Physical Science Essay Questions – Flashcards
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"As science has progressed, the branches of science have merged together." Explain this statement.
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As more discoveries are made about the nature of matter and energy, different sciences become interconnected. For example, biochemistry studies the chemistry of living things. Geophysics studies the forces that affect the earth.
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Explain why a scientific theory might be changed or replaced. Give an example of a law that was changed.
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Scientific laws need to be changed as new discoveries are made. For example, caloric theory seemed to explain heat until the effects of friction were discovered. Then a new theory, kinetic theory, was developed to include the new information.
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Describe the relationship between science and technology, and give an example of how they are related.
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Science involves making discoveries about the world, and technology involves finding practical uses for those discoveries. Sometimes science precedes technology, and sometimes it's the other way around. For example, microorganisms were not discovered until usable lenses were invented.
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What does it mean to say that "no experiment is a failure"? Do you agree or disagree? Why?
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No experiment is a failure because, even if an experiment does not give the expected results, its results will lead to new questions and new observations.
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Why are organizing and presenting data important scientific skills?
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Scientists need to read and find out about other scientists' work so they know what questions to ask and what observations to test. To do this, data must be presented and organized clearly and logically.
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Explain why scientists use scientific notation.
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Scientists often need to express data using numbers that are very small or very large. Scientific notation, which eliminates a lot of zeroes and expresses numbers in terms of powers of 10, helps them do this efficiently.
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"That measurement is very precise, but it is still not accurate." Explain how this statement might be true.
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Suppose you were measuring a room. You might measure the length at 3.452389 m. This is a very precise measurement. However, if you wrote down the numbers incorrectly and the actual length was 4.452389, your measurement would not be accurate.
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Three children exhaust themselves trying to push a large rock that doesn't budge. Have they done any work? Why?
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No, work is considered force times displacement. The rock didn't move.
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Why is light considered a form of energy?
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Light is an electromagnetic wave. All electromagnetic waves are a form of energy.
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What is the law of conservation of energy?
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Energy cannot be created or destroyed.
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Where does energy go when it seems to disappear?
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It is converted into different energy forms.
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Describe two different forms of electromagnetic radiation and explain their use in technology.
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-Radio waves: short wave/long wave radio -Microwaves: Used for communication of space objects (spacecraft, satellites, radar, etc.)
