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Science (086) — AI-generated practice question

AI-generated practice question — model-generated for extra practice, not a previous-year CBSE board question.

Q1. [2] medium thorough-understanding
A plant bends towards sunlight over several hours, while a cat leaps away from a sudden loud noise in a fraction of a second. Explain the fundamental difference in the nature of the mechanisms responsible for these two types of movement. Why can plants not use the same mechanism as animals for responding to stimuli?
Generated by claude-sonnet-4-6 · 2026-06-26 01:00 · grounding rag
Model Answer

The plant's bending is caused by hormonal (chemical) coordination — auxin causes unequal growth, which is slow. The cat's leap is driven by the nervous system transmitting rapid electrical impulses via specialised nerve and muscle tissue.

Plants lack nervous tissue and muscle tissue entirely. Without these, they cannot generate or conduct fast electrical impulses, so they cannot produce the rapid, forceful responses that animals can.

Explanation

Examiners look for two key contrasts: (1) plant = chemical/hormonal, slow, growth-based vs. animal = nervous/electrical, fast, muscle-based; and (2) the reason plants cannot use the animal mechanism — absence of nervous tissue and muscles. Keep these points distinct and precise. Don't write a full paragraph on hormones — this is only 2 marks.

Previous-year CBSE Grade 10 board exam questions, organised by subject and chapter, each with a model answer — free to read and print.