Biology 0610 · IGCSE
Size of specimens
88 practice questions on Size of specimens, with worked solutions and instant marking.
A specimen shown in a photograph measures $45\,\text{mm}$ in length. Its real length is $25\,\text{mm}$. What magnification does the photograph have?
Feb/March 2017
A specimen measures $45\,\text{mm}$ in a photograph. Its real length is $25\,\text{mm}$. What magnification does the photograph show?
Feb/March 2017
The diameter of an egg was measured as $6.5\,\text{cm}$. A student then produced a drawing of the egg, and its diameter was found to be $19.5\,\text{cm}$. What magnification did the drawing have?
Feb/March 2018
A student was informed that a diagram of a bacterial cell had been enlarged 30 000 times. The diagram measured $45\text{ mm}$ in length. What was the bacterium’s actual length?
Feb/March 2018
The diagram is of a fly. Line XY shows the wing length. The length of XY is $26\,\text{mm}$. The actual length of the wing between X and Y is $4\,\text{mm}$. Determine the magnification of the image.
Feb/March 2019
The diagram illustrates a fly. Line XY shows the wing length. The length of line XY is $26\,\text{mm}$. The actual size of the wing between XY is $4\,\text{mm}$. What is the magnification of the image?
Feb/March 2019
In the diagram, the leaf's actual thickness is $2000\,\mu\text{m}$, while the thickness shown is $50\,\text{mm}$. Calculate the magnification of the diagram.
Feb/March 2020
The diagram is a sketch of part of a tulip flower. The stigma’s real width, represented by the line $PQ$, is $5\,\text{mm}$. The length of line $PQ$ is $15\,\text{mm}$. What is the magnification of the diagram?
Feb/March 2021
A student makes a drawing of a mitochondrion. This diagram is shown at a magnification of $\times 20000$. Its length on the page is 5 cm. What is the mitochondrion's actual size?
Feb/March 2021
A magnified image of a cell is shown in the diagram. The magnification is $\times 360$. Line LM gives the width of the cell image. In this diagram, line LM measures $18\text{ mm}$. What is the actual width of the cell?
Feb/March 2023
The diagram represents a red blood cell. The cell’s true diameter is 7.0 micrometres. What is the magnification of this cell?
Feb/March 2023
The insect drawing shown is enlarged by a magnification of $\times 5$. The scale given uses $\text{mm}$. What is the real size of the insect?
Feb/March 2024
Which formula gives the correct method for calculating the actual size of an object?
Feb/March 2024
Which formula is used to work out the magnification of specimens?
Feb/March 2025
A cell measures $65\,\mu\text{m}$ across. What is this measurement in $\text{mm}$?
Feb/March 2025
What is the correct sequence of the following structures in order of increasing size, from the smallest to the largest?
May/June 2016
The leaf in the diagram has an actual thickness of $2000\,\mu\text{m}$, while its thickness on the diagram is $50\,\text{mm}$. What magnification does the diagram show?
May/June 2016
The leaf in the diagram has an actual thickness of $2000\,\mu\text{m}$, while its thickness on the diagram is $50\,\text{mm}$. What is the magnification of the diagram?
May/June 2016
Which is the correct sequence of increasing size for the following structures, starting with the smallest?
May/June 2016
The leaf’s true thickness in the diagram is $2000\,\mu\text{m}$, whereas its thickness on the diagram measures $50\,\text{mm}$. Determine the magnification of the diagram.
May/June 2016
The diagram displays a xylem vessel in a plant stem. The magnification is $\times 400$. What is the real width of the xylem vessel measured along the line XY?
May/June 2019
The diagram represents a mitochondrion. Its length on the page is $70\,\text{mm}$. What is the magnification of the diagram?
May/June 2019
In a photograph, the nucleus of a plant cell measures $2\,\text{mm}$ in width. If the magnification of the cell is $\times 500$, what is the nucleus's actual size?
