General Science: 600+ Most Important Science Facts - Part 1

Question 1. What are the building blocks of matter?
Atoms (are considered to be the building blocks of matter)

Question 2. What are the building blocks of life?
Cells (are considered to be the building blocks of life)

Question 3. What are the three most common phases of matter? (Bonus if you can name another.)
Solids, liquids, and gases (are the three most common phases of matter); plasma is another phase; some people add one or more other phases, such as Bose-Einstein condensates

Question 4. What are the two basic types of subjects in science?
Physical science and life science (are the two basic types of subjects in science)

Question 5. Which branch of science studies the earth, its composition, rocks, etc.?
Geology (studies the earth, its composition, rocks, etc.)

Question 6. Which branch of science studies atmospheric phenomena such as weather?
Meteorology (studies atmospheric phenomena such as weather)

Question 7. Which branch of science studies fossils, such as those from dinosaurs?
Paleontology (studies fossils, such as those from dinosaurs)

Question 8. Which branch of physics studies the nature of light?
Optics (studies the nature of light)

Question 9. Which branch of physics studies the exchange of heat to and from other forms of energy?
Thermodynamics (studies the exchange of heat); thermal physics is the study of heat, which is more general and includes statistical mechanics and kinetic theory

Question 10. Which branch of biology studies the functions and vital processes of living organisms or their organs?
Physiology (studies the functions and vital processes of living organisms)

Question 11. Which branch of biology studies heredity?
Genetics (studies heredity)

Question 12. Which branch of science studies crime scenes by applying ballistics and medicine?
Forensics (studies crime scenes by applying ballistics and medicine)

Question 13. Which steps of the scientific method can you name?
Observation (or measurement), hypothesis (or purpose), experiment (or test), analysis, theory, and law (are common steps of the scientific method); one might also include research, prediction, model, and conclusions, for example

Question 14. Which three particles are the elements composed of? Indicate the charge of each.
Protons (positive), neutrons (neutral), and electrons (negative) (are the particles that make up the different types of elements)

Question 15. What are the five basic senses?
Sight, sound, smell, touch, and taste (are the five basic senses); if you want to be fancy, you could list these as vision, audition, olfactory, tactility, and gustation; note that some people add additional senses, such as equilibrioception (gravity/balance)

Question 16. What do chemists call narrow clear glass containers about the size of a finger?
Test tubes (are narrow clear glass containers about the size of a finger)

Question 17. What do chemists call a much wider cylindrical glass container with a flat bottom?
Beaker (is a much wider cylindrical glass container with a flat bottom)

Question 18. What do chemists call a glass container with a wide flat bottom and narrow top?
Flask (is a glass container with a wide flat bottom and narrow top)

Question 19. What do chemists call large pincers used to pick up hot objects in the laboratory?
Tongs (are large pincers used to pick up hot objects in the laboratory)

Question 20. What do surgeons call small pincers used to hold tissue back or pick up small objects?
Forceps (are small pincers used to hold tissue back or pick up small objects)

Question 21. What do surgeons call a small sharp knife used in dissections?
Scalpel (is a small sharp knife used in dissections)

Question 22. What do surgeons call a cut made into tissue using a small sharp knife?
Incision (is a cut made into tissue using a scalpel)

Question 23. Which button on many scales lets you zero the reading for an empty container?
Tare (is a button that lets you zero the reading for an empty container)

Question 24. What do chemists commonly use to produce a hot blue flame in the laboratory?
Bunsen burner (is used to produce a hot blue flame in the laboratory)

Question 25. Which handheld device can be used to detect or measure radioactivity?
Geiger counter (can be used to detect or measure radioactivity)

Question 26. Which term indicates how well a measurement agrees with the correct value?
Accuracy (indicates how well a measurement agrees with the correct value)

Question 27. Which term indicates how well multiple measurements agree with each other?
Precision (indicates how well multiple measurements agree with each other)

Question 28. Which type of error occurs if you aren’t careful how you look at a meter stick?
Parallax error (occurs if you aren’t careful how you look at a meter stick)

Question 29. What do scientists write beside every number that they measure?
Units (are written beside every measured number)

Question 30. What is the term for which digits on a calculator should be written for an answer?
Significant figures (are the digits to write for a calculated answer)

Question 31. Which common statistical value provides a useful measure of the spread of the data?
Standard deviation (provides a useful measure of the spread of the data)

Question 32. What term is used to describe a substance that isn’t in the solid state?
Fluid (is a liquid or gas)

Question 33. List the planets in increasing (average) distance from the sun.
Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune (are the eight planets in order from the sun); note that it ends with S.U.N.; note that in 2006, Pluto was deemed to be a dwarf planet, a large icy body that is part of the Kuiper Belt

