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1) Toss Up - Astronomy - Short Answer

What is the star nearest to the sun?

ANSWER: alpha centauri or proxima centauri
1) Bonus - Astronomy - Multiple Choice

Most of the galaxies in the universe are classified as which of the following:
W) spiral
X) elliptical
Y) irregular
Z) dwarf

ANSWER: Z) dwarf
2) Toss Up - Astronomy - Multiple Choice

At about 10 PM in late summer of 2006, an observer at about 35 degrees north latitude would most likely see the stars Altair, Deneb and Vega in which of the following places in the sky:
W) low in the east
X) low in the west
Y) about half way up in the northern sky
Z) almost directly overhead

ANSWER: Z) ALMOST DIRECTLY OVERHEAD
2) Bonus - Astronomy - Short Answer

What is the most common astronomical term for the interval of time between two successive passages of the Sun through the vernal equinox?

ANSWER: TROPICAL YEAR (ACCEPT: SOLAR YEAR)
3) Toss Up - Biology - Multiple choice

Von Willenbrands causes symptoms similar to which of the following conditions?
W) AIDS
X) Hemophilia
Y) Downs Syndrome
Z) Cancer

ANSWER: X) Hemophilia
3) Bonus - Biology - Short Answer

What is the name of the RNA based compound which is currently being researched for use in Gene technology and alteration?

ANSWER: CRISPR/ Cas9, either is acceptable
4) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice

When moving near the speed of light, objects appear to be:
W) longer than when they are stationary
X) shorter than when they are stationary
Y) redder than when they are stationary
Z) bluer than when they are stationary

ANSWER: X) SHORTER THAN WHEN THEY ARE STATIONARY
4) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer

What is the expression for relativistic momentum?

ANSWER: GAMMA * M * V (GAMMA IS 1 / SQRT(1 - (V/C)^2))
5) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice

Which of the following elements has the highest atomic polarizability?
W) Hydrogen
X) Lithium
Y) Neon
Z) Cesium

ANSWER: Z) CESIUM
5) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer

Which precise mathematical statement of local conservation relates the flow of charge to the rate at which the charge is changing?

ANSWER: CONTINUITY EQUATION
6) Toss Up - Astronomy - Multiple Choice

The age of the Earth is thought to be approximately
W) 45,000 years
X) 4.5 millions years
Y) 4.5 billion years
Z) 4.5 trillion years

ANSWER: Y) 4.5 BILLION YEARS
6) Bonus - Astronomy - Short Answer

The unit invented to describe the distance to a star having a parallax of one second of arc is called what?

ANSWER: PARSEC
7) Toss Up - Physics - Short Answer

Name all of the following which do not change between a quark and its antiparticle: charge, mass, angular momentum, and isospin

ANSWER: MASS and ANGULAR MOMENTUM (2 and 3)
7) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer

Quarks contain the following properties: isospin, strangeness, charm, bottomness, and topness. All of these are examples of what type of of quantum numbers?

ANSWER: FLAVOR QUANTUM NUMBERS (ACCEPT: FLAVOR)
8) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice

A block moving at an initial speed v slides 10 meters. How far does a block with an initial speed of 3v slide?
W) 0
X) 10 meters
Y) 30 meters
Z) 90 meters

ANSWER: Z) 90 METERS
8) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer

A 1-kg hollow sphere is rolling without slipping at a speed of 10 meters per second. What is the sphere’s total kinetic energy?

ANSWER: 500/6 JOULE
9) Toss Up - General Science - Multiple Choice

Which of the following is NOT true:
W) only a few harmful algal bloom species actually produce toxins that are poisonous to people
X) algal blooms occur in marine and freshwater environments
Y) algal blooms can occur in the open ocean far from any coastal inlets
Z) pollution is always to blame for harmful algal blooms along coastal waters

ANSWER: Z) POLLUTION IS ALWAYS TO BLAME FOR HARMFUL ALGAL BLOOMS ALONG COASTAL WATERS
9) Bonus - General Science - Multiple Choice

