Round #10 Flashcards
1) Energy – Short Answer Scientists at Oak Ridge National Lab have developed a method to
use nanoscale spikes of carbon atoms to reduce gaseous nitrogen to what colorless, pungent gas
important in the manufacturing of fertilizer?
ANSWER: AMMONIA
1) Energy – Multiple Choice DOE researchers at Idaho National Lab are developing practical
methods to reduce the cost of biodiesel production. From which of the following stocks is
biodiesel made?
W) Corn
X) Wheat
Y) Vegetable oil
Z) Algae
ANSWER: Y) VEGETABLE OIL
2) Earth and Space – Short Answer What mechanism of heat transfer in the mantle drives
plate tectonics?
ANSWER: CONVECTION
2) Earth and Space – Short Answer Identify all of the following substances that would be able
to scratch the mineral apatite: 1) Fluorite; 2) Quartz; 3) Gypsum.
ANSWER: 2
3) Life Science – Short Answer What is the term for a rod-shaped bacterium?
ANSWER: BACILLUS (ACCEPT: BACILLI)
3) Life Science – Multiple Choice Which of the following hormones requires iodine for its
synthesis?
W) Thyroid-stimulating hormone
X) Thyroxine [thigh-ROX-in]
Y) Luteinizing [LOO-tin-eye-zing] hormone
Z) Testosterone
ANSWER: X) THYROXINE
4) Math – Short Answer Calculate the mean of the following 4 numbers: 12, 18, 30, 20
ANSWER: 20
4) Math – Short Answer To the nearest whole number, what is the area of a circle with
circumference 20?
ANSWER: 32
5) Physical Science – Multiple Choice The pH scale can be used to quantify which of the
following properties of a solution?
W) Saturation
X) Basicity [bay-SIH-sid-ee]
Y) Boiling point
Z) Osmolarity [oz-mow-LAIR-it-ee]
ANSWER: X) BASICITY
5) Physical Science – Short Answer After Rutherford’s experiments in 1918, scientists were
confident that the atom was composed of what two particles?
ANSWER: PROTONS AND ELECTRONS (ACCEPT IN ANY ORDER)
6) Earth and Space – Multiple Choice Which of the following star masses, given in solar
masses, is closest to the minimum amount of mass needed to form a black hole?
W) 3
X) 10
Y) 18
Z) 25
ANSWER: W) 3
6) Earth and Space – Short Answer Order the following four star colors in decreasing order of
related surface temperature: 1) Yellow; 2) White; 3) Red; 4) Blue.
ANSWER: 4, 2, 1, 3
7) Energy – Short Answer Scientists at SLAC National Accelerator Lab are studying
superconducting materials using computational modeling. In these materials, Cooper pairs form
between what particles to allow the conduction of currents?
ANSWER: ELECTRON
7) Energy – Short Answer Scientists at Pacific Northwest National Lab are supercooling
liquid water to 136 kelvins, where it freezes extremely quickly to generate a glass-like ice. What
is this temperature to the nearest degree Celsius?
ANSWER: –137
8) Math – Short Answer What is the slope of the line with equation 3x + 5y = –30?
ANSWER: –3/5 (ACCEPT: –0.6)
8) Math – Short Answer Simplify the fraction with numerator 2 + √2 and denominator 2 – √2.
ANSWER: 3 + 2√2 (ACCEPT: 2√2 + 3)
9) Life Science – Short Answer What type of tissue gives flexibility and elasticity to
structures such as the ear and nose?
ANSWER: CARTILAGE
9) Life Science – Short Answer Identify all of the following three animals that typically have
an exoskeleton: 1) Lobster; 2) Tuna; 3) Ant.
ANSWER: 1, 3
10) Physical Science – Short Answer What type of electrical device stores electrical energy in
the form of an electric field, such as between two conducting plates?
ANSWER: CAPACITOR
10) Physical Science – Short Answer If a 50-kilogram person expends 1000 joules of energy
climbing up stairs, then to the nearest meter, what is the maximum theoretical height the person
could climb?
ANSWER: 2
11) Earth and Space – Multiple Choice Relative humidity is calculated using what two
quantities?
W) Water vapor pressure and total atmospheric pressure
X) Temperature and total atmospheric pressure
Y) Water vapor pressure and saturation vapor pressure
Z) Temperature and saturation vapor pressure
ANSWER: Y) WATER VAPOR PRESSURE AND SATURATION VAPOR PRESSURE
11) Earth and Space – Multiple Choice A geologist has a metamorphic rock sample that she
observes to be nonfoliated and appears to react with dilute acid. Which of the following rocks
could she have?
W) Marble
X) Quartzite
Y) Slate
Z) Schist
ANSWER: W) MARBLE
12) Math – Short Answer Rounded to the nearest 100, what is 417 times 8?
