Round #1

Question 1

1) Life Science – Short Answer What is the term for chemicals that are used to transmit impulses from one neuron to another?

Answer 1

ANSWER: NEUROTRANSMITTERS

Question 2

1) Life Science – Short Answer What is the term for the point on a stem at which a leaf is attached?

Answer 2

ANSWER: NODE

Question 3

2) Earth and Space – Short Answer Satellites that stay above the same spot on Earth while in orbit are in what type of orbit?

Answer 3

ANSWER: GEOSTATIONARY (ACCEPT: GEOSYNCHRONOUS EARTH ORBIT; DO NOT
ACCEPT GEOSYNCHRONOUS)

Question 4

2) Earth and Space – Short Answer Kepler’s laws of planetary motion were empirically determined from data collected by what Danish astronomer?

Answer 4

ANSWER: TYCHO BRAHE [TEE-koh BRAH-hay]

Question 5

3) Math – Short Answer What is the discriminant of the quadratic polynomial 2x2 + 7x + 3?

Answer 5

ANSWER: 25

Question 6

3) Math – Short Answer Purity of gold is measured in karats, with 100% pure gold being 24 karats. To the nearest whole number, what percent pure is 14-karat gold?

Answer 6

ANSWER: 58

Question 7

4) Energy – Multiple Choice Scientists at Argonne National Lab have been studying the drinking mechanisms in mosquitoes. They watched liquid flow through the proboscis [pro-BOSS-is] using synchrotron X-rays to penetrate the exoskeleton, which is made
of what material?
W) Chitin [KYE-tin]
X) Keratin
Y) Cellulose
Z) Maltose

Answer 7

ANSWER: W) CHITIN

Question 8

4) Energy – Multiple Choice Researchers at Los Alamos National Lab are using direct numerical simulations to study the interaction of shock waves with fluid flow. Which of the following equations or sets of equations is most relevant in modeling the motion of fluids like
water?
W) Schrodinger [SHROH-dinger] equation
X) Maxwell’s equations
Y) Einstein field equations
Z) Euler equations

Answer 8

ANSWER: Z) EULER EQUATIONS

Question 9

5) Earth and Space – Multiple Choice Seismic activity in the ocean may lead to what destructive phenomenon?
W) Tsunamis
X) Monsoons
Y) Storm surge
Z) Hurricanes

Answer 9

ANSWER: W) TSUNAMIS

Question 10

5) Earth and Space – Short Answer Identify all of the following three stream features that result from deposition: 1) Cut bank; 2) Point bar; 3) Delta.

Answer 10

ANSWER: 2, 3

Question 11

6) Physical Science – Multiple Choice Which of the following substances has a pH value that is less than 7?
W) Vinegar
X) Sodium bicarbonate
Y) Soapy water
Z) Ammonia

Answer 11

ANSWER: W) VINEGAR

Question 12

6) Physical Science – Short Answer To one significant figure, what is the mass percent of hydrogen in water?

Answer 12

ANSWER: 10

Question 13

7) Life Science – Short Answer What is the term for an automatic response to a stimulus, such as sneezing or blinking?

Answer 13

ANSWER: REFLEX

Question 14

7) Life Science – Short Answer What region in the eukaryotic nucleus is the site of initial rRNA synthesis?

Answer 14

ANSWER: NUCLEOLUS

Question 15

8) Earth and Space – Short Answer The Milky Way, Andromeda, and
Maffei 1 [MAF-eye-one] are examples of what systems that can be found in space?

Answer 15

ANSWER: GALAXY (DO NOT ACCEPT: SPIRAL GALAXY, ELLIPTICAL GALAXY)

Question 16

8) Earth and Space – Short Answer What planet was hypothesized to exist by mathematician Urbain Leverrier [luh-vair-ee-ay] due to observed discrepancies in Uranus’s orbit?

Answer 16

ANSWER: NEPTUNE

Question 17

9) Physical Science – Short Answer What is the SI derived unit for frequency?

Answer 17

ANSWER: HERTZ

Question 18

9) Physical Science – Short Answer The volume of a balloon is expanded from one liter to five liters. The temperature is held constant at 20 degrees Celsius and the initial pressure
was 10 atmospheres. In atmospheres, what is the new pressure?

Answer 18

ANSWER: 2

Question 19

10) Energy – Short Answer Researchers at the National Energy Technology Lab have recovered pressurized ocean cores from the Gulf of Mexico that contain methane hydrates. When
the methane that is extracted from these cores is fully combusted in oxygen to drive a heat
engine, what are the two end products?

Answer 19

ANSWER: CARBON DIOXIDE AND WATER (ACCEPT: CARBON DIOXIDE AND STEAM,
CO2 and H2O)

Question 20

10) Energy – Short Answer Researchers at Brookhaven National Lab are constructing geometric figures out of DNA. One of these figures is a regular polyhedron with triangular faces and six vertices. What is the name for this polyhedron?

Answer 20

ANSWER: OCTAHEDRON (ACCEPT: REGULAR OCTAHEDRON)

Question 21

11) Math – Multiple Choice Which of the following is closest to the percent increase in the speed of a car that accelerates from 21.7 to 85.1 miles per hour?
W) 192
X) 292
Y) 392
Z) 492

Answer 21

ANSWER: X) 292

Question 22

11) Math – Short Answer What is the total surface area of a rectangular box having edge lengths of 4, 6, and 7?

