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 structure is the main bundle of nerve fibres connecting the left and right cerebral hemispheres?
- ACerebral peduncle
- BFornix
- CCorpus callosum
- DInternal capsule
2.Human anatomyHard
Which muscle "unlocks" the fully extended knee by rotating the femur laterally on the tibia at the start of flexion?
- ASartorius
- BPopliteus
- CBiceps femoris
- DGastrocnemius
3.Human physiologyMedium
Why does glucose appear in the urine in uncontrolled diabetes mellitus?
- AInsulin is needed for glucose reabsorption in the tubule
- BThe collecting duct actively secretes glucose
- CThe filtered load exceeds the tubular transport maximum
- DThe glomerulus stops filtering glucose
4.Human physiologyHard
Which adaptation develops over days to weeks at high altitude?
- AHigher erythropoietin levels and more red blood cells
- BIncreased renal bicarbonate retention
- CLower ventilation to save oxygen
- DA fall in haematocrit
5.Biology for nursing entrance examsMedium
How does cytokinesis differ between animal cells and plant cells?
- AOnly animal cells carry out cytokinesis
- BAnimal cells pinch in with a furrow; plant cells build a cell plate
- COnly plant cells carry out cytokinesis
- DAnimal cells build a cell plate; plant cells pinch in with a furrow
6.Biology for nursing entrance examsHard
HIV infects and destroys helper T cells. Why do people with untreated advanced HIV get infections that healthy people rarely get?
- ATheir immune response is too weak to control normally harmless microbes
- BHIV kills the normal flora of the skin and gut
- CHelper T cells make the antibiotics that the body needs to fight infection
- DThe virus turns harmless microbes into pathogens
7.Chemistry for nursing entrance examsMedium
What is the density of an object with a mass of 50 g and a volume of 20 cm³?
- A0.4 g/cm³
- B1000 g/cm³
- C70 g/cm³
- D2.5 g/cm³
8.Chemistry for nursing entrance examsHard
A solution has a hydroxide ion concentration of 1 × 10⁻³ mol/L. What is its pH at 25 °C?
- A11
- B14
- C7
- D3
3Solutions
1.Human anatomy
Answer: C · Corpus callosum
Why this is the answer
The corpus callosum is the largest commissure, linking matching areas of the two hemispheres. The internal capsule carries projection fibres up and down instead.
2.Human anatomy
Answer: B · Popliteus
Why this is the answer
At full extension the knee locks by medial rotation of the femur. Popliteus laterally rotates the femur on the fixed tibia to unlock it so flexion can begin.
3.Human physiology
Answer: C · The filtered load exceeds the tubular transport maximum
Why this is the answer
Proximal tubule SGLT carriers can reabsorb only so much glucose. When plasma glucose is high, the filtered load exceeds this maximum and the excess is excreted.
C · The filtered load exceeds the tubular transport maximum
4.Human physiology
Answer: A · Higher erythropoietin levels and more red blood cells
Why this is the answer
Hypoxia stimulates EPO and red cell production, raising oxygen-carrying capacity. Hyperventilation causes alkalosis, which the kidneys compensate by excreting bicarbonate.
A · Higher erythropoietin levels and more red blood cells
5.Biology for nursing entrance exams
Answer: B · Animal cells pinch in with a furrow; plant cells build a cell plate
Why this is the answer
In animal cells a ring of protein filaments pinches the cell in two along a cleavage furrow. Plant cells have a stiff wall, so they build a new cell plate across the middle, which becomes the new wall.
B · Animal cells pinch in with a furrow; plant cells build a cell plate
6.Biology for nursing entrance exams
Answer: A · Their immune response is too weak to control normally harmless microbes
Why this is the answer
Helper T cells activate B cells and cytotoxic T cells. When they are lost, the immune system cannot control microbes that it would normally keep in check, leading to opportunistic infections.
A · Their immune response is too weak to control normally harmless microbes
7.Chemistry for nursing entrance exams
Answer: D · 2.5 g/cm³
Why this is the answer
ρ = 50 g ÷ 20 cm³ = 2.5 g/cm³. It is denser than water (1 g/cm³) and would sink.
8.Chemistry for nursing entrance exams
Answer: A · 11
Why this is the answer
pOH = −log(10⁻³) = 3, so pH = 14 − 3 = 11. Answering 3 confuses pOH with pH.