A bacterium copies its chromosome and splits into two cells by binary fission. How does the DNA of the two new cells compare with the DNA of the parent cell?Wikipedia, "Fission (biology)"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1E.3
A cell has ribosomes and a cell membrane but no nucleus and no membrane-bound organelles. What kind of cell is it?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Cell; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1C.2
A cell makes a protein that will be exported from the cell. Which organelle processes and packages the protein before it leaves?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Golgi Body; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1C.1
A cell moves ions from a region of lower concentration to a region of higher concentration. What does this kind of transport require?SEER Training Modules (National Cancer Institute), "Cell Function"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1D.1
Show all 55 questions (51 more)
Cells and Energy, continued
A dye molecule spreads through a membrane from the side where it is more concentrated to the side where it is less concentrated. The cell uses no energy. What is this process called?SEER Training Modules (National Cancer Institute), "Cell Function"; Wikipedia, "Passive transport"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1D.1
A mutation lets a cell divide again and again without the usual checks of the cell cycle. What can result?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Cancer; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1E.2
A nucleotide is the building block of which macromolecules?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Nucleotide; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1B.1
A red blood cell is placed in a solution that has a higher solute concentration than the cell. What happens?Wikipedia, "Tonicity"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1D.2
A student measures how fast an enzyme works at four temperatures. The rates are 12 units at 10°C, 30 units at 25°C, 58 units at 37°C and 3 units at 70°C. Which explanation best fits the result at 70°C?Wikipedia, "Enzyme"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1B.2
At which structure are amino acids joined into chains to make a protein?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Ribosome; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1C.1
Cell theory has three tenets. Which statement is one of them?Wikipedia, "Cell theory"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1A.2
During which part of the cell cycle does a cell spend most of its time, growing and copying its chromosomes?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Cell Cycle; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1E.2
For each molecule of ATP it uses, what does the sodium-potassium pump move?Wikipedia, "Sodium–potassium pump"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1D.2
What are the products of aerobic cellular respiration, besides the energy captured in ATP?Wikipedia, "Cellular respiration"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.2.3
What are the reactants of photosynthesis?NOAA Ocean Exploration, "What is the difference between photosynthesis and chemosynthesis?"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.2.2
What does an enzyme do in a cell?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Enzyme; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1B.2
What energy change takes place in a chloroplast during photosynthesis?Wikipedia, "Chloroplast"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.2.2
What happens to ATP when a cell uses it to power a process?Wikipedia, "Adenosine triphosphate"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.2.1
Which cells can divide to form both more cells like themselves and cells that do specialized jobs?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Stem Cell; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1E.1
Which fact is the strongest evidence for the claim that a virus is not alive?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Virus; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1A.4
Which macromolecule is built from chains of amino acids?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Amino Acids; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1B.1
Which order goes from the smallest level of organization to the largest in a multicellular organism?Wikipedia, "Biological organisation"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1A.3
Which organelle contains digestive enzymes that break down worn-out cell parts?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Lysosome; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1C.1
Which organelle generates most of the chemical energy, stored as ATP, that powers the reactions of a cell?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Mitochondria; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1C.1
Which two structures are found in a typical plant cell but not in an animal cell?Wikipedia, "Cell wall"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.1C.2
Yeast cells in bread dough have no oxygen. Which products does their fermentation of sugar release?Wikipedia, "Ethanol fermentation"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.2.4
Heredity and Evolution 20
A body cell of a certain plant has 14 chromosomes. How many chromosomes does one of its gametes have after meiosis?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Meiosis; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3A.1
A karyotype shows three copies of chromosome 21. Which error in meiosis most often causes this?Wikipedia, "Nondisjunction"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3A.3
A messenger RNA has 300 bases that code for amino acids. How many amino acids does it code for?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Codon; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3C.2
A person with blood type AB inherited an A allele from one parent and a B allele from the other, and both alleles are expressed. What is this pattern called?Wikipedia, "ABO blood group system"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3B.3
A plant with genotype Tt is crossed with a plant with genotype tt. What genotype ratio is expected in the offspring?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Allele; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3B.1
A river changes course and splits a population of lizards in two. After thousands of years the two groups can no longer interbreed. Which mechanism of speciation is this?Wikipedia, "Allopatric speciation"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.4.6
A scientist compares rock layers and finds that the kinds of fossils differ from layer to layer. What does this show?U.S. Geological Survey, "Fossils, Rocks, and Time: Fossil Succession"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.4.2
A snapdragon with red flowers is crossed with one with white flowers, and all of the offspring have pink flowers. Which pattern of inheritance does this show?Wikipedia, "Dominance (genetics)"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3B.3
The arm of a human, the wing of a bat and the flipper of a whale have the same arrangement of bones but do different jobs. What do these homologous structures suggest?Wikipedia, "Homology (biology)"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.4.2
During meiosis, paired homologous chromosomes exchange pieces of DNA. What is the result of this crossing over?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Crossing Over; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3A.1
How do the cells made by meiosis compare with the cells made by mitosis?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Meiosis and Mitosis; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3A.2
