Science Trivia questions

Ornithophily is what?
A: A type of reproduction among flowering plants.

What name is given to calcite deposits suspended from cave roofs?
A: Stalactites.

Which element is mixed with copper to make brass?
A: Zinc.

Sunburn is caused by which type of electromagnetic radiation?
A: Ultraviolet radiation.

What technique is often used for identifying substances or for checking their purity?
A: Spectroscopy.

How many basic tastes can the human tongue distinguish?
A: Four.

Which Russian chemist devised the first form of the periodic table in 1869?
A: Mendeleyev.

From which country did fireworks originate?
A: China.

Which lightweight metal is used in the manufacture of aircraft, cars and ships?
A: Aluminum.

Which molecule is the source of energy for the body?
A: Glucose.

What does a potometer measure?
A: Transpiration stream in a plant.

Which composer wrote much  of his finest music when he was deaf?
A: Beethoven.

What is the prefix denoting 'multiplied by 10 to the power 6'?
A: Mega.

What is a very hard, transparent form of carbon, whose crystals are octahedral in shape?
A: Diamond.

Which is the lightest of all the elements?
A: Hydrogen.

In degrees Kelvin, what is absolute zero?
A: Zero.

What information does the technique of carbon dating aim to provide?
A: The age of a rock, fossil or other sample.

What phenomenon is characterized by constant sound in the ears?
A: Tinnitus.

Which French chemist gave oxygen its name and proved that water was a compound of oxygen and hydrogen?
A: Lavoisier.

What is the major ore of uranium?
A: Pitchblende.

Which common mineral is used to make casts, moulds, blackboard chalk and plaster of Paris?
A: Gypsum.

Which element was found in Greenland in 1989?
A: Gold.

The sun's energy is produced by which type of nuclear reaction?
A: Fusion.

Which instrument allowed Galileo to make his discovery that the Moon has mountains and craters?
A: Telescope.

Which part of the eye gives it color?
A: Iris.

What name is given to the series of international units used by scientists?
A: SI.

Which element is used as a disinfectant, as a bleaching agent and to purify water?
A: Chlorine.

Which poisonous yellow gas is commonly used in refrigerants?
A: Fluorine.

Which type of radiation is screened out by the Earth's ozone layer?
A: Ultraviolet radiation.

What does a micrometer gauge measure?
A: Small lengths.

Which part of the eye gets smaller when the lights go on?
A: Pupil.

What is a fathom?
A: An obsolete unit of depth used by seafarers and miners.

Which toxic, crystalline metalloid has the chemical symbol As?
A: Arsenic.

Which element ignites spontaneously in normal air?
A: Phosphorus.

Which law would be violated by a perpetual motion machine?
A: The law of conservation of energy.

What is the name given to the technique of measuring at a distance?
A: Telemetry.

How many color pigments are there in the human retina?
A: Three.

What is alloyed with lead to make pewter?
A: Tin.

What is a very hard, naturally-occurring mineral, of which ruby and sapphire are gem-quality varieties?
A: Corundum.

Which metallic element is an important constituent of hemoglobin?
A: Iron.

What form of energy is produced by an electric motor?
A: Mechanical energy.

Which human sense organ may be sensitive to magnetic fields?
A: Nose.

What is the atomic number of magnesium?
A: 12.