tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post8482243166249166565..comments2024-03-14T09:50:44.315+00:00Comments on Psychological comments: Are science quizzes scientific?Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09320614837348759094noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-70130666171484478852016-09-18T10:57:27.582+01:002016-09-18T10:57:27.582+01:00"I notice that the questions that had the lea..."I notice that the questions that had the least correct answers I learned in a quantitative science class in college." In my day they were all secondary school material. And so the world turns.deariemenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-58824982300544427572016-09-18T05:22:25.086+01:002016-09-18T05:22:25.086+01:00Yah, Earth is like the smartie, fat around the equ...Yah, Earth is like the smartie, fat around the equator as befits a middle-aged planet. Oblate, I think, but I'm too lazy to look it up.EHnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-21228975776681834542016-09-16T20:24:59.675+01:002016-09-16T20:24:59.675+01:00Maybe a bad question for you, not for 'us'...Maybe a bad question for you, not for 'us', general public.<br /><br />Everyone tend to become a above-avg specialist in something.<br /><br />The label ''science-question'' seems little unfair if most of things we learn have ''scientifical''-basis.<br /><br />specify the level of the science you are talking (or not, it's not important...)<br /><br />the ''life cycle'' of the ideas: born genius, grow creative, age conventional and many times die old fashioned.<br /><br />Santocultonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-17897203728052622102016-09-16T01:24:09.614+01:002016-09-16T01:24:09.614+01:009 correct answers
I find interesting how people g...9 correct answers<br /><br />I find interesting how people give great relevance to the geographical knowledge, ;)<br /><br />Santocultonoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-91838802207486932502016-09-16T01:21:30.367+01:002016-09-16T01:21:30.367+01:00The quiz may be a weak proxy for math ability. I n...The quiz may be a weak proxy for math ability. I notice that the questions that had the least correct answers I learned in a quantitative science class in college. The core of the earth is the question with the most correct answers is taught in geology. Geology is the physical science subject that is most commonly taken that has the least math.<br /><br />Least correct<br />Altitude (learned in physics)<br />Loudness (learned in physics)<br />Lens (learned in chemistry)<br /><br />Most correct<br />Core of earth (geology)<br />Uranium (learned in history)<br />Comet (in the News when they appear) <br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-56219926622906061222016-09-16T00:11:02.516+01:002016-09-16T00:11:02.516+01:00"oblate spheroid ... prolate spheroid": ..."oblate spheroid ... prolate spheroid": one's like a smartie, the other's like a rugby ball. Then all you have to do is memorise which is which. That's the difficult bit.deariemenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-38042570463536768002016-09-15T19:33:50.874+01:002016-09-15T19:33:50.874+01:00Thanks. I suspect most of these questions would ha...Thanks. I suspect most of these questions would have pass rates in the 20s. One gets less information from the answers but more satisfaction from imagining the nonplussed expressions of the test-takers. Of course you need harder-than-average questions to get a ~50% question pass rate with smarter-than-average test-takers. I suspect the airplane one might actually be easier for those who haven't been exposed to the usual "explanations", so wouldn't make it through validation. (It might work in an adaptive question bank, though, when given only to higher-ability test-takers.) <br /><br />(Regarding airplane wings' lift, for readers new to the question, vortices do have something to do with it, at least for wings that are flatter on the bottom, but not wingtip vortices, which go in a different direction and just create drag.) <br /><br />You might also enjoy the "<a href="http://dwfttw.blogspot.com/#2" rel="nofollow">downwind faster than the wind</a>" controversy if you missed it, the discussion threads were the best knock-down drag-out argument since the Monty Hall problem (the three doors statistics puzzler).<br /><br />The first two questions become much easier when converted to spatial relations using the "<a href="http://mindsbasis.blogspot.com/2016/04/physical-units-factor-tables-large.html" rel="nofollow">"Physical Units Factor Tables</a>". Question 3, "work = force times distance" can also be answered easily using PUFT if you know work = energy. (I'm working on using PUFT as a board for a game. The immediately preceding blog post to the one linked has a prettier and easier but smaller-type version.)