STAAR EOC

Which answer choice best explains the change from daytime to nighttime on Earth?

• The sun stops sending light to Earth at night.

• Earth moves farther away from the sun at night.

• The tilt of Earth causes less light to reach Earth at night.

• Earth rotates and causes different parts of Earth to experience night.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

The temperature of a star determines the wavelength of visible light that is produced. The visible part of the electromagnetic spectrum is shown.

Stars with the highest temperatures will emit most of their light at wavelengths that are near —

• red light

• orange light

• green light

• blue light

Tags

NGSS.MS-PS4-1

Ocean currents affect weather patterns by —

• regulating when tides occur in coastal areas

• trapping heat at the equator to regulate the global climate

• distributing heat from the uneven absorption of solar energy

• increasing the rate of evaporation to transport water to areas experiencing droughts

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

The diagram shows Earth in its orbit around the sun when very little light is visible at Earth’s South Pole. Which statement is true when Earth is in the position shown?

• It is August in the Northern Hemisphere. It is April in the Southern Hemisphere.

• It is summer in the Northern Hemisphere. It is winter in the Southern Hemisphere.

• The number of hours of daylight is greater in the Southern Hemisphere than in the Northern Hemisphere.

• Spring begins earlier in the year in the Southern Hemisphere than it does in the Northern Hemisphere.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-1

NGSS.MS-ESS2-6

The satellite photograph shows geological features, including a glacier.

As the glacier melts, water travels toward the ocean along the geological feature labeled X. When water erodes soil along this feature, the feature will most likely become —

• straight

• dry

• shorter

• wider

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

NGSS.MS-ESS2-4

This picture shows scratches in bedrock that were caused by a moving glacier. These scratches are called glacial striations.

Glacial striations in the bedrock of South Africa indicate that glaciers once moved across the African continent. The presence of glaciers on the surface of Africa is evidence that —

• the tectonic plate under Africa was closer to the South Pole at one time

• the equator was not always where it is currently located

• volcanoes did not exist until after faults occurred in Earth’s crust

• the location of the North Pole and the South Pole changed

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS2-2

The process represented in the diagram produces a molecule that is complementary to the template strand of DNA. What type of molecule is produced?

• New DNA

• polypeptide

• Messenger RNA

• carbohydrate

Review the chart above. Under which condition will the cell experience the greatest flow of water into the cell from the environment?

• Condition 1

• Condition 2

• Condition 3

• Condition 4

Nitrogenous bases are located on both strands of the DNA double helix. What is the significance of the nitrogenous bases?

• The number of adenines and cytosines determines the type of RNA that will be produced.

• The order of nitrogenous bases determines the order of amino acids in the proteins synthesized.

• The amount of thymine and guanine in the DNA molecules determines the length of the genes.

• The type of hydrogen bonding between the nitrogenous bases determines which amino acid will be added to the peptide chain.

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS3-1

Crossing-over between nonsister chromatids during meiosis is significant in heredity. This process most likely leads to an increase in which of the following?

• The expression of dominant traits

• Number of gametes

• The occurrence of polyploidy

• Genetic variation

Tags

NGSS.MS-LS4-4