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A2 Biology OCR June 2015 Revision Thread

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Reply 140
Hi , has anyone done the immobilised enzyme task? My teacher hasn't given me any prep and we haven't even done the content properly. Can anyone help me please?? :confused:
Original post by ChoccyPhilly
The main problem I have with the exam is that it seems so straight forward when in reality it's not.

Some people are fortunate enough to have the same mind frame as the people who write up the mark scheme.
I am sadly not one of those people but hey, might as well give it everything you have


This is so me
I think of the stupidest answers
Reading the how science works esqe paragraphs and stretch and challenge questions in the textbook helps though. Also try to draw links between parts of the course (eg in F215 the brain and control of muscles to F214's homeostasis and control)
39/40 on coursework yes then


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Reply 143
Does anyone have a model answer for this question? :smile:

Describe the structure of the collagen molecule? 6 Marks
Original post by Beni24
Does anyone have a model answer for this question? :smile:

Describe the structure of the collagen molecule? 6 Marks


This is AS...? Won't be able to answer as well as someone doing it right now soz

Structural/Fibruous protein
insoluble in water
Made up of amino acid monomers
3 polypeptide chains with crosslinks between
also H-bonds between polypeptide chains
Every three amino acids there's a molecule of glycine or something like that
Hydrophobic out, philic in
Where it's found in the body lol
Could someone clarify what the texbook means on page 60, LHS of How the structure of chloroplasts enables them to carry out their function? I'm confused about the relationship between lamellae, grana and thylakoids.

The first bit says:

"The inner [chloroplast membrane]... is folded into lamellae (thin plates)..... each stack of lamelleae is called a granum (plural grana"

But further down it says that grana are not stacks of lamellae, but actually:

"Grana are stacks of flattened membrane componenets called the thylakoids".

The diagrams do not ever label lamellae, only ever intergranal lamellea, so what is the answer to this (apparent) contradiction? Is the textbook wrong, or is it right but just poorly worded? Could someone explain please! :smile: Thanks!
Original post by HappyHumanist
Could someone clarify what the texbook means on page 60, LHS of How the structure of chloroplasts enables them to carry out their function? I'm confused about the relationship between lamellae, grana and thylakoids.

The first bit says:

"The inner [chloroplast membrane]... is folded into lamellae (thin plates)..... each stack of lamelleae is called a granum (plural grana"

But further down it says that grana are not stacks of lamellae, but actually:

"Grana are stacks of flattened membrane componenets called the thylakoids".

The diagrams do not ever label lamellae, only ever intergranal lamellea, so what is the answer to this (apparent) contradiction? Is the textbook wrong, or is it right but just poorly worded? Could someone explain please! :smile: Thanks!


Thylakoids: disk thingies.
Granum: Stack of disk thingies.
Grana: plural, stacks of disk thingies.
Lamella: the membrane which you find the stacks of disk thingies on

Not even trying to be patronising, this is literally how I remember things. Move outwards.
Anyone know any good biology teacher living around Bedfordshire area and is ocr

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Original post by adekunle
Anyone know any good biology teacher living around Bedfordshire area and is ocr

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Nope, sorry! You could try teachers at your school or a tutoring agency, they could hook you up with one

done unit four and half of unit five, I have a mock in a month for unit five and I'm feeling screwed :/ why is there so much to learn!?
Does anyone have any good revision techniques? Or like how to do good in the exams?

I know this sounds really broad and not specific at all, but I just find it really hard to do good in the exams. I generally know the content but my answers always seem to be lacking or I just don't understand what the questions are asking me.

I know I need to practise exam techniques, but how do I actually do that? One person suggested I go through papers with my notes, the mark scheme and also the examiners report.
I will definitely be trying this out but does anyone have any other ideas? Or have any techniques that worked well for them?

I would really appreciate all the help! :smile:



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I need to go from an E at AS to a B overall to this and I'm so so stressed. The mark schemes are so frustrating - I always end up going into detail and then not actually getting any marks because the examiners put a really simple answer.


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Original post by nishuchh
Does anyone have any good revision techniques? Or like how to do good in the exams?

I know this sounds really broad and not specific at all, but I just find it really hard to do good in the exams. I generally now the content but my answers always seem to be lacking or I just don't understand what the questions are asking me.

I know I need to practise exam techniques, but how do I actually do that? One person suggested I go through papers with my notes, the mark scheme and also the examiners report.
I will definitely be trying this out but does anyone have any other ideas? Or have any techniques that worked well for them?

I would really appreciate all the help! :smile:



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If you go back to page six, I have written a mahoosive piece on doing well in the exams! Hope it helps :smile:
Original post by AnnekaChan173
Nope, sorry! You could try teachers at your school or a tutoring agency, they could hook you up with one

done unit four and half of unit five, I have a mock in a month for unit five and I'm feeling screwed :/ why is there so much to learn!?


dude wtf I haven't even started revising for biology yet. :frown:
Original post by tomixox
If you go back to page six, I have written a mahoosive piece on doing well in the exams! Hope it helps :smile:


Oh wow thank you so much! I actually did have the CGP book last year and it helped me loads, but I didn't buy it this year. Idk why the hell I didn't tbh. Lol let me go on Amazon and order it riiiighhhtttt now! Haha Are you doing your A2s as well?


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Can someone help me with the immobilised enzyme isa?


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Original post by Solarburst
How is it even possible to get such high marks in the coursework?

That for someone who is aiming for an A* oh god haha, probably gunna have to get practically full ums in the exams like last year fgs

I've got no idea how they get those marks.

I've got 33 for physics and probably similar for chemistry. That means that I'll need roughly 95% UMS in the exams for both subjects.

In biology the practical assessments seem more difficult and I do worse than the other subjects, so there's no chance of me getting an A*.
Original post by nishuchh
Oh wow thank you so much! I actually did have the CGP book last year and it helped me loads, but I didn't buy it this year. Idk why the hell I didn't tbh. Lol let me go on Amazon and order it riiiighhhtttt now! Haha Are you doing your A2s as well?


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Yeah definitely get it!!!! Yeah I am! Biology Econ and maths! What about you?
Original post by tomixox
Yeah definitely get it!!!! Yeah I am! Biology Econ and maths! What about you?


Haha I ordered it 😁 I'm doing bio, chem and maths. How's it going?


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Reply 158
Am I the only one who finds the second unit a lot harder than the first for A2?? :/

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Original post by frozo123
dude wtf I haven't even started revising for biology yet. :frown:


Did you just miss the part where I said I've only done half of unit five lolololol, like properly learning it
I'm a slow learner so I have to start earlier, currently on a slump and work experience, so I haven't really been working for the last few days
And I need an A*
at this point i'm considering going back to church because need all the help i can get with some of these unit 5 12 markers sweet jesus i'm so done with biotech and dna

Original post by nishuchh
Oh wow thank you so much! I actually did have the CGP book last year and it helped me loads, but I didn't buy it this year. Idk why the hell I didn't tbh. Lol let me go on Amazon and order it riiiighhhtttt now! Haha Are you doing your A2s as well?
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I did the same thing for some reason, even though that little green book was my saving grace last year, proof I didn't look at how hard unit 5 was early in the year. Should have listened better when we were learning before mocks :/


Original post by Hmht
Am I the only one who finds the second unit a lot harder than the first for A2?? :/

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It's actually a joke
Why couldn't they have put something easier (dont pelt me if you dont find it easy but me and human biology just work ok) like Excretion in unit 5 and one of the bigger annoying ones like Biotech in unit 4
Now I think about it excretion is actually so random
(edited 9 years ago)

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