Science Trivia Questions for Students — page 85

The surface of Earth is covered mostly by

• Amolten rock
• Bsolid rock
• Cice
• Dwater

In the rock cycle an igneous rock forms from

• Ahigh pressure and heat
• Bcompacted plant remains
• Ccooling temperatures
• Dweathering and erosion

Wolves have adapted skills for hunting large hoofed animals such as elk, deer, or moose. Wolves tend to target prey animals that are sick or weak. The wolf benefits from this strategy because it uses less energy to hunt. How would the prey animal population also benefit from this strategy?

• Aby preventing the introduction of other predator species
• Bby stimulating beneficial DNA mutations
• Cby increasing the reproductive success of healthy prey animals
• Dby promoting detrimental genes

Which event would most likely cause a rapid extinction of organisms?

• Aa decrease in the growth of weeds
• Bnew glacier formation
• Cregional drought
• Da large asteroid impact

What is the name of the author who proposed natural selection as the mechanism of evolution?

• AMendel
• BDarwin
• CHardy-Weinberg
• DLamarck

One example of matter is

• Aheat
• Bsound
• Cwater
• Dlight

Which of these tells something about how an apple looks?

• AIt is smooth.
• BIt is square.
• CIt is blue.
• DIt is soft.

Four materials are put into small containers. These materials are then moved from the small containers into larger containers. Which material will spread out to completely fill a larger container?

• Aair
• Bice
• Csand
• Dwater

Which is a force that keeps Earth in orbit around the Sun?

• Aradiation
• Bmagnetism
• Cfriction
• Dgravity

What are petri dishes used for in a lab?

• Aobserving the strength of physical forces
• Bgrowing bacteria in a controlled setting
• Creflecting light to form images
• Dmeasuring the mass of molecules

Which scientist formulated rules that describe the observable relationships of plant traits to the traits of the ancestor plants?

• ALinus Pauling
• BJames Watson
• CAlbert Einstein
• DGregor Mendel

Rocks and minerals are common materials found on Earth. Which property do most rocks and minerals share?

• AThey are pure.
• BThey are magnetic.
• CThey are liquid.
• DThey are solid.

What is the density of a 64-g iron cube that displaces 8 mL of water?

• A4 g/mL
• B512 g/mL
• C32 g/mL
• D8 g/mL

What are two ways ice can change Earth's surface?

• Acracking a rock and making a V-shaped valley
• Bmaking a dune and making a U-shaped valley
• Ccracking a rock and making a U-shaped valley
• Dmaking a dune and making a V-shaped valley

When a guitar string is plucked, sound is produced by

• Athe vibrations of the string.
• Bthe wood on the guitar.
• Cthe metal on the guitar.
• Dthe size of the guitar.

Which of the following helps to produce urine in humans and other mammals?

• Akidneys
• Bbladder
• Curethra
• Dureter

Technological advances are allowing scientists to develop methods for replacing abnormal human genes with healthy copies of the same genes. Which is the most likely use for this gene therapy?

• Akilling viruses
• Bhealing wounds
• Ctreatment of inherited diseases
• Dtreatment of airborne infections

The human respiratory system is responsible for removing

• Afat from cells
• Bnutrients from food
• Ccarbon dioxide from blood
• Dhormones from glands

The brain and spinal cord are parts of which body system?

• Arespiratory
• Bnervous
• Cendocrine
• Dexcretory

Which invention has done the most to help predict weather and warn people of approaching storms?

• Aairplanes
• Bsatellites
• Cbarometers
• Dmaps

Which type of scientist would study the relationship between simple machines and energy?

• Achemist
• Bbiologist
• Cphysicist
• Dgeologist

Which is considered a renewable resource?

• Acoal
• Bsilver
• Ctrees
• Doil

Which sequence represents the correct levels of organization for multicellular organisms?

• Atissue -> organ -> cell -> organ system
• Borgan system -> organ -> cell -> tissue
• Ccell -> tissue -> organ -> organ system
• Dcell -> organ -> tissue -> organ system

Animals get energy from the food they eat. What is the original source of this energy?

• Athe soil
• Bthe Sun
• Cthe water cycle
• Dfertilizers

Which is a compound?

• ANeon (Ne)
• BAmmonia (NH_{3})
• COzone (O_{3})
• DNitrogen (N_{2})

Turgor pressure in the cells of plant roots is strong enough to eventually crack the rocks in which they grow. What machine redirects force this way?

• Aa pulley
• Ba wedge
• Can inclined plane
• Da wheel and axle

Upwelling moves the water of the deep ocean to the ocean's surface. What else does upwelling move to the surface?

• Adissolved gases
• Bnutrients
• Cphytoplankton
• Dfish

What role do plants have in the carbon cycle?

