Science (086) — AI-generated practice question

While asexual reproduction creates new individuals efficiently from a single parent, all offspring are genetically identical. Sexual reproduction involves two individuals, allowing greater variation to be generated in the new generation.

This variation is important because niches (environmental conditions) can change — due to temperature rise, floods, or other events. If all individuals are identical, a single drastic change can wipe out the entire population. However, if variation exists, some individuals may be better suited to survive the changed conditions and continue the species. Variation is thus useful for the survival of species over time.

Source: Chapter 7, Section 7.1.1 (The Importance of Variation)

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• The examiner expects two parts: (1) what advantage sexual reproduction provides — variation, and (2) why it matters — survival during environmental changes.
• Use the textbook example of bacteria and heat resistance; it shows you understand application, not just definition.
• Key phrase to include: "variation is useful for the survival of species over time" — this is directly from the textbook summary and earns marks.
• Avoid writing only "variation" without explaining its importance — that would cost you marks on a 3-mark question.