WorksheetsScientific Knowledge
Total questions: 12
Worksheet time: 14mins
Scientists think that about 65 millions years ago, an asteroid struck Mexico and created a huge cloud of dust in the atmosphere. The dust contained iridium, an element commonly found in asteroids. The dust blocked sunlight and killed most of the plants on Earth. Plant-eating and meat-eating dinosaurs died. Scientists studied layers of rock from around this time to confirm their hypothesis. What evidence would support the hypothesis that an asteroid's impact could have contributed to the extinction of the dinosaurs?
a rock layer containing no iridium
a rock layer containing fossils of human beings
a rock later containing greater than usual amounts of iridium
a rock layer containing fossils from 100 million years ago
Beth is researching a recent, controversial scientific issue. Which of these sources is a reliable source for Beth to use for unbiased scientific information?
an encyclopedia article in a respected, older encyclopedia
a scientific journal with peer-reviewed articles
a personal website or blog
a pamphlet mailed to your home by a politician or lobby group
Part of cell theory says that all living things are made of one or more cells. Scientists had to find ways to test this theory. Which investigation could scientists use to test this part of cell theory?
heat plant or animal tissue on a burner
test the temperature of plant or animal tissue
examine plant or animal tissue with a microscope
measure the mass of plant or animal tissue with a scale
An explanation in science that has a lot of evidence to back it up is a scientific _______________.
theory
law
hypothesis
fact
If new information and evidence is found, scientific theories still cannot change.
True
False
According to Gregor Mendel's laws of genetic inheritance, when two parents have different genes for a trait, one form will be dominant and the other recessive. The dominant form usually shows up in the offspring. One cat parent has genes for gray fur and the other has genes for white fur. Gray fur is dominant. What color would the kittens have to be in order to provide evidence supporting Mendel's laws?
gray
white
white with gray spots
gray stripes
This involves experiments and scientists controlling the conditions. Physicists and chemists do a lot of this.
field work
experiments/lab work
guesswork
pseudoscience
This involves making observations of what is around you and how they relate to each other. Biologists and geologists do a lot of this.
field work
experiment/lab work
guesswork
psuedoscience
What is the term for the cumulative body of observations on which scientific explanations are based?
peer review
pseudoscience
logical reasoning
empirical evidence
Why is objectivity important to scientific investigations?
Objectivity means that the opinions of the scientist do not affect the results
Objectivity means that the opinions of the scientist are included in the results
Objectivity means that scientists repeat investigations; this makes the results more valid.
Objectivity means that scientists add their own biases and beliefs to their data, which is important to obtaining valid conclusions.
Two students want to investigate how different substances can exist as solids, liquids, or gases. They each develop a similar question that they intend to answer. Their experiments include different steps, which leads to the students having slightly different results. Which of the following statements about their investigations is most correct?
Because they had different results, neither investigation can be considered valid.
Because they had different results, only one student’s investigation will be valid.
Scientific investigations can often have different steps; it is still possible for each student to have valid results.
Scientific investigations should always follow the same steps; the students should re-do their investigations with the same steps.
Below is a drawing of the astrological zodiac signs. Astrology is an example of a pseudoscience. Why is astrology considered a pseudoscience, unlike astronomy, which is a science?
because astrology is older than astronomy
because it is not based on empirical evidence
because it is based on the scientific method
because it can be easily replicated by other scientists
