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Test Bank for Introduction to General,

Organic and Biochemistry, 12th Edition,


Frederick A. Bettelheim, William H.
Brown, Mary K. Campbell, Shawn O.
Farrell, Omar Torres
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Solution Manual for Introduction to General, Organic


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Chapter 1

KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

5. Which of the following is not a physical property of copper?


a. characteristic color
b. density
c. electrical conductivity
d. tarnishing of copper
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.1 - CHEMISTRY AND STUDY OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

6. Which of the following is not a chemical change?


a. rusting of an iron statue
b. burning of paper
c. curdling of milk
d. evaporation of river water
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.1 - CHEMISTRY AND STUDY OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

7. Which of the following represents a physical change?


a. stretching of a silver wire
b. tarnishing of silver
c. both stretching of a silver wire and tarnishing of silver
d. neither stretching of a silver wire and tarnishing of silver
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.1 - CHEMISTRY AND STUDY OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

8. Which of the following represents a physical change?


a. boiling of water
b. decomposition of a dead organism
c. both boiling of water and decomposition of a dead organism
d. neither boiling of water or decomposition of a dead organism
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.1 - CHEMISTRY AND STUDY OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

9. Which of the following represents a physical change?


a. burning of fuel oil
b. melting of ice
c. both burning of fuel oil and melting of ice
d. neither burning of fuel oil or melting of ice
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.1 - CHEMISTRY AND STUDY OF MATTER
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Chapter 1

KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

10. Which of the following is synonymous with "fact"?


a. a hypothesis
b. an observation that is reproducible
c. an observation that is not reproducible
d. none of these
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.2 - THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

11. Which of the following is not true of a hypothesis?


a. It is a tentative idea or explanation that cannot be disproved by an experiment.
b. It is a tentative idea or explanation that cannot be proven by an experiment.
c. It is a tentative idea that can either be proven or disproved by an experiment.
d. It is a belief that is not based on facts and is asserted without any proof.
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.2 - THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

12. Which of the following best describes a scientific theory?


a. It is just one of many ways of looking at things.
b. It is a point of view that cannot be challenged.
c. It is a widely accepted explanation of some phenomenon supported by a large amount of experimental data
and is therefore definitely correct.
d. It is a widely accepted explanation of some phenomenon supported by a large amount of experimental data,
but it can be shown to be incorrect by a single experiment that yields results that contradict it.
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.2 - THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

13. The area of Russia is approximately 17.1 million square miles. Which of the following correctly represents this
number in scientific notation?
a. 1.71 × 105
b. 1.71 × 106
c. 1.71 × 107
d. 1.71 × 108
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

14. During its orbit, the Earth's minimum distance from the sun is approximately 148 million kilometers. Which of the
following correctly represents this number in scientific notation?
a. 1.48 × 105

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Chapter 1

b. 1.48 × 106
c. 1.48 × 107
d. 1.48 × 108
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

15. In one second, light travels 2.998 × 108 meters. Which of the following is the correct way to write this in conventional
notation?
a. 0.00000002998 m/s
b. 2,998,000 m/s
c. 299,800,000 m/s
d. none of these
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

16. The population of the Earth at the end of 2018 was approximately 7.7 × 109 people. Which of the following is the
correct way of representing this number?
a. 7,700,000,000 people
b. 77,000,000,000 people
c. 77,000,000,000,000 people
d. none of these
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

17. The land surface area of the earth is approximately 1.49 × 108 km2. Which of the following is the correct way to write
this in conventional notation?
a. 0.00000000149 km2
b. 149,000,000 km2
c. 14,900,000,000 km2
d. none of these
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

18. Sometimes, the same word can have different meanings. In the United States the word billion means "a thousand
million" but in Britain the word billion means "a million million." Which of the following corresponds to the "British
billion"?
a. 1 × 10–9
b. 1 × 10–6
c. 1 × 109
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Chapter 1

d. 1 × 1012
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

19. Nanoparticles have an approximate length of 0.1 × 10–10 meters. Which of the following is the correct way to write
this in conventional notation?
a. 0.00000000001 m
b. 0.000000001 m
c. 10,000,000 m
d. 1,000,000,000 m
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

20. Which of the following is the largest number?


a. 3 × 10–2
b. 5 × 10 4
c. 3 × 10 3
d. 3.5 × 10–6
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

21. Which of the following is the smallest number?


a. 8 × 10–3
b. 6 × 10–4
c. 7 × 10–5
d. 9 × 10–6
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

22. Given the calculation: 5.63 + 2.302 + 3.1 = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of significant figures?
a. 11.032
b. 11.03
c. 11.0
d. 11.1
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

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Chapter 1
23. Given the calculation: 2.377 + 1.487 + 7.02 = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of significant
figures?
a. 10.884
b. 10.89
c. 10.88
d. 10.9
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

24. Given the calculation 5.63 + 2.302 – 3.1 = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of significant figures?
a. 4.83
b. 4.832
c. 4.9
d. 4.8
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

25. Given the calculation: 10.44 – 6.778 – 2.1 = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of significant
figures?
a. 1.55
b. 1.5
c. 1.56
d. 1.6
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

26. Given the calculation: 4.238 × 9.1 = ? What is the answer reported to the correct number of significant figures?
a. 38.5658
b. 38.57
c. 38.6
d. 39
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

27. Given the calculation: 1.987 × 6.02 = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of significant figures?
a. 11.96174
b. 11.96
c. 12.0
d. 12
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
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Chapter 1

KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

28. Given the calculation: 25.34/5.98 = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of significant figures?
a. 4.2375
b. 4.238
c. 4.23
d. 4.24
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

29. Given the calculation: 34.343/14.123 = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of significant figures?
a. 2.43171
b. 2.4317
c. 2.432
d. 2.43
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

30. Given the calculation: (2.33 × 107) × (6.7 × 105) = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of significant
figures?
a. 1.5611 × 1013
b. 1.6 × 1013
c. 1.56 × 1013
d. 2 × 1013
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

31. Given the calculation: (3.83 × 10 -3) × (7.777 × 10 7) = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of
significant figures?
a. 2.98 × 105
b. 2.978 × 105
c. 0.298 × 106
d. 0.2978 × 106
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

32. Given the calculation: (12.02 × 1023)/22.00 = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of significant
figures?
a. 5.56 × 10–23
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Chapter 1

b. 5.55 × 10–23
c. 5.5 × 1022
d. 5.464 × 1022
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

33. Given the calculation: (2.343 x 10–24)/(5.23 x 107) = ?, what is the answer reported to the correct number of
significant figures?
a. 1.225 × 1031
b. 1.22 × 1031
c. 4.48 × 10–32
d. 4.47 × 10–32
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.3 - REPORTING NUMBERS IN SCIENCE
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

