New Weds Feature - Why is the Sky Blue?
Here is a little nerdy quiz to take the place of the quote feature. I will be posting the answers Friday. This is from the Star Tribune in St. Paul, Minnesota
If you dare, post one or more of the answers (or your guess;)! I haven't even given NerdDad the quiz yet!
Think you know you know your science? Recently, several science gurus -- Nobel Prize winners, institute heads, teachers and others who spend most of their time thinking about science -- were asked, "What is one science question every high school graduate should be able to answer?"
Take their quiz and see how you do.
1. What percentage of the earth is covered by water?
2. What sorts of signals does the brain use to communicate sensations, thoughts and actions?
3. Did dinosaurs and humans ever exist at the same time?
4. What is Darwin's theory of the origin of species?
5. Why does a year consist of 365 days, and a day of 24 hours?
6. Why is the sky blue?
7. What causes a rainbow?
8. What is it that makes diseases caused by viruses and bacteria hard to treat?
9. How old are the oldest fossils on earth?
10. Why do we put salt on sidewalks when it snows?
Extra credit: What makes the seasons change?
If you dare, post one or more of the answers (or your guess;)! I haven't even given NerdDad the quiz yet!
posted by NerdMom at
1:30 PM
5 Comments:
Take their quiz and see how you do.
1. What percentage of the earth is covered by water? About 75%.
2. What sorts of signals does the brain use to communicate sensations, thoughts and actions?
Neurons carry signals produced by sensory cells. A neuron receives a signal at the axon, passes it along the axon covered by a Myelin sheath, and communicates the signal with a release of chemicals in the synapses, which is a gap between the first and second neuron.
Just finished teaching the Nervous system to my kids!
3. Did dinosaurs and humans ever exist at the same time?
The bible talks of a Bohemoth in Job. I believe they did.
4. What is Darwin's theory of the origin of species?
Darwin said that groups of organisms evolved through natural selection.
5. Why does a year consist of 365 days, and a day of 24 hours?
365 days = how long it takes the earth to travel 360 degrees around the sun.
24hrs.= 1 revolution of the earth on it’s axis
6. Why is the sky blue?
There are particles in the air that reflect different wavelengths. Many of the colors of the spectrum get absorbed, but light (wavelengths) that is consistent with blue is reflected back to us causing it to look blue.
Last year we learned about light and wavelengths!
7. What causes a rainbow?
The sun’s light is refracted by water molecules in the air, which causes it to split into red, orange, yellow, green blue, indigo, and violet.
8. What is it that makes diseases caused by viruses and bacteria hard to treat?
Viruses are tiny organisms that are parasites which invade cells and change the whole function of the cell. The cell turns into a disease factory and eventually bursts releasing it to spread throughout the body. Because it lives inside the cell, the body’s defenses can't easily fight and defend against something that it can't recognize.
A+ Anatomy student in college.
9. How old are the oldest fossils on earth? NO IDEA! Do THEY really know?
10. Why do we put salt on sidewalks when it snows?
Salt helps lower the freezing point of water which certainly makes it more difficult to refreeze.
Extra credit: What makes the seasons change?
God. Well he decided that the earth should rotate around the hot, shiny thing (sun). The closer the earth’s path is to the sun, the warmer the climate.
By
Vessel, at 3:44 PM
I'm trying to not read Julie's (i.e. cheat) before answering these myself. Answered as accurately and as succintly as I know how...
1. What percentage of the earth is covered by water? about 67%
2. What sorts of signals does the brain use to communicate sensations, thoughts and actions? electrical
3. Did dinosaurs and humans ever exist at the same time? yes
4. What is Darwin's theory of the origin of species? don't know
5. Why does a year consist of 365 days, and a day of 24 hours? it takes the earth 24 hours to make a complete rotation and slightly less than 365.25 days to make a complete revolution around the sun
6. Why is the sky blue? something about the composition of the atmosphere and refraction of light???
7. What causes a rainbow? refraction of sunlight through water droplets in the air
8. What is it that makes diseases caused by viruses and bacteria hard to treat? guess: they live off the same things we do, it's hard to kill them and their host (us)
9. How old are the oldest fossils on earth? don't know
10. Why do we put salt on sidewalks when it snows? the freezing point of salt water is lower than that of water. Sprinkle salt, combines with snow/ice, it melts.
Extra credit: What makes the seasons change? The earth's path around the sun is elliptical in shape, having two endpoints furthest from the sun and two points closest to the sun. (Is that true or did I just make that up? I'm not sure.) In addition, the axis about which the earth rotates is tilted (about 23.5 degrees, I think) relative to its path of revolution, causing one (north/south) hemisphere to be closer to the sun half the year and the other the other half.
I'm done thinking now. Thanks for the fun. Now I want to know the answers. Oh--I'll read Julie's!
By
Sara Edwards, at 1:38 PM
Wow Julie! You know your stuff!!!
By
Sara Edwards, at 1:40 PM
Thanks Sara! Everything I answered came mostly from learning it a second time so I could teach it to my kids. The real test would be to ask them the same questions.
That was a fun quiz. Just don't give me a math test.
By
Vessel, at 2:48 PM
Psst. Hey, Jackie. Can we have a math test next week? ;)
By
Sara Edwards, at 8:59 PM
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