The Mohorovicic discontinuity was discovered by observing
A) earthquake movement at Earth’s surface.
B) seismograms of an earthquake.
C) changes in rock density.
D) all of these
Answer:
How is the solubility of a solid affected by temperature?
A) As temperature goes up, the solubility goes up.
B) As temperature goes down, the solubility goes down.
C) As temperature goes up, the solubility goes down.
D) As temperature goes down, the solubility goes up.
E) both A and B
Answer:
How many molecules of sucrose are in 0.5 L of a 1 molar solution of sucrose?
A) 3.01 1023 molecules of sucrose
B) 6.02 1023 molecules of sucrose
C) 12.04 1023 molecules of sucrose
D) 0.5
E) 1 gram
Answer:
Continental crust is
A) thinner than oceanic crust.
B) less dense than oceanic crust.
C) more dense than oceanic crust.
D) thinner and more dense than oceanic crust.
Answer:
Which of the following does not describe the number of other atoms a carbon atom can
be bonded to?
A) only 2
B) only 3
C) only 4
D) only 5
Answer:
The following set of redox reactions takes place as shown.
Container A Container B
Fe → Fe+2 + 2e- Cu+2 + 2e- → Cu
If you had two containers filled with the ion solution described above with a wire
connecting a piece of iron (in container A) and a piece of copper (in container B) and a
salt-bridge connecting the two containers, which way do the electrons flow?
A) There is no continuous flow of electrons.
B) The electrons flow from container A to container B.
C) The electrons flow from container B to container A.
D) The electrons flow back and forth between the two containers.
E) The electrons only move in the containers they originate in.
Answer:
In order for it to rain, there must be
A) condensation nuclei, updrafts, and thick clouds.
B) sufficient vertical cloud development.
C) wind.
D) droplet bombardment.
Answer:
What is the mass of a water molecule, O, in atomic mass units?
A) 2 amu
B) 3 amu
C) 16 amu
D) 18 amu
Answer:
The distance between Earth and the Moon is 3.84 108 m. A pulse of laser light aimed at
the Moon that bounces back to Earth undergoes a round-trip time of about
A) zero seconds.
B) less than 1 second.
C) two and a half seconds.
D) three seconds.
Answer:
A supercritical fluid least resembles
A) a solid.
B) a liquid.
C) a gas.
D) All of the above.
Answer:
Saturation and condensation are more likely to occur in
A) warm air than in cool air.
B) air with a low relative humidity.
C) cool air than in warm air.
D) an adiabatic air mass.
Answer:
Which process would release energy from gold, fission or fusion? From carbon?
A) gold: fission; carbon: fusion
B) gold: fusion; carbon: fission
C) gold: fission; carbon: fission
D) gold: fusion; carbon: fusion
Answer:
The force required to maintain an object at a constant velocity in free space is equal to
A) zero.
B) the mass of the object.
C) the weight of the object.
D) the force required to stop it.
Answer:
If an element has 18 protons and 20 neutrons and 18 electrons, which expression
correctly identifies the element?
A) argon-38
B) argon-18
C) argon-20
D) calcium-38
E) calcium-20
Answer:
The extensive glaciation of the Pleistocene caused sea level to
A) drop because a great deal of water was bound in glaciers.
B) rise because a great deal of water was tied up in glaciers.
C) drop because of increased ablation and reduced accumulation.
D) rise because of increased accumulation and reduced ablation.
Answer:
When you touch a nail stuck in ice, energy flows from
A) the ice to your hand.
B) your hand to the ice.
C) both of these
D) none of the above
Answer:
The precipitation of and crystallization of evaporite minerals is very similar to the
crystallization of minerals from a magma. The first evaporite minerals to precipitate
(crystallize) are those with the
A) lowest solubility.
B) highest melting point.
C) lowest silica content.
D) highest solubility.
Answer:
Suppose you stand on a weighing scale and all of a sudden the atmosphere vanishes.
The reading on the scale would
A) increase.
B) decrease.
C) remain the same.
Answer:
Voltage can be induced in a wire by
A) moving the wire near a magnet.
B) moving a magnet near the wire.
C) changing the current in a nearby wire.
D) all of the above
E) none of the above
Answer:
A wave is a vibration in
A) space.
B) time.
C) both of these
D) none of the above
Answer:
When a 5-N block of wood floats in mercury the buoyant force on it is
A) less than 5 N.
B) 5 N.
C) greater than 5 N.
Answer:
The pupil of your eye is a net
A) absorber of radiant energy.
