Kentucky State Science Test High School

1)  When nitrogen is returned to the soil when dead plants decompose, the interaction is between which two spheres?

•  Hydrosphere and geosphere
•  Cryosphere and geosphere
•  Biosphere and Geosphere
•  Biosphere and atmosphere

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NGSS.MS-ESS2-1

NGSS.MS-LS2-3

Which of the following statements refers to weather? 

• A.  “It rains a lot in the Spring in my city.”
• A.  “It’s very hot and sunny today. Let’s go to the beach.”
• “There are many people who don’t believe there is a hole in the ozone layer’”
• A.  “We are going south to Florida in January because it will be warmer.” 

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NGSS.MS-ESS2-4

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The water cycle is the continuous movement of water on, in and above the Earth. Which of the   following describes evaporation in the water cycle? 

• Water vapor meets cold air and changes back into a liquid
•  Plants take in water from the soil
• Water gets heated and changes from liquid water to water vapor
• Water freezes

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NGSS.MS-ESS2-4

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Which of the following is the best explanation for sea breezes and land breezes along Florida’s coasts? 

• The Gulf Stream current in the Atlantic
• Continental polar air masses moving in from the north.
• Conduction currents of rising cool air and falling warm air
• Convection currents of rising, less-dense warm air and    falling, denser cool air caused by differences in how   quickly water and land absorb or lose the Sun’s heat

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NGSS.MS-ESS2-5

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The arrows in the picture below show several ways heat is transferred from the Sun as it strikes sand on the surface of a beach.  Which arrow shows radiation?

• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4

 Our beaches in Florida are lined with large hotels and condominiums. Natural vegetation was cleared away from the beaches to make room for the buildings. What is a consequence that we have seen on Florida beaches as a result of clearing the vegetation for building?

• There is less food from the vegetation to feed the citizens of Florida
• There is more and more erosion of the beaches in Florida
• The fishing is not as abundant as it once was in Florida
• The sand is heating up at record levels on our beach

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NGSS.MS-ESS3-4

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Both Ocala, Florida, and Lexington, Kentucky, are good places to raise racehorses, in part because of the limestone near the surface in both places. Calcium from the limestone helps make a horse's leg bones stronger and better able to withstand the pounding stress of running. Knowing that the Bluegrass Region around Lexington also sits on top of limestone, what other land features are also likely to be found there?

• Sand dunes, lakes, and springs
• Prairies, swamps, and marshes
• Sinkholes, caves, and aquifers
• Shallow rivers, flat land, and quartz sand

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NGSS.MS-ESS2-3

Slate is a metamorphic rock that forms from the sedimentary rock, shale. Which of the following is needed for slate to form from shale?

• Weathering
• Erosion and deposition
• Melting and cooling
• Heat and pressure

Which of the following would be a cause of chemical weathering?

•  Acid rain
• Freezing and thawing
• Abrasion
• Animal action

The oldest rock formation identified on Earth is found on the shoreline of Hudson Bay in Canada. This rock formed 4.28 billion years ago. What information does a scientist need to more accurately determine the age of a rock?

• The amount of each radioactive element present in the rock
• The percentage of each mineral that makes up the rock
• The thickness of younger rock layers that cover the rock
• The amount of weathering present on the surface of the rock

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NGSS.HS-ESS1-5