50/50 in Science IV Trivia Quiz

Answer: True

Since the water molecule comprises of two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom, dihydrogen monoxide is the systematic name of water. Due to the unfamiliarity of this term for water, referring to dihydrogen monoxide (DHMO) in consumer and industrial products has been used in hoaxes.

The chemical effects of dihydrogen monoxide have been described as increasing the corrosion rate (acid rain), death from inhalation, and being capable of causing severe burns in its solid form (ice). Of course water doesn't cause burns unless if it's really hot.

Inhaling water can only kill if it's in liquid form via drowning.

Answer: False

The continents didn't always stay where they are now. Imagine if you could rewind back 250 million years and see the Earth from orbit, you would clearly see the difference from today's globe in that you would see one giant landmass and one giant ocean. The name of the giant landmass is [Supercontinent] Pangaea, and that of the one giant ocean is Panthalassic Ocean.

The continents are still moving today, and scientists predict that another supercontinent will form around 250 million years from now. The continents move at an average of just an inch per year, which is nearly 2 billion times slower than the average preferred human walking speed, but over millions of years, even with this incredibly slow speed, its odometer would add up to hundreds or thousands of miles!

Answer: True

Sulfur is a nonmetallic yellow element. Sulfur is most commonly seen near volcanoes and hot springs. When combined with oxygen, sulfur dioxide is a polluting gas and can trigger acid rain.

Answer: False

People used to believe that the universe is eternal, meaning it had no beginning and no end, until astronomer Edwin Hubble determined that most galaxies are moving away from us, concluding that the universe must have had a beginning. The universe was born in what is now called the Big Bang, in which the universe started out as a singularity that exploded and expanded into the universe we now see. Scientists believe that the universe will end eventually.

It is now believed that the universe is one of infinite number of universes in the multiverse (or infiniverse). The multiverse is assumed to be eternal.

Answer: True

Toadstool is an alternative name for mushroom. Fungus is a kingdom where mushroom belongs. Some mushrooms are edible while some are toxic, while others are used to make medicines.

Answer: False

A huge asteroid struck Earth 65 million years ago, wiping out the dinosaurs. With those large predators gone, mammals that survived the extinction event took over the planet by filling in niches left by dinosaurs and other large reptiles. This allowed for quicker and less impeded evolution, paving their way into mankind.

Answer: False

Scientists think that if the Earth didn't have a large moon, then complex life would be less likely, but not impossible, to exist. However, life that managed to survive in the moonless world would be unable to evolve into the human level of intelligent beings.

The Moon made intelligent life possible by stabilizing the Earth's tilt, thus making the climate less chaotic, which eventually led to humans evolving.

Answer: True

Silver is approximately five times more abundant than gold. This corresponds to the fact that gold is around five times more precious than silver!

Answer: False

Sodium carbonate looks similar to table salt (sodium chloride), but it is not the same stuff, but like salt, sodium carbonate (also known as soda ash) is a food additive.

Sodium carbonate is used in glassmaking, as an electrolyte, lyeing in alternative to sodium hydroxide, water softener, and dyeing.

Answer: True

Kinetic energy is one of many forms of energy. An object in motion possesses kinetic energy. Faster objects have more kinetic energy, and vice versa. When an object slows down, kinetic energy is converted into another form of energy, most commonly potential energy. Kinetic energy can be calculated by multiplying one-half mass and the square of the speed.

Answer: True

All triangles have a total angle of 180 degrees. For right triangles, if the angle is 90 degrees on one corner, then two others must be 45 degrees each to equal 180 in total For perfect triangles, every corner has an angle of 60 degrees.

Answer: True

Reflex angle is one type of angle, along with acute angle (0iĆ to 90iĆ), right angle (90iĆ), obtuse angle (90iĆ to 180iĆ), straight angle (180iĆ), and full angle (360iĆ).

Answer: False

When Apollo astronauts went to the Moon, they weighed six times less on the Moon than they were on Earth, because the Moon has gravitational pull six times weaker than on Earth. Unlike weight, mass remains the same for astronauts on the Moon as it is on Earth.

For example, if an 180 pound/80 kg person goes to the Moon, then his weight would change to just 30 pounds when he touches down on the Moon, but his mass remains at 80 kg.

Answer: False

Light-year is a unit of distance used by astronomers to pinpoint distances to stars and other extrasolar objects. One light-year is approximately six trillion miles or ten trillion kilometers, which is the length the light takes to travel for one year at a speed of 186,000 miles per second or 300,000 km/s.

What's interesting is that time and distance units can be the opposites if we add light before a particular unit. Light-time is a unit of distance such as a light-year mentioned above, whereas light-distance is a unit of time, such as light-AU (equal to 8 1/3 minutes, the time light takes to reach the Earth from the Sun).

Answer: True

Organic compounds form the basis for all life on Earth. The compounds contain mainly carbon, hydrogen and oxygen, as well as some others like nitrogen, sulfur, and phosphorus.