Hard Science & Technology Quiz
1 - Of the following, who did NOT take part in the development of the first steam engines?
James WattThomas NewcomenThomas SaveryJames Hargreaves
James Watt
Thomas Newcomen
Thomas Savery
James Hargreaves
2 - What bridge shook itself to destruction leading to the new science of wind engineering?
Tacoma Narrows BridgeCausey Gap BridgeSunshine SkywayPhillipe Ridge Causeway
Tacoma Narrows Bridge
Causey Gap Bridge
Sunshine Skyway
Phillipe Ridge Causeway
3 - Which of the following is not credited to the Chinese?
The invention of rocketsThe discovery of magnetic attractionThe discovery of electric attractionThe calculation of pi to the fifth decimal
The invention of rockets
The discovery of magnetic attraction
The discovery of electric attraction
The calculation of pi to the fifth decimal
4 - What is the other giant spiral galaxy of the Local Group, along with the Milky Way?
AthenaEurypidesAndromedaClytemnestra
Athena
Eurypides
Andromeda
Clytemnestra
5 - What is the quark combination in a proton?
uududdusdssd
uud
udd
usd
ssd
6 - What is a Lagrange point?
An orbital spot where a small object will remain stationary with respect to two large gravitational objectsThe vertical angle at which a spinning object will become unstable and fall overA sharp-pointed fulcrum where the slope from the point is equal in all directionsThe temperature for a liquid at which no amount of pressure will prevent boiling
An orbital spot where a small object will remain stationary with respect to two large gravitational objects
The vertical angle at which a spinning object will become unstable and fall over
A sharp-pointed fulcrum where the slope from the point is equal in all directions
The temperature for a liquid at which no amount of pressure will prevent boiling
7 - What does EPROM stand for (in relation to computers)?
Erasable Programmable Real On-core MemoryErasable Programmable Read Only MemoryEasily Programmable Real On-core MemoryEasily Programmable Read Once Memory
Erasable Programmable Real On-core Memory
Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory
Easily Programmable Real On-core Memory
Easily Programmable Read Once Memory
8 - How was the NASA probe Climate Orbiter lost in 1999?
Bad insulation exposed the electronic circuit to extreme heat, fatally damaging itA typing mistake when entering coordinates caused it to miss the red planetA mixup between Imperial and Metric units in navigation data caused it to approach too near to MarsThe probe stopped responding for an unknown reason while it was already in orbit
Bad insulation exposed the electronic circuit to extreme heat, fatally damaging it
A typing mistake when entering coordinates caused it to miss the red planet
A mixup between Imperial and Metric units in navigation data caused it to approach too near to Mars
The probe stopped responding for an unknown reason while it was already in orbit
9 - Who is the only person to hold a patent on a chemical element?
Glenn T. SeaborgMarie CurieEnrico FermiAlbert Ghiorso
Glenn T. Seaborg
Marie Curie
Enrico Fermi
Albert Ghiorso
10 - How do organisms use Adenosine Triphosphate?
as a digestive enzymeas an energy carrierto maintain cell membrane integrityas a competitive inhibitor
as a digestive enzyme
as an energy carrier
to maintain cell membrane integrity
as a competitive inhibitor
11 - Which of these is an example of an extremophile?
Elephas maximusSequoiadendron giganteumArchiteuthis martensiBacillus infernus
Elephas maximus
Sequoiadendron giganteum
Architeuthis martensi
Bacillus infernus
12 - During WW2, the British created a machine called Colossus to break the German Fish cypher. Who was not involved in the project?
Albert SmallMax NewmanAlan TuringTommy Flowers
Albert Small
Max Newman
Alan Turing
Tommy Flowers
13 - What scientific phenomenon is often (mistakenly) thought as having been first reported by Columbus?
The inversion of the sense of gyration of water emptying from a hole as one crosses the equatorThe difference between the geographic & magnetic North PolesThe existence of Aurora Borealis above the oceanThe increase in the sea's level near the equator, due to the increased centrifugal force
The inversion of the sense of gyration of water emptying from a hole as one crosses the equator
The difference between the geographic & magnetic North Poles
The existence of Aurora Borealis above the ocean
The increase in the sea's level near the equator, due to the increased centrifugal force
14 - According to the Nyquist-Shannon theory:
to double an amplifier's loudness, you must quadruple the power supplieddoubling the density of a medium halves the speed of sound through that mediumto capture a signal, the sample frequency must be at least double the signal frequencyany telephone or telegraph system based on wires requires at least two of them
to double an amplifier's loudness, you must quadruple the power supplied
doubling the density of a medium halves the speed of sound through that medium
to capture a signal, the sample frequency must be at least double the signal frequency
any telephone or telegraph system based on wires requires at least two of them
15 - Which famous Astronomer had a gold prosthetic nose, having lost the real one in a duel?
William HerschelGalileo Nicolas CopernicusTycho Brahe
William Herschel
Galileo
Nicolas Copernicus
Tycho Brahe
16 - What are the craters on Venus named after?
Roman mythological figuresAstronomersThe home towns of astronomersFamous women
Roman mythological figures
Astronomers
The home towns of astronomers
Famous women
17 - What is the collective name for the asteroids that are co-orbital with Jupiter?
the Trojansthe Achaensthe Jovenaliansthe Lagrangins
the Trojans
the Achaens
the Jovenalians
the Lagrangins
18 - Which one has explored the Mariana Trench, the deepest spot in the ocean?
Jean LucJacques PiccardJules VerneJacques Cousteau
Jean Luc
Jacques Piccard
Jules Verne
Jacques Cousteau
19 - How far away from is the Earth from the Sun (on average) ?
1.5 x 10^8 km (9.32 x 10^7 miles)1.3 x 10^7 km (8.08 x 10^6 miles)1.8 x 10^10 km (1.12 x 10^10 miles)1.2 x 10^7 km (7.46 x 10^6 miles)
1.5 x 10^8 km (9.32 x 10^7 miles)
1.3 x 10^7 km (8.08 x 10^6 miles)
1.8 x 10^10 km (1.12 x 10^10 miles)
1.2 x 10^7 km (7.46 x 10^6 miles)
20 - Which computer language was originally not interpreted?
PerlPythonCBasic
Perl
Python
C
Basic
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