May/June 2021
In a photograph, the nucleus of a plant cell measures $2\,\text{mm}$ across. If the magnification of the cell is $\times500$, what is the actual size of the nucleus?
May/June 2021
A plant cell nucleus appears in a photograph and measures $2\,\text{mm}$ across. If the cell has a magnification of $\times 500$, what is the nucleus's actual size?
May/June 2021
A photograph shows the nucleus of a plant cell as measuring $2\,\text{mm}$ across. If the cell has a magnification of $\times 500$, what is the nucleus's true size?
May/June 2021
A photograph shows a plant cell nucleus with a width of 2 mm. If the cell has a magnification of $\times 500$, what is the nucleus’s actual size?
May/June 2021
In a photograph, a plant cell nucleus is shown with a width of 2 mm. If the cell has a magnification of $\times 500$, what is the nucleus’s actual size?
May/June 2021
In a soil sample, a student discovered four different worms and made diagrams of them. The diagrams were produced at different magnifications. Which worm had the greatest length?
May/June 2022
The diagram depicts an animal. The real length of this animal is $0.6\,\text{mm}$. What is the magnification of the diagram?
May/June 2022
The picture depicts a single-celled organism named a Paramecium. In the image, the Paramecium measures $6\,\text{cm}$ in length. The magnification is $\times 400$. Which calculation will produce the correct actual length of the Paramecium, in mm?
May/June 2022
The diagram presents a cell at $\times 1500$ magnification. What is the cell's real size?
May/June 2023
A sketch of a human red blood cell is displayed. On the sketch, line XY measures $40\,\text{mm}$. The cell’s actual width is $0.008\,\text{mm}$. What is the magnification of the sketch?
May/June 2023
The photograph depicts a limpet. On the image, line PQ measures 65 mm. The image is magnified by $\times 2.5$. Calculate the actual diameter of the limpet along line PQ.
May/June 2023
The photomicrograph displays a plant cell. The length of line XY is $90\ \text{mm}$. The actual length of the cell is $30\ \mu\text{m}$. What is the magnification of the photomicrograph?
May/June 2023
On the palisade cell diagram, the separation between X and Y is $20\,\text{mm}$. The actual width of the cell from X to Y is $40\,\mu\text{m}$. What is the magnification of the diagram?
May/June 2023
A frog egg cell has a diameter of $2.5\,\text{mm}$. A human egg cell has a diameter of $120\,\mu\text{m}$. Which value indicates approximately how many times bigger a frog egg cell is than a human egg cell?
May/June 2023
Fig. 5.1 is a photomicrograph showing a structure present in both animal cells and plant cells. The structure marked A is shown.
May/June 2023
An animal appears in the image. The length of the animal in the image is $36\,\text{mm}$. The real length of the animal is $12\,\text{mm}$. What magnification does the image have?
May/June 2024
The figure depicts a fly. The line $XY$ gives the wing length. The length of line $XY$ is $26\,\text{mm}$. The actual length of the wing from $X$ to $Y$ is $4\,\text{mm}$. What is the magnification of the figure?
May/June 2024
A pollen grain was observed under a microscope at $\times 500$ magnification. Its image size was measured to be $75\,\text{mm}$. Which calculation would be used to determine the true size of the pollen grain in millimetres?
May/June 2024
A student sketches a red blood cell. The diameter of the red blood cell in the sketch is $20\,\text{mm}$. The true diameter of the red blood cell is $0.008\,\text{mm}$. What magnification has been used for the student’s sketch?
May/June 2024
The diagram illustrates an epidermal cell from an onion plant. On the diagram, the distance from X to Y is $60\,\text{mm}$. In reality, the cell length between X and Y is $150\,\mu\text{m}$. Calculate the magnification of the cell.
May/June 2024
The picture depicts a pollen grain from a grass plant. Its length in the picture is $60\,\text{mm}$. The real length of the pollen grain is $500\,\mu\text{m}$. Calculate the magnification of the pollen grain?
