TCAP Science

A diagram of seven rock layers is shown. The diagram represents a section of Earth that a paleontologist, a scientist who studies fossils, has been working with for years. Which statement correctly describes this diagram?

• Layer W contains fossils of organisms that existed on Earth after the organisms found in layers U and R.

• Layer U contains fossils of organisms that are older than the organisms found in layer R.

• Layers W and U contain fossils that are animal species.

• Layers R and W contain fossils that are both types of plant species.

When the solar system was very young, the sun was just being formed and planets had not yet been made. The solar system was mostly gas and dust. Which statement best explains how planets formed in the early solar system?

• . Planets formed from magnetism in space that interacted with light from the stars.

• Planets formed from large asteroids that had broken apart.

• Planets formed from molten metal in volcanic eruptions.

• Planets formed from small amounts of debris that were attracted together because of gravity

Some scientists compared fossils of the common ancestor of horses with modern horses. The table shows what the scientists found during their analysis.The scientists claim that modern horses are better adapted for survival in the present-day environment than the common ancestor would have been. Which two statements best support this claim?

• Organisms that have hooves are more likely to reproduce

• Organisms with multiple toes are easily seen by predators, so parents choose not to pass the trait on to their offspring.

• Organisms with four legs will develop a hoof because of the need to balance on four legs.

• Organisms will acquire helpful traits from their surroundings to survive.

• Organisms that have hooves are able to live in a variety of habitats.

Students are using balloons to describe the expanding universe model. The students blow up several balloons and put them on the floor. Each balloon represents a different galaxy. How should the students move or change the balloons to demonstrate how the universe is expanding?

• All of the balloons should be moved to the center of the floor.

• Each balloon should be inflated more so that they are all increasing in size.

• Each balloon should be deflated so that there is more distance between the surface of each balloon.

• All of the balloons should be moved away from each other so there is more distance between them.

Farmers have cultivated five different vegetable crops by artificially selecting for certain traits from the wild mustard plant. This table lists information about five different vegetables that originated from the wild mustard plant.Which statement is correct about the development of these vegetables through artificial selection?

• They resulted from a characteristic of the mustard plant that was changed or enhanced by the selective cultivation.

• They resulted from the exposure to extreme temperatures and ultraviolet sun rays.

• They were created over one generation when crossbreeding took place between two different varieties of vegetables.

• They stopped forming additional varieties at the end of a growth cycle.

The diagram shows rainwater traveling underground. Depending on how far down the water travels into the ground, it can take centuries (hundreds of years) or even millennia (thousands of years). The pumped well is where groundwater is taken out of the ground. The darker-colored layers underground are layers of permeable rock. The lighter-colored layers underground are sources of groundwater. Using the diagram, which three statements about groundwater are correct?

• The water for the well is provided by underground water from the uppermost layer.

• The water available to the pumped well uses only water stored for days and years.

• If rain falls on the recharge area, it may take centuries or millennia to sink to the lowest storage levels.

• The water pumped from the well will be replaced immediately from the water in all the layers beneath it.

• Pumping a large amount of water from the well will have almost no effect on the amount of water available for vegetation.

Waves were created on three identical ropes. Of the three waves shown, Wave 2 has the greatest

• . wave speed, because it has more crests than the other ropes.

• frequency, because it has a larger wavelength than the other ropes.

• wave speed, because the rope is moving up and down faster than the other ropes.

• frequency, because there are more crests in the same length of rope than there are in the other waves.

The student wants to use nails made of different metals to see which type of nail makes the best electromagnet. Which investigation should the student perform to determine which type of nail makes the strongest electromagnet?

• Wrap each type of nail with a different number of coils of the same type of wire and record how many paper clips each nail picks up.

• Wrap each type of nail with 40 coils of the same type of wire and record how many paper clips each nail picks up.

• Wrap as many coils as possible around each type of nail and record which type of nail can hold the most coils.

• Wrap each type of nail with a different type of wire and record how many paper clips each nail picks up.

A student stands in a school hallway. A wall separates a classroom from the student. The student in the hallway cannot see inside the classroom but hears noises from within the classroom. Which of these best explains why the student hears the noises but cannot see into the classroom?

• Sound waves are absorbed by the wall, and visible light waves are transmitted through the wall.

• Sound waves are transmitted through the wall, and visible light waves are reflected by the wall.

• Sound waves are reflected by the wall, and visible light waves are refracted by the wall.

• Sound waves are reflected by the wall, and visible light waves are absorbed by the wall.

Students learned that objects can exert forces on other objects without touching. Which three investigations will provide evidence to support what they have learned?

• measuring how close a soda can must be before it rolls toward a balloon that has been rubbed on someone’s hair

• counting the number of staples that are directly attached to a strong magnet

• dropping a rubber ball from a distance of 1.5 meters above the classroom floor

• placing a magnet against a jar containing a mixture of iron filings and sand

• measuring how far a toy car travels across the floor before coming to a stop