<br /><br />#5 is the Venturi effect, the basis for the faucet-powered aspirator /vacuum sometimes seen in labs, as well as the carburetor and the perfume atomizer. You might get a strong whistle (almost like answer D.) under some conditions, but the max pressure in the constriction at any given time will always be lower than the minimum pressure in the wide part of the pipe. (At least up to a few km/s flow speeds, anyway.)<br /><br />I'm pretty sure the inherited DNA bases question's (#6) answer is correct because of mitochondrial DNA and the difference in size between the X and Y chromosomes, but you'd probably know better than I.<br /><br />#7 "protons combining into alpha particles" is another way of saying hydrogen nuclei (protons) fusing into helium nuclei (alpha particles).<br /><br />Correction: I probably should have had "insulator" instead of "resistor" in the last question. A 1cm cube of deionized water has a resistance of nearly 20Mohm between the faces. It's sometimes used as a dielectric in capacitors.<br /><br />But I can do easier questions!<br /> <br />11.) The Earth best approximates a ____<br />A. sphere <br />B. oblate spheroid <br />C. prolate spheroid<br />D. scalene ellipsoid<br />E. what!? You call this easy?<br /><br />Oh, well. I guess I'll have to try again.EHnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-10098035107333254332016-09-15T08:37:37.756+01:002016-09-15T08:37:37.756+01:00I stared intently at that one, and managed to work...I stared intently at that one, and managed to work it out. Close call.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09320614837348759094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-54560795892961412442016-09-15T08:36:49.818+01:002016-09-15T08:36:49.818+01:00Thank you for your prospective questions, which I ...Thank you for your prospective questions, which I enjoyed, particularly the one about wings. I have read the debates on that particular issue with great interest. On many of the others I am still baffled, but certainly impressed. All we need for survey purposes are 4 or 5 more items with pass rates of 30% to 50%. Respondents have to be saved from despondency, whilst also being tested.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09320614837348759094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-34829254060059954402016-09-15T05:35:23.744+01:002016-09-15T05:35:23.744+01:00I am actually surprised that people did as well as...I am actually surprised that people did as well as they did. Some of the questions struck me as rather hard for a general population sample. (Embarrassingly enough, I got the magnifying glass wrong!)elijahlarmstrongnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-48201532096516722572016-09-15T01:07:36.867+01:002016-09-15T01:07:36.867+01:00disappointed that more women haven't boiled wa...disappointed that more women haven't boiled water at sea level and in the mountains, or baked, for that matter.not securely anchoredhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09979789156769394267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-71524656144324844022016-09-14T18:18:10.811+01:002016-09-14T18:18:10.811+01:00It's all a question of how mean you want to be...It's all a question of how mean you want to be. "How mean have you got?", I hear you ask. Very, very mean. But fair. Sort of.<br /><br />Analogies are easy to write but can be really hard to answer. Here's a hard one: <br /><br />1.) acceleration : length :: ____ : moment of inertia<br /><br />A. angular momentum<br />B. viscosity<br />C. energy<br />D. electric potential (voltage)<br />E. surface tension<br /><br />A bit easier:<br />2.) area : velocity :: ______ : frequency<br /><br />A. length<br />B. area<br />C. volume<br />D. flow rate<br />E. time<br /><br />But even very simple questions are hard for most people:<br /><br />3.) work = force _____<br /><br />A. divided by time<br />B. multiplied by time<br />C. divided by distance<br />D. multiplied by distance<br />E. blank (work = force)<br /><br />4.) Most living organisms are composed primarily of _____.<br /><br />A. minerals<br />B. carbon<br />C. DNA<br />D. water<br />E. amino acids<br /><br />Figuring things out isn't always as easy as it seems, knowledge is important, too:<br /><br />5.)Water flows rapidly through a pipe that has a much narrower section in the middle. The pressure in the narrow part of the pipe is ______ in the wider part of the pipe?<br /><br />A. higher than<br />B. lower than<br />C. same as<br />D. varying rapidly between higher than, lower than and the same as<br />E. not enough information<br /><br />6.) Humans get ______ of the DNA bases in each cell from each parent.