May/June 2024
Four students used a microscope to observe some onion plant cells. Each student made a drawing of one of the cells. Every student worked out the cell’s actual length and the magnification of their drawing. Which student made the longest drawing of a cell?
May/June 2025
The table gives the magnifications and image lengths of three specimens as viewed through a light microscope. In what sequence, from smallest to largest, do their actual lengths increase?
May/June 2025
A student produces a sketch of an animal. The length of the animal in the sketch is $30\ \text{mm}$. The animal’s real length is $200\ \text{mm}$. What is the magnification of the student’s sketch?
May/June 2025
A student used a microscope to measure the length of a structure. The magnification was $\times 250$. The image size of the structure measured $5.00\ \text{mm}$. What was the true length of the structure?
May/June 2025
A student produced a large drawing of a leaf, as shown. The drawing measured 160 mm. The teacher observed that the diagram was twice as large as the leaf. What was the leaf's actual size?
Oct/Nov 2016
A student sketches a mitochondrion. The diagram is shown at a magnification of $\times 20\,000$. Its length on the page is $5\,\text{cm}$. What is the mitochondrion’s actual size?
Oct/Nov 2016
The diagram presents an image of a chloroplast. The image measures $5\,\text{cm}$ in length. The chloroplast’s actual length is $5\,\mu\text{m}$. What magnification does the image have?
Oct/Nov 2016
The diagram illustrates an insect as it appears under the microscope’s low power lens. The circle’s actual diameter is $0.3\,\text{cm}$. What is the insect’s approximate length in millimetres?
Oct/Nov 2017
The true length of a cell is $0.2\,\text{mm}$. A student wants the drawing to show the cell at two hundred times its real size. What length should the student draw for the cell?
Oct/Nov 2017
A mitochondrion measures $15\ \text{mm}$ in a photomicrograph. Its true length is $3\ \mu\text{m}$. What magnification has the photomicrograph been taken at?
Oct/Nov 2017
The diagram presents an enlarged view of a human liver cell, with a mitochondrion marked. The actual length of the liver cell is $20\,\mu\text{m}$. The image length of the liver cell is $40\,\text{mm}$ and the image length of the mitochondrion is $4\,\text{mm}$. What is the actual size of the mitochondrion shown in the diagram?
Oct/Nov 2017
The diagram depicts a pollen grain from a rice plant. The image measures $40\text{ mm}$.\n\nThe real length of the pollen grain is $40\,\mu\text{m}$.\n\nWhat is the magnification of the diagram, in times?
Oct/Nov 2017
The photograph displays a chloroplast at a magnification of $\times 7000$. The image measures $70\,\text{mm}$ in length. What is the actual size of the chloroplast?
Oct/Nov 2018
In a photograph, the nucleus of a plant cell is shown as $2\,\text{mm}$ across. With a magnification of $\times 500$, what is the nucleus’s true size?
Oct/Nov 2018
A bacterial cell appears with a length of $40\,\text{mm}$ under a magnification of $\times 20\,000$. What is the cell’s true length?
Oct/Nov 2018
The diagram illustrates a cell whose actual size is $30\,\mu\text{m}$. What magnification does the diagram show?
Oct/Nov 2019
The diagram depicts a sketch of a human cheek cell. On the diagram, the separation between points X and Y is $30\ \text{mm}$. The true length of the cell from X to Y is $60\ \mu\text{m}$. What is the magnification of the cell?
Oct/Nov 2019
A bacterium has a length of $0.5\,\mu\text{m}$. A student produces a drawing of the bacterium that is $100\,\text{mm}$ long. What is the magnification of the student’s drawing?
Oct/Nov 2019
What equation is used to calculate the magnification of a biological drawing?
Oct/Nov 2021
The diagram presents a beetle. The beetle’s actual length from X to Y is $15\,\text{mm}$. What magnification does the image show?
