Science Terms Trivia Quiz

Answer: an atom with a positive or negative charge

In 1834, the term ion was introduced by Michael Faraday. Ion is derived from the Greek word 'ienai', which means 'to go'.

When a stable atom gains or loses an electron, it becomes an ion. Therefore, an ion can be defined as an electrically charged particle. A neutral atom becomes positively charged when it loses one or more electrons. It becomes negatively charged when it gains extra electrons.

A good example is sodium chloride, NaCl (salt). When chlorine gains an electron from sodium, and sodium loses the electron to chlorine, they then become ions and form NaCl.

Answer: Mass per unit volume

Density is defined as mass per unit volume. The engineering units commonly used are kilogram per cubic meter (kg/m3) and gram per cubic centimeter (g/cc).

The density of water is usually 1000 kg/m3 is higher than oil, usually about 800 kg/m3. When the two fluids are mixed in a container, water will sink to the bottom due to the higher density of water.

Answer: Ion with a negative charge

Anions are negatively charged ions. Ions are charged atoms or molecules. When a neutral atom loses one or more electrons, it will be become a positively charged cation. A negatively charged anion is formed when a neutral atom gains one or more electrons.

Answer: Thermocouple

A thermocouple uses two different metals which are joined together at one end. When the junction of the two metals is heated, the thermocouple generates a voltage change (usually in millivolt) to indicate the temperature change.

Answer: Coriolis

The Coriolis force was named after a French scientist named Gastave-Gaspard Coriolis who discovered it in 1835.

Earth is rotating in a counter-clockwise direction from east to west. The rotation speed is the highest at the equator and decreases away from the equator. In the northern hemisphere, wind blowing in the north direction will veer to the right and left from the south, thus causing the wind to spin in a counter-clockwise direction due to the Coriolis effect. The reverse will occur in the southern hemisphere, wind blowing in the south will veer to left and right from the north, causing the wind to spin in a clockwise direction.

Answer: Hydrogen and hydroxide

A pH meter is used to measure the presence of free hydrogen and hydroxide ions. Water with more hydrogen ions is acidic, whereas water with more hydroxide ions is alkaline. The range of pH is from 0 to 14. 7 is neutral, less than 7 is acidic and more than 7 is alkaline.

Answer: Kelvin

Kelvin (K) is the unit for absolute temperature and is also known as thermodynamic temperature, where zero is absolute zero. Absolute zero is the temperature at which particles of matter at minimum motion can longer become colder. There is no degree symbol with absolute temperature, the unit is just Kelvin.

0 K = -273.15 °C

The temperature T in degrees Celsius (°C) is equal to the temperature T in K -273.15:
T(°C) = T(K) - 273.15

Conversion of 300 K to degrees Celsius:
T(°C) = 300K - 273.15 = 26.85 °C

Answer: One-twelfth

The AMU of an element is a measure of its atomic mass. AMU, also known as the dalton(da), expresses both atomic masses and molecular masses.

One AMU is exactly one-twelfth the mass of an atom of carbon-12 (12C) or 1.660538921 x 10^-27 kg. Carbon-12 is the most abundant natural carbon isotope. Over 98% of carbon has an atomic mass of 12.

Answer: Calorie

The calorie (cal) is a unit to measure thermal energy. 1 calorie is equal to 4.184 joules (j). This is the amount of energy which is required to increase the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1°C at a standard pressure of 1 bar.

While scientists almost universally use SI units and thus joules, the calorie is still very much in use in everyday conversation, especially of course for food - although when people say "this chocolate bar has 120 calories", they actually mean kilocalories (1000 calories).

Answer: Coulomb

The coulomb is the charge transported by a constant current of one ampere in one second. The unit is named for the French scientist Charles-Augustin de Coulomb.

Coulomb's law states that 'the force between two charges is proportional to the amount of charge on both charges and inversely proportional to the square of the distance between them'.