500 metric gigatons is approximately equal to how many pounds:
W) 1.1 trillion
X) 11 trillion
Y) 110 trillion
Z) 1,100 trillion

ANSWER: Z) 1,100 TRILLION (Solution: ~2205 x 500 x 1000 = 1,102,000,000)
10) Toss Up - Biology - Multiple Choice

The coat of a plant seed is typically derived from which of the following:
W) the hypoderm
X) the carpel
Y) the micropyle
Z) the integument

ANSWER: Z) the integument
10) Bonus - Biology - Multiple Choice

If a person had low levels of corticosteroid, which of the following would be the BEST way to test whether the adrenal glands themselves are not functioning or if it is the fault of the pituitary gland:
W) monitor the kidney for sodium excretion
X) measure the blood plasma for high levels of potassium
Y) inject small amounts of corticotropin and find if the adrenals produce corticosteroids
Z) monitor the urine for high amounts of protein and sodium

ANSWER: Y) inject small amounts of corticotropin and find if the adrenals produce corticosteroids
11) Toss Up - Biology - Multiple Choice

Which of the following are not considered to be big cats?
W) Snow Leopards
X) Cougars
Y) Leopards
Z) Jaguars

ANSWER: X) Cougars
11) Bonus - Biology - Short Answer

What is the common name of the subspecies of lion now found in the wild only in India?

ANSWER: Asiatic Lion
12) Toss Up - Earth Science - Multiple Choice

Which of the following is true about the rate at which days grow longer or shorter:
W) there is no set time of year
X) the rate does not change
Y) the rate is fastest at the equinoxes
Z) the rate is fastest at the solstices

ANSWER: Y) THE RATE IS FASTEST AT THE EQUINOXES
12) Bonus - Earth Science - Multiple Choice

Which of the following is TRUE about the Coriolis Effect:
W) the temperature of a moving object influences its magnitude
X) its effect is minimum at the poles and maximum at the equator
Y) it acts to deflect objects in the Northern Hemisphere to the left
Z) it is zero at the equator and reaches a maximum at the poles

ANSWER: Z) IT IS ZERO AT THE EQUATOR AND REACHES A MAXIMUM AT THE POLES
13) Toss Up - Chemistry - Short Answer

What is the term used to describe the movement of salts onto porous materials where the salts form a coating?

ANSWER: EFFLORESCENCE
13) Bonus - Chemistry - Short Answer

What effect explains why tin and lead can have oxidation states of +2 and +4 but not +3?

ANSWER: INERT PAIR EFFECT
14) Toss Up - Earth And Space - Multiple Choice

Which of the following statements is NOT true about the Gulf of Maine?
W) It is highly fertile
X) A gyre [JYUHR] circulates nutrients and pollution through the Gulf
Y) It is among the deepest gulfs in the world z) It is sub-arctic, but has a wide range in water temperature

ANSWER: Y) IT IS AMONG THE DEEPEST GULFS IN THE WORLD
14) Bonus - Earth And Space - Multiple Choice

Which of the following natural phenomena are associated with a patterned seasonal occurrence that ranges from May 15 to November 30?
W) East Pacific Ocean hurricane season
X) Continental U.S. tornado season
Y) North Indian Ocean typhoon season
Z) American Southwest monsoon season

ANSWER: W) EAST PACIFIC OCEAN HURRICANE SEASON
15) Toss Up - Math - Short Answer

Give the measure of angle `theta` (read as: theta), if `0 < theta < 2pi`, `sin theta = 1/2` and `cos theta = -sqrt(3)/2`

ANSWER: `(5pi)/6`
15) Bonus - Math - Short Answer

What is the perimeter of a sector of angle `pi/3` radians in a circle with circumference `2pi^2`? Provide your answer in simplest form in terms of `pi`.

ANSWER: `2pi+ pi^2/3`
16) Toss Up - Math - Multiple Choice

How many numbers in the set {1905, 3675, 29985, 60165, 158535} are divisible by 45?
W) 1
X) 2
Y) 3
Z) 4

ANSWER: X) 2
16) Bonus - Math - Short Answer

What is the smallest four-digit multiple of 11?