34. Which metric prefix is commonly abbreviated using a Greek letter?


a. mega
b. micro
c. milli
d. nano
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

35. Which of the following is the correct order of lengths?


a. mm > cm > m > km
b. cm > km > nm > mm
c. km > cm > mm > μm
d. mm > m > cm > km
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

36. Which of the following is the correct order of lengths?


a. nm < mm < cm < μm
b. cm < nm < μm < mm
c. nm < μm < cm < m
d. μm < nm < cm < mm
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER
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Chapter 1

37. How many millimeters (mm) are there in 1 megameter (Mm)?


a. 1 × 10–6
b. 1 × 10–9
c. 1 × 109
d. 1 × 106
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

38. How many megameters (Mm) are there in 1 millimeter (mm)?


a. 1 × 10–9
b. 1 × 10–6
c. 1 × 106
d. 1 × 109
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

39. How many nanoliters (nL) are there in 1 liter (L)?


a. 1 × 10–12
b. 1 × 10–9
c. 1 × 109
d. 1 × 1012
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

40. How many liters (L) are there in 1 nanoliter (nL)?


a. 1 × 10–9
b. 1 × 10–6
c. 1 × 106
d. 1 × 109
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

41. How many microliters (μL) are there in 1 kiloliter (kL)?


a. 1 × 10–6
b. 1 × 10–9
c. 1 × 109
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Chapter 1

d. 1 × 106
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

42. How many kiloliters (kL) are there in 1 microliter (μL)?


a. 1 × 10–6
b. 1 × 10–9
c. 1 × 109
d. 1 × 106
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

43. In the SI system of units, the cubic meter (m3) is the basic unit of volume. A volume of 1 m3 is equal to which of the
following?
a. 1 L
b. 10 L
c. 100 L
d. 1000 L
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

44. A decimeter (dm) is 0.1 m. Sometimes, the volume of a liquid is specified in units of cubic decimeters. Which of the
following volumes equals 1 cubic decimeter?
a. 1 L
b. 10 L
c. 1 kL
d. 100 L
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

45. In the SI system of units, the basic unit of volume is the cubic meter (m3). The cubic meter is equal to which of the
following?
a. 10–9 nL
b. 109 nL
c. 1012 nL
d. 1027 nL
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER
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Chapter 1

46. The standard metric unit of volume, the liter, is equal to which of the following?
a. 1 μm3
b. 109 μm3
c. 1015 μm3
d. 106 μm3
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

47. Which of the following is the correct order of masses?


a. cg > mg > ng >kg
b. cg > ng > kg > mg
c. kg > cg > mg > ng
d. mg > cg > ng > kg
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

48. Which of the following is the correct order of masses?


a. cg < mg < Mg <μg
b. cg < Mg < μg < mg
c. μg < mg < cg < Mg
d. μg < Mg < cg < mg
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

49. How many kilograms (kg) are there in 1 microgram (μg)?


a. 1 × 10–6
b. 1 × 10–9
c. 1 × 109
d. 1 × 106
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

50. How many micrograms (μg) are there in 1 kilogram (kg)?


a. 1 × 10–9
b. 1 × 10–6
c. 1 × 106
d. 1 × 109

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Chapter 1

ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

51. How many centigrams (cg) are there in 1 microgram (μg)?


a. 1 × 10–6
b. 1 × 10–4
c. 1 × 104
d. 1 × 10–2
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

52. How many micrograms (μg) are there in 1 centigram (μg)?


a. 1 × 10–6
b. 1 × 10–4
c. 1 × 104
d. 1 × 10-2
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

53. An intern made an error and gave a patient a dose of 60 mg rather than 600 μg of a drug. Which of the following is
true?
a. The patient received an overdose by a factor of 100.
b. The patient received an overdose by a factor of 1000.
c. The patient received an underdose by a factor of 100.
d. The patient received an underdose by a factor of 1000.
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

54. An intern made an error and gave a patient a dose of 600 μg rather than 60 mg of a drug. Which of the following is
true?
a. The patient received an overdose by a factor of 100.
b. The patient received an overdose by a factor of 1000.
c. The patient received an underdose by a factor of 100.
d. The patient received an underdose by a factor of 1000.
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

55. How many minutes are there in a 24-hour day? (Assume exactly 24 hours in a day.)

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Chapter 1

a. 60
b. 1.44 × 103
c. 3.60 × 103
d. 8.64 × 104
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

56. How many seconds are there in two 24-hour days? (Assume exactly 24 hours in a day.)
a. 7.20 × 102
b. 1.73 × 105
c. 2.59 × 106
d. 8.64 × 104
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

57. How many minutes are in a 365-day year? (Assume exactly 24 hours in a day.)
a. 8.760 × 103
b. 2.190 × 104
c. 5.256 × 105
d. 3.154 × 107
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

58. What temperature on the Kelvin scale is the same as normal body temperature 98.6°F?
a. 371.6 K
b. 310.0 K
c. 119.9 K
d. 137.0 K
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

59. Daytime temperatures in a desert can reach 50.0°C. What is this temperature on the Fahrenheit temperature scale?
a. 323.0°F
b. 122.0°F
c. 150°F
d. none of these
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
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Chapter 1

KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

60. The lowest temperature recorded on Pluto was -400°F. What is this temperature on the Celsius temperature scale?
a. –273°C
b. –240°C
c. –340°C
d. –288°C
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

61. At what temperature do the temperatures on the Celsius and Fahrenheit scales have the same numerical value?
a. –40
b. 0
c. 32
d. at no value
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

62. At what temperature do the temperatures on the Celsius and Kelvin scales have the same numerical value?
a. –40
b. 0
c. 32
d. at no value
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

63. What Celsius temperature is the same as 86.0°F?


a. 30.0°C
b. 186.8°C
c. 76.6°C
d. none of these
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

64. The boiling point of methanol is 65°C. What is this temperature on the Fahrenheit scale?
a. 158°F
b. 132°F
c. 149°F
d. 179°F
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
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Chapter 1

KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

65. The boiling point of liquid oxygen is 90.2 K. What is this temperature on the Celsius scale?
a. 363.2°C
b. 171°C
c. 25°C
d. –182.8°C
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

66. What is the metric length of the 200-yard dash? [1 inch = 2.54 cm (exactly)]
a. 1830 cm
b. 508 cm
c. 183 m
d. 508 m
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

67. The 20,000-meter run is a long-distance Olympic race. What is the approximate length of this run in feet? Round off
your answer to three significant figures. [1 meter is equal 39.37 inches]
a. 6.09 × 104 ft
b. 6.562 × 104 ft
c. 6.6 × 104 ft
d. 6.56 × 104 ft
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

