1) Toss Up - Physics - Short Answer
What is the most common name for the magnetic fusion confinement system first developed in the USSR that has the shape of a toroid?
ANSWER: TOKAMAK1) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer
In 1995, two scientists from the University of Colorado created what new state of matter that would lead to their winning of a Nobel prize:
ANSWER: BOSE-EINSTEIN CONDENSATE (ACCEPT: BEC)2) Toss Up - Astronomy - Multiple Choice
The length of a day on Mars is
W) 16 hours 27 minutes.
X) 24 hours 37 minutes.
Y) 31 hours 13 minutes.
Z) 37 hours 19 minutes.
2) Bonus - Astronomy - Multiple Choice
The designation ALH 84001 refers to
W) A meteorite from Mars.
X) An unusual rock formation analyzed by the Sojourner Mars rover.
Y) An earth crossing asteroid discovered in 1984.
Z) One of the recently discovered objects in the Kuiper [pron. KYE-per] belt.
3) Toss Up - Biology - Multiple Choice
Which of the following is MOST characteristic of human blast cells in on observation with light microscopy:
W) large nuclear to cytoplasmic ratio
X) small nucleolus and mostly heterochromatin in the nucleus
Y) lack of cytoplasmic granules and small overall size compared to mature cells
Z) absence of nucleolus (read as: NEW-clee-oh-luss) and endoplasmic reticulum
3) Bonus - Biology - Short Answer
What specific molecule binds immediately upstream of the structural genes in the lac (read as: LACK) operon and functions to transcribe these genes?
ANSWER: RNA POLYMERASE4) Toss Up - Earth Science - Short Answer
During what Epoch of the Cenozoic Era was the most recent ice age on Earth?
ANSWER: pleistocene (accept: pleistocene ice age)4) Bonus - Earth Science - Multiple Choice
Also known as fall-stripes, precipitation falling from the undersurface of a cloud but not reaching the ground is known as:
W) virga
X) fog
Y) Rossby waves
Z) fans
5) Toss Up - Biology - Multiple Choice
In the lipid membranes of cells, there are multipass proteins that are partly within the lipid bilayer and partly outside of the lipid bilayer. Through which of the following forces do these proteins achieve this position relative to the membrane?
W) Covalent linkages to lipid molecules
X) Disulfide bonds to lipid molecules
Y) Hydrophobic and hydrophilic interactions
Z) Physical connections to the cytosol
5) Bonus - Biology - Short Answer
What is the term for the pattern of arrangement of embryonic leaves within the bud?
ANSWER: VERNATION6) Toss Up - Computer Science - Short Answer
What country is referred to by the domain name extension .de (read as: dot d e)?
ANSWER: GERMANY6) Bonus - Computer Science - Multiple Choice
The binary number 11101 equals what base ten number?
W) 4
X) 19
Y) 29
Z) 34
7) Toss Up - Math - Short Answer
If `f(x) = x^2 - 3` and `g(x) = 6 - sqrt(x)`, what is the value of `f(g(16))` (read as: f of g of 16)?
ANSWER: 17) Bonus - Math - Short Answer
According to Descartes’s Rule of Signs, what are the possible numbers of positive real roots that the following equation might have: `x^5 - 7x^3 + 15x^2 + 3 = 10`?
ANSWER: 1 OR 3 (MUST GIVE BOTH ANSWERS)8) Toss Up - Earth Science - Multiple Choice
Orthoclase is what number on Moh's hardness scale?
W) 4
X) 5
Y) 6
Z) 7
8) Bonus - Earth Science - Multiple Choice
What is the range of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge?
W) from Cuba to the Azores
X) from Iceland to Antarctica
Y) from Cape Hatteras to Gibraltar
Z) from Cape Horn to the Cape of Good Hope
9) Toss Up - Math - Short Answer
If each side of a rectangle is increased by 10%, by what percentage is its area increased?
ANSWER: 21 (ACCEPT: 21%)9) Bonus - Math - Short Answer
Express `(1 + 2i)/(4 - 5i)` [the quantity 1 plus 2 i divided by the quantity 4 minus 5 i] in standard `a + bi` form.
ANSWER: `-6/41 + (13/41)i` [DO NOT ACCEPT: `(-6 + 13i)/41`]10) Toss Up - Math - Short Answer
Solve the following inequality: `x + 1/3 >= 3/4`
ANSWER: `x >= 5/12` (ACCEPT: `x >= 0.42`)10) Bonus - Math - Short Answer
On a math test, 20 students averaged a score of 80% while the remaining 10 students averaged 90%. To the nearest whole percentage point, what is the mean score of the entire class?
ANSWER: 83% (ACCEPT: 83)11) Toss Up - Math - Short Answer
Solve the following equation for `x` over the integers: `x^2 = 3x`
ANSWER: 0; 311) Bonus - Math - Short Answer
Giving your answer as a fraction reduced to lowest terms, solve the following equation for `x`: `2/3x-1/4=10/6x+1/2`
ANSWER: `-3/4`12) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
To early astrophysical researchers, the Sun was originally found to emit about one-third of the expected amount of neutrinos. Which of the following BEST explains why:
W) about 66% of the neutrinos were deflected by the Earth’s magnetic field
X) two-thirds of the neutrinos were too energetic to be detected
Y) neutrinos were changing flavor on their way to Earth
Z) original estimations of the numbers emitted by the Sun were incorrect
12) Bonus - Physics - Multiple Choice
If you were using a 50-millimeter camera lens and changed the lens aperture from 8.0 to 5.6, about how much LESS light would the lens be allowing to pass through it:
W) 60% less
X) 50% less
Y) 35% less
Z) 22% less
13) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
Which of the following colors of light has the SMALLEST angle of refraction in normal glass:
W) violet
X) green
Y) orange
Z) red
13) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer
At 10 cents per kilowatt hour, how much does it cost to run a 1200 watt heater for 4 hours?
