CLASS-8 SCIENCE EXTRA QUESTIONS

CHAPTER 2 - MICROORGANISMS

MCQ QUESTIONS
1.Yeast is used in the production of:

(a) sugar

(b) alcohol

(c) hydrochloric acid

(d) Oxygen

2.The process of conversion of sugar into alcohol is called:

(a) nitrogen fixation

(b) moulding

(c) fermentation

(d) infection

3.Which of the following is an antibiotic?

(a) sodium bicarbonate

(b) streptomycein

(c) alcohol

(d) yeast

4.The most common carrier of communicable diseases is:

(a) ant

(b) housefly

(c) dragonfly

(d) spider

5. The carrier of malaria causing protozoan is:

(a) female anopheles

(b) cockroach
 (c) housefly

(d) female aedes mosquito

6. The vaccine for smallpox was discovered by:

(a) Alexander Fleming

(b) Edward jenner

(c) Louis Pasteur

(d) Rober coch

7. Alcohol can be converted into vinegar by the action of micro-organisms called:

(a) viruses(b) yeast

(c) protozoa(d) bacteria

8. The first antibiotic called penicillin was extracted from:

(a) a bacterium

(b) a protozoan

(c) a fungus

(d) an alga

9. Which of the following is not a communicable disease?

(a) cholera(b) cancer

(c) chickenpox(d) malaria

1. (b) 2. (c) 3. (b) 4. (b) 5.(a) 6. (b) 7. (d) 8. (c) 9. (b)

Q.1 Name any three habitats of microorganisms. (1 mark)

Ans. Soil, water and animal body.

Q.2 Can we find a place without microbes in nature. (1 mark)

Ans. No, we cannot find any place on the earth without microbes.

2
Q.3 Which microorganism is used in the production of alcohol? (1 mark)

Ans. Yeast.

Q.4 Name any two food items that are prepared using yeast. (1 mark)

Ans. Bread and dosa.

Q.5 Name the bacteria which is responsible for the formation of curd?

(1 mark)

Ans. Lactobacillus bacteria is responsible for the formation of curd.

Q.6 In which form microorganisms are used in vaccine? (1 mark)

Ans. Dead or weakened form

Q.7 Who discovered the vaccine for small pox? (1 mark)

Ans. Edward Jenner

Q.8 Which bacteria is responsible for Anhrax disease? (1 mark)

Ans: Bacillus anthracis

Q.9 Name the bacteria which involved in the fixation of nitrogen in leguminous
plants? (1 mark)

3
Ans. Rhizobium

Q.10 Who discovered the fermentation? (1 mark)

Ans. Louis Pasteur

Q.11 Mention two important uses of fungi. (2 marks)

Ans. - Help in the formation of antibiotics.

- Helps in the decomposition of dead organic matter.

Q.12 “Virus are living or non-living.” Comment with reasons. (2 marks)

Ans. Viruses are considered as the connecting link between living and nonliving.

• The reasons for being nonliving are: they neither grow nor reproduce once out side
the host.
• They can be considered living as they multiply very fast and grow when entered
the host.

Q.13 Explain how does blue-green algae help in increasing the fertility of soil.

(2 marks)

Ans. The blue green algae help in increasing the fertility of soil by fixing the atmospheric
nitrogen into useable form.

Q.14 What do you mean by fermentation? (2 marks)

Ans. Fermentation typically refers to the conversion of sugar to alcohol using yeast under anaerobic
conditions.

4
Q.15 What are communicable diseases? Name some of them. (2 marks)

Ans. Disease caused by microorganisms and transmitted from an infected person or

animal to another person or animals are termed as communicable diseases such as
cholera, common cold, chicken pox and tuberculosis.

Q.16 Name the insects, which carry the parasite of malaria and dengue?

(2 marks)

Ans. Female Anopheles mosquito carries the parasite of malaria while

Female Aedes mosquito acts as carrier of dengue virus.

Q.17 Define pasteurization? (2 marks)

Ans. Pasteurization is the process of heating liquids for the purpose of destroying viruses
and harmful organisms such as bacteria, protozoa, molds, and yeasts.

Q.18 What is to be called as preservatives? (2 marks)

Ans. Preservatives are the chemicals generally used to inhibit the growth of
microorganisms. Sodium benzoate and sodium metabisulphite are common preservatives.

Q.19 Why generally dry fruits and even vegetables are sold in sealed air tight
packets? (2 marks)

Ans. Generally dry fruits and even vegetables are sold in sealed air tight packets because air tight

packets does not allow the entry of microbes and help in to prevent food from the attack of microbes.

5
Q.20 What are the causes of food poisoning? (2 marks)

Ans: Microorganisms, which are present in food sometimes, produce toxic substances and make the

food toxic. Consumption of this spoil food can cause food poisoning.

Q.21 What do you understand by microorganisms? (3 Marks)

Ans. Microorganisms are the living organisms which can not be seen with our unaided
eyes.