<br />A. exactly half<br />B. about half<br />C. B. / girls get a bit more DNA from mom, boys from dad<br />D. A., exactly equal, except in rare cases <br />E. B. / a bit more from mom except in rare cases<br /><br />Even easy knowledge questions can become harder with tempting or sciencey-sounding bad answers:<br /><br />7.) Stars like the Sun are powered by:<br />A. stellar oxidative combustion<br />B. nuclear fission<br />C. gravitational potential<br />D. protons combining into alpha particles<br />E. light<br /><br />8.) Most nuclear power reactors (non-research) operate by:<br /><br />A. converting radioactive ions directly to electricity <br />B. oxidation of radioactive elements<br />C. nuclear magnetic resonance<br />D. boiling water<br />E. neutrino current conversion<br /><br />9.) Airplane wings work primarily by:<br /><br />A. deflecting air downward<br />B. creating high pressure above the wing<br />C. creating low pressure below the wing<br />D. creating a vortex at the wingtip<br />E. all of the above<br /><br /><br />10.) Water is an electric _____.<br /><br />A. weak resistor<br />B. resistor<br />C. conductor<br />D. semiconductor<br />E. paraelectric<br /> <br /><br />*<br /><br /><br />*<br /><br /><br />To make it more difficult to inadvertently pick up answers from the key ahead of time, there's some padding at the front and back (-1Ph.D|0B|1C| |2A|3D|4D |5B|6E|7D|8^D |9A|10B|11AC |12:-D) which makes it somewhat less obvious and gives a bit of camouflage, as does this redundantly surplus extra verbiage at the end. EHnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-27673708793581520032016-09-14T17:20:15.603+01:002016-09-14T17:20:15.603+01:00The scatterplot question is bad. The answers are a...The scatterplot question is bad. The answers are about individuals, the data are country-level. I still gave the answer I knew was considered correct. In an ideal world, a follow-up question would have appeared, asking: "Which fallacy did you just commit? (a) Sunk cost fallacy; (b) False dichotomy fallacy; (c) Base rate fallacy; (d) Ecological fallacy.LemmusLemmushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00917054221547240969noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-68324409946690909972016-09-14T16:42:35.240+01:002016-09-14T16:42:35.240+01:00But if you start with Th you get U. (U232 IIRC)But if you start with Th you get U. (U232 IIRC)EHnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-57167570030094320242016-09-14T16:35:37.690+01:002016-09-14T16:35:37.690+01:00Yes, a good question in the tropics, and quite har...Yes, a good question in the tropics, and quite hard for many people to answer.<br />https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrXaQu_qGeoAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09320614837348759094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-8129303351280294932016-09-14T16:17:40.240+01:002016-09-14T16:17:40.240+01:00I understand that there's a quite good one-que...I understand that there's a quite good one-question test: "why is it hotter in summer?". Pleasingly, most Harvard undergraduates fail it, apparently.deariemenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-85164632207876998852016-09-14T16:14:18.312+01:002016-09-14T16:14:18.312+01:00It's like dealing with opinion pollers. My re...It's like dealing with opinion pollers. My reaction is often to tell them that their question is lousy.deariemenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-13995453160787592122016-09-14T16:12:39.132+01:002016-09-14T16:12:39.132+01:00My reaction too. At that point I stopped reading....My reaction too. At that point I stopped reading.deariemenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-76805440222020939102016-09-14T15:26:01.196+01:002016-09-14T15:26:01.196+01:00I started with attenuation, then conceded that the...I started with attenuation, then conceded that the antibody response, by whatever means, was the key concept. Remember, you have to chose the best of the 4 options. The effect is not achieved by the memory of water!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09320614837348759094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-27805357628451498222016-09-14T15:01:31.377+01:002016-09-14T15:01:31.377+01:00"Vaccines work by making us produce antibodie..."Vaccines work by making us produce antibodies to fight disease without actually infecting us with the disease."<br /><br />Some vaccines (usually live, attenuated) do work by making people have weak/subclinical manifestation of the disease, which then give origin to strong immunity. These are slight more dangerous (i.e, the risk is still minimal) than other types of vaccines, but have much stronger immunological memory.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4624586630299165335.post-41885573623210239332016-09-14T14:57:46.495+01:002016-09-14T14:57:46.495+01:00"uranium is needed to make nuclear energy and..."uranium is needed to make nuclear energy and nuclear weapons"<br /><br />Bad question!<br /><br />You can make nuclear energy and weapons from Plutonium. <br /><br />A good rebuttal: but you need U to make Pu. <br /><br />But then: you can use Thorium, a naturally occurring element. <br /><br />So... I think the most strict answer is: "no".Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com