ANSWER: 1001
17) Toss Up - Chemistry - Multiple Choice

A molecule that has a trigonal bipyramidal molecular geometry will have how many charge clouds around its central atom:
W) 4
X) 5
Y) 6
Z) 8

ANSWER: X) 5
17) Bonus - Chemistry - Short Answer

Using electrophoresis at a pH of 6.0, which two of the following 5 amino acids would move the least remaining at the origin? arginine, glutamic acid, glycine, alanine, lysine?

ANSWER: GLYCINE, ALANINE
18) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice

The line spectra of low density gases is usually produced by the emission or absorption of light by:
W) molecules
X) crystals
Y) crystal lattices
Z) individual atoms

ANSWER: Z) INDIVIDUAL ATOMS
18) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer

What was the last name of the father and son team that developed the theory and technique of X-ray diffraction by crystals?

ANSWER: BRAGG
19) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice

During positron emission, which of the following most likely occurs:
W) a proton changes to an electron
X) a proton changes to a neutron
Y) a neutron changes to an electron
Z) a neutron changes to a proton

ANSWER: X) A PROTON CHANGES TO A NEUTRON
19) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer

Name all of the following 4 isotopes that release energy if they undergo fission: helium-4; hydrogen-2; uranium-235; iron-56

ANSWER: URANIUM-235
20) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice

Which of the following moves in the form of a longitudinal compression wave:
W) ocean wave
X) sound wave
Y) light wave
Z) electromagnetic wave

ANSWER: X) SOUND WAVE
20) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer

Assuming g = 9.8 m/sec2, what is the weight on Earth, in Newtons, of a 70 kilogram person?

ANSWER: 686 NEWTONS
21) Toss Up - Astronomy - Multiple Choice

The 2.7 Kelvin cosmic background radiation is concentrated in the:
W) radio wavelengths
X) infrared
Y) visible
Z) ultraviolet

ANSWER: W) radio wavelengths
21) Bonus - Astronomy - Multiple Choice

Jupiter’s moon Io has a surface that is
W) Covered with active volcanos.
X) Rocky and covered with craters.
Y) Covered with ice similar to a frozen ocean.
Z) Blocked from our view by dense clouds.

ANSWER: W) Covered with active volcanos.
22) Toss Up - Physics - Short Answer

The Leydon jar became the basis for what modern day device

ANSWER: CAPACITOR
22) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer

The Leydon jar consisted of two conducting plates, usually aluminum foil, separated by glass or plastic. What is the glass or plastic insulator called?

ANSWER: DIELECTRIC
23) Toss Up - Physics - Short Answer

Which fundamental force is currently excluded from the Standard Model? W) Electromagnetism X) Weak Nuclear Y) Strong Nuclear Z) Gravity

ANSWER: Z) GRAVITY
23) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer

Which of the following gauge bosons interacts with any of the other following gauge bosons? I) Photon, II) Gluon, III) Z boson, IV) W- boson

ANSWER: IV ONLY (W AND Z )
24) Toss Up - Biology - Short Answer

One characteristic of all algae is that they contain

ANSWER: CHLOROPHYLL
24) Bonus - Biology - Multiple Choice

The cluster of cells that forms in the blastocyst produces three cell layers during
W) gastrulation.
X) implantation.
Y) cleavage.
Z) double fertilization.

ANSWER: W-- GASTRULATION
25) Toss Up - Physics - Short Answer

What physicist, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1906, discovered the existence of atomic isotopes using his invention, the mass spectrometer?

ANSWER: J. J. THOMSON
25) Bonus - Physics - Multiple Choice

Which of the following best describes how modern vacuum tubes free electrons at the cathode to be accelerated to the anode?
W) A lightbulb shines upon both the anode and the cathode.
X) The gas inside the tube is heated, which transfers heat by convection.
Y) Ions are accelerated from the anode to the cathode to give electrons energy.
Z) An electrical current through the cathode provides heat.

ANSWER: Z) AN ELECTRICAL CURRENT THROUGH THE CATHODE PROVIDES HEAT.