CAEC Science Practice Test

All 35 questions in this test

Every question and its answer choices. The correct answers and explanations appear when you take the test above.

1. A student tests whether the temperature of water affects how fast sugar dissolves. She uses three beakers with 200 mL of water at 10 °C, 25 °C and 50 °C. In each, she stirs in 10 g of sugar at the same speed and times how long it takes to dissolve. Results: 10 °C: 95 s; 25 °C: 60 s; 50 °C: 28 s.

   Based on the sugar experiment's results, about how long would sugar take to dissolve in water at 40 °C?

   1. About 20 s
   2. About 100 s
   3. About 65 s
   4. About 40 s

2. A study praising a sports drink was paid for by the company that sells it. What is the main concern?

   1. Funding could bias how the study was designed or reported
   2. Companies are not allowed to do any kind of scientific research
   3. The study must have used far too many participants to be valid
   4. The sports drink is probably dangerous to the people who use it

3. A new pesticide protects crops but also harms bees that pollinate them. What is the harm to bees an example of?

   1. An intended benefit
   2. An unintended consequence
   3. A controlled variable
   4. A testable hypothesis

4. Which WHMIS pictogram is used for products that can burn skin and eyes or damage metal?

   1. Gas cylinder
   2. Exclamation mark
   3. Corrosion
   4. Flame over circle

5. A researcher reports only the trials that supported her idea and leaves out the rest. What is this an example of?

   1. A controlled variable
   2. Random sampling
   3. Selective reporting
   4. Peer review

6. A town is deciding whether to add fluoride to its water. Which approach best weighs risks and benefits?

   1. Decide based only on which choice is the cheapest for the town
   2. Ask one long-time resident what they would personally prefer
   3. Compare evidence on dental health with evidence on possible harms
   4. Choose whatever the neighbouring towns decided many years ago

7. A student tests whether the temperature of water affects how fast sugar dissolves. She uses three beakers with 200 mL of water at 10 °C, 25 °C and 50 °C. In each, she stirs in 10 g of sugar at the same speed and times how long it takes to dissolve. Results: 10 °C: 95 s; 25 °C: 60 s; 50 °C: 28 s.

   What conclusion do the results of the sugar experiment support?

   1. Sugar dissolves faster in warmer water
   2. Temperature has no effect on dissolving
   3. Stirring speed matters more than temperature
   4. Sugar dissolves faster in colder water

8. Why does a larger sample size make a study's results more reliable?

   1. It makes the study finish much more quickly
   2. It guarantees that the hypothesis is correct
   3. Chance differences between individuals have less effect
   4. It removes any need to have a control group

9. Electric cars produce no tailpipe emissions. Which consideration is part of a fair risk–benefit analysis?

   1. Only the paint colour options offered by local car dealers
   2. The environmental cost of mining materials for their batteries
   3. How quiet the radio and speakers sound inside the car
   4. Whether the cars are popular on social media this year

10. A student tests whether the temperature of water affects how fast sugar dissolves. She uses three beakers with 200 mL of water at 10 °C, 25 °C and 50 °C. In each, she stirs in 10 g of sugar at the same speed and times how long it takes to dissolve. Results: 10 °C: 95 s; 25 °C: 60 s; 50 °C: 28 s.

    In the sugar-dissolving experiment, what is the independent variable?

    1. Time to dissolve
    2. Volume of water
    3. Water temperature
    4. Amount of sugar

11. Why do scientists try to replicate an experiment done by another lab?

    1. To check that the results hold up when repeated
    2. To make the original results look weaker
    3. To avoid writing their own hypothesis
    4. To copy the other lab's work for credit

12. Antibiotics save many lives. What unintended consequence can result from overusing them?

    1. Stronger human bones
    2. Fewer viruses in the air
    3. Faster healing of broken legs
    4. Bacteria that resist the drugs

13. A cleaning product's label shows a skull and crossbones in a red diamond. What does this WHMIS pictogram warn about?

    1. It is a gas that is stored under high pressure
    2. It can cause death or toxicity with short exposure
    3. It can corrode metals and burn a person's skin
    4. It is flammable and catches fire very easily

14. In a drug trial, some patients get a sugar pill instead of the real drug. What is the sugar pill called?

    1. A placebo
    2. A sample
    3. A hypothesis
    4. A variable

15. A city plans a dam for hydroelectric power. Which pair correctly matches a benefit and a risk?

    1. Benefit: higher water bills for residents; risk: clean energy
    2. Benefit: fewer fish in the river; risk: more electricity for homes
    3. Benefit: low-emission electricity; risk: flooding of land and habitats
    4. Benefit: more flooding of the river valley; risk: cheaper power

16. Which tool should be used to measure 45 mL of liquid accurately?

    1. A thermometer
    2. A beaker with no markings
    3. A graduated cylinder
    4. A metre stick

17. Before a study is published in a journal, other experts check its methods and conclusions. What is this process called?

