General Science Multiple Choice and Short Questions and Answers


Water flows through a horizontal pipe at a constant volumetric rate. At a location where the cross sectional area decreases, the velocity of the fluid: 
w)  increases 
x)  decreases 
y)  stays the same
ANSWER:  W -- INCREASES


What radioactive element is routinely used in treating hyperthyroidism, and in reducing thyroid activity? 
w)  Iron-59 
x)  Gold-198 
y)  Cobalt-60 
z)  Iodine-131 
ANSWER:  Z -- IODINE-131


What is osteoporosis? 
ANSWER:  IT IS LOSS OF CALCIUM FROM BONES


Yeast, used in making bread is a: 
w)  plant 
x)  fungus 
y)  bacteria 
z)  seed 
ANSWER:  X --  FUNGUS


The Statue of Liberty is green because of: 
w)  green stone 
x)  oxidized brass 
y)  steel painted green 
z)  oxidized copper 
ANSWER:  Z -- OXIDIZED COPPER


Name the phase of quartz consistently found in meteorite impact craters, but rarely found in non-meteorite-related geological formations. 
ANSWER:  STISHOVITE


Wt what point are the Celsius and Fahrenheit scales equal? 
ANSWER:  -40 DEGREES


Which of the following vacuum pumps operates by using a very cold surface to trap the gases on the cold surface?  Is it a: 
w)  sublimation pump 
x)  turbo pump 
y)  cryopump 
z)  diffusion pump. 
ANSWER:   Y -- CRYOPUMP


Using the fewest names of the members of this family, identify the tree family which includes among its members the:   Fink, myrtle, turkey, jacks, laurel, white, live and pin.  Name the tree family. 
ANSWER:   OAK


Using the fewest names of the members of this family, identify the tree family which includes among its members the:   Pignut, scarit, mockernut, bitternut, black and shagbark.  Name the tree family. 
ANSWER:   HICKORY


Using the fewest names of the members of this family, identify the tree family which includes among its members the:  Chinese, cut-leaved, manchurian, persian, english, black and american.  Name the tree family. 
ANSWER:   WALNUT


The word atom is from a Greek word meaning: 
w)  small 
x)  indivisible 
y)  unseen 
z)  visible 
ANSWER:  X -- INDIVISIBLE





Name the famous mathematician/physicist who was born in the year Galileo died. 
ANSWER:  (ISAAY) NEWTON


In 1991, critical habitat was designated for this well-known species in the states of Washington, Oregon and California. 
w)  brown bear 
x)  northern spotted owl 
y)  bald eagle 
z)  snail darter 
ANSWER:  X -- NORTHERN SPOTTED OWL


This large bird of prey is related to the eagle.  The bird is found on all continents.  Three species, the swallow-tailed, white-tailed and the Mississippi are found in North America.  Name this


What creatures travel in gaggles? 
ANSWER:   GEESE


Which of the following are NOT native to North America? 
w)  Mountain Quail 
x)  Ringneck Pheasant 
y)  Sharptail Grouse 
z)  Masked Bob-White 
ANSWER:  X -- RINGNECK PHEASANT


Members of the order Apodes, these elongated slender fishes are without pelvic fins and in some species lack pectoral or median


What is a shark's skeleton made of? 
ANSWER:   CARTILAGE


Identify the Earth's largest INVERTEBRATE animal. 
ANSWER:   GIANT SQUID


What creature do the Galapagos Islands take their name from? 
ANSWER:   TORTOISE


What is the only venomous British snake? 
ANSWER:   ADDER


What is shed when you desquamate? 
ANSWER:   SKIN   or   EPIDERMAL CELLS


What are the only places that dogs have sweat glands? 
ANSWER:   NOSE AND PAWS


What body function are rats unable to do which makes them extra vulnerable to poison? 
ANSWER:   VOMIT


A cyclone is an engineering device that is used to 
w)  transport materials 
x)  segregate particles 
y)  control switching devices 
z)  model fractals 
ANSWER:  X -- SEGREGATE PARTICLES


In the United States, low sulfur coal can be found primarily in the: 
w)  northeast 
x)  southeast 
y)  midwest 
z)  west 
ANSWER:  Z -- WEST





Electric power is less expensive at night because: w)  more hydroelectric generation is brought on line at night. 
x)  there is less demand at night. 
y)  pollution control is less stringent at night. 
z)  power plants are more efficient at night. 
ANSWER:  X -- THERE IS LESS DEMAND AT NIGHT.


Name THREE TECHNIQUES for removing particulates from flue gas produced from the combustion of coal? 
ANSWER: (1) ELECTROSTATIC PRECIPITATION (ESP) (2) FABRIC FILTER OR BAGHOUSE (3) WET SCRUBBERS (4) MECHANICAL COLLECTORS OR CYCLONES


Name TWO sorbents which are used in conventional wet scrubbing processes to remove SO2 produced by combusting coal. 
ANSWER:   (1) LIME (2) LIMESTONE (3) SODIUM SULFITE OR NaCO3 OR NaOH


Name THREE gaseous components produced when coal is combusted. 
ANSWER:   (1) CO2 (2) SO2 (3) NOX (4) H2O


Electricity generated by coal-fired power plants i the United States in 1990 was approximately what percentage of the entire electricity produced by all sources of power production? 
w)  10 percent 
x)  25 percent 
y)  55 percent 
z)  90 percent 
ANSWER:  Y -- 55 PERCENT


The majority of the U.S. electricity generating plant use what thermodynamic cycle
ANSWER:  RANKINE


