If carbon-14 is a beta emitter, what is the likely product of radioactive decay?
A) nitrogen-14
B) carbon-12
C) oxygen-18
D) berrylium-10
E) none of the above
Answer:
Which of the following statements about desalinization is untrue?
A) You can use osmosis to remove salt from saltwater.
B) You can use distillation to separate salt from saltwater.
C) Desalinization is an energy intensive process.
D) All are untrue.
E) Only a and b are untrue.
Answer:
Rocks in the core of an anticline are ________ than rocks away from the core.
A) higher
B) lower
C) older
D) younger
Answer:
Burl and Paul on a sign-painting scaffold are in equilibrium, which means that the net
upward supporting force of the vertical ropes is
A) equal to their weights.
B) greater than their weights.
C) equal and opposite to the combined weights of Burl, Paul, and the scaffold.
D) none of the above
Answer:
Into which stable force field can a proton be placed at rest without being accelerated?
A) magnetic field
B) electric field
C) both of these
D) none of the above
Answer:
The necessary condition to produce an artesian system is
A) an unconfined aquifer that intersects the land surface.
B) a confined aquifer under sufficient pressure.
C) a confined aquifer that intersects the water table.
D) any of these
Answer:
Temperature in the air can decrease by the process of
A) moisture condensation.
B) moisture evaporation.
C) contact with warm surfaces.
D) solar radiation.
Answer:
A sound wave is a
A) longitudinal wave.
B) transverse wave.
C) standing wave.
D) shock wave.
E) none of the above
Answer:
An ampere is a unit of electric
A) pressure.
B) current.
C) resistance.
D) all of the above
E) none of the above
Answer:
Galaxies are aggregations of stars, stellar dust, and gas. Their masses
A) are all about the same, which is huge.
B) vary greatly from one galaxy to the next.
C) are small compared to blue supergiant stars.
D) depend on the rate of pulsar emissions within them.
Answer:
The theory of dark energy tells us that
A) empty space is seething with a form of energy.
B) there is a force that behaves like an anti-gravity.
C) there is still much to learn about this universe.
D) All of the above.
Answer:
A rock that is readily attacked by chemical weathering is
A) limestone.
B) granite.
C) basalt.
D) gneiss.
Answer:
If you strip electrons from an atom, the atom becomes a
A) positive ion.
B) negative ion.
C) different element.
Answer:
Superconducting electromagnets
A) account for cases of magnetic levitation.
B) are characterized by easy penetration of external magnetic fields.
C) both of these
D) none of the above
Answer:
Why is the Moon still visible during a full lunar eclipse?
A) Earth’s atmosphere acts as a lens that refracts light into the shadowed region.
B) There is a minor component of phosphorescent minerals distributed fairly evenly on
the lunar surface.
C) The Moon’s thin atmosphere acts as a mirror, reflecting light being cast from
neighboring stars.
D) Background microwave radiation becomes excited during the lunar eclipse, and
shifts towards visual light, which then slightly illuminates the eclipsed moon.
Answer:
Waves are altered when they enter shallow water. They change
A) direction by refraction, they steepen and break.
B) direction by refraction, they increase in speed, steepen, and break.
C) direction by reflection, they increase in energy, steepen, and break.
D) intensity by refraction, they lose energy, steepen and break.
Answer:
A good absorber of radiation is a
A) good emitter of radiation.
B) poor emitter of radiation.
C) good reflector.
D) none of the above
Answer:
The Cenozoic Era is known as the
A) age of the mammals.
B) age of man.
C) age of the reptile.
D) ice age.
Answer:
In the Northern Hemisphere, hurricane winds spiral
A) counterclockwise in toward the low pressure zone of the storm’s eye.
B) counterclockwise in toward the high pressure zone of the storm’s eye.
C) clockwise in toward the low pressure zone of the storm’s eye.
D) clockwise in toward the high pressure zone of the storm’s eye.
