larger cell has a smaller surface-area-to-volume ratio 4 A smaller ratio means the larger cell exchanges materials better Noah checks a notebook on cell size. Exactly one line is wrong. Which line, and why?
- Line 1, because doubling the side makes the surface area 2 times larger
- Line 2, because doubling the side makes the volume 4 times larger
- Line 4, because a smaller ratio means less membrane for each unit of volume
- Line 3, because a larger cell has more membrane and so a higher ratio
Use this
Notebook (model data), 4 rows. Columns: line, what it says. 1, A human body cell has 46 chromosomes in G1. 2, After S, it still has 46 chromosomes, now 92 chromatids. 3, Each daughter cell gets 92 chromosomes. 4, Cytokinesis comes after the chromosomes are sorted into two groups.
Pia proofreads a notebook about chromosome counts. Exactly one line is wrong. Which line, and why?
- Line 4, because cytokinesis happens before the chromosomes are sorted
- Line 1, because a human body cell has 23 chromosomes
- Line 2, because copying the DNA makes 92 chromosomes
- Line 3, because each daughter gets 46, the same as the parent
Card (real data, from OpenStax Biology 2e)
kind of cell cell turnover early human embryo cell a few hours epithelial cell 2 to 5 days on average cortical neuron (a nerve cell) a whole lifetime spent in G0 Ren writes: body cells keep dividing, so a mature nerve cell must divide often. Does the card support this?
- No: a nerve cell divides within a few hours, like an embryo cell
- Yes: cells that are not dividing are resting in interphase
- No: a nerve cell spends its lifetime in G0 and does not divide
- Yes: cells keep dividing, so a nerve cell just takes longer
Tala claims the 60 µm cell exchanges materials better because it has 9 times the surface area. Is the claim sound?
- Yes: a larger cell has a higher ratio because both numbers grow
- No: its volume is 27 times larger, so its ratio is lower, 0.1 against 0.3
- Yes: more surface area means more membrane to exchange through
- No: both cells have the same ratio, since both are cubes
