Fast and Curious: Science, Technology, and Engineering (Unit 1)

Which is a possible scientific explanation for a temporary decrease in sunlight for a 30-minute period?

• The moon was passing between the sun and Earth.

• An airplane was flying overhead and blocked the light from the sun.

• There are variations in the amound of light produced by the sun.

• A sudden change in temperature increased the density of the atmosphere.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

A friend reads in a book that a piece of black paper will get warmer in sunlight than a piece of white paper Which of these is a scientific reaction to this information?

• Accept the statement as true because your friend knows about science.

• Design an experiment to show whether the statement is correct or incorrect.

• Believe the statement because it was written in a book, so you can trust it to be true.

• Tell your friend that the statement makes no sense.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ETS1-4

NGSS.MS-PS1-4

NGSS.MS-PS3-4

Ancient peoples notices that when meat was a few days old, maggots appeared on it. They thought that the maggots came from the meat. During the 1600s, an Italian physician named Francesco Redi developed a theory that the maggots came from flies that laid eggs on uncovered meat. He tested his idea by keeping flies away from meat. Maggots did not appear on the meat that Redi protected from the flies. Which of the following best shows that Redi was thinking like a scientist?

• Before he did his experiments, Redi said he would not change his mind about his theory.

• Redi made an explanation that he was able to test.

• Before he had experimental results, Redi said that the old theory was not correct.

• Redi did not do experiments; he used only logic.

A scientist finds a petri dish that had been used in an experiment several days earlier. The petri dish had not been cleaned after the experiment. In the dish, the scientist discovers a bacterial culture that she had not seen during the experiment. She wants to investigate whether the bacteria developed from the material left from the earlier experiment. Which of the following is a way for her to begin testing.

• Take a sample of the bacteria and grow it in an incubator.

• Gather dirty petri dishes from other labs to see if they grow the same bacteria.

• Check all the clean petri dishes for the new bacterial culture.

• Run the original experiment again, do not clean some of the petri dishes, and see if the same bacterial culture grows in the dirty petri dishes.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS1-5

NGSS.MS-LS2-1

Which piece of equipment is best for determining if a solid object conducts electricity?

• A balance

• A circuit

• A graduated cylinder

• A Bunsen burner

A student measures the time it takes for a sheet of paper to fall to the ground from a marked height. The student then crumples the same piece of paper and drops the paper from the same height. The student observes that the paper fall faster the second time. What was the independent variable?

• The shape of the paper.

• The height of the drop.

• The length of the time fro the paper to fall.

• The speed at which the paper fell.

Jonah making a kite. When selecting the materials for his kite, which criterion should Jonah consider?

• Whether the materials are waterproof.

• Whether the materials provide good insulation.

• Whether the materials are lightweight.

• Whether the materials are absorbent.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ETS1-1

Smitty drops a rock from a set height and measures the time it takes the rock to reach the ground. He uses this time and the distance of the fall to calculate the average speed of the rock. He tests four rocks of different masses. Which question is Smitty investigating?

• What causes an object to accelerate?

• How does mass affect the speed of a falling object?

• How does mass affect the force exerted by the object?

• How does the free-fall height affect the speed of a falling object?

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS2-2

NGSS.MS-PS3-1

Scientists use computer models to study black holes. What is the most likely reason a computer model is being used?

• Black holes do not actually exist.

• Black holes are too small to study.

• Black holes are too dark to study.

• Black holes are too far from Earth.

A science class is studying seeds. Students plan to measure the length, height, and mass of different types of seeds. Which item should students use to record the measurements?

• Camera

• Drawing

• Graph

• Data table