Trials @ Presec – 3/8/2025

CONTEST 3

ROUND 1

PREAMBLE: State one precaution each to be taken to obtain a good focus when using
a compound light microscope.
Ans:
• Always look through the eyepiece with your two eyes open
• To remove a slide from the stage, turn your objective lens to low power.
• In selecting your objective piece lens, make sure you hear a ‘click’ sound with
the chosen lens pointing to the stage as you turn your revolving nose
• Always begin with the low power objective lens and end with the low power
objective lens.

PREAMBLE: State one function of the Endoplasmic Reticulum (E.R)

➢ They assemble synthesized materials

➢ They provide mechanical support to the cytoplasm
➢ The smooth E.R produce proteins especially enzymes
➢ The smooth E.R manufacture phospholipids that form the plasma membrane and
the membrane of other cell organelles.
➢ The R. E.R is responsible for the transfer of synthesized protein made by the
ribosome. Also provide surface for the attachment of ribosomes
➢ The members of the endoplasmic reticulum serves as a conducting pathways
for the movement of other materials in the cell
➢ The endoplasmic reticulum is the framework which divides the internal volume
of the cell into separate compartments.

PREAMBLE: State one postulate each of the Bohr atomic model.

Answers:

1. Electrons orbit the nucleus in circular paths at fixed distances from

the nucleus.
2. Only certain discrete orbits with quantized energy levels are
allowed for electrons.
3. The angular momentum of an electron in a particular orbit is
quantized according to (mvr = nh/2π), where m is the mass of the
electron, v is its velocity, r is the radius of the orbit, n is a positive
integer representing the energy level, and h is Planck's constant.
4. Electrons can only change orbits by emitting or absorbing energy
equal to the difference in energy between the initial and final orbits.

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PREAMBLE: A train starts its journey 50 m from town A, with an initial velocity of u
m/s, accelerating constantly at 4m/s2. Give an expression for the,

1. Distance covered from its starting point after t seconds.

Ans:[ (ut + 2t2) meters]
2. Velocity after t seconds from its starting point.
Ans: [ (u + 4t) ms-1]
3. Distance covered from town A after t seconds.
Ans: [ (50 + ut + 2t2) meters]
4. Time taken to attain a velocity of 8ms-1
Ans: [ (2 – u/4) or (8 – u)/4 ms-1]

PREAMBLE: Find a completely factorized quadratic function f(x), given that;

1. f(1) = f(2) = 0 and f(-1) = 12 Ans: f(x) = 2(x – 1)(x – 2)

2. f(-2) = f(3) = 0 and f(-1) = – 12 Ans: f(x) = 3(x + 2)(x – 3)
3. f(-1) = f(-3) = 0 and f(-4) = 6 Ans: f(x) = 2(x + 1)(x + 3)

PREAMBLE: Find the finite area bounded by the given curve and the x – axis.

1. y = 9 – x2 Ans. 36

2. y = 1 – x2 Ans. 4/3
3. y = x – x2 Ans. 1/6

1. The pH of a 500.0 cm3 solution of a strong monoprotic acid is 3.0. Given its
molar mass as 96 g/mol, how many grams of the acid was dissolved in
solution? Answer: 0.048 g
2. The pH of a 250 cm3 solution of a strong diprotic acid is 4.0. Given its molar
mass as 84 g/mol, how many grams of the acid was dissolved in solution?
Answer: 0.0012 g
3. The pH of a 1.0 dm3 solution of a strong monoprotic base is 11. Given its
molar mass as 58 g/mol, how many grams of the base was dissolved in
solution? Answer: 0.058 g

1. A radioisotope has a half-life of 20 minutes. What fraction of the original

nuclei will remain after 2 hours? Ans: 1//64
2. A radioisotope has a half-life of 6 hours. What fraction of the original nuclei
will remain after 1 day? Ans: 1/16
3. A radioisotope has a half-life of 2 days. What fraction of the original nuclei
will remain after 2 weeks? Ans: 1/128

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 Trials @ Presec – 3/8/2025

ROUND 2 SPEED RACE

1. What is the importance of the palisade mesophyll cell in plants?

Answer: It is responsible for the manufacture of food by photosynthesis.
2. State the 3 main components of the peripheral nervous system.
a. Cranial nerves
b. Spinal nerves
c. Autonomic nervous system
3. Which carbohydrate molecule is a principal component of the cell wall of
Mycota?
Answer: Chitin

1. Nuclide G of mass number 83 decays by electron capture into a nuclide of atomic

number 36. How many electrons are there in a neutral atom of nuclide G? Ans: [37]

2. A charged metal sphere of radius 0.4 m has a potential of 900V. Find the number
of excess protons on its surface. Ans: [3 ×1011 protons]

3. The point of application of the force (4.0i + 3.0k)N moves from the point with
position vector ( – 2.0i – j)m to the point with position vector (i + 2.0k)m. Find the
work done by the force. Ans: [18J]