Oct/Nov 2021
A student makes a sketch of a root hair cell. The cell’s actual length is $0.8\,\text{mm}$ and the sketch is $80\,\text{mm}$ long. What is the magnification of the student’s sketch?
Oct/Nov 2021
A mitochondrion measures $15\,\text{mm}$ on a photomicrograph. Its real length is $3\,\mu\text{m}$. What magnification does the photomicrograph show?
Oct/Nov 2021
A mitochondrion measures $15\,\text{mm}$ on a photomicrograph. Its real length is $3\,\mu\text{m}$. Calculate the magnification of the photomicrograph.
Oct/Nov 2021
In a photomicrograph, the length of a mitochondrion measures $15\,\text{mm}$. Its real length is $3\,\mu\text{m}$. Determine the magnification of the photomicrograph.
Oct/Nov 2021
A plant cell is observed through a microscope at a magnification of $\times 500$. The cell image measures $20\,\text{mm}$ in width. What is the cell's actual width?
Oct/Nov 2022
A cell was observed using a microscope. The actual length of the cell is $0.025\,\text{mm}$. The magnification of the image is $\times 400$. What is the image length of the cell?
Oct/Nov 2022
The drawing displays a leaf that has been produced at a magnification of $\times 7$. The length indicated is $98\ \text{mm}$. What was the leaf's actual length?
Oct/Nov 2022
The cell in the diagram has been enlarged 3000 times. The diagram is 21 mm wide. What is the cell’s true diameter?
Oct/Nov 2023
An egg has a diameter of 6.5 cm. A student makes a drawing of the egg. In the drawing, the egg’s diameter measures 19.5 cm. What magnification has been used for the drawing?
Oct/Nov 2023
A bacterial cell appears to have a length of $40\,\text{mm}$ after being enlarged by $\times 20\,000$. What is the real length of the bacterial cell?
Oct/Nov 2023
The diagram depicts a flatworm that has been enlarged by $\times 100$. The length indicated is $50\,\text{mm}$. What is the flatworm's actual size?
Oct/Nov 2023
A bacterium is shown in a diagram with a length of $50\ \text{mm}$. The diagram has a magnification of $\times 5000$. What is the bacterium’s real length?
Oct/Nov 2023
The diameter of a diagram showing a white blood cell is $76\,\text{mm}$. The diagram has been drawn at a magnification of $\times 8000$. Calculate the real diameter of the white blood cell.
Oct/Nov 2023
The diagram represents an organism known as a copepod. The magnification of the diagram is $\times 30$. Line XY measures $45\ \text{mm}$. What is the copepod’s actual length?
Oct/Nov 2024
Which magnification equation is correct?
Oct/Nov 2024
Which equation is correct for calculations that involve image size, actual size and magnification?
Oct/Nov 2024
A tick is a kind of arachnid. An adult tick has a length of $2.3\,\text{mm}$. What is the tick's length in micrometres?
Oct/Nov 2024
A specimen is observed through a microscope at $\times 10$ magnification. The image of the specimen has a length of $30\,\text{mm}$. What is the true size of the specimen?
Oct/Nov 2024
What equation is used to calculate magnification?
Oct/Nov 2024
An insect is shown in a diagram with a length of $150\text{ mm}$. The diagram has a magnification of $\times 20$. What is the insect’s actual length?
Oct/Nov 2025
A student produced a diagram of an alveolus. The alveolus had a diameter of 90 mm in the diagram. The diagram’s magnification was $\times 225$. What is the alveolus’s actual size?
Oct/Nov 2025
The diagram shows a chloroplast image. Its length in the diagram is $5\text{ cm}$. The real length of the chloroplast is $5\,\mu\text{m}$. What is the magnification of the image?
Oct/Nov 2025
Draw a large-scale diagram of the necklace starfish shown in Fig. 3.1.
Oct/Nov 2025
Draw a large sketch of the head of the king penguin shown in Fig. 3.1.
Oct/Nov 2025