Answer:
The scanning probe microscope
A) uses very large mirrors and lenses to enhance an image.
B) can scan small things from a large distance away, such as the surface of the Moon.
C) characterizes the surface atoms of a material.
D) vaporizes a substance, then analyzes and manipulates the components.
Answer:
Tensional forces cause the crust to
A) buckle and fold, thereby shortening the crustal surface.
B) buckle and fold, thereby lengthening the crustal surface.
C) stretch and pull, thereby shortening the crustal surface.
D) break and fracture, thereby lengthening the crustal surface.
Answer:
A device that transforms electrical energy to mechanical energy is a
A) generator.
B) motor.
C) transformer.
D) magnet.
E) none of the above
Answer:
According to Alan Guth, magnetic monopoles are not observed in our universe because
A) they are theoretically impossible.
B) space expanded so much that they are exceedingly rare.
C) of the presence of electromagnetic radiation.
D) they easily collapse under the force of gravity.
Answer:
How much greater is the atmospheric pressure of Jupiter than Earth’s? More than
A) ten times.
B) one hundred times.
C) ten thousand times.
D) a million times.
Answer:
A strong magnetic field easily penetrates
A) human flesh.
B) plastic coatings.
C) both of these
D) none of the above
Answer:
According to relativity theory, it is possible to reverse time and grow younger when you
A) are near a black hole.
B) are near a very large gravitational field.
C) travel at nearly the speed of light.
D) you can never grow younger.
E) none of these
Answer:
How does connecting a metal like iron with a wire to a metal that is easier to oxidize
like zinc help prevent corrosion of the iron?
A) The other metal is oxidized instead and the electrons travel to the iron, keeping it
from oxidizing.
B) The other metal absorbs the electrons from the iron, which keeps the iron from
undergoing oxidation.
C) The wire is acting as an oxidant and keeps the two metals from undergoing other
chemical reactions.
D) There is no salt-bridge, so there is no reaction between the two metals.
E) The other metal is oxidized and adsorbs all the oxidant, keeping it away from the
iron.
Answer:
As the process of crystallization continues (from molten liquid to solid crystal) the
composition of the molten liquid becomes
A) depleted in the minerals that have already crystallized.
B) enriched in the minerals that have already crystallized.
C) depleted in the minerals that have yet to crystallize.
D) enriched in the minerals that have yet to crystallize.
E) both A and D
F) both B and C
Answer:
Which of these two collisions is more damaging; driving into a concrete wall with no
“give,” or colliding head-on with an identical car moving toward you at your same
speed?
A) collision with the car
B) collision with the wall
C) both the same
Answer:
Foreign ions introduced to water
A) lower the freezing point of water.
B) raise the freezing point of water.
C) do not affect water’s freezing point.
Answer:
What is the special property of a semipermeable membrane that makes osmosis
possible?
A) The pores in the membrane only allow water to pass through.
B) Water only moves through the membrane in one direction.
C) Only the ions travel through the membrane.
D) Ions only move one way through the membrane.
E) none of the above
Answer:
Two identical gliders slide toward each other on an air track. One glider moves at 1 m/s
and the other glider moves at 2 m/s. They collide, stick, and move at
A) 1/2 m/s.
B) 1/3 m/s.
C) 1/6 m/s.
D) 3/4 m/s.
E) 1.5 m/s.
Answer:
Balance the following equation.
________ NO → ________ N2O + ________ NO2
A) 3, 1, 1
B) 3, 0, 0
C) 4, 4, 8
D) 1, 2, 4
E) 6, 2, 1
Answer:
Action and reaction pairs of forces always act on
A) the same body.
B) different bodies.
C) either of these
D) none of the above
Answer:
Which of the following statements regarding a nucleon is true?
A) Attraction between nucleons changes their mass.
B) The mass of a nucleon depends on which nucleus it is in.
C) Some of the mass of a nucleon can be converted into energy by breaking certain
nuclei.
D) both A and C
E) all of the above
Answer: