Grades 6-8 Matter
Grades 6-8 Matter
1. Which of these is an important characteristic of a refrigerant?
A. a high heat of vaporization
B. a high boiling point
C. very high density
Grades 9-12 Matter
1. Which carbon compound is the main component of shells of birds, mollusks and corals?
A. CaCO3
B. CO2
C. CH4
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
2. Which mineral is common in granite and sand?
A. silicon dioxide
B. calcium carbonate
C. calcium apatite
Grades 9-12 Matter
2. Who works to ensure the materials in buildings and bridges can withstand gravity, wind or earthquakes?
A. structural engineers
B. physical chemists
C. materials scientists
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
3. Which of these human activities has a big effect on the carbon cycle?
A. burning fossil fuels
B. damming rivers
C. ocean fishing
Grades 9-12 Matter
3. Who predicts the properties of compounds from the properties of their atoms?
A. physical chemists
B. materials scientists
C. biochemists
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
4. Which of these human activities has little effect on the water cycle?
A. ocean fishing
B. damming rivers
C. pumping out ground water
Grades 9-12 Matter
4. Which element is a by-product of burning coal that affects neurological development in fetuses?
A. mercury
B. lead
C. arsenic
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
5. Plants are 45% carbon. Where does the carbon come from?
A. the air
B. the water
C. the soil
Grades 9-12 Matter
5. What component of the periodic table tells you how many electron shells or levels an atom has?
A. rows
B. columns
C. atomic numbers
CORRECT: A.A
Grades 6-8 Matter
6. What characteristice of a carbon atom makes it so important in molecules of living organisms?
A. it can form 4 bonds
B. its bonds are hard to break
C. it can form 3 bonds
Grades 9-12 Matter
6. Which nitrogen compound is a fertilizer?
A. NH3
B. N20
C. NO
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
7. No Till farming uses herbicides to kill weeds instead of tilling or plowing the soil. What is a benefit of this practice?
A. reduced soil erosion
B. development of herbicide resistance in weeds
C. killing nearby native plants
Grades 9-12 Matter
7. Which of these are heavy metals?
A. lead, mercury, chromium
B. oxygen, nitrogen, carbon
C. helium, argon, krypton
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
8. Which of these is a good conductor of electricity?
A. metals
B. glass
C. plastic
Grades 9-12 Matter
8. What is happening to the pH of the ocean?
A. it is going down
B. it is going up
C. it is staying the same
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
9. What wavelengths do the bonds in a carbon dioxide molecule absorb and then emit?
A. infrared
B. ultraviolet
C. visible
Grades 9-12 Matter
9. What is causing the change in the pH of the ocean?
A. increasing atmospheric CO2 dissolving into oceans
B. ammonia runoff from agricultural fertilizers
C. acid runoff from mining
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
10. Who designs and manages systems for making chemicals in large amounts?
A. chemical engineers
B. analytical chemists
C. oil response specialists
Grades 9-12 Matter
10. What term describes the process leading to dead zones through the addition of limiting nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus?
A. nutrient enrichment
B. acidification
C. squestration
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
11. What is the chemical formula for ammonia?
A. NH3
B. NO3
C. NO2
Grades 9-12 Matter
11. What is a benefit of scrubbing CO2 out of the exhaust of coal-fired power plants and sequestering it somewhere?
A. it keeps CO2 out of the atmosphere
B. it uses 30% more energy
C. it is more expensive
CORRECT: A, A
Grades 6-8 Matter
12. Which of these elements is the most common in the atmosphere?
A. nitrogen
B. oxygen
C. argon
Grades 9-12 Matter
12. Which carbon compound is the product of photosynthesis?
A. CH4
B. C6H12O6
C. CO2
CORRECT: A, B
Grades 6-8 Matter
13. What kind of solution can dissolve shells, corals and limestone over time?
A. a salty solution
B. an acidic solution
C. a basic solution
Grades 9-12 Matter
13. Who studies chemical processes in living organisms?
A. physical chemists
B. biochemists
C. structural engineers
CORRECT: B,B
Grades 6-8 Matter
14. How do refrigerant chemicals absorb heat?
A. by changing from a solid to a liquid
B. by changing from a liquid to a gas
C. by changing from a gas to a liquid
Grades 9-12 Matter
14. Which element, in hexavalent form, can cause cancer?
A. arsenic
B. chromium
C. lead
CORRECT: B, B
Grades 6-8 Matter
15. Which of these human activities has a big effect on the water cycle?
A. off shore drilling
B. burning fossil fuels
C. ocean fishing
Grades 9-12 Matter
15. Where do heavy metals come from?
A. they occur naturally in meteorites
B. they occur naturally in the earth's crust
C. they are created in labs
CORRECT: B, B
Grades 6-8 Matter
16. What is the most common element (by mass) in the earth's crust?
A. aluminum
B. oxygen
C. silicon
Grades 9-12 Matter
16. The U.S. produces $2,300 of gross domestic productper ton of CO2 released. The European Union produces $3,700 per ton of CO2 released. How much more value does the EU get per ton of CO2 than the U.S.?