• Ause water and release carbon
• Buse sugar and release carbon
• Cuse carbon and release oxygen
• Duse carbon and release nitrogen

A factory in Japan had been dumping mercury into Minamata Bay. Certain microorganisms in the water were able to change the mercury into a form that the plankton could use. Which most likely happened next?

• AThe plankton made the mercury safe.
• BThe organisms built up a resistance to the mercury.
• CThe mercury passed through the food chain.
• DThe fish would not eat the plankton.

Which of the following is an example of an assistive device?

• Acoffee pot
• Bcontact lens
• Craincoat
• Dmotorcycle

Which statement best explains why the Sun and the Moon appear to be about the same size in the sky?

• AThe Moon is larger in diameter and farther from Earth than the Sun.
• BThe Sun and the Moon are the same distance from Earth.
• CThe Sun and the Moon have the same diameter.
• DThe Moon is smaller in diameter and is closer to Earth than the Sun.

How is the mass of an atom calculated?

• Aadd the number of protons to the number of neutrons
• Badd the number of protons to the number of electrons
• Csubtract the number of electrons from the sum of protons and neutrons
• Dsubtract the number of protons from the number of neutrons

The Wright Brothers' invention has had the greatest impact on

• Acommunication.
• Bmass production.
• Ctransportation.
• Dspace exploration.

Read the equation. 2Ca + O_{2} -> 2CaO What is the product of the reaction?

• Acompound
• Bmixture
• Csolution
• Dmetal

Which of these is the primary source of energy in food webs?

• Aconsumer
• Bsunlight
• Csoil
• Dproducer

The main source of food for a coyote population in one area is mice. Which is most likely to happen to these coyotes if a new predator begins eating the mice?

• AThe coyotes will produce more young.
• BThere will be fewer coyotes.
• CMore coyotes will arrive from other locations.
• DEach coyote will spend less time hunting food.

Which of these materials on the walls of a room would work best to keep sound from making an echo?

• Acarpet
• Bmarble
• Cwood
• Dglass

Nearly 100 years ago, a large volcano erupted in the South Pacific. The following year, Boston recorded measurable snow every month of the year, and most of the Northern Hemisphere experienced a cold summer. Which explains how these two events were related?

• ALava flow from the eruption caused a temporary increase in Earth's total heat energy.
• BThe eruption caused damage to the ozone layer.
• CAir pollution from the eruption caused a decrease in the amount of solar energy reaching Earth.
• DThe eruption intensified the greenhouse effect.

Astronomers and biologists study different areas of science. Many astronomers observe far distant objects in the sky. Many biologists study extremely small objects. What do these astronomers and biologists have most in common?

• AThey both make discoveries using optical devices.
• BThey both examine the history of life on Earth.
• CThey both search for evidence about the origins of the universe.
• DThey both study how organisms change over time.

Near Earth's equator, water generally exists naturally in the liquid and gas states. In which other part of Earth is water usually found naturally in only two states?

• Ainterior of Africa
• BIndian Ocean
• CTropic of Cancer
• DSouth Pole

What is the most likely reason the giant sloth became extinct in North America and Cuba?

• Adisease
• Bclimate change
• Chumans as predators
• Dloss of habitat

Which type of energy is found in fossil fuels?

• Achemical
• Bnuclear
• Cmechanical
• Dradiant

What causes a free falling object to accelerate?

• Ainitial direction
• Binitial speed
• Cgravity
• Dinertia

Which compound does not contain individual molecules?

• Acarbon monoxide
• Bhydrogen gas
• Csalt
• Dwater

Which characteristic of a bird most likely aids in obtaining food found in small places?

• Alarge body
• Bwebbed feet
• Csoft feathers
• Dskinny beak

Which sequence correctly shows the levels of increasing organization in the human body?

• Atissues -> cells -> organ systems -> organs
• Borgan systems -> organs -> tissues -> cells
• Corgans -> organ systems -> cells -> tissues
• Dcells -> tissues -> organs -> organ systems

After the last ice age, the melting of the polar and mountain ice caps caused the water levels of the oceans to rise. Which most likely resulted from the rising of ocean water levels?

• Adecrease in the depth of the ocean floor
• Bdecrease in the number of tides each day
• Cincrease in the salt content of existing coastal wetlands
• Dincrease in the number of organisms in existing reefs

Physical and chemical properties can be used to classify substances. Which of these shows a chemical property?

• AAluminum conducts heat.
• BSulfur is a yellow solid.
• CMagnesium burns.
• DSilver melts.

Decomposers are organisms that eat and break down dead plant and animal material. Which organism is a decomposer?

• Aalgae
• Bmoss
• Cbacteria
• Dfish

One way animals usually respond to a sudden drop in temperature is by

• Ablinking
• Bsalivating
• Csweating
• Dshivering