1. Solve the absolute of cos(2x) = 1/2, for the interval 0 < x < π.
Ans. x = π/6 or x = π/3.
2. Given that logab = c, express in terms of c: loga(a3/b4) Ans. 3 – 4c.
3. There are four seats in a car, including the driver’s seat, in how many ways
can four people sit in the car if only two of them can drive? Ans. 12

1. Determine the number of molecules present in 4.6 g of Toluene (C7H8). Given

that Avogadros’ number is 6.0 × 1023 and atomic mass of carbon as 12 g/mol
and hydrogen as 1.0 g/mol,

Ans: 3.0 × 1022 molecules

2. For successive ionizations, the following are values of energies for an

element Y on the periodic table; 578; 1,817; 2,745; 11,577 and 14,830 all in
kJ/mol. Suggest which group element X belongs

Answer: Group 3

3. Determine the mole fraction of 13.4 g of lithium iodide dissolved in 9.0 g of

water. Take Li = 7.0; I = 127 Ans: 1/6 or 0.17

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 Trials @ Presec – 3/8/2025

ROUND 3 TRUE OR FALSE

1. Blood transports energy as the most critical substance to cells throughout the
body.

Answer: FALSE

2. The pulmonary arteries return deoxygenated blood from the lungs to the heart

Answer: FALSE

3. Arterioles connect capillaries to veins.

Answer: FALSE

4. Most oxygen in blood is transported in the plasma.

Answer: FALSE

PREAMBLE: State whether the following are true or false with respect to
Parenchyma tissues

• The cells are larger with thin walls. T

• The cells have intercellular spaces between them. T
• The cells are living with permanent nucleus. T
• They undergo rapid mitotic cell division at maturity. T

1. The base angles of an inscribed trapezium are congruent. Ans. True.

2. A parallelogram inscribed in a circle is a rectangle. Ans. True.
3. In a circle, if a diameter bisects a chord then it is perpendicular to the chord.
Ans. True.

PREAMBLE: Given that f(x) = sin-1x, then;

1. – 1 ≤ f(x) ≤ 1. Ans. False

2. – 1 ≤ x ≤ 1. Ans. True
3. – π/2 ≤ f(x) ≤ π/2. Ans. True

1. Heat energy is the total internal energy of a system due to the random motions of
its particles. F
2. Heat is energy in transit due to a temperature difference between systems or bet
ween a system and its surroundings. T
3. Thermal energy is the total internal energy of a system due to the random motion
s of its particles. T
4. Thermal energy is also measured in joules in the International System of Units. Ho

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wever, it is often discussed in terms of temperature as a related measure of the syst

em's thermal state. T

PREAMBLE: The following are Ohmic conductors:

1. Silver T
2. Tungsten F
3. Iron T
4. Arsenic F

1. Alloys are almost always stronger than the pure metals they are composed of
Answer: True
2. Alloys are made of up metals only Answer: False
3. Alloys attain a uniform atomic size when formed Answer: False

1. Under similar conditions, the rate of diffusion of nitrogen gas (N2) and carbon
monoxide gas (CO) are the same Answer: True
2. The rate of diffusion of Sulphur(iv) oxide gas (SO2) is half that of methane gas
(CH4) Answer: False
3. If it takes 10 seconds for nitrogen monoxide (NO) to effuse through a small ho
le, it will take more than 10 seconds for oxygen gas (O2) to effuse through the
hole under the same conditions Answer: True

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 Trials @ Presec – 3/8/2025

ROUND 4 RIDDLES

1. I may sound feminine but I am not even a living organism

2. I am a derivative of the carbonyl group

3. I occur widely in nature and of great interest to the flavour chemist

4. Both the natural and synthetic forms of me are used in perfumes and as
flavouring agents

5. I am a functional group

6. I am formed when carboxylic acids and alcohols are heated together in the
presence of an acid catalyst

Who am I?

Answer: Ester OR Alkyl Alkanoate

1. I am an essential measuring tool most often used in physics

2. I am designed to provide accurate measurements of objects that cannot easily be

measured with traditional measuring tools

3. I could be a wood, metal or plastic

4. I have calibrations (markings) in centimeter and millimeter measurements along its

length, ensuring accurate measurements every time.

5. I am used in checking the alignment of objects in physics experiments, distance

between two points, calculate the velocity of an object in motion and primarily for
the measurement of length, width, and height of objects.

6. I have a length of one meter (or 100 centimeters).

Who am I?

Answer: Metre Rule

1. I am an enzyme secreting accessory gland

2. I am an exocrine gland found in the mouth.

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 Trials @ Presec – 3/8/2025

3. I am found in the mucous membrane of the lips (labial), cheeks (buccal), tongue
(lingual) and palate (palatine)

4. I secrete minute quantities of lingual lipase (salivary lipase), an enzyme that

begins fat digestion in the stomach.

Who am I?

Answer: Ebner’s gland

1. I am a three-dimensional shape.

2. You can say I am a polyhedron.

3. My base is a bisection through the middle forming two square pyramids

4. I have 12 edges and eight flat triangular faces

5. I also have 6 vertices.

6. If a polygon of eight sides is an octagon, then who am I?

Who am I?

Answer: Octahedron