A. 100%
B. 60%
C. 40%
CORRECT: B, B
Grades 6-8 Matter
17. No Till farming uses herbicides to kill weeds instead of plowing the soil. What is a drawback of this practice?
A. less CO2 released from soil
B. development of herbicide resistance in weeds
C. reduced soil erosion
Grades 9-12 Matter
18. Which nitrogen compound is a major greenhouse gas?
A. NO
B. N20
C. NH2
CORRECT: B,B
Grades 6-8 Matter
18. What is the most common element (by mass) in animals?
A. hydrogen
B. oxygen
C. carbon
Grades 9-12 Matter
17. Global nitrogen fertilizer use is 100 million metric tons. The world population is about 7 billion. What is the per capita use of nitrogen in kilograms?
(1 metric ton = 1000 kg)
A. about 1.4 kg
B. about 14 kilograms
C. about 140 kilgrams
CORRECT: B,B
Grades 6-8 Matter
19. Humans are 18% carbon. Where does the carbon come from?
A. water
B. food
C. the air
Grades 9-12 Matter
19. What component of the periodic table tells you how many protons an atom has?
A. rows
B. atomic numbers
C. columns
CORRECT: B, B
Grades 6-8 Matter
20. Who cleans up oil spills?
A. chemical engineers
B. oil response specialists
C. environmental engineers
Grades 9-12 Matter
23. What is a drawback of scrubbing CO2 out of the exhaust of coal-fired power plants and sequestering it somewhere?
A. it allows power plants to continue using coal
B. it is uses 30% more energy
C. it keeps CO2 out of the atmosphere
CORRECT: B, B
Grades 6-8 Matter
21. Who figures out how to make materials that are safer, cheaper and more effective for people to use?
A. environmental engineers
B. analytical chemists
C. oil response specialists
Grades 9-12 Matter
21. What term describes the process of "locking up" a chemical or element so that it no longer cycles?
A. nutrient enrichment
B. sequestration
C. acidification
CORRECT: B, B
Grades 6-8 Matter
22. What is the chemical formula for water?
A. NO3
B. H2O
C. CO2
Grades 9-12 Matter
22. What is a way that carbon dioxide is naturally sequestered?
A. by adding iron to oceans
B. by the growth of long-lived plants like trees
C. by reacting it with metal oxides
CORRECT: B, B
Grades 6-8 Matter
23. What mineral are shells, corals and limestone made out of?
A. calcium apatite
B. silicon dioxide
C. calcium carbonate
Grades 9-12 Matter
20. What happens to calcium carbonate under low pH conditions?
A. nothing
B. it dissolves
C. it precipiates
CORRECT: C, B
Grades 6-8 Matter
24. Which of these human activites has little effect on the carbon cycle?
A. burning fossil fuels
B. plowing soil
C. damming rivers
Grades 9-12 Matter
24. Which carbon compound is the most common greenhouse gas?
A. CaCO3
B. C5H12O6
C. CO2
CORRECT: C, C
Grades 6-8 Matter
25. Which of these human activities has a big effect on the nitrogen cycle?
A. logging
B. pumping out ground water
C. burning fossil fuels
Grades 9-12 Matter
25. Who creates things like biodegradable polymers?
A. biochemists
B. structural engineers
C. materials scientists
CORRECT: C, C
Grades 6-8 Matter
26. Which of these is a chemical means of separating the atoms in a compound from each other?
A. sifting
B. centrifuging
C. digestion
Grades 9-12 Matter
26. Which element was only recently banned from global gasoline supplies because of its effect on the IQ of children?
A. arsenic
B. chromium
C. lead
CORRECT: C,C
Grades 6-8 Matter
27. What characteristic of a nitrogen atom makes it so important in forming proteins?
A. its bonds are hard to break
B. it can form 4 bonds
C. it can form 3 bonds
Grades 9-12 Matter
27. How do humans come into contact with heavy metals?
A. particles from outer space rain onto water supplies
B. they are taken up from soil by plants people eat
C. through their use in industry
CORRECT: C, C
Grades 6-8 Matter
28. Which of these is a good electrical insulator?
A. metal
B. water
C. glass
Grades 9-12 Matter
28. Which of these elements, in various compounds, causes dead zones to form near the mouths of major rivers?
A. carbon
B. oxygen
C. nitrogen
CORRECT: C, C
Grades 6-8 Matter
29. Which of these is a physical means of separating the parts of a mixture?
A. digestion
B. oxidation
C. centrifuging
Grades 9-12 Matter
29. What component of the periodic table tells you how many bonds an atom can form?
A. rows
B. atomic numbers
C. columns
CORRECT: C,C
Grades 6-8 Matter
30. What method would work the best for removing oil from water in an oil spill near a drinking water intake?
A. adding disperants
B. leaving it alone
C. skimming
Grades 9-12 Matter
30. Where are the radioactive elements located on the periodic table?
A. far left column
B. far right column
C. bottom rows
CORRECT: C, C
Grades 6-8 Matter
31. Who designs and monitors systems for protecting the environment from hazards caused by construction or industry?
A. chemical engineers
B. analytical chemists
C. environmental engineers
Grades 9-12 Matter
31. Which organisms would be directly affected by ocean acidification?
A. marine mammals
B. penquins
C. corals and mollusks
CORRECT: C, C
Grades 6-8 Matter
32. About how many naturally occuring elements are there?
A. 92
B. 68
C. over 100
Grades 9-12 Matter
32. What term describes the trend of decreasing pH in the world's oceans?
A. sequestration
B. nutrient enrichment
C. acidification
CORRECT: C, C