Question 34. List the colors of the primary rainbow from top to bottom.
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, violet (are the colors of the primary rainbow from top to bottom) had long been the classic answers corresponding to the mnemonic Roy G. Biv, but indigo in particular is not always included now

Question 35. What is a phase transition from liquid to gas called?
Boiling (is a phase transition from liquid to gas); evaporation is incorrect

Question 36. What is a phase transition from gas to liquid called?
Condensation (is a phase transition from gas to liquid)

Question 37. What is a phase transition from solid to liquid called?
Melting (is a phase transition from solid to liquid)

Question 38. What is a phase transition from liquid to solid called?
Freezing (is a phase transition from liquid to solid)

Question 39. What is a phase transition from solid to gas (skipping the liquid phase) called?
Sublimation (is a phase transition from solid to gas, skipping the liquid phase)

Question 40. What is a phase transition from gas to solid (skipping the liquid phase) called?
Deposition (is a phase transition from gas to solid, skipping the liquid phase)

Question 41. Which type of organisms obtain energy by eating animals?
Carnivores (obtain energy by eating animals)

Question 42. Which type of organisms obtain energy by eating plants?
Herbivores (obtain energy by eating plants)

Question 43. Which type of organisms obtain energy by eating both animals and plants?
Omnivores (obtain energy by eating both animals and plants)

Question 44. Which systems of the human body can you name?
Skeletal, muscular, nervous, cardiovascular (or circulatory), respiratory, digestive (and excretory), reproductive, immune (and lymphatic), endocrine, integumentary (and exocrine), renal (and urinary), hematopoietic (are systems of the human body); note that the number, names, and grouping may vary, depending on the reference; you should expect to name at least 7-8 of these

Question 45. What are the four fundamental forces in nature?
Strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force, electromagnetic force, and gravitational force (are the four fundamental forces found in nature)

Question 46. Which conservation laws can you name?
Charge, energy, momentum, and angular momentum (are common fundamental conservation laws); mass is a good answer if you’re thinking of chemical reactions, but mass is not conserved in general (for example, when an electron and positron annihilate, producing photons that have zero rest-mass) unless you use relativistic mass; in certain contexts, other quantities may also be conserved, such as parity

Question 47. Which types of clouds can you name?
Cirrus, cumulus, stratus, and nimbus (are four basic types of clouds), but they are often grouped by height as low (stratocumulus, stratus), middle (altocumulus, altostratus), high (cirrus, cirrocumulus, cirrostratus), and multi-level (nimbostratus, cumulus, cumulonimbus); you should have known the main roots and prefixes

Question 48. Which simple machines can you name?
Lever, wedge, screw, pulley, inclined plane, wheel and axle (are simple machines)

Question 49. What is a region of space that is completely devoid of matter?
Vacuum (is a region of space that is completely devoid of matter); your answer should not discount gravity, since there can very well be gravity in a vacuum

Question 50. What are rain, snow, and hail examples of?
Precipitation (includes rain, snow, hail, etc.)

Question 51. What is the term for factors that cause an organism to react to them?
Stimuli (are factors that cause an organism to react to them)

Question 52. Which two terms are put together to form binomial nomenclature?
Genus and species (are put together to form binomial nomenclature)

Question 53. What is the binomial nomenclature for modern-day humans?
Homo sapiens (are the genus and species of modern-day humans)

Question 54. What are the initial substances in a chemical reaction called?
Reactants (are the initial substances in a chemical reaction)

Question 55. What is a substance that results from a chemical reaction called?
Product (is a substance that results from a chemical reaction)

Question 56. What is an object that travels through the air?
Projectile (is an object that travels through the air)

Question 57. What is the path that an object follows as it travels through the air?
Trajectory (is the path taken by a projectile)

Question 58. What is defined as the average kinetic energy of the molecules of a substance?
Temperature (is the average kinetic energy of the molecules of a substance)

Question 59. What is the property of sound that we hear which corresponds to frequency?
Pitch (is the property of sound that corresponds to frequency)

Question 60. Which model of the solar system (incorrectly) puts earth at the center?
Geocentric (incorrectly puts earth at the center)

Question 61. Which model of the solar system (more appropriately) puts the sun at the center?
Heliocentric (puts the sun at the center); Kepler improved upon this slightly by placing the sun at one focus of an ellipse

Question 62. What is defined as the amount of space that an object occupies?
Volume (is defined as the amount of space that an object occupies)

Question 63. What is defined as the amount of space that a container can hold?
Capacity (is defined as the amount of space that a container can hold)

Question 64. What is defined in physical science as the amount of matter present in an object?
Mass (is defined in physical science as the amount of matter present in an object); however, at relativistic speeds, the definition of mass in Question 65 is better

Question 65. What is defined in physics as the resistance of an object to acceleration?
Mass (is defined in physics as the resistance of an object to acceleration)

Question 66. What is defined as the gravitational pull exerted by a massive body such as the earth?
Weight (is defined as a gravitational force)

