Here are some science questions to help you test your general science knowledge. They will also show you which of the Florida, Utah, and NGSS science standards each question is testing.
The questions are chosen randomly, so this quest will be different each time.
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In the Yeast and Sugar video, I added different kinds of sugar to bottles with yeast and warm water. One of the bottles was a control. What should have been in that bottle?
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Just water
No. With just water, you are removing two variables, the yeast and the sugar. You only want to remove the independent variable.
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Water and yeast
Yes! A control should be exactly like the others, but without the independent variable (the variable you are changing in the experiment.) In this case, the variable you are changing is the kind of sugar, so the control should have everything except for the sugar. -
Water and sugar
No. The yeast is not the independent variable, so leaving it out would not be correct. -
Water and salt
No. Adding salt would be adding a new variable, which is not correct.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.5.N.1.4 Identify a control group and explain its importance in an experiment.
| Bacteria and Antibiotics | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Testing a Leaf for Starch | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Review Scientific Process-1 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-2 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-9 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-11 | practice |
SC.7.N.1.4 Identify test variables (independent variables) and outcome variables (dependent variables) in an experiment.
| Floating Cups | video, checked |
| Testing for Tannic Acid | video |
| Review Scientific Process-1 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-2 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-9 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-11 | practice |
Utah
NGSS
3-5-ETS1-3 Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.
| What is Science? | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Review Scientific Process-1 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-2 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-7 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-9 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-10 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-11 | practice |
The Common Raven is often a scavenger, but its beak is not strong enough to tear through the thick hide of a winter-killed deer.
It will sit near the carcass and call loudly, attracting other ravens. As the mob gathers, they start making distress calls. That usually attracts a large predator, such as a wolf or coyote. They wait until the predator tears into the carcass.
At that point, 3 or 4 of them will start harassing the predator, keeping its attention, while the other ravens steal parts of the carcass. They then share what they get with the ravens that kept the predator busy.
This is an example of what kind of relationship?
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mutualism
Yes! In mutualism, both organisms benefit. The ravens help the predator find the carcass, and the predator tears it open so that the ravens can eat some too. Both get a benefit from the relationship. -
commensalism
No. In commensalism, one organism benefits, and the other is not affected. In this case, the ravens and the predator both benefit. -
parasitism
No. For parasitism, one organism benefits, and the other is harmed. Neither the raven nor the predator is harmed by this relationship. -
predation
No. In predation, one organism eats another. Neither the raven nor the predator gets eaten in this relationship.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.7.L.17.2 Compare and contrast the relationships among organisms such as mutualism, predation, parasitism, competition, and commensalism.
| Secondary Consumers | video, free, ClosedCaptions, Updated, checked |
| Review Food Web-11 | practice |
| Review Food Web-12 | practice |
Utah
UT.8.II.2.a Categorize the relationships between organisms (i.e., producer/consumer/decomposer, predator/prey, mutualism/parasitism) and provide examples of each.
| Secondary Consumers | video, free, ClosedCaptions, Updated, checked |
| Producers | video, free, Updated, checked |
| Primary Consumers | video, ClosedCaptions, Updated, checked |
| What is a Food Web? | text page, free, checked |
| Review Food Web-2 | practice |
| Review Food Web-1 | practice |
| Review Food Web-3 | practice |
| Review Food Web-4 | practice |
| Review Food Web-5 | practice |
| Review Food Web-6 | practice |
| Review Food Web-7 | practice |
| Review Food Web-8 | practice |
| Review Food Web-9 | practice |
| Review Food Web-10 | practice |
| Review Food Web-11 | practice |
| Review Food Web-12 | practice |
NGSS
MS-LS2-2 Construct an explanation that predicts patterns of interactions among organisms across multiple ecosystems.
| A Walk in the Park | video, checked |
| Review Food Web-11 | practice |
| Review Food Web-12 | practice |
When this traffic jam starts moving, the cars will be able to speed up faster than the big trucks. Why?
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The cars have more powerful engines.
No. The trucks have more powerful engines than the cars do. -
The cars have tires with more friction.
No. The truck tires are larger, which means they have more contact with the ground, and more friction. -
The cars weigh less.