68. The length of an American football field is 250 yards. What is the approximate length of this field in meters? [1 meter
is slightly longer than 39 inches]
a. 2.286 km
b. 9.75 km
c. 228.6 m
d. 9.75 m
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

69. A 100-mL beaker is a common piece of laboratory glassware. What is this volume in the English system of units? [1
quart = 0.946; 1 liter = 32 fl oz]
a. 0.13 fl oz
b. 33.8 qt

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Chapter 1

c. 3.38 fl oz
d. 1.3 qt
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

70. A certain automobile has an 15-gallon gas tank. What is the volume of this tank in liters? [1 gallon = 4 quarts; 1 quart
= 0.946 liter]
a. 5.7 L
b. 60 L
c. 57 L
d. 60.95 L
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

71. If you went to a cheese shop in Edam, Holland and wanted to buy approximately 2 pounds of Edam cheese, which of
the following would you ask for?
a. 90 g
b. 0.91 kg
c. 0.45 kg
d. 9.1 kg
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

72. A Frenchman in New York wants to buy approximately 3 kg of potatoes. How much cheese should he ask for? [1
pound = 453.6 grams]
a. 4 1/4 lb
b. 7 1/2 lb
c. 6.6 lb
d. 6.0 lb
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

73. What is the mass of a half-pound hamburger in the metric system? [1 pound = 453.6 grams]
a. 227 mg
b. 227 g
c. 0.5 kg
d. 0.7814 kg
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

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Chapter 1
74. An object weighs 70.7 kg. What is the weight of this object in the English system? [1 pound = 453.6 grams]
a. 32.07 pounds
b. 155.86 pounds
c. 1.56 pounds
d. 524.3 pounds
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

75. If gasoline costs $3.79 per gallon, what is its cost per liter? [1 quart = 0.946 liter]
a. 1.00 ȼ
b. 100 ȼ
c. 379 ȼ
d. 739 ȼ
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

76. A particular model of hybrid car can travel 53.0 miles/gallon of gas. What is this fuel efficiency expressed in the
metric system? [1 quart = 0.946 liter; 1 mile = 1.609 km]
a. 8.71 km/liter
b. 20.2 km/liter
c. 22.5 km/liter
d. 90 km/liter
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

77. A studio apartment in Paris has an area of 81.0 square meters. A New York apartment with which of the following
areas has the roughly the same area as the Paris apartment? [1 meter = 1.094 yards]
a. 900 square feet
b. 886 square feet
c. 775 square feet
d. 872 square feet
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

78. If a 1.000 L bottle of champagne cost 134 Euros and the exchange rate is 1 Euro = $1.33 (US), what is the cost in
dollars for 8.000 fluid ounces of this champagne? [1 fluid ounce = 29.57 mL]
a. $5.26
b. $42.15
c. $47.09
d. $81.31
ANSWER: b
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Chapter 1

TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS


KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

79. In Europe, the areas of apartments are typically listed in square meters (m2). If the area of an American apartment is
1.6 × 103 ft2, a Paris apartment with which of the following areas has roughly the same area as the New York apartment?
[1 meter = 1.094 yards]
a. 120 m2
b. 178 m2
c. 149 m2
d. 160 m2
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

80. The area of Europe is 1.05 × 107 km2. Which of the following shapes has an area most nearly equal to the area of
Europe? [1 mile = 1.609 km]
a. a rectangle 2,000 miles by 1,000 miles
b. a rectangle 2,000 miles by 1,500 miles
c. a square 2,000 miles on a side
d. none of these
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

81. The unit of weight used for precious stones is the carat (1 carat = 200 mg, exactly). If a particular 1.25 carat diamond
cost $7000.00, what is the cost of a collection of identical diamonds that weigh 1.00 ounce? [1 ounce = 28.35 grams]
a. $28,320
b. $35,8700
c. $16,750
d. $793,800
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

82. At the 2008 Olympics, the Jamaican runner Usain Bolt ran the 100-meter dash in world record time of 9.69 seconds.
What is this speed in miles per hour?
[1 mile = 1.609 km]
a. 2.31 mph
b. 4.33 mph
c. 23.1 mph
d. 43.3 mph
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY
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Chapter 1

83. At the 2008 Olympics, the Jamaican runner Usain Bolt ran the 200-meter dash in world record time of 19.30 seconds.
What is this speed in miles per hour? [1 mile = 1.609 km]
a. 43.1 mph
b. 23.2 mph
c. 4.31 mph
d. 2.32 mph
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

84. In a race, the winner ran the 100-meter dash in a world record time of 12.2 seconds. What is this speed in miles per
hour?
[1 mile = 1.609 km]
a. 2.28 mph
b. 81.96 mph
c. 18.34 mph
d. 8.2 mph
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

85. In the Greece Olympics, a runner won the 10,000-meter run in 34 minutes, 2.1 seconds. What is this speed in miles
per hour? [1 mile = 1.609 km]
a. 1.38 mph
b. 4.89 mph
c. 13.8 mph
d. 11.0 mph
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

86. The dimensions of a room are typically given in feet, but carpeting is sold by the square yard. How many square yards
of carpet are required to cover the floor of a room that is 9 feet by 9 feet?
a. 81 square yards
b. 18 square yards
c. 9 square yards
d. 810 square yards
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

87. A can of soda has a volume of 402 mL. The area of a circle is given as A = r2, where r is the radius of the circle; the
volume of the can is given by V = ( r2)h, where h is the height of the can. If a particular can has a height of 10.8 cm, what
is the radius of the can?
a. 3.44 mm
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Chapter 1

b. 3.44 cm
c. 11.85 cm
d. 6.88 cm
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

88. The dimensions of a piece of wood are 3.4 meters x 10 cm x 175 mm. What is the volume of this piece of wood?
a. 5.95 × 10–2 mm3
b. 5.95 × 103 cm3
c. 5.95 × 10–3 cm3
d. 5.95 × 10–2 m3
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

89. Which state of matter is highly compressible?


a. solid
b. liquid
c. gas
d. none of them
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.6 - STATES OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

90. Which state of matter retains its volume but adapts its shape to that of its container?
a. solid
b. liquid
c. gas
d. none of these
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.6 - STATES OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

91. Which state of matter is essentially incompressible?


a. solid
b. liquid
c. gas
d. none of them
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.6 - STATES OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

92. Which of the following describes the compressibility of liquids?


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Chapter 1

a. They are highly compressible.


b. They are slightly compressible.
c. They are virtually incompressible.
d. Any of these, depending on the liquid.
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.6 - STATES OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

93. Dry ice is called dry ice because it passes directly from the solid state to the gaseous state (sublimes) under normal
atmospheric conditions. Which of the following occurs during this transformation?
a. The chemical composition of dry ice changes.
b. The volume of the sample decreases.
c. The volume of the sample remains the same.
d. The volume of the sample increases.
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.6 - STATES OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

