Key term
CCEA A-Level Life and Health Sciences 0008
Experimental Techniques
Human Body Systems
Topic overviewBlood vessels, the heart and cardiac outputHeart sounds, ECG traces, pulse and blood pressureBody fluids, haemoglobin and the Bohr effectThe respiratory system, gas exchange and lung diseaseMonitoring breathing and lung volumesCellular respiration and ATPHomeostasis, blood glucose and thyroxineSodium, blood pH and oxygen saturationA balanced diet and nutritional needs through lifeCholesterol, minerals, vitamins, alcohol and exercise
Physical Chemistry in Industrial Processes
Topic overviewMoles, reacting masses and percentage yieldTitration types, indicators and standard solutionsTitration calculations and molarityEnthalpy changes and calorimetryHess's law and average bond enthalpiesCollision theory, rates and the Maxwell–Boltzmann distributionCatalysts, chemisorption and catalytic convertersReversible reactions, the Haber process and the Contact processScale-up, costs and siting a chemical plant
Brain ScienceDouble Award
Topic overviewBrain structure and frontal lobe damageNeurones, synapses and the endocrine systemAlzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease and stem cell therapySchizophrenia and mental health awareness in Northern IrelandThe biology of aggression and methods of studying the brainStress, the stress response and stress managementMemory models, forgetting and eyewitness testimonyAbnormality, phobias, depression and OCDExperiments, observations, self-report and research designHypotheses, sampling, ethics and descriptive statistics
Material ScienceDouble Award
Topic overviewMaterial properties and selectionStress, strain and the Young modulusStress–strain graphs, creep and fatigueDensity, hardness and conductivity testingMetals, ceramics, glasses, polymers and compositesAtomic and microscopic structure of materialsAlloys, annealing and biomaterialsSmart materialsNanomaterials and semiconductors
Medicine, Drugs and Clinical TrialsDouble Award
Topic overviewCategories of medicine and routes to drug discoveryMedicines from natural sources, drug names and the ATC systemDrug development, preclinical testing and the therapeutic indexPhases of clinical trials and trial designLicensing, UK regulators, Yellow Card and trial ethicsFormulations, routes of administration and drug absorptionDistribution, metabolism, elimination and sites of drug actionQuantitative analysis of medicines and antibacterial bioassays
Scientific Method, Investigation, Analysis and Evaluation
Topic overviewThe scientific method, literature reviews and Harvard referencingDescriptive statistics and the normal distributionNull hypotheses, significance and choosing a statistical testInvestigation design, Design of Experiments and project plansGood Laboratory Practice, risk assessment and COSHHExperimental error, scientific writing and evaluation
Organic Chemistry
Topic overviewOrganic formulae, homologous series and functional groupsIUPAC naming and types of organic reactionStructural isomerism and E/Z isomerismAlkanes from crude oil, combustion and halogenationVehicle pollutants, catalytic converters and biofuelsAlkenes, pi bonds and electrophilic additionClassifying alcohols, making ethanol and its effects as a drugOxidation of alcohols, IR spectroscopy and mass spectrometryAddition polymers, plastic waste and nylonPreparing and purifying aspirin
Medical PhysicsA2 option
Topic overviewBody temperature and clinical thermometersBlood pressure readings and the sphygmomanometerHeart activity experiments and EEG tracesX-ray tubes, radiographs and CT scansFlexible endoscopes, optical fibres and lasersUltrasound A-scans, B-scans and acoustic impedanceMRI scanning and gamma camera imagingAlpha, beta and gamma radiation and half-lifeRadiopharmaceuticals, radiotherapy and radiation protection
Sound and LightA2 option
Topic overviewTransverse and longitudinal waves and wave graphsPhase difference and the electromagnetic spectrumOuter, middle and inner earSound intensity and the decibel scaleStanding waves, harmonics and resonance tubesHearing response, phons and equal loudness curvesStructure of the eye, rods and conesAccommodation, lens power and correcting long sightTotal internal reflection and fibre-optic communicationDipole antennas, wireless networks and radarAttenuation of radio waves and the Doppler effect
Genetics, Stem Cell Research and CloningA2 option
Topic overviewDNA structure and the evidence for the double helixRNA, genes and the triplet codeGenotype, phenotype and monohybrid inheritanceDihybrid crosses, epistasis and the chi-squared testDNA replication and the Meselson–Stahl experimentMeiosis and genetic variationInsulin, factor VIII and chymosin from genetically modified microbesRecombinant DNA technology and gene cloningGenetic engineering, food supply and ethicsGene therapy and cystic fibrosisGenetic disease, screening and counsellingGenetic fingerprinting and gel electrophoresisStem cells, therapeutic cloning and their ethics
MicrobiologyDouble Award
Topic overviewBacteria, fungi and protozoaViruses, viroids and prionsClassifying bacteria, fungi and virusesLight and electron microscopyLaboratory safety, biocontainment and quality assuranceAseptic technique, growth media and inoculationCounting and measuring microbial growthGrowth requirements and growth inhibitionAntibiotics, PCR, gene therapy and pharmaceutical microbiologyThe gut microbiome in health and disease
Oral Health and DentistryDouble Award
Histology and PathologyDouble Award
Topic overviewSpecimen processing, data protection and safety lawClinical biochemistry tests and electrophoresisBlood smears and identifying blood cellsBlood grouping, cross-matching and transfusionDiagnostic and surveillance work in hospital microbiologyPreparing and staining tissue sectionsRecognising tissues, atheroma and emphysema on slides
Analytical Chemistry TechniquesDouble Award
Topic overviewVolumetric analysis in industry and healthcareApplied titrations of vinegar, indigestion tablets and bleachRedox titration of iron tablets and evaluating titrationsPrinciples of colorimetryColorimetric analysis of copper ore, aspirin and ironThin-layer chromatography and its usesVisualising chromatograms and identifying painkillers and pigmentsCalorimetry and combustionMolar enthalpy and bond energy calculationsQualitative tests for cations and gases
Enabling TechnologyDouble Award
Topic overviewECG and EEG machines in patient monitoringUltrasound and IVF equipment in fertility treatmentProsthetic limbs, hearing aids and cochlear implantsWorkflow and equipment in a medical laboratoryOngoing monitoring of a long-term conditionHealth data collection, databases and data protection
Experimental Techniques
- 4 subtopics
- 12 things to know
- AS 1
What Experimental Techniques covers
Experimental Techniques is examined in Unit AS 1, Experimental Techniques — internally assessed, a core unit. It covers standard solutions, titrations and qualitative tests, rates of reaction and organic preparations, Physics measurements: oscillations, resistivity, lenses and critical angle and biological tests, colorimetry, chromatography and osmosis.
