Physical Science Physics Unit Practice Test               Name ___________________________

Multiple Choice
Identify the choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.

____	1.	A place or object used for comparison to determine if something is in motion is called
a.	a position.	
b.	a reference point.	
c.	a constant.	
d.	velocity.	

____	2.	If a bicyclist travels 150 kilometers in 3 hours, her average speed is
a.	450 km/h.	
b.	50 km/h.	
c.	147 km/h.	
d.	0.02 km/h.	

____	3.	If an object moves in the same direction and at a constant speed for 4 hours, which of the following is true?
a.	The object’s speed changed during the 4 hours.	
b.	The object’s velocity did not change.	
c.	The object accelerated during the 4 hours.	
d.	The object decelerated during the 4 hours.	

____	4.	If you know a car traveled 300 kilometers in 3 hours, you can find its
a.	acceleration.	
b.	direction.	
c.	average speed.	
d.	velocity.	

____	5.	A car travels 200 km in the first three hours of a trip. The car continues to travel for 2 more hours and travels 150 km. What was the average speed of the car for the trip?
a.	70 km/h	
b.	50 km/h	
c.	115 km/h	
d.	350 km/h	

____	6.	The rate at which velocity changes is called
a.	instantaneous speed.	
b.	direction.	
c.	acceleration.	
d.	motion.	

____	7.	Changing direction is an example of a kind of
a.	acceleration.	
b.	speed.	
c.	velocity.	
d.	constant rate.	

____	8.	If speed is measured in meters per second and time is measured in seconds, the unit of acceleration is
a.	seconds.	
b.	meters per second.	
c.	meters per second per second.	
d.	meters.	

____	9.	In a graph showing speed versus time, a straight line shows the acceleration is
a.	decreasing.	
b.	increasing.	
c.	changing.	
d.	constant.	

____	10.	What kind of line on a distance-versus-time graph indicates that the object is accelerating?
a.	curved	
b.	horizontal	
c.	diagonal	
d.	vertical	

____	11.	In a graph of distance versus time, the slope represents
a.	displacement.	
b.	speed.	
c.	acceleration.	
d.	potential energy.	

____	12.	The rise of a line on a distance-versus-time graph  is 400 km and the run is 50 hours.  What is the speed of the object represented by this graph?
a.	2000 km/h	
b.	450 km/h	
c.	350 km/h	
d.	8 km/h

____	13.	In physical science, a push or a pull is called a(n)
a.	force.	
b.	acceleration.	
c.	inertia.	
d.	motion.	

____	14.	What happens when two forces act in opposite directions?
a.	The net force is found by subtracting.	
b.	The resultant is in the direction of the weaker force.	
c.	They add together.	
d.	Their sum divided by two is the total force.	

____	15.	Unbalanced forces acting on an object
a.	always change the object’s motion.	
b.	sometimes change the object’s motion.	
c.	never change the object’s motion.	
d.	are not related to motion.

____	16.	What is required for a rocket to lift off into space?
a.	thrust that is greater than Earth’s gravity	
b.	mass that is greater than Earth’s	
c.	very little air resistance	
d.	more velocity than friction	

____	17.	Water pressure increases as
a.	depth increases.	
b.	gravity decreases.	
c.	force decreases.	
d.	acceleration increases.	

____	18.	What effect does a buoyant force have on a submerged object?
a.	It causes the object to sink in a fluid.	
b.	It causes a net force acting upward on the object.	
c.	It causes the object to move sideways in a fluid.	
d.	It causes a net force acting downward on the object.	

____	19.	If an object floats, the volume of displaced water is equal to the volume of
a.	the entire object.	
b.	the portion of the object that is above water.	
c.	the portion of the object that is submerged.	
d.	exactly half of the object.	

____	20.	When water fills a submarine’s flotation tanks, the overall density of the submarine
a.	decreases.	
b.	stays the same.	
c.	increases.	
d.	reduces the buoyant force.	

____	21.	An object that is more dense than the fluid in which it is immersed will
a.	sink.	
b.	rise.	
c.	neither rise nor sink.	
d.	sink at first, than rise slowly.	

