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Science as a human endeavour — Short response
Conceptual Understanding
Explain core models, definitions and relationships before using them in context.
Explain why scientific knowledge and technology often develop together rather than separately. Give one general way each can influence the other.
2 marks
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What is peer review, and why does it not prove that a published claim is permanently correct?
2 marks
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In two short sentences, explain why funding sources and conflicts of interest matter when people judge scientific claims.
2 marks
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Explain why social, economic or ethical factors can affect whether scientific evidence changes what people or governments actually do.
2 marks
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In two short sentences, state one way peer review can improve a scientific paper before it is widely cited, and one limitation peer review does not remove.
2 marks
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Applied Reasoning
Use the same ideas to reason through scenarios, evidence, claims or investigations.
A post promotes a supplement as a proven treatment, linking to a website that has no named authors, no methods, and no data tables. Describe two different checks you would use to judge whether this is reliable scientific information before you share it or act on it.
2 marks
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In two short sentences, give one example of technology helping scientific discovery, and one example of scientific understanding helping engineering or technology design.
2 marks
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Trials show a free smoke alarm program reduces fire injuries, but many eligible homes still lack working alarms years later. Give three different social or practical reasons, not doubting the trial, that could explain slow uptake.
3 marks
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After several years of severe drought, water shortages dominate news and elections. Explain two plausible ways this public concern could change what science gets funded or prioritised, and why each link makes sense.
3 marks
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Name one type of tool or technology that made a kind of measurement, image, or dataset much easier than before, and briefly state what scientists could then investigate or monitor that was harder earlier.
2 marks
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Trial evidence supports a school public-health measure offered to families, yet participation stays uneven. Give two different social or communication factors—not claiming the trial is wrong—that could help explain uneven uptake.
2 marks
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Explain in two sentences why authors are expected to declare funding ties and conflicts of interest when they publish scientific findings, and what a reader can do with that information.
2 marks
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