94. Which of the following is true of ice, water, and steam?


a. They are three different chemical substances.
b. They are the same substance in different chemical states.
c. They are the same substance in different physical states.
d. They are the same substance in different chemical and physical states.
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.6 - STATES OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

95. Mercury is the only metal that is a liquid at room temperature. The density of mercury is 13.6 g/cm3. What is the
mass, in pounds, of 1.00 quart of mercury? [1 liter = 1.057 quart; 1 pound = 453.6 grams]
a. 0.0284 lb
b. 28.4 lb
c. 31.7 lb
d. 35.3 lb
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

96. Xenon is a gas found in some automobile headlights. The density of xenon at room temperature and pressure is 5.37
g/L. What is the mass, in pounds, of 1.00 quart of xenon? [1 liter = 1.057 quart; 1 pound = 453.6 grams]
a. 0.0112 lb
b. 0.0125 lb
c. 79.9 lb
d. 89.3 lb
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
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KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

97. Which of the following is true of the relationship between density expressed in g/mL and specific gravity?
a. They have different numerical values and different units.
b. They have the same numerical value and the same units.
c. They have the same numerical value, but their specific gravity is dimensionless.
d. They have the same units but different numerical values.
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

98. The densities of the coinage metals (copper, silver, and gold) are as follows:
copper = 8.95 g/cm3
silver = 12.59 g/cm3
gold = 19.32 g/cm3
A sample of material is found to weigh 15.12 grams and have a volume of 1.20 cm3. The sample could be which of the
coinage metals?
a. copper
b. silver
c. gold
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

99. An unknown substance has a mass of 56.8 g and a volume of 23.4 mL. What is the density of this unknown substance?
a. 0.411 g/mL
b. 2.34 g/mL
c. 2.43 g/mL
d. 2.50 g/mL
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

100. Aluminum has a density of 2.70 g/cm3. What volume is occupied by a block of aluminum that weighs 4.32 kg?
a. 0.000625 cm3
b. 0.625 cm3
c. 1.60 cm3
d. 1.60 L
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

101. Titanium has a density of 4.54 g/cm3. What is the mass of 17.3 cm3 of titanium?
a. 3.81 g
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b. 38.1 g
c. 78.5 g
d. 785 g
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

102. Iron has a density of 7.874 g/cm3. What is the mass of a rectangular block of iron with dimensions of 3.000 cm by
4.000 cm by 5.000 cm?
a. 7.629 g
b. 60.00 g
c. 94.48 g
d. 472.4 g
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

103. Iron has a density of 7.874 g/cm3. What is the volume of a block of iron that weighs 15.321 g?
a. 0.008289 cm3
b. 0.5139 cm3
c. 1.946 cm3
d. 120.6 cm3
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

104. Which of the following is true about specific gravity of a material?


a. It has units of g/mL.
b. It is defined as the density of the material divided by the density of water.
c. It has units of g/mL and it is defined as the density of the material divided by the density of water.
d. It neither has units of g/mL nor is it defined as the density of the material divided by the density of water.
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

105. If specific gravities were defined by reference to oil (density = 0.89 g/mL) rather than water (density = 1.0 g/mL)
which of the following would be true?
a. The specific densities of all the materials and substances would be larger than those listed in handbooks.
b. The specific densities of all the materials and substances would be smaller than those listed in handbooks.
c. The specific densities of some objects would be larger and of other objects would be smaller than those listed
in handbooks.
d. The specific densities of all the materials and substances listed in handbooks would not change.
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
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Chapter 1

KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: ANALYZE

106. A particular material has a specific gravity of 1.04 at 20°C. As this material is heated from 20°C to 30°C, its volume
increases faster than does the volume of water. Which of the following statements is true of the specific gravity of this
material as it is heated to 30°C?
a. Its specific gravity decreases.
b. Its specific gravity increases.
c. Its specific gravity remains the same.
d. There is insufficient information to answer the question.
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: ANALYZE

107. What is the name of the instrument used to measure specific gravity?
a. densitometer
b. gravimeter
c. hydrometer
d. spectrometer
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

108. Which of the following is the formula used to calculate the kinetic energy of a moving object?
a. KE. = ½mv
b. KE. = ½mv2
c. KE = mv
d. KE = mv2
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

109. Chemical energy is an example of which of the following?


a. kinetic energy
b. mechanical energy
c. potential energy
d. radiant energy
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

110. Nuclear energy is an example of which for the following?


a. kinetic energy
b. mechanical energy
c. potential energy
d. radiant energy
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Chapter 1

ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

111. Which of the following is not a form of kinetic energy?


a. chemical energy
b. electrical energy
c. light energy
d. mechanical energy
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

112. Which of the following is a form of potential energy?


a. chemical energy
b. nuclear energy
c. both chemical energy and nuclear energy
d. neither chemical energy nor nuclear energy
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

113. Which of the following is true as a student slides down a water slide?
a. kinetic energy decreases
b. potential energy increases
c. total energy increases
d. none of the these
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

114. Which of the following is true as a student slides down a water slide?
a. kinetic energy increases
b. potential energy decreases
c. total energy remains constant
d. all of these
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

115. The law of conservation of energy states which of the following?


a. Energy cannot be converted from one form to another.
b. Kinetic energy is conserved.
c. Potential energy is conserved.
d. none of the these
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Chapter 1

ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

116. The law of conservation of energy states which of the following?


a. Kinetic energy is conserved.
b. Potential energy is conserved.
c. The sum of kinetic energy and potential energy is conserved.
d. all of these
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

117. Which of the following statements is true about a swinging pendulum?


a. Its kinetic energy is greatest when it is vertical (at the midpoint of its swing).
b. Its potential energy is greatest when it is vertical (at the midpoint of its swing).
c. Its kinetic energy does not change as it swings.
d. Its potential energy does not change as it swings.
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

118. Which of the following statements is true about a swinging pendulum?


a. Its kinetic energy is greatest when it is at the extreme (the highest point) of its swing.
b. Its potential energy is greatest when it is at the extreme (the highest point) of its swing.
c. Its kinetic energy does not change as it swings.
d. Its potential energy does not change as it swings.
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

119. Which of the following objects has the largest kinetic energy?
a. a 1.00-gram object moving at 1.0 cm/sec
b. a 0.25-gram object moving at 2.0 cm/sec
c. a 16.00-gram object moving at 0.25 cm/sec
d. They all have the same kinetic energy.
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

120. Which of the following statements is true regarding forms of energy?


a. Both light and temperature are forms of energy.
b. Neither light nor temperature is a form of energy.
c. Light is a form of energy but temperature is not.
d. Temperature is a form of energy but light is not.
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Chapter 1

ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

121. Which of the following is the smallest unit of length among the given units?
a. centimeter
b. nanometer
c. micrometer
d. picometer
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

