Cameroon BEPC - independent subject foundations cheat sheet
Cameroon BEPC - independent subject foundations · Keep the key ideas within reach.
Lower-secondary number, algebra, geometry and data
Parentheses can change the base and sign of a power.
Differentiate products of powers from sums of powers.
State nonzero conditions for zero/negative exponents and quotients.
Use structure, estimation and a direct arithmetic check.
Combine like terms only when variable parts match.
Distribute across every term and check a substitution.
Solve by preserving equality, including every denominator term.
Interpret rate and intercept with variables, units and model limits.
Use actual geometric conditions rather than visual appearance.
Central and inscribed angle relationships require the same intercepted arc.
Check centers, tangency and corresponding parts.
Length and area scale differently; keep units consistent.
French reading, grammar and structured written expression
Identifier genre, paratexte et situation d’énonciation avant de répondre.
Citer précisément puis expliquer l’effet du procédé, sans paraphrase.
Distinguer auteur, narrateur et personnage.
Respecter la langue et les deux temps de la consigne.
Ne pas importer des connaissances extérieures au texte.
Learn subjunctive triggers by pairs: bien que/parce que, avant que/après que.
il est probable que + indicative, il est possible que + subjunctive.
In hypothetical si clauses, use the relevant indicative pattern; si in an indirect question is a different construction.
Pronominal agreement depends on whether the reflexive pronoun is direct or indirect.
In se rendre compte, the past participle rendu remains invariable; the entire expression is not grammatically invariant.
Problématiser le sujet avant de choisir le plan.
Un paragraphe = une idée, un exemple, une explication.
Mechanics, fields, thermal behavior, waves and modern models
Resolve vectors before applying F = ma or the SUVAT equations
Momentum is a vector: conserve each component only when the corresponding net external impulse is zero
Equilibrium requires both zero resultant force and zero resultant moment
The centripetal component points to the centre; uniform circular motion has constant speed but changing velocity
SHM signature: a = −ω²x, giving T = 2π/ω
State g and sign conventions explicitly at the start of a solution
EMF is per unit charge from the source; terminal p.d. is E − Ir
Kirchhoff's laws follow from conservation of charge and energy
Capacitor energy is ½CV²; discharge is exponential with time constant RC
Magnetic-force magnitude is |q|vB sinθ and its vector is perpendicular to velocity, so magnetic force does no work
Chemical structure, reactions and organic models
Relative atomic mass is an abundance-weighted mean of isotope masses, calculated from mass-spectrum data.
Across a period effective nuclear charge rises, so radius falls and ionisation energy and electronegativity rise.
Large jumps in successive ionisation energies reveal the number of electrons in the outer shell.
Cr and Cu adopt 3d5 4s1 and 3d10 4s1 configurations; 4s electrons are removed first on ionisation.
Transition metals require a partially filled d subshell in at least one common oxidation state.
VSEPR: count all electron domains, then apply lone pair–lone pair > lone pair–bond pair > bond pair–bond pair repulsion.
Molecular polarity requires both polar bonds and an asymmetric arrangement of those bonds.
Higher bond order gives a shorter, stronger bond; resonance spreads the order over equivalent positions.
Only period 3 elements and below can expand their octet; N, O, F and C cannot.
Ionic lattice strength increases with ion charge and decreases with ion radius.
Convert to K and m3 before using PV = nRT; R = 8.314 J mol−1 K−1.
Real gases deviate from ideality at high pressure and low temperature.
Biological organization, inheritance, regulation and ecosystems
Prokaryotes lack a membrane-bound nucleus; bacterial peptidoglycan walls are not universal and archaeal walls differ.
Fluid mosaic membranes contain a lipid bilayer and proteins; sterol and carbohydrate composition depends on the cell.
Facilitated diffusion is passive; primary active transport may use ATP directly and secondary transport uses a gradient.
Water potential ψ = ψs + ψp; water moves from higher (less negative) to lower ψ.
Mitosis (P-M-A-T) after S-phase replication maintains chromosome number.
Cytokinesis: cleavage furrow in animals, cell plate in plants.
Condensation forms glycosidic, ester and peptide bonds; hydrolysis reverses them.
Reducing-sugar test interpretation requires suitable assay conditions and controls; hydrolysis can change sucrose test results.
Cellulose = β-1,4 glucose, straight H-bonded microfibrils; starch and glycogen = α-glucose.
Triglyceride = glycerol + 3 fatty acids; phospholipid = phosphate head + 2 tails, amphipathic.
Negative feedback reverses a deviation; positive feedback amplifies and must terminate.
Surface area to volume ratio drives the need for specialized exchange surfaces.
Physical and human geography with spatial evidence
Frame answers as process chains with controlling variables, not lists of landforms.
North German Plain: young glacial relief; moraine, Sander, Urstromtal, Geschiebemergel; determines both drainage and soil type.
Use P = ET + R + ΔS; distinguish potential from actual evapotranspiration.
Soil patterns reflect climate, organisms, relief, parent material, time and human influence; substrate alone does not uniquely determine a soil class.
Risk depends on hazard, exposure and vulnerability; adaptation options require site-specific evaluation.
Never mix timescales: glacial sculpture versus storm-surge frequency are separate arguments.
Distinguish natural population change from net migration in every analysis.
The demographic transition model is descriptive; adapt for stalled fertility and migration-driven growth.
Dependency ratios indicate structure, not actual labour participation.
Migration models identify selectivity and intervening obstacles; their historical patterns are not universal laws.
Von Thünen: land rent and intensity vary with distance, given uniform plain, one market, transport costs proportional to distance and weight.
Weber's least-cost triangle: transport, labour and agglomeration orientation.
English grammar, contextual language and reading evidence
Read the complete sentence and its time or logical relationship.
Check both grammatical form and meaning.
Learn collocations and complement patterns in context.
Preserve tense, qualification and meaning in a rewrite.
Use recognition practice alongside original writing and speaking.
Distinguish explicit detail from justified inference.
Read limiting words, negation and changes of plan carefully.
Check reference and logic across both sides of a text gap.
Distinguish narrator, speaker and author.
Support analysis with precise evidence and explained effects.
Scientific questions, evidence and quantitative reasoning
State resolution and uncertainty convention for each instrument
Random errors → repeats and means; systematic errors → correction
For first-order worst-case bounds, add relative contributions; independent standard uncertainties use quadrature
Gradient from two points on the best-fit line, with units
Average repeated timings and time many oscillations to cut reaction error
Never quote more significant figures than the data justify
Hypothesis = testable prediction; theory = broad supported explanation; law = consistent regularity.
Independent variable is manipulated; dependent is measured; controls are held constant.
Random assignment supports experimental causal inference; an observed association alone does not establish causation.
Accuracy = closeness to truth; precision = repeatability.
Replication and sample size reduce the influence of random chance.