Figure 8 shows the heart rate of person A and person B - Edexcel - GCSE Biology Combined Science - Question 5 - 2020 - Paper 1
Question 5
Figure 8 shows the heart rate of person A and person B.
Person A does not do any regular exercise.
Person B has been running regularly for one year.
(a) Both people... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:Figure 8 shows the heart rate of person A and person B - Edexcel - GCSE Biology Combined Science - Question 5 - 2020 - Paper 1
Step 1
Compare the heart rates of person A with the heart rates of person B.
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Answer
During the initial 6 minutes of rest, both person A and person B maintain similar heart rates. However, once high-intensity exercise begins, the heart rate of person A increases significantly more than that of person B, indicating a greater cardiovascular strain for person A. After the exercise, person B’s heart rate returns to baseline more quickly than person A’s, suggesting better cardiovascular fitness due to regular exercise.
Step 2
Calculate the cardiac output for person B before exercising.
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Answer
Cardiac output (CO) can be calculated using the formula:
CO=StrokeVolumeimesHeartRate
Assuming the heart rate before exercise for person B is around 75 bpm (for the sake of this calculation), the cardiac output would be:
CO=61ml/beat×75beats/min=4575ml/min=4.575litres/min
Step 3
Explain why the heart rate for person A needed to be higher than the heart rate for person B during exercise.
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Person A's heart rate needed to be higher than that of person B during exercise in order to achieve an adequate cardiac output to meet the increased metabolic demands of the body. Since person A does not engage in regular exercise and has a lower cardiovascular efficiency, their heart rate must increase more significantly to supply sufficient oxygen and nutrients to the muscles compared to person B, who is more physically conditioned and requires less effort to maintain the same output.