____	22.	A toy car moving at 10 cm/s passes another toy car moving in the opposite direction, also at 10 cm/s.  The two cars have the same
a.	force	c.	velocity	
b.	speed	d.	mass	

____	23.	A soccer ball travels at 6 m/s for 14 seconds.  How far does it go?
a.	8 m	c.	84 m	
b.	20 m	d.	2.2 m	

____	24.	A newton is a unit of
a.	acceleration	c.	mass	
b.	velocity	d.	force	

____	25.	Which of the following is a vector quantity?
a.	distance	c.	speed	
b.	displacement	d.	mass	

____	26.	Find the slope of the line.

a.	0.4	c.	2.5	
b.	2	d.	1	

____	27.	How long does it take for a skier moving at 27 m/s to travel 324 m?
a.	12 s	c.	0.08 s	
b.	297 s	d.	8,748 s	

____	28.	A child sitting on a merry-go-round spinning at constant speed is
a.	accelerating.	c.	moving at constant velocity.	
b.	not accelerating.	

____	29.	Two football players are pushing a practice dummy in the same direction.  They push with 150 N and 225 N of force.  What is the net force on the practice dummy?
a.	375 N	c.	225 N	
b.	75 N	d.	150 N	

____	30.	Two football linemen are pushing on each other.  One lineman pushes East with 400 N of force.  The other lineman pushes West with 360 N of force.  The net force is
a.	760 N West	c.	40 N West	
b.	760 N East	d.	40 N East	

____	31.	A 51-g block is submerged in water, and displaces 17 mL of water.  What is the density of the block?
a.	3 g/mL	c.	0.3 g/mL	
b.	34 g/mL	d.	68 g/mL	

____	32.	A force of 200 N is applied to a 10-kg desk.  The acceleration of the desk is
a.	2000 m/s/s	c.	190 m/s/s	
b.	20 m/s/s	d.	210 m/s/s	

____	33.	The same force is applied to two blocks.  Block A accelerates much faster than block B.  What can we conclude about the blocks?
a.	They have the same mass.	c.	Block A has more mass.	
b.	Block B has more mass.	

Use the diagram to answer each question.

	34.	During which period is the ball stationary?

a) From 0 to 5 seconds.     b) From 0 to 3 seconds.     c) From 3 to 5 seconds.     d) Never.

	35.	During which period is the ball accelerating?

a) From 0 to 5 seconds.     b) From 0 to 3 seconds.     c) From 3 to 5 seconds.     d) None.

	36.	How far does the ball move in 5 seconds?

a) 1 m          b) 3 m          c) 5 m          d) 7 m

Use the diagram to answer each question.

	37.	When the block was placed in the liquid in container B, by how much does the liquid rise?

a) by an amount equal to the mass of the block.
b) by an amount equal to the volume of the block.
c) by an amount equal to the weight of the block.

	38.	How is the buoyant force related to the displaced liquid in container A?

a) The buoyant force is equal to the weight of the block.
b) The buoyant force is equal to the volume of the block.
c) The buoyant force is equal to the weight of the displaced water.

	39.	Assume that the blocks are identical.  What can we conclude about the densities of the liquids?

a) liquid A is more dense     b) liquid B is more dense     c) the densities are equal

	40.	The liquid will rise more in

a) container A.          b) container B.          c) they will rise the same amount.

Physical Science Physics Unit Practice Test                            Name ___________________________
Answer Section

MULTIPLE CHOICE

	1.	ANS:	B	PTS:	1	DIF:	L1	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.1.1 Determine when an object is in motion.	STA:	S 8.1.a
BLM:	knowledge

	2.	ANS:	B	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.2.1 Calculate an object's speed and velocity.	STA:	S 8.1.c
BLM:	analysis

	3.	ANS:	B	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.2.2 Describe an object's change in velocity.	STA:	S 8.1.d
BLM:	comprehension	

	4.	ANS:	C	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.2.1 Calculate an object's speed and velocity.	STA:	S 8.1.c
BLM:	comprehension	

	5.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.2.1 Calculate an object's speed and velocity.	STA:	S 8.1.c
BLM:	analysis