ANSWER: 3300
12) Math – Short Answer A cube and a right rectangular prism have the same volume. If the
dimensions of the prism are 6, 10, and 12, what is the length of each edge of the cube?
ANSWER: 2 TIMES THE CUBE ROOT OF 90
13) Life Science – Short Answer Tanning salons can increase the risk of skin cancer due to
exposure to light of what region of the electromagnetic spectrum?
ANSWER: UV (ACCEPT: ULTRAVIOLET)
13) Life Science – Short Answer Identify all of the following three organisms that are
bryophytes [BRYE-oh-fites]: 1) Mosses; 2) Ferns; 3) Pine trees.
ANSWER: 1
14) Physical Science – Short Answer What term do chemists use to describe the tendency of
an atom to attract shared electrons in a covalent bond?
ANSWER: ELECTRONEGATIVITY
14) Physical Science – Short Answer What is the pH of a solution at 25 degrees Celsius if the
concentration of hydroxide ions is 10 –4 molar?
ANSWER: 10
15) Earth and Space – Multiple Choice Which of the following types of clouds would be most
predictive of heavy rain?
W) Cumulonimbus [KYOOM-yoo-loh-NIM-bus]
X) Cirrus [SEER-us]
Y) Altocumulus
Z) Stratus
ANSWER: W) CUMULONIMBUS
15) Earth and Space – Short Answer Hoarfrost is produced when water vapor undergoes what
physical change?
ANSWER: DEPOSITION
16) Life Science – Multiple Choice Which of the following is an example of a zoonotic
[ZOH-uh-naw-tik] disease?
W) Measles
X) Bubonic plague
Y) Cholera
Z) Chicken pox
ANSWER: X) BUBONIC PLAGUE
16) Life Science – Short Answer Identify all of the following three diseases that are caused by
viruses: 1) West Nile; 2) Influenza; 3) Tetanus.
ANSWER: 1, 2
17) Math – Short Answer What is the remainder when 86 is divided by 14?
ANSWER: 2
17) Math – Short Answer What is the area of a right triangle with hypotenuse of length 13 and
one leg of length 11?
ANSWER: 22√3
19) Physical Science – Multiple Choice Which of the following substances likely has the
strongest odor?
W) NaCl
X) Cu
Y) NH3
Z) SiO2
ANSWER: Y) NH3
18) Energy – Multiple Choice Nuclear power plants in the United States typically either
generate power at their full rated capacity, or not at all, even though they have the capability to
vary power output. Researchers at Argonne National Lab recently conducted a study that
demonstrated the benefits of varying power output to help grid operators rebalance supply and
demand in response to unexpected power events. Which of the following alternative energy
sources, if attached to the grid, would be most likely to result in unplanned surpluses or
shortfalls?
W) Biofuel
X) Geothermal
Y) Wind
Z) Biomass
ANSWER: Y) WIND
18) Energy – Multiple Choice Los Alamos National Lab researchers are studying a group of
pumps known as RND efflux pumps. These proteins perform which of the following types of
transport?
W) Passive diffusion
X) Osmosis
Y) Active transport
Z) Facilitated diffusion
ANSWER: Y) ACTIVE TRANSPORT
19) Physical Science – Short Answer You toss a baseball. Neglecting air resistance, identify
all of the following three quantities that stay constant as the baseball travels: 1) Total speed;
2) Vertical speed; 3) Horizontal speed.
ANSWER: 3
21) Math – Short Answer What is the degree of the product of the three binomials x + 3,
x6 – 7x2
, and x4 – 12?
ANSWER: 11
20) Earth and Space – Short Answer What paradox states that, if the universe is infinite and
static, then the night sky should be as bright as the Sun?
ANSWER: OLBER’S PARADOX
20) Earth and Space – Short Answer The gas tail of a comet points away from the Sun due to
its interaction with what stream of particles?
ANSWER: SOLAR WIND
21) Math – Short Answer All 24 people at a party want to shake hands with everyone else. To
accomplish this, how many handshakes must take place?
ANSWER: 276
22) Life Science – Short Answer If you listen to someone’s heart, the sounds you hear
originate from the motion of what structures within the heart?
ANSWER: VALVES
22) Life Science – Short Answer In marine birds, glands near their eyes will secrete a fluid
that drips off their beaks. What is the primary substance that this process is intended to excrete?
ANSWER: SALT (ACCEPT: SODIUM CHLORIDE, SODIUM)
23) Physical Science – Short Answer When pushing a friend on a swing, there is a natural
frequency that you can apply to the pushes so that your friend achieves maximal height. What is
the adjective for this frequency?
ANSWER: RESONANT
23) Physical Science – Short Answer Identify all of the following three objects that are chiral:
1) Human hands; 2) Soda can; 3) Shoe.
ANSWER: 1, 3