122. Which of the following is the largest unit of mass among the given units?
a. kilogram
b. megagram
c. gigagram
d. decigram
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

123. Which statement is true of the compressibility of solids, liquids, and gases?
a. Liquids are more compressible than gases.
b. Solids are more compressible than gases.
c. Liquids are more compressible than solids.
d. Solids are more compressible than liquids.
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.6 - STATES OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

124. Which of these is not a chemical change?


a. the cutting of plywood
b. the digestion of food
c. the baking of a chocolate cake
d. the explosion of fireworks
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.1 - CHEMISTRY AND THE STUDY OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

125. What happens when a spring is kept in the compressed state for some time?
a. The potential energy of the spring increases.
b. The kinetic energy of the spring increases.
c. The potential energy of the spring remains constant.
d. The kinetic energy of the spring remains constant.
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Chapter 1

ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.8 - DESCRIBING THE VARIOUS FORMS OF ENERGY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

126. Which of these is not an example of matter?


a. the feathers of a bird
b. the light from a torch
c. a muslin cloth
d. a microscopic lens
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.1 - CHEMISTRY AND STUDY OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

127. How many yards make a kilometer? [1 inch = 2.54 cm]


a. 994 yards
b. 1,094 yards
c. 1,294 yards
d. 1,394 yards
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

128. Scientists consider 298 K to be room temperature. What is this temperature on the Fahrenheit scale?
a. 87.73°F
b. 362.73°F
c. 76.73°F
d. 349.73°F
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

129. How many kilometers (km) are there is 1 megameter (Mm)?


a. 1 × 10–2
b. 1 × 10–3
c. 1 × 103
d. 1 × 102
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

130. How many kilojoules (kJ) are there in 1 joule (J)?


a. 1 × 10–6
b. 1 × 10–3

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Chapter 1

c. 1 × 103
d. 1 × 106
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

131. The boiling point of liquid bromine is 132.44°F. What is this temperature on the Celsius scale?
a. 55.8°C
b. 65.2°C
c. 60°C
d. –34°C
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

132. Which of the following is not a part of the scientific method?


a. testing a theory
b. validating a hypothesis
c. writing a pop-science book
d. formulating a theory
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.2 - THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

133. Which of the following is a characteristic feature of matter?


a. Matter has indefinite mass and definite volume.
b. Matter has definite mass but does not occupy space.
c. Matter has definite mass and occupies space.
d. Matter has indefinite mass and indefinite volume.
ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.1 - CHEMISTRY AND STUDY OF MATTER
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: REMEMBER

134. A jeweler offers a pure gold coin of 2 g to a customer. What is the volume of the coin? (Take the density of gold to
be 19.3 g/cm3.)
a. 0.404 cm3
b. 0.104 cm3
c. 9.65 cm3
d. 38.6 cm3
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

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Chapter 1
135. Consider the following piece of equipment found in a chemistry laboratory. This equipment could be used to
measure:

a. mass
b. volume
c. length
d. temperature
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

136. In determining the density of a liquid, the following measurement was made. How many significant figures are
shown in this measurement?

a. 5
b. 4
c. 3
d. none of these
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

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Chapter 1
137. The following measurement was made in determining the density of the liquid in the beaker. The volume of liquid in
the beaker is 1.800 L. What is the density of this liquid?

a. 0.8922 g/mL
b. 1.118 g/mL
c. 0.89 g/mL
d. 1.1 g/mL
e. 8.922 × 102 g/mL
f. 1.118 × 10–3 g/mL
ANSWER: a
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

138. If one were to measure the distance from the photographer taking this picture to the ocean shown in the background,
which of the following units would be the most appropriate?

a. mm
b. km
c. cm
d. nm
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY
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Chapter 1

139. Consider the urinometer shown used to make a measurement at 25 °C. What is the density of the liquid shown at the
same temperature?

a. 1.04
b. 1.04 g/mL
c. 0.962
d. 0.962 g/mL
e. The density cannot be determined from the given data.
ANSWER: b
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

140. Which of the following would be the correct conversion factor to convert 25.0 mL to L?
a.

b.

c.

d.

ANSWER: c
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

141. Which of the following conversion factors would not be needed in order to convert 75 mi/hr to m/s?
a.

b.

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Chapter 1

c.

d. All these conversion factors would be needed.


ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.5 - UNIT CONVERSIONS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: UNDERSTAND

142. Consider the separatory funnel shown below; it contains two liquids. Water is placed in the funnel along with one of
the following liquids: diethyl ether, mineral oil, or dichloromethane. The funnel is then opened, and the bottom layer is
drained into a beaker. For which combination would the water end up in the beaker? Density values are given in
parentheses.

a. diethyl ether (0.713 g/mL)


b. mineral oil (0.845 g/mL)
c. dichloromethane (1.33 g/mL)
d. both a and b
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.7 - DENSITY AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

143. Consider the following image. Which of the following would be appropriate units to use when measuring with this
piece of equipment?

a. L
b. mL
c. cm3
d. either b or c
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

144. Which of the following would be the most appropriate unit to measure the diameter of an ant's leg?
Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero. Page 33
Chapter 1

a. Gm
b. m
c. cm
d. μm
ANSWER: d
TOPICS: 1.4 - MAKING MEASUREMENTS
KEYWORDS: BLOOM'S: APPLY

Copyright Cengage Learning. Powered by Cognero. Page 34


Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
The Project Gutenberg eBook of Proxy
Planeteers
This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States
and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no
restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it
under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this
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you are located before using this eBook.

Title: Proxy Planeteers

Author: Edmond Hamilton

Release date: August 2, 2022 [eBook #68669]

Language: English

Original publication: United States: Better Publications, Inc, 1947

Credits: Greg Weeks, Mary Meehan and the Online Distributed


Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net.

