Download 1 A future news release might report that a new planet has been

1
A future news release might report that a new planet has been found around a star
very similar to our sun. This newly discovered planet is claimed to have a mass 40
times that of Earth and is located nearly 25 AU from the star it orbits. Which of
the following would be reasonable predictions about this planet?
I.
The planet will probably have a mean density of around 5 g/cm.
II.
The planet will probably have a radius many times greater than Earth's.
III.
The planet will probably have several satellites.
IV.
The planet will probably have a composition that is mostly hydrogen and
helium.
A
I & IV
B
I, II, & III
*C
II, III, & IV
D
I, II, & IV
E
I, II, III, & IV
2
The greenhouse effect occurs because
*A
carbon dioxide is transparent to visible light and opaque to infrared
radiation.
B
carbon dioxide is transparent to infrared radiation and opaque to
ultraviolet radiation.
C
ozone is transparent to ultraviolet radiation and opaque to infrared
radiation.
D
methane is transparent to infrared radiation and opaque to visible light.
E
the sun emits more infrared radiation than ultraviolet radiation.
3
What limitation(s) make it close to impossible to travel, round trip, between stars?
I. Fuel requirements
II. The tremendous distances between stars
III. The finite speed at which objects can travel
A
I
B
I and II
C
III
D
II and III
*E
I, II and III
4
The Drake equation allows us to estimate
*A
the number of intelligent civilizations in our galaxy.
B
the number of stars in our galaxy.
C
the number of people on the Earth.
D
the lifespan of a civilization.
E
the lifespan of a species.
5
Mars seasons are caused by
A
its circular orbit.
B
its eccentric orbit.
C
its elliptical orbit.
D
its hyperbolic orbit.
*E
its axis tilt relative to the orbital plane.
6
The 3 biology experiments aboard the Viking mission to Mars
*A
gave no clear answer.
B
proved that there was life on Mars.
C
proved that there was no life on Mars.
D
proved that there was no organic life on Mars.
E
discovered microscopic life remains in the rocks.
7
Two scientists, Abbott and Costello, are trying to search for life around other
stars. Costello is studying a star that is a blue main sequence star. Abbott is
studying a star that is a yellow main sequence star. Who is more likely to be able
to detect a radio signal from his cluster, Abbott or Costello?
A
both will detect intelligent radio signals.
B
both are equally likely to detect intelligent radio signals.
C
neither are more likely to detect intelligent radio signals.
D
Costello, because his star can't live long enough to develop life.
*E
Abbott, because his star has a long enough lifetime to develop life.
8
Fossilized microbial remnants
A
have yet to be discovered on Earth.
B
have been discovered in rocks some 6000 years old.
C
have been discovered on Mars.
D
are not able to be detected with modern instruments.
*E
have been discovered in rocks dating back some 3.8 billion years.
9
All of the following are NECESSARY for life here on Earth except:
A
metabolism
B
reproduction
C
organic molecules
*D
light
E
presence of liquid water at some time in lifecycle
10
Evidence for organic molecules ha already been discovered where?
A
molecular clouds
B
atmospheres of other planets/moons in our solar system
C
meteors
*D
all of the above
E
none of the above
11
You have 4 pounds of a radioactive element with a half-life of 2 years. How
many pounds of the original element remain after 6 years has passed.
A
4 pounds.
B
3 pounds.
C
2 pounds.
D
1 pound.
*E
a half pound.
12
How would you estimate the distance in a light year?
A
Multiply the speed of light in .meters per second by 60.
B
Multiply the speed of light in .meters per second by 3600.
C
Multiply the speed of light in .meters per second by 24.
*D
Multiply the speed of light in meters per second times the number of
seconds in a year to get the number of meters in a light year.
E
This is a trick question, a light year isn't a measure of distance.
13
What is an Astronomical Unit?
A
The distance to the nearest star.
B
The average distance from the Earth to the Moon.