They have a high degree of adaptability and can survive in all kinds of environment, like
hot springs, ice cold water, saline water, desert soil or even in marshy land. They are
present even in human body, in dead organisms, as parasites. There body is generally
covered by a hard outer coating called as cyst.

Q.22 What are pathogens? How can they enter in our body? (3 marks)

Ans: There are some microorganisms that are harmful for our health and cause diseases.
Such disease causing microorganisms are called pathogens.

Pathogens can enter our body through the air we breathe, the water we drink or the food
we eat or direct contact with an infected person can also transmit these pathogens.

Q.23 Explain Antibiotics in brief with the help of examples. (3 marks)

Ans. There are many medicines that are made with the help of microorganisms mainly
with the help of fungi and bacteria and used in kill or stop the growth of the disease-
causing microorganisms. Such medicines are called Antibiotics such as Penicillin,
Streptomycin, tetracycline etc.

Antibiotics are even mixed with the feed of livestock and poultry to check microbial
infection in animals. They are also used to control many plant diseases.

6
Q.24 Mention the causative organism and mode of transmission of these
organism in following diseases. (3 marks)

(i) Tuberculosis

(ii) Polio

(iii) Malaria

(iv) Typhoid

(v) Hepatitis B

(vi Chicken Pox

Ans.

Human Disease Causative Mode of

Microorganism Transmission

Tuberculosis Bacteria Air

Polio Virus Air/Water

Malaria Protozoa Mosquito

Typhoid Bacteria Water

Hepatitis B Virus Water

Chicken Pox Virus Air/Contact

Q.25 What is nitrogen fixation. Which organisms are able to fix atmospheric
nitrogen. (3 marks)

Ans. Nitrogen fixation is the process by which nitrogen is taken from its natural, relatively
inert molecular form (N2) in the atmosphere and converted into nitrogen compounds.

Some bacteria and blue green algae are able to fix nitrogen from the atmosphere.

In bacteria the bacterium Rhizobium involved in the fixation of nitrogen in leguminous

plants such as beans and peas, with which it has a symbiotic relationship.

Q.26 Draw a diagram of (3 marks)

(i) Amoeba

7
(ii) Paramecium

Ans.

AMOEBA

Paramecium

8
Q.27 Describe the role of sugar, oil and vinegar in preservation of food?

(3 marks)

Ans. - Sugar is used as preservative as it reduces the moisture and inhibit the growth of bacteria.

Mainly Jams, Jellies, squashes are preserved with the help of sugar.

- Oil and vinegar are used as a preservative for prickles, fish, meat etc. because bacteria
cannot live in such an environment.

Q.28 How can High and low temperature affects the growth of microorganisms?

(3 marks)

Ans. High temperature kills many organisms.

- Normally we boil the milk at 1000C but pasteurized milk, which is heated about 700C for
15 to 30 seconds, and then suddenly chilled and stored are also free from harmful
microbes and this process is called as pasteurization.

while low temperature inhibit the growth of microorganisms that’s why we kept
our food in refrigerator. Generally low temperature slow down the process of
growth of microorganisms.

Q.29 What are the affects cause by disease causing microorganisms. How can they control and name some plant diseases with
their causative organism.

Ans. Some organisms cause disease in plants like wheat, rice, potato,

sugarcane, which decrease the yield of crop.

- They can controlled by using chemicals which kills these microbes.

Plant Diseases Micro- organism Transmission

Citrus canker Bacteria Air

Rust of wheat Fungi Air, seeds

9
Q.31 Describe the useful and harmful effects of microorganisms? (5 marks)

Ans. Useful effects:

• They help in formation of curd, cheese.

• Convert the fruit juices into vinegar and wines.
• Decompose the complex organic material into simple inorganic molecules.
• Help in tanning of the leather.
• Some help in fixing atmospheric nitrogen.
• Some of them present in the intestine help in the process of digestion.

Harmful effects:

• They cause a large variety of diseases in plants, animals and human beings.
They spoil food items as well as cloths, leather etc.

Q.32 State some beneficial effects of bacteria. (5 marks)

Ans. Some beneficial effects of bacteria:

• They help in formation of curd, cheese.

• Certain bacteria convert compounds of nitrogen present in the soil into nitrogen
gas which is released to the atmosphere.
• Decompose the complex organic material into simple inorganic molecules.
• Help in formation of antibiotics.
• Some help in fixing atmospheric nitrogen.

Q.33 What do you understand by vaccine explain in detail? (5 marks)

Ans: In Vaccines microorganisms are used in dead or weakened form which help the body
to produce the antibodies against them.

- These antibodies remain in the body and fight and kills the pathogen when they enter
inside body.

- Some of the vaccines are DPT, Hepatitis B vaccine etc.

- Several diseases, including cholera, tuberculosis, smallpox and hepatitis can be

prevented by vaccination.

10
- Normally we heard about Pulse Polio Program in which Polio drops given to children are
actually a vaccine.

Q.34 Draw a well labeled diagram of nitrogen cycle?

Ans.

11