1Formulas and methods
Biology for nursing entrance exams
Method
- Name the topic of the question: cell parts, transport, division, DNA and protein synthesis, inheritance, biomolecules, microorganisms or experimental design.
- Recall the key rule: A–T and G–C, diffusion from high to low, water moves towards more solute, mitosis keeps and meiosis halves the chromosome number.
- For crosses, write the parents’ genotypes, list the gametes and fill a Punnett square before counting.
- For experiments, label the independent, dependent and controlled variables, and ask whether the evidence supports or only suggests the conclusion.
- Check each option against the question asked, not just whether it is a true statement.
Chemistry for nursing entrance exams
Method
- Identify what is given and asked: particles, a formula, a state change, a concentration, a pH or a mass.
- Use the periodic table: the atomic number gives protons, the group gives valence electrons and the usual ion charge.
- Balance equations with coefficients only, element by element, oxygen and hydrogen last.
- For amounts, go mass → moles → mole ratio → moles → mass, and for solutions use M = mol/L and C₁V₁ = C₂V₂.
- Remember that pH is logarithmic: one unit is a factor of 10.
2Practice problems
1.Human anatomyMedium
Which spinal nerve roots form the brachial plexus?
- AC1 to C4
- BT1 to T5
- CC3 to C7
- DC5 to T1
2.Human anatomyHard
A typical posterolateral disc herniation between L4 and L5 most often compresses which nerve root?
- AL4
- BL3
- CS1
- DL5
3.Human physiologyMedium
What is anatomical dead space?
- AThe volume of the conducting airways where no gas exchange happens
- BThe air that stays in the lungs after full exhalation (residual volume)
- CThe space between the two pleural layers
- DAlveoli that have collapsed completely
4.Human physiologyHard
Why does a deep sea diver risk decompression sickness when surfacing quickly?
- AThe lungs collapse when the pressure falls
- BCarbon dioxide cannot leave the lungs fast enough
- COxygen becomes toxic at the surface
- DNitrogen dissolved at high pressure forms bubbles as the pressure falls
5.Biology for nursing entrance examsMedium
How can bacteria pass antibiotic-resistance genes directly to other bacteria?
- ABy mitosis, sharing copies of their chromosomes with neighbours
- BBy osmosis, moving genes in water
- CBy meiosis, forming gametes with new alleles
- DBy conjugation, transferring plasmids through a pilus
6.Biology for nursing entrance examsHard
A plant cell is placed in a strong salt solution. Its membrane and cytoplasm pull away from the cell wall. What is this called?
- ALysis
- BTurgor
- CCrenation
- DPlasmolysis
7.Chemistry for nursing entrance examsMedium
Why does water boil at a lower temperature at the top of a high mountain?
- AGravity is weaker, so the molecules escape more easily
- BThe air pressure is lower, so less vapour pressure is needed to boil
- CThe air is colder, so the water loses heat and boils sooner
- DThere is less oxygen dissolved in the water up there
8.Chemistry for nursing entrance examsHard
Which compound contains both ionic and covalent bonds?
- AWater, H₂O
- BSodium sulfate, Na₂SO₄
- CMethane, CH₄
- DSodium chloride, NaCl
3Solutions
1.Human anatomy
Answer: D · C5 to T1
Why this is the answer
The brachial plexus is formed by the ventral rami of C5, C6, C7, C8 and T1. It gives rise to the main nerves of the arm.
2.Human anatomy
Answer: D · L5
Why this is the answer
A posterolateral L4–L5 herniation usually catches the traversing L5 root, causing weakness of big toe extension and numbness on the top of the foot.
3.Human physiology
Answer: A · The volume of the conducting airways where no gas exchange happens
Why this is the answer
Anatomical dead space (about 150 ml) is air in the nose, trachea and bronchi. It is moved with every breath but never reaches the alveoli.
A · The volume of the conducting airways where no gas exchange happens
4.Human physiology
Answer: D · Nitrogen dissolved at high pressure forms bubbles as the pressure falls
Why this is the answer
At depth more nitrogen dissolves in the tissues. If pressure falls too fast it comes out of solution as bubbles in tissues and blood, causing "the bends".
D · Nitrogen dissolved at high pressure forms bubbles as the pressure falls
5.Biology for nursing entrance exams
Answer: D · By conjugation, transferring plasmids through a pilus
Why this is the answer
In conjugation one bacterium transfers a copy of a plasmid to another through a bridge called a pilus. Plasmids often carry resistance genes, which can spread quickly even between species.
D · By conjugation, transferring plasmids through a pilus
6.Biology for nursing entrance exams
Answer: D · Plasmolysis
Why this is the answer
Plasmolysis is the shrinking of the cytoplasm away from the wall of a plant cell as water leaves by osmosis. Crenation is the shrinking of an animal cell, lysis is bursting, and turgor is the pressure of a full cell.
7.Chemistry for nursing entrance exams
Answer: B · The air pressure is lower, so less vapour pressure is needed to boil
Why this is the answer
At high altitude the atmospheric pressure is lower, so water's vapour pressure reaches it at a lower temperature. Water therefore boils below 100 °C, and food takes longer to cook.
B · The air pressure is lower, so less vapour pressure is needed to boil
8.Chemistry for nursing entrance exams
Answer: B · Sodium sulfate, Na₂SO₄
Why this is the answer
In Na₂SO₄ the Na⁺ ions are held to the sulfate ion by ionic bonds, while the S and O atoms within SO₄²⁻ are joined by covalent bonds. CH₄ and H₂O are only covalent; NaCl is only ionic.
B · Sodium sulfate, Na₂SO₄