Science trivia — 10 questions
Here are 10 questions from the “Science” quiz (638 questions in all), with their answer choices. Try to answer before opening “See the answer”. The selection changes every week.
Which chemist invented a safety lamp for miners in 1815?
- Michael Faraday
- Humphry Davy
- Joseph Priestley
- John Dalton
See the answer
Humphry Davy — A wire gauze around the flame kept it from igniting the firedamp in mines.
Which element is the most electronegative?
- Nitrogen
- Chlorine
- Oxygen
- Fluorine
See the answer
Fluorine — It pulls electrons harder than any other atom: 3.98 on the Pauling scale.
Which organs filter blood to make urine?
- The spleen
- The pancreas
- The liver
- The kidneys
See the answer
The kidneys — They filter about 180 litres of plasma a day, of which only 1 to 2 litres become urine.
How many periods, or rows, does the periodic table have?
- 12
- 18
- 7
- 8
See the answer
7 — It also has 18 groups, or columns.
Who discovered the neutron in 1932?
- James Chadwick
- Frédéric Joliot
- Ernest Rutherford
- Enrico Fermi
See the answer
James Chadwick — Rutherford had predicted it; Chadwick won the 1935 Nobel Prize in Physics.
Light travels more slowly in water than in a vacuum.
- True
- False
See the answer
True — It is about 25% slower there; this slowdown is what causes refraction.
Which instrument measures temperature?
- Barometer
- Hygrometer
- Thermometer
- Anemometer
See the answer
Thermometer — A barometer measures pressure, a hygrometer humidity, an anemometer wind.
What term describes the gradual change in the inherited traits of species over generations?
- Evolution
- Migration
- Metabolism
- Hibernation
See the answer
Evolution — Natural selection is its best-known mechanism.
Which physicist discovered the atomic nucleus in 1911?
- Ernest Rutherford
- Max Planck
- Niels Bohr
- J. J. Thomson
See the answer
Ernest Rutherford — Alpha particles fired at thin gold foil sometimes bounced back.
What does the pH of a solution measure?
- Its salinity
- Its temperature
- Its acidity
- Its density
See the answer
Its acidity — The lower the pH, the more acidic the solution.
Frequently asked questions
How many questions are in the “Science” quiz?
There are 638 free questions at the moment, and we keep adding more.
Do I need an account to play?
No. You can play right away, without an account. An account only adds your statistics, your rating and the rankings.
How are these 10 questions chosen?
They are drawn at random among the text questions of this category and change every week. For ten questions at your level, play a series: the difficulty adjusts to you.
How hard is this quiz?
The difficulty goes from Easy to Infernal and adjusts to your rating, like in chess.
Where can I see the answers?
Under each question, open “See the answer”. Try to answer first!