*C
The average distance from the Earth to the Sun.
D
A measure of time that light travels.
E
A generic term for any large distance.
14
Using the proper phase diagram from those provided, what phase would carbon
dioxide be in at a temperature of -56.4o C and an atmospheric pressure equivalent
to 73 times that of Earth's at sea level?
A
The carbon dioxide would exist as a liquid.
B
The carbon dioxide would exist as a gas.
*C
The carbon dioxide would exist as a solid.
D
The carbon dioxide could be in any phase, solid, liquid or gas.
E
The carbon dioxide could be either in a gas or solid phase.
15
What is the name given to the dilemma that we have yet to discover any
extraterrestrial life?
A
The Big Bang Theory.
*B
The Fermi Paradox.
C
The Theory of Relativity.
D
The Maxwell Paradox.
E
The Planck Duality Paradox.
16
Earth possesses few visible craters and the moon possesses many. This is because
A
Earth formed later than the moon and, therefore hasn't encountered as
many meteoroids.
B
The Moon doesn't have an atmosphere that could burn up meteorites
before impacting.
C
Erosion and plate tectonics have slowly removed evidence of past
cratering on Earth.
D
A, B and C.
*E
Only B and C above.
17
Which portion of the Earth (using the diagram below) is most dense?
A
B
C
*D
E
None of the above is the mantle.
18
Which of the following concepts are hallmarks of science (i.e. part of the
scientific method)?
A
Science is driven by observations and a belief that the world is inherently
understandable.
B
Science progresses through the creation and testing of models designed to
explain our observations.
C
A scientific model is testable.
*D
All of the above are hallmarks of science.
E
None of the above are valid hallmarks of science.
Short Answer Questions:
1) Rocks that are formed from the cooled magma or lava from a volcano are called
________igneous____________ rocks.
2) Rocks that are a changing combination of the other two kinds of rocks and are
changed due to pressures, physical and chemical are called
__________metamorphic____________ rocks.
3) Radioactive dating is a type of _________absolute_____________ dating.
4) The different layers of the sedimentary rock provide a type of
__________relative____________ dating.
5) The maximum speed that any material body can achieve is ____the speed of
light___________.
6) Any planet discovered orbiting a star other than our sun is known as a(n)
___________extrasolar planet___________.
7) Mars cannot sustain liquid water on its surface because ___________its atmospheric
pressure is too low________.
Short Essay Questions (choose 1 of each pair of essay questions below):
1A) Define, describe and discuss the theory about the origins of our universe from the
Big Bang.
1B) Define, describe and discuss the theory about the origins of our sun and planetary
system from a gaseous nebula.
2A) Describe the theory behind radiometric dating techniques.
2B) Describe the theory of the layers of the rock record and how that helps scientists to
date fossils.
3A) Describe at least 3 different ways that scientists can search for life on planets in our
solar system.
3B) Describe at least 3 different chemical techniques used in searching for indicators of
possible life on a planet in our solar system.
Long Essay Questions (choose 1 of each pair of essay questions below):
1A) Define and describe the science of astrobiology. Provide its goals and its methods.
1B) Describe why scientists believe that life could exist on other worlds in our solar
system, while also believing that we are unlikely to find intelligent life in our solar
system.
2A) Suppose you are on a team tasked with designing a project to search for
extraterrestrial intelligence. Describe how you would determine the optimal region of the
electromagnetic spectrum that you would utilize in your search. Provide details of your
search technique, including where you would search in the sky and why a particular
region.
2B) Suppose you are on a team tasked with designing a robot to search for life on Mars.
Describe how you would determine the best region on Mars to explore. Describe, in
detail your techniques for determining whether or not life was present in the region that
your robot is exploring.
3A) Describe and discuss in detail your own version of an equation like the Drake
equation and how it would lead to the number of technological civilizations currently
existing in our galaxy.
3B) Describe and discuss the Fermi Paradox and some of the explanations that
developed to avoid the paradox.