Question 67. What is defined as a push or a pull?
Force (is defined as a push or a pull)

Question 68. What are the two types of friction coefficients?
Static and kinetic (are the two types of friction coefficients)

Question 69. What is the term for the maximum speed that a falling body reaches due to air friction?
Terminal speed or terminal velocity (is the maximum speed or velocity that a falling body reaches due to air friction); velocity includes direction, speed does not

Question 70. Which pill is given as a control when testing a drug, but has no therapeutic benefits?
Placebo (is given as a control when testing a drug, but has no therapeutic benefits)

Question 71. What period of life is experienced during the transition from childhood to adulthood?
Adolescence (is the transition period from childhood to adulthood)

Question 72. Which horizontal circles run east to west and vary in size on earth’s surface?
Circles of latitude (run east to west and vary in size on earth’s surface)

Question 73. Which vertical circles run north to south and have the same size on earth’s surface?
Circles of longitude (run north to south and have the same size on earth’s surface)

Question 74. What is a triangular piece of glass used to disperse light into different colors?
Prism (is a triangular piece of glass used to disperse light into different colors)

Question 75. What is the term for the “rainbow” formed by dispersing light through a piece of glass?
Spectrum (is the “rainbow” formed by dispersing light through a prism)

Question 76. Which homogeneous inorganic solids are found in rocks?
Minerals (are homogeneous inorganic solids found in rocks)

Question 77. Which term do physicists use for the amount of a quantity without regard to direction?
Magnitude (is the amount of a quantity without regard to direction); a vector, for example, has both a magnitude and a direction (a scalar only has a magnitude)

Question 78. Which term do physicist use for what you get after you join vectors together?
Resultant (is the combination of two or more vectors added together tip-to-tail)

Question 79. Which cells carry hemoglobin (which carries oxygen to tissues)?
Red blood cells (carry hemoglobin); bonus for erythrocytes

Question 80. Which cells help protect against infection?
White blood cells (help protect against infection); bonus for leukocytes

Question 81. What do physicists call the force exerted along a cord?
Tension (is the force exerted along a cord)

Question 82. What is the term for a region’s long-term average temperature and precipitation?
Climate (is a region’s long-term average temperature and precipitation)

Question 83. What do biologists call the native environment of an animal or plant?
Habitat (is the native environment of an animal or plant)

Question 84. What is it called when a star explodes, releasing a tremendous amount of radiation?
Supernova (is when a star explodes)

Question 85. Which term (consisting of three words) includes both the brain and the spinal cord?
Central nervous system (includes both the brain and the spinal cord)

Question 86. What is the name for drawing maps of the surface of a region?
Topography (refers to drawing maps of the surface of a region); the similar term “topology” may merit credit, though it is used in a slightly different sense

Question 87. What equals the ratio of the density of a substance to the density of water?
Specific gravity (is the ratio of the density of a substance to the density of water)

Question 88. Which quantity is defined as power per unit area?
Intensity (is power per unit area); in some astronomy texts, this may be referred to as flux; in blackbody radiation, it may be referred to as radiance (but luminosity would be incorrect, since that is basically power, and spectral radiance is incorrect)

Question 89. What is the most reactive nonmetallic element?
Fluorine (is the most electronegative element, and is thus highly reactive)

Question 90. What are the two most reactive metallic elements?
Francium and cesium (are the most electropositive elements)

Question 91. Which element has the lowest boiling point?
Helium (has the lowest boiling point)

Question 92. Which is the largest currently living land mammal by weight?
African bush elephant (is the largest currently living land mammal by weight); bonus points for which type of elephant (of the extinct elephants, others were larger, but if you want to add extinct animals, there were much larger dinosaurs)

Question 93. Which is the largest currently living animal by weight?
Blue whale (is the largest currently living animal); you definitely need the “blue”

Question 94. Which is the largest currently living bird by weight?
Ostrich (is the largest currently living bird)

Question 95. Which is the fastest currently living, non-flying land mammal?
Cheetah (is the fastest currently living land mammal); note that there is a bat that is faster, but only when it flies

Question 96. Which is the fastest currently living bird?
Peregrine falcon (is the fastest currently living animal, faster than the cheetah); bonus for which type of falcon

Question 97. What provides a quantitative measure of the stiffness of a spring?
Spring constant (provides a quantitative measure of the stiffness of a spring)

Question 98. What is the term for the region surrounding the head of a comet?
Coma (is the region surrounding the head of a comet)

Question 99. What is the term for an equation of the form t2 – 4t + 3 = 0?
Quadratic (is an equation of the form t2 – 4t + 3 = 0)

Question 100. What is the term for a membrane that allows a fluid to pass through it?
Permeable (membranes allow fluid to pass through them); if you want to get picky, there are different types, like semipermeable or selectively permeable