BANE 141 Solved Guess Paper 2026 for Physiological Anthropology (IGNOU BSCANH, BAG and BAM)

Energy systems, energy intake and metabolism

Question: Describe the energy systems. Discuss energy intake and metabolism during exercise.

Definition: The processes that use and store energy to keep an organism alive are together called metabolism. Food energy from carbohydrates, fats and proteins is converted into adenosine triphosphate (ATP), often called the energy currency of the cell, before the body can use it.

Types of metabolic reaction

1. Anabolic: builds complex molecules from simpler ones and needs energy, for example building protein from amino acids.
2. Catabolic: breaks complex molecules into simpler ones and releases energy.

The three energy systems

1. Phosphagen (ATP-PC) system: anaerobic; creatine kinase breaks creatine phosphate to re-form ATP. It lasts only 8 to 10 seconds, enough for a sprint or a heavy lift.
2. Glycolysis (lactic acid system): anaerobic; glucose is broken to pyruvate with a net gain of two ATPs. It powers hard efforts from about 10 seconds to 2 minutes (Brooks et al., 2000).
3. Aerobic system: the slowest but most sustainable; it uses oxygen and forms acetyl-CoA, which enters the Krebs (TCA) cycle in the mitochondria and yields ATP by oxidative phosphorylation.

Conclusion: The body keeps ATP supplied through three systems matched to duration and intensity, while anabolic and catabolic reactions together hold energy balance steady.

Cardiac output and its determinants

Question: Define cardiac output. Elucidate its determinants.

Definition: Cardiac output (CO) is the amount of blood the heart pumps per minute. CO = Heart Rate (HR) × Stroke Volume (SV), where stroke volume is end diastolic volume minus end systolic volume.

Determinants of stroke volume

1. Preload: Otto Frank (1895) showed that the force of ventricular contraction depends on how far the muscle is stretched before it contracts. More filling means a stronger beat and a bigger stroke volume, the Frank-Starling law.
2. Contractility: the muscle's own ability to contract harder. Sympathetic stimulation releases noradrenaline and raises force regardless of fibre length, an effect called inotropy (Klabunde, 2011).
3. Afterload: the tension the ventricles must build against vascular resistance. In a healthy heart it matters little, but in heart failure a high afterload lowers stroke volume.

Heart rate: a moderate rise lifts cardiac output, but at very high rates the ventricles get too little filling time, so stroke volume and eventually cardiac output fall.

Conclusion: Cardiac output depends on heart rate and stroke volume, and stroke volume in turn depends on preload, contractility and afterload.

Respiratory (lung) functions, age and body size

Question: Write an essay on respiratory (lung) functions, age and body size.

Definition: Pulmonary ventilation is the process by which outside air moves into the lungs and exchanges with the air already in them. Lung volumes vary with age, sex, body size, body composition and stature, and are measured with a spirometer.

Static lung volumes

1. Tidal volume (TV): air breathed in or out in one normal breath.
2. Inspiratory reserve volume (IRV): the extra air you can inhale after a normal breath in.
3. Expiratory reserve volume (ERV): the extra air you can exhale after a normal breath out.
4. Residual volume (RV): the air left in the lungs after a full breath out.

Dynamic lung volume: forced vital capacity (FVC) is the most air you can force out after a full breath in; it equals TV + IRV + ERV.

Age and body size

1. Infants have a small functional residual capacity and a fast breathing rate.
2. Once body size is allowed for, lung function is nearly independent of age; lung size sets total lung capacity (Cotes, 2006).
3. Lung function falls with age but rises with height and sitting height in both sexes, which makes it useful to anthropologists.

Conclusion: Lung function depends closely on body size and stature and declines with age, so vital capacity works as an indicator of body constitution.

Oxygen transport and cardiorespiratory endurance

Question: Discuss the oxygen transport system with special emphasis on cardiorespiratory endurance.

Definition: Most oxygen reaches the tissues bound to haemoglobin in red blood cells. Each haemoglobin molecule can carry up to four oxygen molecules, forming oxyhaemoglobin.

Exchange of gases

1. Two sites: in the lungs oxygen is picked up and carbon dioxide released; in the tissues the reverse happens (West, 2008).
2. Pressure gradient: oxygen pressure is high in the alveoli (about 105 mmHg) and low in pulmonary capillary blood (about 40 mmHg), so oxygen diffuses into the blood.

Oxygen-haemoglobin dissociation curve

1. Plotting haemoglobin saturation against oxygen pressure gives an S-shaped (sigmoid) curve; normal saturation is 95 to 99 percent.
2. A shift to the right means haemoglobin lets go of oxygen more easily. It follows higher temperature, more carbon dioxide, more 2,3-bisphosphoglycerate and lower pH (Kaufman and Dhamoon, 2019).

Cardiorespiratory endurance: it reflects how well the heart pumps blood and the lungs take in oxygen for working muscles. It is measured as VO2 max, the highest rate of oxygen use; a higher VO2 max means better aerobic fitness.

Conclusion: Efficient oxygen loading, transport and release is the base on which cardiorespiratory endurance is built.

Variables and components of physical fitness

Question: What are the variables for physical fitness? Explain with examples the key components of physical fitness.

Definition: Physical fitness is a state of health and well-being and the ability to do physical work and daily activities through the day. It has many dimensions, with five key health-related components.

Five health-related components

1. Cardiorespiratory endurance: doing long, large-muscle movements at moderate to high intensity.
2. Muscular strength: the force a muscle can produce in one maximal effort.
3. Muscular endurance: repeating a movement for a long time without tiring.
4. Flexibility: moving joints like the elbow or knee through their full range.
5. Body composition: the share of fat compared with lean mass.

Six skill-related components: agility, coordination, speed, power, balance and reaction time. A kho-kho defender's quick turns or a 100-metre sprint start show these at work.

The FITT variables: Frequency, Intensity, Time and Type control how much stress an exercise plan puts on the body.

Conclusion: Five health-related and six skill-related components define fitness, and the FITT variables decide how training develops them.