Answer 22

ANSWER: 188

Question 23

12) Physical Science – Multiple Choice The atomic number of
molybdenum [muh-LIB-den-um] is 42. What does this number indicate?
W) Every atom has 42 total protons & neutrons in the nucleus
X) Every atom has a mass of 42 a.m.u.
Y) Every atom has 42 protons in the nucleus
Z) Every atom will form bonds that measure 42 degrees

Answer 23

ANSWER: Y) EVERY ATOM HAS 42 PROTONS IN THE NUCLEUS

Question 24

12) Physical Science – Short Answer In the balanced equation for the complete combustion of methane, what is the coefficient in front of methane?

Answer 24

ANSWER: 1

Question 25

13) Life Science – Short Answer What group of mammals lays eggs?

Answer 25

ANSWER: MONOTREMES

Question 26

13) Life Science – Short Answer During what phase of mitosis do chromosomes line up in the middle of the cell?

Answer 26

ANSWER: METAPHASE

Question 27

14) Math – Short Answer If set A contains the four elements 1, 3, 5, and 7, and set B contains the four elements 1, 2, 3, and 4, then what elements are in the intersection of sets A and B?

Answer 27

ANSWER: 1 AND 3

Question 28

14) Math – Short Answer What are the slope and y-intercept of the line containing the points (–12, –2) and (–8, 8)?

Answer 28

ANSWER: SLOPE = 5/2 AND y-INTERCEPT = 28 (ACCEPT FOR SLOPE: 2½, 2.5)

Question 29

15) Earth and Space – Multiple Choice Oceanographers use which of the following terms to describe global ocean circulation patterns? W) Density conveyor X) Isostatic conveyor Y) Thermohaline [thermo-HAY-line] conveyor Z) Carbonate conveyor

Answer 29

ANSWER: Y) THERMOHALINE CONVEYOR

Question 30

15) Earth and Space – Short Answer Barchan [bar-KAHN] and transverse are types of what geologic feature?

Answer 30

ANSWER: DUNES (ACCEPT: SAND DUNES)

Question 31

16) Physical Science – Short Answer In millivolts, what voltage is needed to produce a current of 3 milliamperes over a piece of metal with a resistance of 2 ohms?

Answer 31

ANSWER: 6

Question 32

16) Physical Science – Short Answer Suppose that a projectile was thrown vertically downwards from a height of 10 meters. If its speed at the ground was 20 meters per second, then to the nearest meter per second, what was its initial velocity?

Answer 32

ANSWER: 14

Question 33

17) Math – Short Answer Giving your answer as a fraction, what is the reciprocal of 4.5?

Answer 33

ANSWER: 2/9

Question 34

17) Math – Short Answer 4 blue marbles, 3 green marbles, and 3 red marbles are in a jar. Two marbles are selected without replacement. What is the probability that the two marbles are the same color?

Answer 34

ANSWER: 4/15

Question 35

18) Life Science – Multiple Choice Hirudinea [HEER-oo-din-ee-ah] is a class that contains which of the following organisms? W) Tapeworms X) Hagfish Y) Centipedes Z) Leeches

Answer 35

ANSWER: Z) LEECHES

Question 36

18) Life Science – Short Answer The human eye focuses light through the lens onto what photosensitive structure?

Answer 36

ANSWER: RETINA

Question 37

19) Earth and Space – Short Answer Earth’s magnetic field arises from movement in its outer core that is primarily composed of what two metals?

Answer 37

ANSWER: NICKEL AND IRON

Question 38

19) Earth and Space – Short Answer Rank the following three minerals in order of increasing Mohs hardness: 1) Fluorite; 2) Apatite; 3) Quartz.

Answer 38

ANSWER: 1, 2, 3

Question 39

20) Energy – Short Answer Scientists at Los Alamos National Lab are studying a group of pumps associated with Gram-negative and Gram-positive organisms. These organisms are part of what domain?

Answer 39

ANSWER: EUBACTERIA (ACCEPT: BACTERIA)

Question 40

20) Energy – Short Answer Researchers at Oak Ridge National Lab used chemical vapor deposition to grow large monolayer films of what form of carbon, touted for its unprecedented strength and high electrical conductivity?

Answer 40

ANSWER: GRAPHENE

Question 41

21) Math – Short Answer What is the circumference of a circle of radius 7?

Answer 41

ANSWER: 14π

Question 42

21) Math – Short Answer Identify all of the following 4 terms that apply to the sequence with nth term given by 3n – 2: 1) geometric; 2) arithmetic; 3) increasing; 4) decreasing.

Answer 42

ANSWER: 2 AND 3

Question 43

22) Life Science – Multiple Choice Which of the following best describes how fungi feed? W) They are chemoautotrophs X) They are photoautotrophs Y) They are heterotrophs Z) Some are photoautotrophs, while others are chemoautotrophs

Answer 43

ANSWER: Y) THEY ARE HETEROTROPHS

Question 44

22) Life Science – Short Answer What is the adjective for the part of the human nervous system that is divided into the sensory division and the motor division?

Answer 44

ANSWER: PERIPHERAL

Question 45

23) Physical Science – Short Answer The cosmic background radiation originating from the big bang has been redshifted into what part of the electromagnetic spectrum?

Answer 45

ANSWER: MICROWAVE

Question 46

23) Physical Science – Short Answer Rank the following three objects in terms of increasing momentum: 1) A one-ton car traveling at 10 meters per second; 2) A one-and-a-half-ton car traveling at 10 meters per second; 3) A one-ton car traveling at 20 meters per second.

Answer 46

ANSWER: 1, 2, 3