1) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
A small rubber duck is held underwater at a depth of 10 meters, then released. When the duck reaches a depth of 5 meters, how much has the buoyant force on the duck changed?
W) It has decreased by half
X) It is unchanged
Y) It has doubled
z) It has quadrupled
1) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer
Charged particles in a uniform magnetic field will undergo circular motion with a period of T = 2nm/(qB). The magnetic field of the Earth is roughly 10-4 tesla, assuming it is uniform. Given the mass of a proton to be 1.6 x 10-27 kilograms and its electric charge to be 1.6 x 10-19 coulombs, providing your answer in scientific notation to one significant figure, what period in seconds would you measure for a proton?
ANSWER: 6 x 10-42) Toss Up - Computer Science - Multiple Choice
Which of the following algorithms is the most efficient:
W) Insertion Sort
X) Selection Sort
Y)Quick Sort
Z) Merge Sort
2) Bonus - Computer Science - Short Answer
C programs typically go through 6 phases to be executed. Order the following 6 phases from initial to final development: preprocess; compile; load; link; edit; execute
ANSWER: EDIT; PREPROCESS; COMPILE; LINK; LOAD; EXECUTE3) Toss Up - Biology - Multiple Choice
In studies of humans, the term used to describe the act of swallowing is:
W) mastication
X) deglutition
Y) peristalsis
Z) none of these
3) Bonus - Biology - Multiple Choice
During inspiration, the diaphragm moves:
W) down by contraction
X) down by relaxation
Y) up by contraction
Z) up by relaxation
4) Toss Up - Physics - Short Answer
Answer The ratio of the magnitudes of electric field and current density is known as what property?
ANSWER: RESISTIVITY4) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer
Answer A piece of pure silicon has a resistivity of 2,300 ohms times meters at room temperature. A silicon wire has a length of 10 meters and a cross-sectional area of 0.25 meters squared. What is the resistance, in ohms, of the wire?
ANSWER: 920,000 OHMS (ALSO: `9.2 * 10^5` OHMS)5) Toss Up - Earth Science - Multiple Choice
During the last 18,000 years, nearly all coasts have
experienced:
W) submergence
X) emergence
Y) world wide decrease in sea level
Z) relatively unchanging sea levels
5) Bonus - Earth Science - Short Answer
What is the name given to a circular or horseshoe-shaped organic reef growing on a submerged volcano, with an occasional small, low, coral sand island surrounding a shallow lagoon:
ANSWER: ATOLL6) Toss Up - General Science - Short Answer
Which scientist and scholar is well known for such terms as “transcendental function”, “archetypes” and “collective unconscious”?
ANSWER: CARL JUNG (ACCEPT: JUNG)6) Bonus - General Science - Multiple Choice
Which famous primatologist, a protege of Louis Leaky, dedicated her life to research of gorillas and was most likely murdered by poachers in 1985:
W) Jane Goodall
X) Shirley Sparling
Y) Margaret Mead
Z) Dian Fossey
7) Toss Up - Chemistry - Short Answer
In September 1997 the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry assigned names to the elements 104 through 109. Give any four of the new names.
ANSWER: RUTHERFORDIUM, DUBNIUM, SEABORGIUM, BOHRIUM, HASSIUM, MEITNERIUM7) Bonus - Chemistry - Multiple Choice
Which of the following types of crystalline solids would you
expect to have the highest melting temperatures?
W) Molecular
X) Ionic
Y) Network-covalent
Z) Metallic
8) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
A 1 kilogram object is travelling to the left at 3 meters per second when it explodes into 2 equal pieces. One piece is travelling at 7 meters per second to the left after the explosion. What is the velocity in meters per second of the other piece after the explosion?
W) 1 to the right
X) 1 to the left y) 4 to the right
Z) 4 to the left
8) Bonus - Physics - Short Answer
What is the root mean square voltage of a power supply that outputs a sinusoidal voltage with a frequency of 60 hertz and peak voltage of 120 volts?
ANSWER: 859) Toss Up - Chemistry - Multiple Choice
Liver enzymes oxidize ethanol to:
W) methanol
X) formaldehyde
Y) oxalic acid
Z) acetaldehyde
9) Bonus - Chemistry - Short Answer
Which of the gas laws describes how the volume of a gas is affected by changes in pressure, temperature, and amount?
ANSWER: IDEAL GAS LAW10) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
A weight scale is read at the following locations. Which location would give the lowest value for weight?
W) 90 ºN
X) 60 ºN
Y) 30 ºN
Z) 0 ºN
10) Bonus - Physics - Multiple Choice
The Rankine cycle is most associated with which of the following?
W) Refrigerator
X) Diesel engine
Y) Steam engine
Z) Stirling engine
11) Toss Up - Astronomy - Short Answer
This is a question for you budding young astronomers. What is the sidereal period of the moon?
ANSWER: 27 and 1/3 days11) Bonus - Astronomy - Multiple Choice
How were the rings of the planet Uranus discovered:
W) astronomers in 1977 noticed stars were occulted by Uranus before the planet passed in front of them and reappeared afterwards
X) the Magellan 1 space probe took pictures of them
Y) the Hubble space telescope detected them with its infrared detector
Z) the rings are made of gases with certain signatures revealed in absorption spectra
12) Toss Up - Earth And Space - Multiple Choice
Sunspots and other solar activity tend to follow a cycle lasting about how long?