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK PROXY


PLANETEERS ***
PROXY PLANETEERS
By EDMOND HAMILTON

[Transcriber's Note: This etext was produced from


Startling Stories, July 1947.
Extensive research did not uncover any evidence that
the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]
Doug Norris hesitated for an instant. He knew that another
movement might well mean disaster.
Here deep in the cavernous interior of airless Mercury, catastrophe
could strike suddenly. The rocks of the fissure he was following had
a temperature of hundreds of degrees. And he could hear the deep
rumble of shifting rock, close by.
But it was not these dangers of the infernal underworld that made
him hesitate. It was that sixth sense of imminent peril that he had felt
twice before while exploring the Mercurian depths. Each time, it had
ended disastrously.
"Just nerves," Norris muttered to himself. "The uranium vein is
clearly indicated. I've got to follow it."
As he again moved forward and followed that thin, black stratum in
the fissure wall, his eyes constantly searched ahead.
Then a half-dozen little clouds of glowing gas flowed toward him
from a branching fissure. Each was several feet in diameter, a faint-
glowing mass of vapor with a brighter core.
Norris moved hastily to avoid them. But there was a sudden flash of
light. Then everything went black before his eyes.
"It's happened to me again!" Doug Norris thought in sharp dismay.
Frantically he jiggled his controls, cut in emergency power switches,
overloaded his tight control beam to the limit. It was no use. He still
could not see or hear anything whatever.
Norris defeatedly took the heavy television helmet with its bulging
eyepieces off his head. He stared at the control-board, then looked
blankly out the window at the distant, sunlit stacks of New York
Power Station.
"Another Proxy gone! Seven of them wrecked in the last two weeks!"
It hadn't just happened, of course. It had happened eight minutes
ago. It took that long for the television beam from the Proxy to shuttle
from Mercury to this control-station outside New York. And it took as
long again for the Proxy control-beam to get back to it on Mercury.
Sometimes, a time-lag that long could get a Proxy into trouble before
its operator on Earth was aware of it. But usually that was not a big
factor of danger on a lifeless world like Mercury. The Proxies, built of
the toughest refractory metals, could stand nearly anything but an
earthquake, and keep on functioning.
"Each time, there's been no sign of falling rocks or anything like
that," Norris told himself, mystified. "Each time, the Proxy has just
blacked out with all its controls shot."

Then, as his mind searched for some factor common to all the
disasters, a startled look came over Doug Norris' lean, earnest face.
"There were always some of those clouds of radon or whatever they
are around, each time!" he thought. "I wonder if—" A red-hot thought
brought him to his feet. "Holy cats! Maybe I've got the answer!"
He jumped away from the Proxy-board without a further glance at
that bank of intricate controls, and hurried down a corridor.
Through the glass doors he passed, Norris could see the other
operators at work. Each sat in front of his control-board, wearing his
television helmet, flipping the switches with expert precision. Each
was operating a mechanical Proxy somewhere on Mercury.
Norris and all these other operators had been trained together when
Kincaid started the Proxy Project. They had been proud of their
positions, until recently. It was a vitally important job, searching out
the uranium so sorely needed for Earth's atomic power supply.
The uranium and allied metals of Earth had years ago been
ransacked and used up. There was little on Venus or Mars. Mercury
had much of the precious metal in its cavernous interior. But no man,
no matter how ingenious his protection, could live long enough on
the terrible, semi-molten Hot Side of Mercury to conduct mining
operations.
That was why Kincaid had invented the Proxies. They were
machines that could mine uranium where men couldn't go. Crewless
ships guided by radar took the Proxies to the Base on Mercury's
sunward side. From Base, each Proxy was guided by an Earth
operator down into the hot fissures to find and mine the vital
radioactive element. The scheme had worked well, until—
"Until we got into those deeper fissures with the Proxies," Doug
Norris thought. "Seven wrecked since then! This must be the
answer!"
Martin Kincaid looked up sharply as Norris entered his office. A look
of faint dismay came on Kincaid's square, patient face. He knew that
a Proxy operator wouldn't leave his board in the middle of a shift,
unless there was trouble.
"Go ahead and give me the bad news, Doug," he said wearily.
"Proxy M-Fifty just blacked out on me, down in Fissure Four," Norris
admitted. "Just like the others. But I think I know why, now!" He
continued excitedly: "Mart, seven Proxies blacking out in two weeks
wasn't just accident. It was done deliberately!"
Kincaid stared. "You mean that Hurriman's bunch is somehow
sabotaging our Project?"
Doug Norris interrupted with a denial. "Not that. Hurriman and his
fellow politicians merely want to get their hands on the Proxy Project,
not to destroy it."
"Then who did wreck our Proxies?" Kincaid demanded.
Norris answered excitedly. "I believe we've run into living creatures in
those depths, and they're attacking us."
Kincaid grunted. "The temperature in those fissures is about four
hundred degrees Centigrade, the same as Mercury's sunward side.
Life can't exist in heat like that. I suggest you take a rest."
"I know all that," Norris said impatiently. "But suppose we've run into
a new kind of life there—one based on radioactive matter? Biologists
have speculated on it more than once. Theoretically, creatures of
radioactive matter could exist, drawing their energies not from
chemical metabolism as we do, but from the continuous process of
radioactive disintegration."
"Theoretically, the sky is a big roof with holes in it that are stars,"
growled Kincaid. "It depends on whose theory you believe."
"Every time a Proxy has blacked out down there, there's been little
clouds of heavy radioactive gas near," argued Doug Norris. "Each
seems to have a denser core. Suppose that core is an unknown
radium compound, evolved into some kind of neuronic structure that
is able to receive and remember stimuli? A sort of queer, radioactive
brain?
"If that's so, and biologists have said it's possible, the body of the
creature consists of radon gas emanated from the radium core. You
remember the half-life of radon exactly equals the rate of its
emission from radium, so there'd be a constant equilibrium of the
thing's gaseous body, analogous to our blood circulation. Given
Mercury's conditions, it's no more impossible than a jellyfish or a
man here on Earth!"

Kincaid looked skeptical.