    1. Replication
    2. Blinding
    3. Peer review
    4. Random sampling

18. Which factor most often influences which research projects get done?

    1. The weather on the first day
    2. The researcher's birthday
    3. The colour of the laboratory
    4. Available funding

19. Students measure how far toy cars roll down a ramp. Why should they release every car from the same height?

    1. So release height does not affect the results
    2. So the cars roll as far as possible
    3. So the ramp becomes the dependent variable
    4. So they can skip measuring distance

20. Which question can be investigated through scientific inquiry?

    1. Which painting in the city's art gallery is the best one?
    2. Is a sunset in the summer more beautiful than a sunrise?
    3. Should people be allowed to keep snakes as household pets?
    4. Does the amount of fertilizer change how tall bean plants grow?

21. Plastic shopping bags are cheap and light. Which is an unintended environmental consequence of their wide use?

    1. Litter that harms wildlife in waterways
    2. Lower prices for groceries at the store
    3. Easier carrying of shopping bags home
    4. Less weight to carry in delivery trucks

22. A thermometer in an experiment always reads 2 °C higher than the true temperature. What kind of error is this?

    1. A controlled variable
    2. A random error
    3. A systematic error
    4. A placebo effect

23. A student notes, "The leaves on the plant are yellow." What kind of statement is this?

    1. A theory
    2. An inference
    3. A hypothesis
    4. An observation

24. Public concern about a disease outbreak leads governments to fund more vaccine research. What does this show?

    1. Research topics are chosen at random
    2. Vaccines are developed without testing
    3. Science ignores what society needs
    4. Society can influence what scientists study

25. What SI unit is used to measure mass?

    1. Metre
    2. Newton
    3. Litre
    4. Kilogram

26. Which statement is an inference rather than an observation?

    1. The plant is probably getting too much water.
    2. The soil in the pot feels wet when touched.
    3. The plant measures exactly 24 cm tall.
    4. Three of the lower leaves have brown spots.

27. Which tool measures the angle between two lines in a diagram?

    1. A balance
    2. A protractor
    3. A ruler
    4. A stopwatch

28. In a double-blind study, who knows which participants receive the real treatment during the study?

    1. Only the participants taking part
    2. Only the researchers running it
    3. Everyone involved in the study
    4. Neither participants nor the researchers

29. A student tests whether the temperature of water affects how fast sugar dissolves. She uses three beakers with 200 mL of water at 10 °C, 25 °C and 50 °C. In each, she stirs in 10 g of sugar at the same speed and times how long it takes to dissolve. Results: 10 °C: 95 s; 25 °C: 60 s; 50 °C: 28 s.

    In the sugar-dissolving experiment, what is the dependent variable?

    1. Size of the beakers
    2. Time for the sugar to dissolve
    3. Temperature of the water
    4. Speed of stirring

30. Why should participants be assigned to treatment and control groups at random?

    1. So the researcher can choose the healthiest people
    2. So the groups are alike except for the treatment
    3. So the results always support the hypothesis
    4. So the study needs fewer participants

31. A student tests whether the temperature of water affects how fast sugar dissolves. She uses three beakers with 200 mL of water at 10 °C, 25 °C and 50 °C. In each, she stirs in 10 g of sugar at the same speed and times how long it takes to dissolve. Results: 10 °C: 95 s; 25 °C: 60 s; 50 °C: 28 s.

    How could the sugar experiment be made more reliable?

    1. Stop the timer whenever the student starts to feel tired
    2. Test only one water temperature many times in a row instead
    3. Use a different amount of sugar in each of the three beakers
    4. Repeat each temperature several times and average the times

32. Which statement best describes how scientific knowledge develops?

    1. Only famous scientists can add new ideas
    2. Science is a list of facts to memorize
    3. Once published, a theory can never change
    4. Ideas can change when new evidence is found

33. In a test of a new fertilizer, one group of plants gets no fertilizer. What is this group called?

    1. The hypothesis group
    2. The variable group
    3. The control group
    4. The dependent group

34. Which is a testable hypothesis about plants and light?

    1. Bean plants are the nicest and easiest plants to grow at home.
    2. Some people like to keep their plants near a sunny window.
    3. Light is important for many different living things on Earth.
    4. If bean plants get more hours of light, then they will grow taller.

35. An experiment shows that seeds sprout faster in warm soil. How could a gardener use this result?

    1. Wait until the soil warms up before planting seeds
    2. Plant the seeds in frozen soil in order to save time
    3. Plant the seeds only on cloudy and cool spring days
    4. Water the seeds with ice cubes to help them sprout