B) emitter of radiant energy.
C) neither of these
Answer:
A heavy block at rest is suspended by a vertical rope. When the block is raised at
constant velocity, the rope tension
A) is less than its weight.
B) equals its weight.
C) is greater than its weight.
Answer:
As you ascend in elevation, the air generally becomes
A) warm and heavy.
B) warm and less dense.
C) cool and heavy.
D) cool and less dense.
Answer:
Mountains tend to form in long narrow ranges because
A) of plate convergenceplates coming together.
B) pluton formation tends to develop in an elongate pattern rather than a bubble-like
pattern.
C) of plate divergenceplates squeezing together.
D) they form next to oceanic boundaries.
Answer:
What does the following element description actually mean?
U
A) a uranium atom with 92 protons and 146 neutrons
B) a uranium atom with 238 neutrons and 92 protons
C) a uranium atom with 92 neutrons and 238 protons
D) a uranium atom with 92 neutrons and 146 protons
E) none of the above
Answer:
In a sequence of rock layers we find trilobite and dinosaur fossils. The dinosaur fossils
are at the bottom of the rock sequence and the trilobites are at the top. This sequence
tells us that
A) dinosaurs are older than trilobites.
B) the beds are overturned.
C) trilobites survived the age of the dinosaurs.
D) the beds are folded.
Answer:
You are given two samples of elements, and each sample has a mass of 10 grams. If the
number of atoms in each of these samples is the same, what must be true of the two
elements?
A) The density of the two elements are the same.
B) The elements are likely be located in the same position in the periodic table.
C) Their spectral patterns will likely be identical.
D) all of the above
Answer:
Gravitational force is greater for a satellite in elliptical orbit when it is at the
A) apogee (farthest point).
B) perigee (closest point).
C) zenith.
D) same acceleration at all of the above places.
Answer:
The following statement describes which subatomic particle best?
It does not have an electrical charge.
A) an electron
B) a proton
C) a neutron
D) A and B
E) B and C
Answer:
When a suction cup sticks to a wall it is
A) pulled to the wall by the vacuum.
B) pushed to the wall by the atmosphere.
C) both of these
D) none of the above
Answer:
If you travel at high speed, then compared with your friends who “stay at home,” you
are
A) older.
B) younger.
C) neither younger or older.
D) taller.
Answer:
Movement of air aloft can influence surface air pressure; sometimes air aloft piles upit
convergescausing the surface air pressure to
A) increase and surface winds to blow away from the center of highest pressure.
B) decrease and surface winds to blow away from the center of high pressure.
C) increase and surface winds to blow away from the center of low pressure.
D) decrease and surface winds to blow away from the center of lowest pressure.
Answer:
A wiggle in time is a
A) vibration.
B) wave.
C) both of these
D) none of the above
Answer:
When snow forms in clouds, the surrounding air is
A) cooled.
B) warmed.
C) both of these
D) none of the above
Answer:
Why do the tails of comets point away from the Sun?
Answer:
Why is it that the most ancient rocks are found on the continents, and not on the ocean
floor?
Answer:
What distinguishes a huge block of ice from a glacier?
Answer:
Describe the theory of continental drift.
Answer:
How does the equilibrium rule, ΣF = 0, relate to Newton’s first law of motion?
Answer:
What happens to a current-carrying wire in a magnetic field? How does orientation of
the wire make a difference?
Answer:
Explain why ships of any weight are balanced on the Falkirk Wheel.
Answer:
Distinguish between conduction and convection. Give examples of each.
Answer:
What causes pressure differences to arise, and hence causes the wind to blow?
Answer:
In a hypothetical stream flowing downslope, stream discharge doubles and the
cross-sectional area of the channel also doubles. For this situation, what will happen to
the stream’s speed?
Answer:
Most of the world’s sand is made up of which two minerals?
Answer:
How do glaciers form and how do they move?
Answer:
Atmospheric CO2 levels have reached 400 ppm and global warming is no longer a
questionit is a fact. Explain three consequences of this trend in climate change?
Answer:
If you walk at a constant pace across a room of known length, your walking speed is the
room length divided by the time to cross the room. Now suppose you repeat your walk
but briefly stop along the way to interact with people sitting along your path. What
effect does this have on your average speed across the room? How is this analogous to
light passing through glass? In what way is it not analogous?
Answer:
Can an object have mechanical energy without having momentum? Can an object have
momentum without having mechanical energy? Explain.
Answer:
Distinguish between a common bar magnet and an electromagnet.
Answer: