Astriobiology Final Exam - 1 Name: __________________________ HNRS 228 Spring 2005 Examination #2 1. You have 32 grams of a radioactive element with a half-life of two years. How many grams of the original element remain after six years? A) 1 gram B) 16 grams C) 8 grams D) 4 grams E) 2 grams 2. Which of the following is NOT true about a light year? A) It’s a measure of distance. B) It’s the distance traveled by light in a year. C) It’s the distance traveled by sound in a year. D) It’s a standard measure of distance. E) It’s approximately 10 trillion kilometers. 3. Which of the following is not true about an Astronomical Unit? A) It’s approximately the mean distance from the Sun to the Earth. B) It’s equivalent to the semi-major axis of the Earth-Sun system. C) It’s a measure of distance. D) It’s a standard measure of distance. E) It’s equivalent to the semi-minor axis of the Earth-Sun system. 4. What is TRUE about the center of the universe? A) The center of the universe is located near the constellation Sagittarius. B) The center of the universe is located near the constellation Scorpius. C) The center of the universe is located in the center of the Sun. D) There is no center you can point to, within our 3 dimensions of space. E) The center of the universe is located in the center of a balloon. 5. Which of the following is NOT true of the Miller-Urey experiment? A) It demonstrated that you can make complex organic molecules from simple chemicals. B) It utilized methane, ammonia, and carbon dioxide in its chamber. C) It utilized a model of the primordial Earth that was later put into question. D) It utilized lightening as an energy source. E) It was able to create simple life forms.Astriobiology Final Exam - 2 6. Which is NOT true about the physical characteristics that change when a nebula collapses to form a star? A) As a nebula collapses to form a star is heats up. B) As a nebula collapses to form a star it radiates x-rays. C) As a nebula collapses to form a star it spins faster. D) As a nebula collapses to form a star it flattens out. E) As a nebula collapses to form a star its size gets smaller. Use the proper phase diagram to answer the next 3 questions. 7. What phase is water at a pressure of 1 atmosphere and a temperature of 50 degrees Centigrade? A) Solid B) Liquid C) Gas D) It can exist as either a gas or a liquid. E) Its phase cannot be determined. 8. What phase is carbon dioxide at a pressure of 7 millibars and a temperature of minus 60 degrees Centigrade? A) Solid B) Liquid C) Gas D) It can exist as either a gas or a liquid. E) Its phase cannot be determined. 9. What phase is water at a pressure of 1 atmosphere and a temperature of 100 degrees Centigrade? A) Solid B) Liquid C) Gas D) It can exist as either a gas or a liquid. E) It can exist as either a gas, liquid or solid.Astriobiology Final Exam - 3 10. Which of the following DOES NOT help explain why Earth possesses few visible craters and the Moon possesses many? A) The Earth has been subjected to water erosion unlike the Moon. B) The Earth has been subjected to wind erosion unlike the Moon. C) The Earth has been subjected to cratering unlike the Moon. D) The Earth has a thick atmosphere unlike the Moon. E) The Earth has plate tectonics unlike the Moon. 11. Which of the following is NOT a major step in the scientific method? A) Forming a hypothesis. B) Testing a hypothesis. C) Making observations. D) Modifying the hypothesis based upon experiments. E) All of the above are part of the scientific method. 12. Which is NOT a common feature to ALL major extinction events in geological history? A) Geological time periods measured in a period of time less than a million years. B) An impact of a an asteroid or comet. C) A large number of taxa or species lost. D) A period of time followed by recovery of species. E) All of the above are features of all major extinctions. 13. Which are NOT constituents of an atom’s nucleus? A) Protons B) Neutrons C) Quarks D) Electrons E) All of the above are part of an atom’s nucleus.Astriobiology Final Exam - 4 Use the following diagram for the next 3 questions. 14. Which represents the outer core? A) B) C) D) E) None of the above. 15. Which represents the mantle? A) B) C) D) E) None of the above. 16. Which represents the magnetosphere? A) B) C) D) E) None of the above. 17. Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of ALL living things? A) Reproduction. B) Respiration. C) Evolution through natural selection. D) Energy usage. E) None of the above.Astriobiology Final Exam - 5 18. Anaerobic organisms require all of the following EXCEPT for A) Energy useage. B) Evolution through natural selection. C) Presence of oxygen. D) Reproduction. E) None of the above are required of anaerobes. 19. What is meant by “valence electrons”? A) Electrons in the outermost shell of an atom, involved in chemical bonding. B) All electrons in the atom’s nucleus. C) All of the electrons in the atom. D) All of the electrons in fusion. E) None of the above. 20. Which is the best definition of the term “igneous rock”? A) Rocks formed from sediments. B) Rocks that are a changing combination of the other two kinds of rocks and are changed due to pressures, physical and chemical. C) Rocks made of natural forming minerals. D) Rocks that are formed from the cooled magma or lava from a volcano are called igneous rocks. E) None of the above. 21. What is meant by the term “extremophile”? A) Microbes which are extremely prolific. B) Microbes that inhabit unusually “hostile” environments due to either chemical or physical features. C) Microbes which hate extreme environments. D) Microbes which exist on Mars. E) None of the above. 22. What is meant by the term “metamorphic rock”? A) Rocks formed from sediments. B) Rocks that are a changing combination of the other two kinds of rocks and are changed due to pressures, physical and chemical. C) Rocks made of natural forming minerals. D) Rocks that are formed from the cooled magma or lava from a volcano are called igneous rocks. E) None of the above.Astriobiology Final Exam - 6 23. What is meant by the “Copernican revolution” and what was its significance? A) This refers to the Polish revolution of 1885, led by Copernicus. B) This refers to the Revolutionary War period of the