Download Year 10 Vocabulary File

YEAR 10 SCIENCE VOCABULARY
This year students should be able to write definitions for the following terms.
KEY WORDS – ATOMIC SCIENCE
Term
Definition
Electron
A sub-atomic particle which is found outside the nucleus and has a negative charge.
Proton
A sub-atomic particle which is found inside the nucleus and has a positive charge.
Neutron
A sub-atomic particle which is found inside the nucleus and has no charge.
Atomic Nucleus
The positively-charged central part of the atom, containing over 99% of its mass.
Element
A substance made up of only one type of atom.
Compound
Atomic number
A substance made up of more than one type of atom; the atoms are chemically bound
together.
The number of protons inside the nucleus of an atom; this is the same for all atoms of the
same element.
Mass number
The total number of protons and neutrons that make up the nucleus of a particular atom.
Ion
An atom (or group of atoms) that has become charged by losing or gaining electrons.
KEY WORDS – ACIDS AND BASES
Term
Acid
Definition
A sour-tasting corrosive substance with a pH less than 7; it turns litmus red.
Alkali
A soluble base.
Base
A corrosive substance with a slippery feel and a pH greater than 7; it turns litmus blue.
Molecule
Two or more atoms chemically bonded together.
Neutralisation
The name given to the reaction between and acid and a base.
pH scale
A scale used to measure acid (or base) strength.
KEY WORDS – GENETICS AND EVOLUTION
Term
Adaptation
Definition
A feature that helps an organism to survive in its environment.
Allele
An alternative form of a gene, eg. B or b.
A structure found in the nucleus of cells that is made of DNA and carries the cell’s genetic
information.
The chemical instructions for living things, made up of the four bases adenine, thymine,
cytosine and guanine.
The twisted ladder shape of DNA
Chromosome
DNA
Double Helix
Gene
Natural Selection
Nucleus
A section of DNA that gives an instruction – codes for a characteristic.
A process that drives evolution, where traits that give an organism better chances of survival are
‘selected’ and survive into the next generation.
The central part of a cell where the chromosomes are stored and from where the cell is
controlled.
KEY WORDS – MEDICAL SCIENCE
Term
Artery
Definition
A blood vessel that moves blood (usually oxygenated) from the heart to another part of the
body.
Vein
A blood vessel that moves blood (usually deoxygenated) from the body back to the heart.
Capillary
Very small blood vessels that connect arteries to veins.
Breathing
The process of taking air into and out of the lungs.
Respiration
The process whereby some organisms obtain energy from food. Usually requiring oxygen and
producing carbon dioxide.
KEY WORDS – FORCES AND MOTION
Term
Definition
Balanced
Conservation of
Energy
Energy
The term used to describe the forces on an object when the net force is zero.
The scientific law which states that energy cannot be created nor destroyed.
Kinetic energy
The ability of an object to do work.
A force which opposes motion; it acts when the surfaces of two bodies slide over one
another.
The energy of movement.
Mass
The amount of matter in an object.
Net force
The single force that represents all the forces acting on a body.
Potential energy
The energy stored in an object.
Speed
The rate of movement of an object.
Unbalanced
When the net force on an object does not equal zero.
Weight
The force of gravity acting on a mass.
Friction
KEY WORDS - ELECTRICITY
Term
Definition
Ampere (amp)
The unit that current is measured in.
Battery
Energy source for a circuit.
Current
The flow of charge.
Conductor
A material that charges can easily flow through.
Electric circuit
A complete, unbroken path through which electric charges can flow.
Insulator
A material that charges cannot easily flow through.
Ohm
The unit for resistance.
Parallel circuit
An electric circuit that has more than one path for the current.
Resistance
The measurement of how difficult it is for charges to flow through a material.
Series circuit
An electric circuit with a single path for the current.
Voltage
The difference in electrical potential energy between 2 places in a circuit.