ASC science quiz

                 







March 18th    Monday's Science Class at the Adams Senior Center.


I used this science test during Monday's Senior Science class, jesting that the class members  had to prove that bribery had not been used to access membership to our science club!! 

The questions relate to discussions/subjects we've touched on in class some time or other.

Here goes:


1. How far away is the moon? More than a 1000? 10,000? 
500, 000?
 - On average, as it varies, about 23,855 miles. The sun is 93 million miles away.

2. What is the human body's largest organ?
..................The skin.

3. How many legs does a spider have? How many eyes?
     ............8 legs, most have 8 eyes, some have 6, some 4..........

4. How many parts to a spider's body?
      ...........2 - head (cephlathorax) and abdomen.

5. How many parts to an ant's body?
      ...........3 - head, thorax, and abdomen.

6. How many species of spiders in the world - more than a 1000, 10,000?
     ...........35,000 and new ones still being discovered.

7. How many different spiders in New Mexico?
................Close to 1000.

8. Could dinosaurs swim?
 ...................They sure could.

9. What's the connection between a dinosaur and a chicken/bird?
................They possess(ed) a wishbone.

10. What is WORMWOOD?
.......Tunnels made in a tree trunk/branch by the beetlewood larvae.

11. How many bones in a baby's skeleton - more than a hundred? More than 200? Less than 300?
    ........... 270 at birth.
How many bones in an adult's skeleton?
     ------ 206, as some fuse together as we grow...

12. Do earthworms have eyes?
........NO, but they can perceive light.

13. Do honey bees die after they sting a prey?
....Yes - when the sting is inserted in a prey's body, it breaks off from the bee, and it leaves behind a big gash/wound.

14. Do wasps die when they sting?
.......NO....doesn't happen to wassies.

15. How many times per second can a hummingbird flap its wings? More than 10? Less than 50?
..................at full flapping speed (usually when hovering), 35 beats a second!

16. Can hummingbirds fly backwards?
..........Yes, they sure can. They hitch rides, too, on bigger birds.

17.  Who was the Head of the Manhattan Bomb Project?
..............Robert Oppenheimer, aided by his personal assistant, David Hawkins.
Was Albert Einstein an active member of the Manhattan Bomb Project team?
..........No, but he was contacted for advice many times.

18. Is there a KING ANT in an ant colony?
...............No - the Queen has lots of mates.

19. Why do leaves change color in the autumn?
.................Chemistry of the leaves change when air temperature drops dramatically and the leaves stop going through the process of photosynthesis and die.

20. What is the oldest known tree?
.....................The beautiful Bristlecone Pine, 4300 years old.