In a certain plant the allele for purple flowers (P) is dominant over the allele for white flowers (p). Two plants with genotype Pp are crossed. What fraction of the offspring is expected to have white flowers?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Recessive Traits and Alleles; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3B.1
In a field of dark soil, dark mice are caught by hawks less often than light mice, and fur color is inherited. After many generations most mice in the field are dark. What is this process called?Wikipedia, "Natural selection"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.4.4
In gel electrophoresis an electric current moves DNA fragments through a gel. Which fragments travel farthest?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Electrophoresis; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3C.4
On a cladogram, species X and species Y join at one branch point, and species Z joins them at a branch point farther back. What does the branch point of X and Y stand for?Wikipedia, "Cladogram"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.4.3
One base is deleted near the start of a gene. Why does this usually change the protein more than swapping one base for another?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Frameshift Mutation; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3C.3
One strand of DNA has the base sequence T A C G G A. Which messenger RNA sequence is transcribed from it?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Nucleotide and Base Pair; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3C.2
Sickle cell anemia is an autosomal recessive disorder. Two parents are carriers and do not have the disorder. What is the chance that a child of theirs has it?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: Autosomal Recessive Disorder; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3B.4
Two plants with genotype RrYy are crossed. The genes for seed shape and seed color assort independently. What fraction of the offspring is expected to show both dominant traits?Wikipedia, "Mendelian inheritance"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3B.2
Why are males more likely than females to show a recessive trait carried on the X chromosome?National Human Genome Research Institute (NIH), Talking Glossary: X-Linked; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.3B.3
Interdependence of Organisms and Their Environments 9
A bird nests in a tree. The bird gains shelter, and the tree is neither helped nor harmed. Which relationship is this?Wikipedia, "Symbiosis"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.5.5
A deer population grows quickly, then levels off near 400 animals and stays there year after year. What does the number 400 represent?Wikipedia, "Carrying capacity"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.5.6
A wildfire burns a pine forest but leaves the soil in place. Grasses, then shrubs, then young pines grow back. What is this process called?Wikipedia, "Ecological succession"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.5.7
All the largemouth bass in one lake are an example of which level of ecological organization?Wikipedia, "Biological organisation"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.5.1
In the carbon cycle, which process takes carbon out of the air and puts it into plants?NOAA Education, "Carbon cycle"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.5.2
Plants cannot use nitrogen gas from the air. Which organisms carry out most of the nitrogen fixation that changes it into a form plants can take up?Wikipedia, "Nitrogen cycle"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.5.2
The producers in a food pyramid hold 50,000 units of energy. If about 10% of the energy passes from each level to the next, about how much reaches the secondary consumers, two levels up?Wikipedia, "Ecological pyramid"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.5.4
Which human activity adds carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas, to the atmosphere?U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, "Overview of Greenhouse Gases"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.5.3
Which limiting factor is density-independent?Wikipedia, "Density dependence"; Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science (2026), Biology, objective BIO.5.6
How this list was compiled: Outline: Science, Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAAP) Blueprints, Office of Student Assessment, Mississippi Department of Education, August 2026, page 6, End-of-Course (EOC) - Biology, https://mdek12.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/41/2026/08/Science_MAAP_Blueprints_rebrand_august2026.pdf, linked from Science Resources, https://mdek12.org/studentassessment/science-resources/, read 2026-10-10. Each question names the Biology objective it practices in the 2026 Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards for Science, the standards document the blueprint links, https://mdek12.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/38/2026/07/2026-MS-CCRS-Science_SBE-Approved-07.23.2026_3.pdf, read 2026-10-10. Each science fact was read on the public page named with its question: the Talking Glossary of the National Human Genome Research Institute, the SEER Training Modules of the National Cancer Institute, NOAA, the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Wikipedia, all read 2026-10-10. The sample items and practice tests the department posts were not read. Licence: Own work. Questions, answer choices, numbers and explanations were written for this site. Nothing is copied or reworded from a MAAP test, a sample item or practice test of the department, a released item or another practice test.
How it works
Unofficial practice for Mississippi's Biology state test, the end-of-course test of the Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAAP). The 55 questions match the number that count on the real test. Not affiliated with the Mississippi Department of Education.
Read the full guide
What the Mississippi Biology state test covers
Cells and Energy is the largest of the three reporting categories in the MAAP blueprint, 27 to 50 percent of the points: cell theory, enzymes, organelles, membrane transport, the cell cycle, photosynthesis and respiration. Heredity and Evolution is 25 to 38 percent: meiosis, Punnett squares, inheritance patterns, DNA to protein, mutations, evidence of common ancestry and natural selection. Interdependence of Organisms and Their Environments is 13 to 17 percent: cycles of matter, energy pyramids, symbiosis, populations and succession.
Where each answer comes from
Each question lists its objective in the state standards, such as BIO.3B.1 for Punnett squares, and the public page its fact was read on: a National Institutes of Health glossary or training module, NOAA, the U.S. Geological Survey, the EPA or Wikipedia.
Cells and energy can be up to half of the points. Start with organelles, membrane transport, photosynthesis and respiration.
Questions and answers
Is this a practice test for Biology 1 MAAP?
It is unofficial practice for MAAP Biology, the end-of-course test Mississippi gives in high school Biology. The blueprint names the test Biology, with no number. The questions follow its three reporting categories.
Where are the Mississippi Biology 1 practice tests from the state?
The Mississippi Department of Education posts Biology sample items with answer keys on its Science Resources page, linked in the box under the questions. The questions on this page are different ones.
How many questions are on the MS Biology state test?
65 items in one session of 180 minutes: 55 operational items worth 60 points and 10 field test items. This page has 55 questions, all multiple choice.
How is the Mississippi Biology state test scored?
A student is placed in one of five performance levels, from lowest to highest: Minimal, Basic, Passing, Proficient and Advanced. The levels sit on a scale score, so a percent here is practice only.