	6.	ANS:	C	PTS:	1	DIF:	L1	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.3.1 Describe the motion of an object as it accelerates.	
STA:	S 8.1.e	BLM:	knowledge

	7.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1	DIF:	L1	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.3.1 Describe the motion of an object as it accelerates.	
STA:	S 8.1.e	BLM:	knowledge

	8.	ANS:	C	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	OBJ:	CaPS.9.3.2 Calculate acceleration.
STA:	S 8.1.c	BLM:	comprehension	

	9.	ANS:	D	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.3.3 Describe what graphs are used to analyze the motion of an accelerating object.
STA:	S 8.1.f	BLM:	comprehension	

	10.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.3.3 Describe what graphs are used to analyze the motion of an accelerating object.
STA:	S 8.1.f	BLM:	comprehension	

	11.	ANS:	B	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.2.3 Interpret graphs of distance versus time.	STA:	S 8.1.f
BLM:	comprehension	

	12.	ANS:	D	PTS:	1	DIF:	L3	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.2.3 Interpret graphs of distance versus time.	STA:	S 8.1.f
BLM:	analysis

	13.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1	DIF:	L1	
OBJ:	CaPS.10.1.1 Describe what a force is.		STA:	S 8.2.a
BLM:	knowledge

	14.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.10.1.2 Explain how balanced and unbalanced forces affect an object's velocity.
STA:	S 8.2.b	BLM:	comprehension	

	15.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.10.1.2 Explain how balanced and unbalanced forces affect an object's velocity.
STA:	S 8.2.c	BLM:	comprehension	

	16.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1	DIF:	L1	
OBJ:	CaPS.10.5.1 Explain how a rocket lifts off the ground.	STA:	S 8.2.e
BLM:	knowledge

	17.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1	DIF:	L1	
OBJ:	CaPS.11.1.3 Describe how fluid pressure changes with elevation and depth.
STA:	S 8.2.c	BLM:	knowledge

	18.	ANS:	B	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.11.2.2 Describe the effect of the buoyant force.	STA:	S 8.8.c
BLM:	comprehension	

	19.	ANS:	C	PTS:	1	DIF:	L1	
OBJ:	CaPS.11.2.2 Describe the effect of the buoyant force.	STA:	S 8.8.c
BLM:	knowledge

	20.	ANS:	C	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.11.2.1 Explain how the density of an object determines whether it sinks or floats.
STA:	S 8.8.b	BLM:	comprehension	

	21.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.11.2.1 Explain how the density of an object determines whether it sinks or floats.
STA:	S 8.8.d	BLM:	comprehension	

	22.	ANS:	B	PTS:	1

	23.	ANS:	C	PTS:	1

	24.	ANS:	D	PTS:	1

	25.	ANS:	B	PTS:	1

	26.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1

	27.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1

	28.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1

	29.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1

	30.	ANS:	D	PTS:	1

	31.	ANS:	A	PTS:	1

	32.	ANS:	B	PTS:	1

	33.	ANS:	B	PTS:	1

SHORT ANSWER

	34.	ANS:	
C

PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.3.3 Describe what graphs are used to analyze the motion of an accelerating object.
STA:	S 8.1.f	BLM:	analysis

	35.	ANS:	
D

PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.3.3 Describe what graphs are used to analyze the motion of an accelerating object.
STA:	S 8.1.f	BLM:	analysis

	36.	ANS:	
B

PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	
OBJ:	CaPS.9.3.3 Describe what graphs are used to analyze the motion of an accelerating object.
STA:	S 8.1.f	BLM:	analysis

	37.	ANS:	
B

PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	OBJ:	CaPS.11.2.2 Describe the effect of the buoyant force.
STA:	S 8.8.c	BLM:	comprehension	

	38.	ANS:	
C

PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	OBJ:	CaPS.11.2.2 Describe the effect of the buoyant force.
STA:	S 8.8.c	BLM:	analysis

	39.	ANS:	
A

PTS:	1	DIF:	L2	OBJ:	CaPS.11.2.2 Describe the effect of the buoyant force.
STA:	S 8.8.c	BLM:	analysis

	40.	ANS:	
B

PTS:	1