Where it is assessed
AS 1
Experimental Techniques — internally assessed, compulsory.
Check the CCEA specification ↗The 4 subtopics
Each one has its own page.
- Standard solutions, titrations and qualitative testsStandard solutions and volumetric flasks, titration apparatus, concordant titres and a mean titre, moles in solution, flame test colours and the silver nitrate test for halides.Open →
- Rates of reaction and organic preparationsMeasuring rate with gas syringes and the disappearing cross, initial rate, fair tests, reflux and distillation, percentage yield with a worked example, purity checks and risk assessment.Open →
- Physics measurements: oscillations, resistivity, lenses and critical angleTiming pendulum oscillations with a fiducial marker, measuring resistivity with a micrometer, finding focal length with the lens formula, and measuring the critical angle and refractive index.Open →
- Biological tests, colorimetry, chromatography and osmosisTests for starch, reducing sugars, protein and lipids, colorimeters, blanks and calibration curves, amino acid chromatography with ninhydrin and Rf values, and osmosis in potato cylinders.Open →
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Your recallNot started
Key term
Which flame colours do lithium, sodium, potassium, calcium and copper ions give, and how are halide ions identified?
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How can the rate of a reaction be measured?
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How is the periodic time of an oscillating pendulum measured?
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What is a standard solution?
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How can a gas syringe be used to follow a reaction rate?
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Why is the time for many oscillations measured rather than one?
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How is starch identified in a food sample?
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How is a standard solution prepared?
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How is the initial rate found from a graph of product against time?
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A pendulum makes 20 oscillations in 32.0 s. What is its period?
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How are reducing sugars identified?
Take Experimental Techniques further
The same content, four other ways.
Commonly confused
Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.
Pipette vs Burette
Pipette: glassware delivering one fixed, accurate volume of liquid. Burette: graduated glassware delivering a variable, measured volume from a tap.
Benedict's test vs Biuret test
Benedict's test: heating with a blue reagent that turns brick-red with reducing sugar. Biuret test: adding a blue reagent that turns lilac with protein.
Hypotonic solution vs Hypertonic solution
Hypotonic solution: a solution with lower solute concentration than the cell contents, so cells gain water. Hypertonic solution: a solution with higher solute concentration than the cell contents, so cells lose water.
Questions from this topic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
What is a standard solution?
Model answer
A standard solution is a solution whose concentration is known accurately. The solution is made by dissolving a weighed mass of solute and making it up to a known volume.
- 2
How is a standard solution prepared?
Model answer
The solid is weighed accurately, dissolved in distilled water in a beaker and transferred to a volumetric flask with all rinsings. Distilled water is added to the graduation mark and the flask is inverted to mix.
- 3
Why is a volumetric flask used to make a standard solution?
Model answer
A volumetric flask holds a precise volume at its graduation mark. The concentration can then be calculated accurately.
- 4
What is a titration?
Model answer
A titration is a technique that measures the exact volume of one solution needed to react with a known volume of another. An indicator shows the end point.
- 5
What apparatus is used in an acid–base titration?
Model answer
A pipette measures a fixed volume of one solution into a conical flask, and a burette adds the other solution. An indicator shows the end point.
- 6
What are concordant titres?
Model answer
Concordant titres are results that agree closely, usually within 0.10 cm³ of each other. The mean of concordant titres is used in calculations.
What is inside Levo
Six ways to work the same material.
Experimental Techniques revision questions
- What does Experimental Techniques cover in CCEA A-Level Life and Health Sciences?
- 4 subtopics: standard solutions, titrations and qualitative tests, rates of reaction and organic preparations, physics measurements: oscillations, resistivity, lenses and critical angle and biological tests, colorimetry, chromatography and osmosis. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.
- How is Experimental Techniques organised?
- By the CCEA 0008 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.
Every question in Experimental Techniques, on a schedule.
Attempt a question from memory, write the correct version, then attempt it again. Levo records the jump between your first attempt and your last, and brings each question back on the day you are due to forget it.
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