Yes! The heavier an object is (the more mass it has), the more force it takes to move it. The trucks weigh a lot more than the cars, so it takes much more energy to get them moving. -
The cars are more streamlined
No. A streamlined shape helps when the cars are moving quickly, but does not do much as they are starting up.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.5.P.13.3 Investigate and describe that the more mass an object has, the less effect a given force will have on the object's motion.
| The Difference Between Weight and Mass | video, checked |
| Water in a Glass, part 2 | video, checked |
| Water in a Glass, part 3 | video, checked |
| Water in a Glass, part 1 | video, checked |
| Obedient Coin | video, checked |
| Wrong Way Balloon | video, checked |
| High Bounce | video, checked |
| Review Force and Motion-1 | practice |
| Review Force and Motion-2 | practice |
Utah
UT.3.III.2.b Compare and chart the relative effects of a force of the same strength on objects of different weight (e.g., the breeze from a fan will move a piece of paper but may not move a piece of cardboard).
| Floating Cups | video, checked |
| Water in a Glass, part 2 | video, checked |
| Water in a Glass, part 3 | video, checked |
| Water in a Glass, part 1 | video, checked |
| High Bounce | video, checked |
| Review Force and Motion-1 | practice |
| Review Force and Motion-2 | practice |
NGSS
MS-PS2-2 Plan an investigation to provide evidence that the change in an object’s motion depends on the sum of the forces on the object and the mass of the object.
| Science of Balance | video, checked |
| Bernoulli Effect | video |
| The Old Tablecloth Trick | video |
| Smoke Rings | video |
| Floating Cups | video, checked |
| The Difference Between Weight and Mass | video, checked |
| Torque | video |
| Water in a Glass, part 2 | video, checked |
| Water in a Glass, part 3 | video, checked |
| Water in a Glass, part 1 | video, checked |
| Newton's First Law of Motion | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Obedient Coin | video, checked |
| Wrong Way Balloon | video, checked |
| Strange Flame, part 2 | video, checked |
| Strange Flame, part 1 | video, checked |
| Science Friction | video, checked |
| Raw Egg or Boiled? | video, checked |
| More Science of Balance | video, checked |
| Balancing a Meter Stick | text page |
| Review Force and Motion-2 | practice |
| Review Force and Motion-4 | practice |
| Review Force and Motion-1 | practice |
I wanted to test different amounts of fertilizer to see which was best for growing grass. I mixed water with different amounts of fertilizer, and then added sodium polyacrylate to change it into a gel. Then I sprinkled the grass seeds on top, and waited for them to grow.
I really need a control group for this experiment. What would I use for a control?
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Water, fertilizer, and grass seed, without any sodium polyacrylate.
No. For the control, we want to skip the thing we are testing for. We are not testing changes caused by the amount of sodium polyacrylate. -
Water, sodium polyacrylate, and grass seed, without any fertilizer.
Yes! We are testing to see how different amounts of fertilizer change the growth of the grass. The amount of fertilizer is the variable we are testing, so the control group should not have any fertilizer. -
Water, sodium polyacrylate, and fertilizer, without any grass seed.
No. For the control, we want to skip the thing we are testing for. We are not testing changes caused by the amount of grass seed, and we know that no grass will grow if we do not have any seeds. -
Sodium polyacrylate, fertilizer, and grass seed, without any water.
No. For the control, we want to skip the thing we are testing for. We are not testing changes caused by the amount of water.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.5.N.1.4 Identify a control group and explain its importance in an experiment.
| Bacteria and Antibiotics | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Testing a Leaf for Starch | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Review Scientific Process-1 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-2 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-9 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-11 | practice |
SC.7.N.1.4 Identify test variables (independent variables) and outcome variables (dependent variables) in an experiment.
| Floating Cups | video, checked |
| Testing for Tannic Acid | video |
| Review Scientific Process-1 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-2 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-9 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-11 | practice |
Utah
NGSS
3-5-ETS1-3 Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved.
| What is Science? | video, ClosedCaptions |
| Review Scientific Process-1 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-2 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-7 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-9 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-10 | practice |
| Review Scientific Process-11 | practice |
Which of these is NOT a form of energy?
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Light
No. Light is a form of kinetic energy. -
Thermal
No. Thermal is a form of kinetic energy. -
Fire
Yes. Fire is a chemical reaction that can produce forms of energy such as light, heat, and motion, but fire is NOT a form of energy. -
Motion
No. Motion is a form of kinetic energy.
Click to see which state standards this question tests, and which of my videos, experiments, and other resources support that topic.
Florida
SC.4.E.6.3 Recognize that humans need resources found on Earth and that these are either renewable or nonrenewable.
| Recycle | video |
| Review Energy-4 | quest |
| Review Energy-1 | practice |
Utah
NGSS
4-ESS3-1 Obtain and combine information to describe that energy and fuels are derived from natural resources and their uses affect the environment.
| Investigating Acid Rain | video, checked |
| Solar Power | video, checked |
| Review Energy-4 | quest |
| Review Energy-1 | practice |
5-ESS3-1 Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.
| Recycle | video |
| Review Energy-4 | quest |
The questions are chosen randomly, so this quest will be different each time.