W) 1 year
X) 11 years
Y) 23 years
Z) 57 years
Toss Up Answer X
Bonus
1) EARTH AND SPACE Short Answer
Identify each of the following solar events that is correctly paired with its origin
1. Prominence; the photosphere
2. Solar filament; the chromosphere
3. Coronal mass ejection; the corona Bonus Answer 1, 3
Toss-Up
43) EARTH AND SPACE Multiple Choice
A pulsar is a particular type of:
W) Neutron star
X) Black hole
Y) White dwarf
Z) Black dwarf
12) Bonus - Earth And Space - Short Answer
What does the Schwarzschild (pronounced: Sh-worts-shield) radius of a body represent?
ANSWER: The radius which, if all of the mass of the body were contained within it, the body would become a black hole (or: its escape velocity would be greater than C).13) Toss Up - Biology - Multiple Choice
Which of the following methods of dissemination of bacterial genetic material is mismatched to its description?
W) Transduction: viral transfer of one cell’s DNA to another
X) Binary fission: cellular division
Y) Conjugation: through physical interaction, a donor cell transfers genetic material to a recipient cell
Z) Transformation: one bacteria engulfs another to integrate its DNA
13) Bonus - Biology - Multiple Choice
In one form of epigenetics called genomic imprinting, DNA is silenced by what mechanism?
W) Methylation
X) Acetylation [uh-SET-l-ay-shuhn]
Y) Phosphorylation [FOS-for-uh-lay-shuhn]
Z) Ubiquitylation [yoo-bi-kwi-ty-LAY-shuhn]
14) Toss Up - Biology - Multiple Choice
According to the viral theory of cancer, normal cells are transformed into cancerous cells by
W) malignant viruses
X) benign viruses
Y) viral protein coats
Z) oncogenes
14) Bonus - Biology - Multiple Choice
In studies of trees, one finds just one leaf bud and one leaf at each node on a walnut twig. This arrangement of leaf bud and leaf is known as:
W) alternate
X) opposite
Y) whorled
Z) none of the above
15) Toss Up - Math - Multiple Choice
A system for the representation of a point in space in terms
of its distance, measured along a set of mutually perpendicular axes is called
W) Cartesian coordinates.
X) Polar coordinates.
Y) Cassini coordinates.
Z) Weissmann coordinates.
15) Bonus - Math - Short Answer
A part of a solid, such as a cone or pyramid, lying between the base and a plane parallel to the base, which intersects with the solid, is called a
ANSWER: FRUSTUM16) Toss Up - Chemistry - Short Answer
What device is used to measure atmospheric pressure?
ANSWER: BAROMETER16) Bonus - Chemistry - Short Answer
How many neutrons are there in an alpha particle?
ANSWER: TWO17) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
A computer chip is best described as
W) an integrated circuit.
X) a transistor circuit.
Y) an etched plate of germanium.
Z) a diode.
17) Bonus - Physics - Multiple Choice
An example of a direct heating system is
W) a hot-water heater.
X) a heat pump.
Y) steam heating.
Z) all of the above
18) Toss Up - Energy - Short Answer
In CFL light bulbs, what is the name for the process where electricity excites mercury vapor and light is released?
ANSWER: FLUORESCENCE18) Bonus - Energy - Multiple Choice
When photons strike a photovoltaic cell, which of the following must occur to generate electricity?
W) Absorption
X) Reflection
Y) Refraction
Z) Resection
19) Toss Up - Math - Short Answer
A polygon with 50 sides would have how many diagonals?
ANSWER: 117519) Bonus - Math - Short Answer
Find the units digit of 9 to the 2015 minus 3 to the 2015.
ANSWER: 220) Toss Up - Physics - Multiple Choice
When an electromagnetic wave reflects off of a medium with a lower index of refraction, its phase changes by
W) 0°
X) 90°
Y) 180°
Z) 270°
20) Bonus - Physics - Multiple Choice
An electromagnetic wave hits a medium at an angle of 45° from the normal. Some of it is reflected and some is refracted. The reflected rays will be polarized
W) perpendicular to the plane of incidence
X) parallel to the plane of incidence
Y) parallel to the direction of the ray before the reflection
Z) parallel to the direction of the ray after the reflection
21) Toss Up - Astronomy - Short Answer
Which planet is 14.5 times the Earth’s mass, has a rotational rate of 17.2 hours, and a year length of 84 Earth years?
ANSWER: URANUS21) Bonus - Astronomy - Short Answer
What are generally considered the most common and most primitive type of meteorites?
ANSWER: CHONDRITES22) Toss Up - Astronomy - Short Answer
Which planet is the Earth's twin size-wise?
ANSWER: venus22) Bonus - Astronomy - Short Answer
The planet Neptune was found by studying the deviations in another planet's orbit. Name the other planet discovered in this fashion.
ANSWER: Uranus23) Toss Up - Earth Science - Multiple Choice
What is the third stage in the formation of coal?
W) Lignite
X) Anthracite
Y) Peat
Z) Bituminous
23) Bonus - Earth Science - Short Answer
Order the following sedimentary rocks from finest texture to most coarse texture: 1. Siltstone 2. Breccia 3. Sandstone
ANSWER: 1, 3, 224) Toss Up - Biology - Multiple Choice
A good light microscope has a resolving power of about:
W) 0.5 millimeters
X) 0.5 nanometers
Y) 0.5 microns
Z) 5 nanometers
24) Bonus - Biology - Multiple Choice
In which of the following areas of the human body is the olecranon process found:
W) hip
X) wrist
Y) shoulder
Z) elbow
25) Toss Up - Computer Science - Multiple Choice
Which of the following is NOT used in ray tracing
a 3D scene in computer graphics:
W) objects
X) camera
Y) film
Z) light source parameters
25) Bonus - Computer Science - Multiple Choice
Software that is free and can be used with no restrictions is called:
W) freeware
X) shareware
Y) open source
Z) public-domain