"And you think these hypothetical living Raddies of yours are
attacking our Proxies? Why would they?"
"If they have cognition and correlation faculties they might be
irritated by the tube emanations from the control-boxes of our
Proxies," Norris suggested. "They get into those control-boxes and
wreck the tube circuits by overloading the electron flow with their
own Beta radiation!"
"It's all pretty far-fetched," muttered his superior. "Radioactive life!
But all those Proxies blowing can't be just chance." He paused, then
added gloomily, "But I can just see myself telling a World Council
committee that your hypothetical living Raddies are what keep us
from delivering uranium! Hurriman would like that. It would convince
the Council that I'm as incompetent as he claims."
"He'll convince the Council of that anyway unless we deliver uranium
from Mercury quickly," retorted Norris. "And we'll never do it till we
get these Raddies licked. They're basically just complex clouds of
radioactive gas. A Proxy armed with a high-pressure gas hose
should be able to blow them to rags. Can't we try it, Mart?"
Kincaid sighed, and stood up.
"I was a practical man once," he said wearily, "and would have
booted you out of here if you'd suggested such stuff. But I'm a
drowning man right now, so I'll buy your straw. We'll send down a
couple of Proxies armed with gas hoses and see how they make
out."
Doug Norris eagerly went with his superior into the adjoining room
where the operators of the Base Proxies were on duty.
"Norris and I will take over two Proxies at base," Kincaid told the
sub-chief there.
Two operators took off their helmets and got out of their chairs.
Norris took the place of one, donning the television helmet.
The control and television beams were on. The compact kinescope
tubes in his helmet gave him a clear vision of the Base on Mercury,
as seen through his Proxy's iconoscope "eyes".
There were no buildings, for Proxies didn't need shelter. The seared
black rocks stretched under a brazen sky, beneath a stupendous
Sun whose blaze even the iconoscope filters couldn't cut down
much. The Base was just a flat area here beside the low rock hills. A
crewless ship lay to one side, its hatches open. Near it were the
supply-dumps of Proxy parts, the repair shops, the power plant.
"We'll get a couple of oxygen tanks from the supply dump and use
them for your gas hose weapons," Kincaid was saying.
The Proxies they were guiding did not look like men. They looked
like what they were—machines devised for special purposes. They
were like baby tanks, mounted on caterpillar drives, each with two
big jointed arms ending in claws, and a control-box with iconoscope
eyes. They clamped on the high-pressure oxygen tanks, clutched the
nozzles of the attached hoses, and rolled out of Base across the
seared plain toward the black rock hills. In a few minutes, they
entered the narrow cleft of Fissure Four.
Norris knew the way down here. He led, switching on his searchlight
even though he didn't really need it. The Proxy's iconoscope eyes
could see by the infra-red radiation from the superheated rock walls.
They finally reached the spot deep down in the fissure where his
disabled former Proxy still stood. Doug Norris reached his jointed
arms and quickly unclamped the shield of its control-box.
"Look there, Mart! The whole control's shot! They do it by
overloading the tubes with their own Beta emanations, all right."
Kincaid's Proxy had elbowed close, its big iconoscope eyes peering
closely. Here in the office, Kincaid uttered a grunt.
"That still doesn't prove the gas that did it was living. Instead of your
hypothetical Raddies, it could be—"
"Look there!" yelled Doug Norris suddenly. "There they come again!"
Three of the glowing gaseous things were flowing toward them along
the fissure. They poised for a moment in a lifelike way, and then
swept forward.
"Your gas hose!" yelled Norris to the man beside him. "Don't let them
get near you!"
The Raddies were advancing in a deliberate way. In spite of the
time-lag, Norris tried to raise his gas hose and trigger it. There
wasn't time. The eight-minute lag between his action and the result
out there on Mercury was fatally long. The glowing Raddies were
flowing up around the Proxies.
Doug Norris was momentarily dazzled by the brilliance of the Raddy
that enveloped his Proxy's control-box. It was like looking into a star
to look into the glowing, pulsing core of the thing.
His senses reeled queerly as he stared, hypnotized by the swirling
bright gas and the starlike, throbbing core. He sensed dimly that that
core was a kind of life possible on no terrestrial planet, a crystalized
gaseous neurone structure that used its own radon emanations as a
body.

He felt his senses staggering, darkening. It was as though he were


hypnotized by the brilliance of that pulsing core of light, as though it
were probing excruciatingly into his brain.
Then Doug Norris came out of his queer daze to find himself sitting
there with his helmet dead. He could see nothing. His movements of
the Proxy controls yielded no response.
"Blacked out, both our Proxies!" Kincaid exclaimed, dazedly taking
off his own helmet. "And we got some kind of kick-back shock."
Norris, still badly shaken, nodded unsteadily. "There must have been
a kick-back along the control beam when they blew the control-
boxes. The circuit breakers may have been slow." He added quickly,
"But you know now I was right! Those Raddies are living things, that
instinctively attack our Proxies!"
Kincaid frowned. "It looks like it. But no gas hose or any other
weapon will work against the brutes. The time-lag makes it
impossible to use weapons. Our only chance is to seal and ray-proof
the Proxies' control-boxes against them. That'll take time. But it's our
only chance to get uranium out of there, and it's got to be done
before Hurriman's clique gets the Council on our tail. I'll have the
boys bring the Proxies all back to Base at once."
Norris followed his chief back to his office. Winters, the office clerk,
was waiting there for them, and looking anxious.
"A bulletin just came over the news tape, Chief," he told Kincaid.
"Here it is."
Mart Kincaid read the tape, and his square shoulders seemed to sag
a little. He looked at them heavily.
"We won't need to worry any more about your Raddies, Doug. World
Council has just passed Hurriman's motion requesting an immediate
investigation of Proxy Project. It will begin tomorrow." He added
tonelessly, "You know what that means. When they find we've lost
nine valuable Proxies out there on Mercury without getting any
uranium at all yet, we'll be thrown out."
"Blast Hurriman!" Doug Norris raged. "The Proxy Project has been
your work from the start! You sweated to develop the things. Now
because there's a hitch, a bunch of bumbling politicians take it over!"
"It's all in a lifetime," Kincaid shrugged. "Winters, you tell the boys.
Have them pull their Proxies back to Base, and go home." He sat
down slowly in his chair then, and stared at the wall. "So it's over.
Well, right now I'm too tired to care."
Norris felt heartsick. "Isn't there any chance of stalling them long
enough to try our idea of rayproofing the Proxies?"
"You know there isn't," said his superior. "It'd take days to do that job.
Even if it worked against the Raddies, it'd take weeks more to get
out uranium. And Hurriman's bunch won't wait weeks."
He looked at the sick face of the younger man, then opened a desk
drawer and took out a bottle of Scotch and glasses.
"Here, have a drink," he ordered. "You're a little young yet, and you
take these things too seriously."
Norris unhappily drank the Scotch. But his nerves, still shaken by
that queer kick-back shock from the beam, didn't relax much.
"Mart, your calmness isn't fooling me," he said. "I know how much
the Proxies meant to you, the dreams you had of operating Proxies
on every planet man couldn't visit, even on worlds of distant stars."
Kincaid shrugged as he poured himself a drink. "Sure, I wanted all
that. But since when have scientists ever been able to buck
politicians?"
Darkness pressed the windows as night gathered. They sat silently
in the darkening office drinking the Scotch and looking at the tall,
lighted stacks of the distant New York Power Station.
Doug Norris found no comfort in the liquor's sting. His sense of
injustice deepened. The Proxies were Kincaid's, but just because he
couldn't produce uranium fast enough, they would be taken away
from him.
He said so, bitterly and at length. Kincaid only shrugged wearily
again.
"Forget it, Doug. Have another drink."
Norris discovered with mild surprise that the bottle was empty.
"We must have spilled some of it," he said a little thickly.
"There's another bottle in the drawer," Kincaid grunted. "They were
for the Project party next week, but that's all off now."