Which continent has the largest KNOWN deposits of coal? 
ANSWER:  NORTH AMERICA


 In a typical power plant used to generate electricity in the U.S., the percentage of energy in the fuel that is converted to electricity is about: 
w)  99 percent 
x)  50 percent 
y)  35 percent 
z)  10 percent 
ANSWER:  Y -- 35 PERCENT


In electronic circuits, what name is given to a frequency discriminating network designed to select or pass certain bands of frequencies with low attenuation and cause very high attenuation to other frequencies? 
ANSWER:   FILTER


This bistable electronic device assumes one of two stable output states, depending upon the state of the most recently applied input signal.  In computer systems this device is used for storing information.  Name this common electronic device. 
ANSWER:   FLIP-FLOP  or  TOGGLE


In a certain electronic circuit the output is positive if input 1 is positive and input 2 is zero.  If both inputs are positive the output is zero.  This is: 
w)  an AND circuit 
x)  a NOR circuit 
y)  an OR circuit 
z)  a high-pass filter
ANSWER:   Y -- AN OR CIRCUIT


To reverse the direction of rotation of a three-phase AC induction motor, do one of the following: 
w)  reverse any two of the three-phase connections 
x)  change the frequency of the applied AC power 
y)  operate the motor below the stall torque at very high slip 
z)  none of the above 
ANSWER:  W -- REVERSE ANY TWO OF THE THREE-PHASE CONNECTIONS





What are the three elements of a bipolar transistor?  Are they the:
w)  grid, plate, cathode 
x)  suppressor, deflector, target 
y)  energizer, controller, terminus 
z)  emitter, base, collector 
ANSWER:  Z -- EMITTER, BASE, COLLECTOR


W 10 pound bag of fertilizer carries the label 20-6-    
ANSWER:   2  POUNDS


Seawater (i.e. saltwater) freezes at: 
w)  the same temperature as fresh water. 
x)  at a slightly higher temperature than fresh water. 
y)  at a slightly lower temperature than fresh water. 
z)  seawater does not freeze. 
ANSWER:  Y -- AT A SLIGHTLY LOWER TEMPERATURE THAN FRESH WATER.


Nitrous oxide, commonly called laughing gas, has been a matter of concern to environmentalists recently because: 
w)  it is thought to cause cancer at low concentrations. 
x)  it produces photochemical smog. 
y)  it is a greenhouse gas. 
z)  none of the above 
ANSWER:  Y -- IT IS A GREENHOUSE GAS.


Ozone in the upper atmosphere is produced from: 
w)  lightning 
x)  photochemical reactions 
y)  electrical appliances on Earth 
z)  model fractals 
ANSWER:  X -- PHOTOCHEMICAL REACTIONS


Pollination by wind is called: 
w) autogamy 
x) entomophily 
y) anemophily 
z) ornithophily 
ANSWER:   Y -- ANEMOPHILY


What is the technique by which lasers are used to photograph objects and reproduce them in three dimensions? 
ANSWER:    HOLOGRAPHY


Name the effect that is caused by scattering of light in colloids or suspensions. 
ANSWER:    TYNDALL EFFECT


Name the type of camel that has two humps. 
ANSWER:    BACTRIAN


Name the California scientist who won the Nobel Prize in 1962 for elucidating the details of the photosynthetic process. 
ANSWER:    (MELVIN) CALVIN





Glaucoma is treated by which of the following: 
w)  androgenic drug 
x)  androgenic blocking drug 
y)  cholinergic drug 
z)  anticholinergic drug 
ANSWER:    Y -- CHOLINERGIC DRUG


Atolls are most probably formed by: 
w)  a rise in the earth's crust 
x)  sand brought in from the mainland 
y)  collapse of the center of a volcano 
z)  coral reef upbuilding during subsidence 
ANSWER:    Z -- CORAL REEF UPBUILDING DURING SUBSIDENCE


Identify the tree family which includes among its members the:  New Mexico, Texas honey, thornless honey, water, black and honey.  Name this tree family. 
ANSWER:   LOCUST


Name the order of insects which includes among its members the: Hawk, Death's Head, Brown-Tail, Carpenter, Clear-Winged, Clothes and Gypsy.  Name this insect order. 
ANSWER:   MOTHS / BUTTERFLIES  (accept Lepidopterw)


With many thousands of species, this is one of the largest families in the plant kingdom.  Identify this plant family which includes among its members the:  Brome, Love, Foxtail, Sudan, Buffalo, Saint Augustine, Burmuda and Blue. 
ANSWER:   GRASS   or   GRAMINACEAE


Give the name of the area of science concerned with the study of the customs and societies of mankind. 
ANSWER:  WNTHROPOLOGY


Name the English naturalist who, while credited with being the codeveloper of the theory of evolution by natural selection, is much less famous for this than his codeveloper. 
w)  Erasmus Darwin 
x)  Robert Ludlow 
y)  Alfred Russel Wallace 
z)  Rudolf Virchow 
ANSWER:  Y -- ALFRED RUSSEL WALLACE


The acronym NEPA stands for what? 
ANSWER:  NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT


The U.S. population receives the largest dose of ionizing radiation from: 
w)  natural sources. 
x)  fallout from nuclear weapons testing. 
y)  nuclear medicine. 
z)  nuclear power plants. ANSWER:  W -- NATURAL SOURCES.


The radioactive element most commonly detected in humans is: 
w)  potassium-40 
x)  cobalt-60 
y)  iodine-131 
z)  plutonium-238 
ANSWER:  W -- POTASSIUM-40


The largest breeder reactor built to date is located where? 
w)  USSR 
x)  Japan 
y)  France 
z)  United States
ANSWER:  Y -- FRANCE