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20 Chemistry Questions You Should Be Able to Answer
1. One of the essential minerals in the human body is salt. How much salt (NaCl) is in the average adult human body?
CorrectWrong
The average adult human body contains about 250 grams of salt, which is just over half a pound. If you don't have enough salt, your body suffers an electrolyte imbalance called hyponatremia.
2. If you fill a glass to the brim with ice water and the ice melts, what will happen?
The glass will over flow as the ice turns to water.
The level of water in the glass will remain unchanged as the ice melts.
The water level will drop slightly as the ice melts.
I'll never find out because I'll drink the water or walk away before anything happens.
CorrectWrong
One interesting property of water is that it achieves maximum density as a liquid, not as a solid. So, ice is less dense than water and floats. When it melts, it becomes more dense. More mass per unit volume means the level of the liquid drops slightly.
3. The symbol Sb stands for stibnum or stibnite. What is the modern name of this element?
CorrectWrong
Stibnum is the old name for antimony. Be careful you don't confuse the symbol with Sn for tin (a common tricky chemistry test question). Tin is safe enough to use to make cans for food. Antimony and most of its compounds are toxic.
4. Water-based liquids can be described as acidic, neutral, or basic, with respect to pH. Which of these describes milk?
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Milk is close to a neutral pH, but it's slightly acidic thanks in part to the lactic acid it contains.
5. DNA codes for proteins, which are the building blocks of organisms. What is the most abundant protein in the human body?
CorrectWrong
You'll find keratin primarily in your hair, nails, and skin, but the most abundant protein in humans is collagen, which is found in bone and cartilage. Both proteins are strong and flexible.
6. Noble gases are inert because they have completed outer electron shells. Which of these elements isn't a noble gas?
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Chlorine is not a noble gas. It's one electron shy of a full octet, so unlike the noble gases, it's highly reactive.
7. What is the most common isotope of hydrogen?
CorrectWrong
Most of the hydrogen in the world is protium (one proton, no neutrons), but some deuterium and tritium occurs, too. Tritium is radioactive. Deuterium is not radioactive and is the form of hydrogen found in heavy water.
8. You can't live without water! What is its chemical formula?
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You didn't miss this one, right? Water is good old H 2 O!
9. Who is credited with the invention of the modern periodic table?
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Mendeleev (sometimes spelled Mendeleyev) is credited with creating the modern periodic table, although his table was based on increasing atomic mass rather than atomic number. Mendeleev's table grouped elements according to common properties and periodic trends.
10. Which of these elements is a nonmetal?
CorrectWrong
Sulfur is a nonmetal. It's yellow and lacks a metallic luster.
11. Organic chemistry is the study of the compounds that make up living organisms. All organic molecules contain:
CorrectWrong
Not all compounds that contain carbon are organic. An example of an inorganic carbon compound is carbon dioxide. All organics contain both carbon and hydrogen. A quasi-exception would be carbon tetrachloride, which is an organic solvent. It's not actually organic, but it is nonpolar so it dissolves organic molecules.
12. The symbol Ag stands for which element?
CorrectWrong
Ag stands for argentum, which is an old name for silver. The term "argent" survives, meaning silvery.
13. Three of the most common states of matter are solids, liquids, and gases. A liquid has:
A defined volume, but not a defined shape
A definite shape, but no defined volume
A defined volume and shape
No defined volume or shape
CorrectWrong
A liquid takes the shape of its container (no defined shape), but has a fairly constant volume (at least compared to a gas). The state of matter of a substance is due to the kinetic energy of its components. With enough energy, atoms and molecules are less strongly bound to each other.
14. You can't live without iron. Where in the body is most of the iron located?
CorrectWrong
Most of the body's iron is locked up in the hemoglobin found in red blood cells, used for oxygen transport.
15. A mole contains Avogadro's number of items. What is Avogadro's number?
CorrectWrong
Avogadro's number is huge! The reason chemists use 6.02 x 10^23 to define a unit is to avoid having to work with crazy-large numbers.
16. What do you call an atom that has more protons than electrons?
CorrectWrong
If an atom has more protons than electrons, it has a net positive charge. This is a cation, which you can remember because the "t" in cation resembles a "+" sign for positive.
17. All of the following are amino acids except:
CorrectWrong
Adenine is a nucleic acid, not an amino acid.
18. A drop of food coloring spreading out in a cup of water is an example of which transport process?
CorrectWrong
Food coloring dispersing in water is an example of diffusion. Osmosis involves water, but there has to be a semipermeable membrane, too.
19. In a solution of saltwater (a saline solution), salt is the:
CorrectWrong
Salt is the solute because it dissolves in the solvent (water). In a mixture of two fluids, the solute is present in lesser quantity compared with the solvent.
20. All of the following elements are liquids around room temperature except which one?
CorrectWrong
Bromine and mercury are liquid at room temperature. You can melt gallium in the palm of your hand. If you put pure magnesium in your hand, it may react with the water in your skin and ignite, but it won't melt.
20 Questions Chemistry Quiz
You got: % Correct. Chemistry Is Not My Friend
On the one hand, you won't be winning the Nobel Prize in chemistry any time soon. On the other hand, you're probably an expert in another field! If you want to improve your knowledge, grab a kid's science text or start learning chemistry online. Not interested in chemistry at all? You could simply take another quiz!
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20 Questions Chemistry Quiz
You got: % Correct. Lab Assistant
You know just enough chemistry to get by. This has served you well so far, but think how much more you could learn! Why should you care? For one thing, chemistry is everywhere in the world around you, so brushing up on it will help you choose the best foods, medicines, and household products. Another reason to master chemistry is so you can do (and understand) cool science projects.
One fun way to learn about chemistry is to perform experiments.You can also brush up on chemistry by taking another quiz.
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20 Questions Chemistry Quiz
You got: % Correct. Armchair Chemist
If there had been a million dollars on the line for knowing all the answers, you would have just missed the prize. It's OKto miss a question or two. That just shows you have other interests! You have a good command of chemistry.
From here, you can hone your chemistry skills, try your hand at an experiment, or you may simply enjoy taking another quiz.
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20 Questions Chemistry Quiz
You got: % Correct. Future Nobel Prize Winner
If there was a million dollar prize for getting the questions right, you could be rich right now! Sadly, there's no cash, but you can take comfort in knowing you're the one people turn to when they need answers. You know your stuff! You even knew the answers to the tricky questions.
The next step is learning fun ways to apply knowledge and delving deeper into your favorite subject. Review high school chemistry to make sure you've covered all the bases or perform cool chemistry demonstrations to show others why the science is so amazing!
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