Norris opened the other bottle and generously refilled their glasses.
He sat down beside Kincaid, who was looking broodingly from the
window at the distant atomic power plant. Despite the warm physical
glow he felt, Doug Norris was unhappier than before. A new,
poignant sorrow had risen in him.
"You know, Mart, it isn't only what Hurriman's doing to the Project
that's got me down," he said sorrowfully. "It's what happened to old
M-Fifty today."
"M-Fifty?" Kincaid inquired. "You mean that Proxy you lost this
afternoon?"
"Yes, he was my special Proxy for all these months," Doug Norris
said. "I got to know him. He was always dependable, never jumped
his control beam, never acted cranky in a tight place." His voice
choked a little. "I loved that Proxy like a brother. And I let him down. I
let those Raddies wreck him."
"They'll fix him up, Doug," said Kincaid, a rich sympathy in his slightly
thickened voice. "They'll make him as good as new when they get
him back up to Base."
"Yes, but what good will that do if I'm not here to operate him?" cried
Norris. "I tell you, that Proxy was sensitive. He knew my touch on the
controls. That Proxy would have died for me."
"Sure he would." Kincaid nodded with owlish understanding. "Here,
have another drink, Doug."
"I've had enough," Norris said gloomily, refilling their glasses as he
spoke. "But as I was saying, that Proxy won't run for a bunch of
politicians and their ham-handed operators like he ran for me. He'll
know that I'm gone, and he won't be the same. He'll pine."
"That's the way it goes, Doug," Kincaid said sadly. "You lose your
best friend—I mean, your best Proxy—and I lose my Project, just
because we can't furnish enough uranium for power over there."
He gestured bitterly toward the distant stacks of New York Power
Station that soared like towers of light in the distant darkness.
"You know, I've got an idea in my mind about that," Kincaid added
slowly, as he stared at those towers.
Doug Norris nodded emphatically. "You're dead right, Mart. You're
absolutely right."
"Now wait, you didn't hear my idea yet," Kincaid protested a little
foggily. "It's this—we're losing the Project because we can't furnish
enough uranium for power. But suppose they didn't need uranium for
power any longer? Then they'd let us keep the Proxy Project!"
"Exactly what I say!" Norris declared firmly. "There's just one thing for
us to do. That's to find a way to produce atomic power from some
commoner substance than uranium. That'd solve our whole
problem."
"I thought I was the one who said that," Kincaid said, puzzled. "But
look—what fairly common metal could be used to replace uranium in
the atomic piles?"
"Bismuth, of course," Norris replied promptly. "Its atomic number is
closest to the radioactive series of elements."
"You took the words right out of my mouth!" Kincaid declared.
"Bismuth it is. All we have to do is to make bismuth work in an
atomic pile, then we can run the Proxy Project without this
everlasting nagging about supplying uranium."
Doug Norris felt a warm, happy relief. "Why, it's simple! We should
have thought of it before! Let's get some bismuth out of the supply
room and go over to the Power Station right now!" He leaped to his
feet, eagerly, if a trifle unsteadily. "No time to waste, if the Council
committee's to be on our necks tomorrow!"
Doug Norris felt like singing in his wonderful relief, as he and Kincaid
went down through the now deserted Project building to the supply
room. In fact, he started to raise his voice in a ribald ballad about a
Proxy's adventure with a lady automaton.
"You mus' have had a trifle too much Scotch, Doug," Kincaid
reproved him, with owlish dignity. "Such levity isn't becoming to two
scientists about to make the mos' wonderful invention of the
century."
They got one of the heavy leaden cylinders used for transport of
uranium and filled it carefully with powdered bismuth. Then, in
Kincaid's car, they drove happily toward the big Power Station.
The guards at the barrier gate knew them both, for it was nothing
new for Proxy Project men to bring uranium over to the Station. They
let them through, and the car eased along the straight cement road.
The huge, windowless buildings that housed the massive uranium
piles were a mile beyond. But no one went near those tremendous
atomic piles. Everything in them had to be handled by remote control
by the few technicians in Headquarters Building who kept them
operating.
"Mart, isn't it queer nobody ever thought of usin' bismuth instead of
uranium, before now?" Norris asked, out of his roseate glow.
"Scientists too c'nservative, that's the trouble," Kincaid answered
wisely. His voice soared. "We're about to launch a new epoch! No
more uranium shortage to worry 'bout! No more politicians botherin'
the Project!"
"And I'll be able to fix up old M-Fifty and run him myself again,"
added Doug Norris. He choked up once more. "When I think of that
Proxy that was like a brother to me, lyin' down in that lonely fissure
with the Raddies gloatin' over him—"
"Don't think about it, Doug," begged Kincaid, with tender sympathy.
"Soon's we get these atomic piles changed around, we'll go back
and get good old M-Fifty up again and fix him good as new."

That promise cheered Norris' grieving mind. He got out and helped
Kincaid carry the heavy lead cylinder into Headquarters Building.
The technicians they passed in the lower rooms saw nothing
surprising in the two Project men staggering along under the weight
of the cylinder. Nor did Petersen and Thorpe, at first.
Petersen and Thorpe were the two technicians on duty in the big,
sacred inmost chamber of controls. Visors here gave view of every
part of the distant, mighty atomic piles—the massive lead towers that
enclosed the graphite and uranium lattices, the gas penstocks that
led to giant heat turbines, the gauges and meters. And the banks of
heavy levers here could switch those lattices, make any desired
change in the piles, without the necessity of a man entering the zone
of dangerous radiation.
Petersen had surprise on his spectacled, scholarly face as he
greeted the two scientists.
"I didn't know you had another uranium consignment for us," he said.
Kincaid helped Norris place the lead cylinder in the breech of the
tube that would carry it mechanically to the distant pile.
"This isn't uranium—it's better than uranium," Kincaid announced
impressively.
"What do you mean, better than uranium?" Petersen asked in a
puzzled tone. He opened the end of the lead cylinder. "Why, this stuff
is bismuth! What is this, a crazy joke?"
Young Thorpe had been staring closely at Kincaid and Norris.
"They're both plastered!" he burst out.
Kincaid drew himself up in an unsteady attitude of outraged dignity.
"Tha's what thanks we get," he accused thickly. "We come here to
make a won'erful improvement in your blasted old atomic piles, and
we get insulted."
"Thorpe," Petersen said disgustedly, "get them out of here, and ...
Look out!"
Doug Norris had casually taken the heavy metal handle off one of
the big levers. He tapped Thorpe on the head with it just as Petersen
uttered his warning cry. The young technician slumped.
Petersen, suddenly pale, darted toward an alarm button on his desk.
But before he reached it, Norris' improvised blackjack tapped his
skull. And Petersen also sagged to the floor.
Before Petersen could reach the alarm button, the blackjack hit him.

Norris looked triumphantly at Kincaid, with a warm feeling of


righteous virtue.
"They won't bother us now, Mart. I just put them out for a little while
without hurting 'em."
"Quick thinking, Doug!" Kincaid approved warmly. "Can't let
reactionaries obstruc' course of scientific progress. We'd better tie
'em up in case they come around too soon."
Norris helped tie the two unconscious men with lengths of spare
cable. Then he and Kincaid stood swaying a little as they owlishly

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