Heavier atoms are not proportionally larger than lighter atoms due to the greater
number of protons
A) pulling surrounding electrons into tighter shells.
B) squeezed into tighter spaces.
C) both of these
D) none of these
Aluminum has a specific heat capacity more than twice that of copper. Place equal
masses of aluminum and copper wire in a flame and the one to undergo the fastest
increase in temperature will be
A) copper.
B) aluminum.
C) both the same
When a dishonest scientist reports false information, he or she
A) as in many other professions, will be excused by the scientific community.
B) gets no second chance in the scientific community.
C) is elevated in the scientific community.
A 5-kg fish swimming at 1 m/s swallows an absent-minded 1-kg fish at rest. The speed
of the larger fish after lunch is
A) 1/2 m/s.
B) 2/5 m/s.
C) 5/6 m/s.
D) 6/5 m/s.
E) 1 m/s.
The best visible safety light in the darkroom that will emit low-energy photons is
A) violet.
B) blue.
C) green.
D) any of the above
E) none of the above
According to the special theory of relativity, while traveling at very high speed your
pulse rate
A) increases.
B) decreases.
C) remains unchanged.
The half-life of a radioactive substance is affected by
A) pressure.
B) temperature.
C) age.
D) all of the above
E) none of the above
The amount of current in an incandescent bulb rated 75W 120V is about
A) 0.4 A.
B) 0.6 A.
C) 1.2 A.
D) more than 1.2 A.
Which of the following continually emits electromagnetic radiation?
A) insects
B) radio antennas
C) red-hot coals
D) all of the above
E) none of the above
If Earth’s atmosphere were appreciably thicker, snow would appear
A) still white.
B) yellow.
C) blue.
D) ultraviolet.
What prevents satellites such as the ISS from falling?
A) gravity
B) centripetal force
C) centrifugal force
D) the absence of air drag
E) nothing
The atmosphere of Jupiter is more than 1000 km thick. From Jupiter’s surface, the Sun
at noon would appear
A) white.
B) faintly white.
C) not at all.
D) none of the above
Earth’s atmosphere is opaque to waves that are concentrated in the
A) infrared part of the spectrum.
B) visible part of the spectrum.
C) entire electromagnetic spectrum.
The term critical mass refers to the least amount of mass that can
A) sustain a chain reaction.
B) squelch a chain reaction.
C) explode when rapidly brought against a neighboring piece.
D) none of the above
Which of these vary for satellites in circular orbits?
A) speed.
B) momentum.
C) kinetic energy.
D) all of the above
E) none of the above
If you balance a broom horizontally on one finger, the center of gravity of the broom
will be above your finger, closer to the bristles end than the handle end. If you saw the
broom in two pieces at that point and weigh the two parts on a scale, you’ll find that the
heavier part is the
A) bristles part.
B) handle part.
C) both the same weight
As the number of loops in a current-carrying wire is increased, the
A) more spread out is the magnetic field.
B) stronger the enclosed magnetic field.
C) weaker the current.
D) greater the back emf.
Morning dew on the grass is a result of
A) evaporation of water.
B) the open-structured form of water crystals.
C) air pressure on water vapor.
D) slow-moving water molecules sticking to one another.
Two life preservers have identical volumes, but one is filled with Styrofoam while the
other is filled with sand. When the two life preservers are fully submerged, the buoyant
force is greater on the one filled with
A) Styrofoam.
B) sand.
C) same on each as long as their volumes are the same
The equivalent resistance of any parallel branch in a circuit is
A) often less than the resistance of the lowest resistor.
B) always less than the resistance of the lowest resistor.
C) usually half the value of the lowest resistor.
D) none of the above
Electrostatics is a branch of electricity that focuses on
A) electrical charge.
B) electrical force.
C) both of these when static.
D) none of the above
A violet-hot star emits radiation having about twice the peak frequency of radiation
from a red-hot star. The surface temperature of the hotter star is about
A) half that of the cooler star.
B) twice that of the cooler star.
C) the same.
The ideal efficiency for a heat engine operating between the temperatures 2700 K and
300 K is
A) 10%.
B) 24%.
C) 80%.
D) 89%.
E) none of the above
A pair of equal-length vectors at right angles to each other have a resultant. If the angle
between the vectors is greater than 90o, their resultant is
A) less.
B) the same.
C) greater.
While an airplane flies at 40 m/s at an altitude of 500 meters, the pilot drops a heavy
package that falls to the ground. Neglecting air drag, about where does the package land
relative to the plane flying above?
A) directly beneath the plane
B) 400 m behind the plane
C) 500 m behind the plane
D) more than 500 m behind the plane
E) none of the above
Strictly speaking, to say that an apple is red means that
A) an apple is red.
B) it appears red.
C) is, or appears makes no difference”red is red.
The work you do when pushing a shopping cart twice as far while applying twice the
force is
A) half as much.
B) twice as much.
C) four times as much.
D) the same amount.
Project a cannonball from atop Newton’s hypothetical mountain at 8 km/s and it orbits
Earth. Project it at 9 km/s and the shape of the orbit is
A) a somewhat larger circle.
B) a wide parabola.
C) an ellipse.
Which tin can will roll down an incline in the shortest time, one filled with water or one
filled with ice? (Hint: water ‘slides’ inside the can.)
A) with water
B) with ice
C) both the same
D) need more information
Two charged particles repel each other with a force F. If the charge of one of the
particles is doubled and the distance between them is also doubled, then the force will
be
A) F.
B) 2 F.
C) F/2.
D) F/4.
E) none of the above
The weight of a 1-centimer cubed metal cube scaled up by a factor of 10 will be
A) ten times as much.
B) a hundred times as much.
C) a thousand times as much.
D) none of the above
The high voltage that is important in a power line is high voltage
A) between the parallel wires of the line.
B) from one end of each power line to the other.
C) both of these
D) neither of these
Glowing plasma is evident in the light from
A) a fluorescent lamp.
B) the aurora borealis (northern lights).
C) some TV screens.
D) all the above
E) none of the above
An ion and an isotope are
A) very much one and the same
B) very unlike
C) opposites.