50+ IB Biology IA Ideas
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IB Biology SL IA Ideas
The IB Biology SL Internal Assessment (IA) is a project that requires students to complete an independent research project on a chosen theme. The IA is worth 20% of the final assessment and is an opportunity for students to showcase their understanding of the subject. Here are some carefully curated IB Biology SL IA topic ideas to help students get started. These ideas have been tried and tested and are popular with examiners. The list includes the basic reasons for investigating each topic, possible independent and dependent variables, and the experimental setup. It’s important to consider if the topics can be applied to one’s own life, as this shows personal engagement.
1.) How do different sodium chloride concentrations affect seed germination in the bougainvillaea plant?
Experimental setup:
Soak the bougainvillaea seeds in sodium chloride of varying concentrations for a specific time period. Place them in Petri dishes and count the number of seeds that germinate. Conduct at least 5 trials, excluding control.
Independent Variable:
Sodium chloride concentrations
Dependent Variable:
Seed germination percentage
2.) How does extract of the seeds and the leaves of the moringa plant (herbal medicine) show antifungal activity against the Malassezia yeast (Pittosporum) fungi?
Experimental setup:
Mix yeast and herbal medicine. Then use agar plates and fungus to test their effectiveness by seeing how many fungi grow in the different plates.
Independent Variable:
Seeds and the leaves of the moringa plant
Dependent Variable:
Antifungal activity
3.) How does the concentration of zinc chloride affect the growth of plaque?
Experimental setup:
Mix different concentrations of zinc chloride in different agar plates and bacteria, and check for plaque formation over time.
Independent Variable:
Concentration of zinc chloride
Dependent Variable:
Growth of plaque
4.) How effective are synthetic antibacterial products compared to natural antibacterial products against the growth of Cut bacterium acne?
Experimental setup:
Chose a synthetic and natural antibacterial product and mix them with a little water to create diluted solutions of them. Then use agar plates and bacteria to test their effectiveness by seeing how many bacteria grow in the different plates.
Independent Variable:
Types of antibacterial products (Natural vs synthetic)
Dependent Variable:
Growth of Cut bacterium acne
5.) How do the different teas, used to water Vignata radiata seeds, affect the germination rate?
Experimental setup:
Place Viganata radiata seeds into various Petri dishes of the same number. Water them regularly using a diluted solution of different types of teas. Count the number of seeds that germinate over time and take note. Repeat the same procedure 5 times, including control.
Independent Variable:
The different types of teas (green tea, chamomile, etc)
Dependent Variable:
The rate of germination of Vignata radiata
6.) How do varying salinity levels affect the rate of germination in the grass species Spartina anglica and Eragrostis plana?
Experimental setup:
Use different concentrations of salinity levels in petri dishes with the two different grass species and compare the rate of gemination over a period of time. Repeat for five trials.
Independent Variable:
Salinity levels
Dependent Variable:
Germination rate
7.) What is the effect of potassium ion concentration (ppm) on the initial (day 0 to day 2) rate of growth of Hygrophilla difformis through mass change per day (g/day) over a period of 1 week?
Experimental setup:
Use various concentrations of potassium in the soil in which the Hygrophilla difformis has been planted to asses rate of growth over 1 week. Compare the different pots containing varied concentrations to conclude on the optimum level.
Independent Variable:
Potassium concentration
Dependent Variable:
Rate of growth