What is Cardiac Drift?

NGSS Phenomena:
When exercising for a long time, something called “cardiac drift” can be seen. This is seen when a person’s heart rates increases over time, even though a person is putting in the same effort. In the below graph, a cyclist tracked their speed in blue, their heart rate in red, and their power in grey. Use this graph to answer the questions that follow and think about how the graph relates to this question:

Why does the heart pump faster over time if we're putting in the same amount of effort?
NGSS Phenomena: A graph showing that over time, the amount of work the cyclist puts in remains the same, and their speed also remains the same, but their heart rate slowly increases.
Graph of heart rate over time. Red shows heart rate, Blue shows speed, and Grey shows power (how hard they are working).
Joshua Harris, http://triingwithjosh.blogspot.com

1. The heart pumps faster during exercise mostly to help get to the .

Drag the answers below into the grey placeholders above

oxygen
food
muscle cells
blood cells

2. The heart is one of your that is made up of different that are each made up of .

Drag the answers below into the grey placeholders above

organ systems
cells
organs
tissues
organisms

3. In this example, the main system we’re investigating is the circulatory system. Examples of subsystems within the circulatory system are the and the .

4. Write a claim to help answer this question: How do different body systems work together to cause the heart to pump faster over time? Are these systems part of any larger systems? Be sure to include at least two systems and provide two pieces of evidence for each system to support your claim.

5. What evidence can support your claim about the ways different body systems work together to cause the heart to pump faster over time?

Make sure your evidence looks at the ways cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems work together. (hide hints)

6. What reasoning can support your evidence and claim about how different body systems work together to cause the heart to pump faster over time?

Get Started with InnerOrbit

  • Browse All Our Question Clusters

  • Create Your Own Assessments

  • Analyze Student Performance in 3 Dimensions

This matching question aligns to the following standards

  • LS1.A: Structure and Function

  • MS-LS1-3

This matching question aligns to the following standards

  • LS1.A: Structure and Function

  • MS-LS1-3

This fill in question aligns to the following standards

  • Systems and System Models

  • LS1.A: Structure and Function

This free response question aligns to the following standards

  • Systems and System Models

  • Engaging in Argument from Evidence

  • LS1.A: Structure and Function

This free response question aligns to the following standards

  • Systems and System Models

  • Engaging in Argument from Evidence

  • LS1.A: Structure and Function

This free response question aligns to the following standards

  • Systems and System Models

  • Engaging in Argument from Evidence

  • LS1.A: Structure and Function

Get Started with 3D NGSS Assessments

How InnerOrbit Works

Select Questions

Choose from pools of rigorous NGSS aligned question clusters

Build Assessments

Copy, remix, and create your own science assessments

Assign to Classes

Students take do-nows, exit slips, and formative or summative assessments

Refocus Lessons

Give feedback, track growth, and use intuitive reports to identify gaps

Create Rigorous Science Assessments

From Phenomena-Based Questions Tagged Individually with Specific NGSS Standards

Choose from Multiple Choice, Drawing, Matching, Fill in the Blank, and Free Response Questions

  • What is the Effect of These Aerosols?

    6 Questions
    Published

    • MS-ESS2-6

  • Why Does This Drop so Slowly?

    16 Questions
    Published

    • MS-PS2-5

  • What Makes Glaciers Change Over Time?

    21 Questions
    Published

    • MS-ESS2-1

  • What Changes are Occurring at the Padma River?

    13 Questions
    Published

    • HS-ESS2-5

  • What is Happening to the California Condor Population?

    14 Questions
    Published

    • MS-LS2-1

  • Which Trash Cleaning Solution is Better?

    13 Questions
    Published

    • MS-LS2-5

  • How do Mushrooms Get Their Energy?

    24 Questions
    Published

    • HS-LS1-7

  • Browse
    1000+
    Questions

Intuitive Reports to Easily View Progress

Track student growth and gaps in three dimensions

    Easily Build and Assign
    Your First NGSS Assessments