ANSWER: 48 CENTS (Solution: 1200 watts = 1.2 Kw^1.2 Kw x 4 hrs x 10 cents = 48 cents)14) Toss Up - Chemistry - Multiple Choice
Which of the following pairs would most likely undergo a Heck reaction?
W) Styrene and iodobenzene
X) Ethylbenzene and phenol [FEE-nol]
Y) Vinyl bromide and benzene
z) Cyclohexane [sy-kluh-HEK-sayn] and allyl bromide
14) Bonus - Chemistry - Short Answer
In semicrystalline polymers, the ordered regions will break up and become disordered at the melting temperature. However, amorphous regions soften over a wider range. What is the name of this range?
ANSWER: GLASS TRANSITION15) Toss Up - Astronomy - Multiple Choice
Which of the following is NOT true:
W) the planet Venus has a high albedo
X) a gnomon is a very simple astronomical instrument
Y) the Moon is found at over 10 degrees north of the ecliptic in a lunar standstill year
Z) carbon is probably the fourth most common element in the universe
15) Bonus - Astronomy - Multiple Choice
From mid-northern latitudes, during which of the following months would the constellation Orion be most prominent in the southern sky at about 10 PM:
W) April
X) July
Y) August
Z) December
16) Toss Up - Physics - Short Answer
What is the name for the preservation of magnetic properties of a ferromagnet even after the external magnetic field is removed?
ANSWER: HYSTERESIS (ACCEPT MAGNETIC REMANENCE)16) Bonus - Physics - Multiple Choice
The magnetic field at the surface of a typical neodymium rare-earth magnet is about?
W) one thousandth of a Tesla
X) one hundredth of a Tesla
Y) one tenth of a Tesla
Z) one Tesla
17) Toss Up - Earth Science - Multiple Choice
Low, layered gray clouds that produce light precipitation are called
W) cumulus.
X) stratus.
Y) cirrus.
Z) nimbus.
17) Bonus - Earth Science - Multiple Choice
The tropical rain forest habitat covers only about seven percent of
the Earth’s surface but contains what percent of Earth’s species?
W) 50 to 80
X) 25 to 40
Y) 10 to 25
Z) 7 to 14
18) Toss Up - Astronomy - Multiple Choice
A first quarter Moon will cross the meridian at what time of the day or night:
W) midnight
X) sunrise
Y) sunset
Z) noon
18) Bonus - Astronomy - Short Answer
What is the most common astronomical term for the angle analogous to geographical longitude?
ANSWER: RIGHT ASCENSION (ACCEPT: ASCENSION)19) Toss Up - Energy - Short Answer
What is the name of the energy storage method where water is pumped from a lower elevation reservoir to a higher elevation during off-peak periods, then released through turbines to produce electric power during peak periods?
ANSWER: PUMPED-STORAGE HYDROELECTRICITY (ACCEPT: HYDRO-STORAGE, PUMPED HYDRO)19) Bonus - Energy - Short Answer
Rank the following four sources of U.S. primary energy production in 2011 from greatest to least: 1) coal, 2) solar, 3) natural gas, 4) crude oil.
ANSWER: 3, 1, 4, 2 (ACCEPT: NATURAL GAS, COAL, CRUDE OIL, SOLAR)20) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
The slope of a velocity versus time graph represents:
W) acceleration
X) velocity
Y) position
Z) displacement
20) Bonus - Physics - Multiple Choice
Under which of the following conditions is the average velocity equal to the average of an object’s initial and final velocity:
W) always
X) never
Y) only when the acceleration changes
Z) only when the acceleration is constant
21) Toss Up - Physics - Short Answer
What is the most common term used to describe the velocity of an object at any one discrete moment along its path?
ANSWER: INSTANTANEOUS VELOCITY21) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer
What lepton was the first to be discovered?
ANSWER: ELECTRON22) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
John has twice the mass of Carl. They jump off a cliff into the water below. Just before the splash:
W) John has half as much kinetic energy as Carl
X) John and Carl have the same kinetic energy
Y) John has twice as much kinetic energy as Carl
Z) John has four times as much kinetic energy as Carl
22) Bonus - Physics - Multiple Choice
In a safety crash test, a big truck and a small car have a head-on collision. What can we say about total system momentum?
W) It is equal to zero
X) It is less after the crash than before the crash
Y) It is the same before and after the crash
Z) It is more after the crash than before the crash
23) Toss Up - Chemistry - Multiple Choice
Who first proposed the concept of free energy?
W) Hess
X) Dalton
Y) Gibbs
Z) Lavoisier
23) Bonus - Chemistry - Multiple Choice
The maximum work that a spontaneous process can provide is
given by
W) delta S.
X) delta G.
Y) delta H.
Z) delta T.
24) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
How is the energy E of a mechanical wave related to its amplitude A?
W) E is proportional to A
X) E is proportional to A squared
Y) E is proportional to 1/A
Z) E is proportional to 1/A squared
24) Bonus - Physics - Multiple Choice
How is the energy E of a mechanical wave related to its frequency f?
W) E is proportional to f
X) E is proportional to f squared
Y) E is proportional to 1/f
Z) E is proportional to 1/f squared
25) Toss Up - Chemistry - Multiple Choice
Modern automobiles use a catalytic converter to
W) increase horsepower by burning more gasoline
X) absorb pollutants from the exhaust
Y) complete the combustion of unburned gases
Z) cool the exhaust gases
25) Bonus - Chemistry - Multiple Choice
A catalyst will NOT
W) increase the forward reaction rate
X) shift the equilibrium to favor the products
Y) alter the reaction pathway
Z) increase the speed at which equilibrium will be achieved