Are you scientifically literate?

[DaveC426913]

I absolutely agree with Ryan. "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime". If you teach a guy only science trivia or information rather than teaching the proper way to do science, he may not do it right in the future.

Ah, but how many actually do science as a profession?

Do you not think that people who are not science professionals should know their science facts?

 

[Ibix]

Ah, but how many actually do science as a profession?

Do you not think that people who are not science professionals should know their science facts?

While I agree that some knowledge of science facts is useful, my opinion is that scientific methodology is far more useful in everyday life. I've never used my knowledge of Newton's law of gravity for anything except a little game programming. I use the ideas of hypothesis formation, systematic testing, and 'no dogma' (to one extent or another!) nearly every time I think about a problem.

Analogy: I think there's more utility in being able to sketch than there is in knowing your cubist from your post-impressionist, for most people.

 

[OmCheeto]

While I agree that some knowledge of science facts is useful, my opinion is that scientific methodology is far more useful in everyday life. I've never used my knowledge of Newton's law of gravity for anything except a little game programming. I use the ideas of hypothesis formation, systematic testing, and 'no dogma' (to one extent or another!) nearly every time I think about a problem.

Analogy: I think there's more utility in being able to sketch than there is in knowing your cubist from your post-impressionist, for most people.

I'd like to know how everyone figured out the following:

6. How many nanometers are there in a centimeter?
1,000
1,000,000
10,000,000
100,000,000

Only an idiot savant or a mathematical order of magnitude nerd would know this off the top of his head.

I think I spent the most time on this one. Just looking at it now, I can only guess that it's one of the last two.

 

[PAllen]

I'd like to know how everyone figured out the following:
Only an idiot savant or a mathematical order of magnitude nerd would know this off the top of his head.

I think I spent the most time on this one. Just looking at it now, I can only guess that it's one of the last two.

centi : 10^-2
nano: 10^-9

divide: 10^7

I should think a few seconds is much longer than needed for this one.

 

[OmCheeto]

centi : 10^-2
nano: 10^-9

divide: 10^7

I should think a few seconds is much longer than needed for this one.

If you didn't know: "centi : 10^-2 & nano: 10^-9", how would you have solved the problem?

I rest my case.

-----------------------------------
/me sticks fingers in ears, waiting for infraction bomb!

 

[Andre]

Depends, if you happen to live metric, you learn "deci" in the third grade or something. Centimeters and decimeters or even decameters (10) and hecto meters (100) are just as common as furlongs, forthnights, etc.

 

[OmCheeto]

Depends, if you happen to live metric, you learn "deci" in the third grade or something. Centimeters and decimeters or even decameters (10) and hecto meters (100) are just as common as furlongs, forthnights, etc.

Yah. But a nano? That's somewhere around a pico isn't it? Maybe it's just my dyslexia.

ps. I'm still trying to figure out how I solved the problem. My brain must have been in gear that day.

 

[fluidistic]

Eighty six. Shamefully I missed the how many nanometers is there in a centimeter. I knew that 1nm=10^-9m and 1cm=10^-2m making the answer 10^7, I don't know how I failed that question lol. I guess I miscounted the 0's...

 

[DaveC426913]

Yah. But a nano? That's somewhere around a pico isn't it? Maybe it's just my dyslexia.

Around these parts, nano is beaten into our heads.

Maybe it's a non-American thing.

 

[AnTiFreeze3]

Around these parts, nano is beaten into our heads.

Maybe it's a non-American thing.

Americans shun the metric system like you normal-measurement-using-people wouldn't believe.

 

[OmCheeto]

Eighty six. Shamefully I missed the how many nanometers is there in a centimeter. I knew that 1nm=10^-9m and 1cm=10^-2m making the answer 10^7, I don't know how I failed that question lol. I guess I miscounted the 0's...

Sometimes being ignorant has its advantages. (I'm referring to myself of course.)

6. How many nanometers are there in a centimeter?
1,000
1,000,000
10,000,000
100,000,000

I knew:
there were 100 centimeters to the meter
the nanometer would be multiple of 1000 if the question were about the meter
it wasn't, so I knew 1 & 2 were wrong
millimeters fall in the 1000 multiple, so I just asked myself; "How many millimeters to a centimeter"?

The answer is 10. So 3 was the only logical choice.

If the 4th choice had been 10 billion, I would have only had a 50/50 chance of getting it right, since until today, I didn't know my femptos, from picos, from nanos.

But now I do. I've been practicing with baseball problems.

 

[Andre]

Around these parts, nano is beaten into our heads.

Maybe it's a non-American thing.

Maybe it is because of Mork from Ork

 

[Ryan_m_b]

In http://www.herogames.com/home.htm, that would be the difference between
- a Knowledge Skill (do you know lots about something), and
- a Professional Skill (do you know how to make a living doing something).

Oops. My freak flag slipped out. I'll just tuck that back in...

My geekometer just gave a reading of other 9000 For another geek culture reference it's a bit like Asimov's foundation series. The decadent Empire becomes so stagnant that being an academic or engineer just means one has memorised all the information in the libraries without knowing how it came about or understanding the scientific process.

 

[Jonathan Scott]

Americans shun the metric system like you normal-measurement-using-people wouldn't believe.

The obvious practical measurement system is light nanoseconds and inches.

 

[M Quack]

The obvious practical measurement system is light nanoseconds and inches.

Nanoseconds don't contain any fat to begin with. But I guess they will sell better if you label them "light".

But seriously, the conversion from cm to nm was about the only thing in the quiz that imho every scientifically literate person should get right.

All the rest was remembering random trivia that you know if you use them every day and that are fairly useless if you don't . No deduction, no math, no basic logic, no recognizing correlation and possible causation (number of pirates and global warming...), no question about how things work, no science. Just vocabulary.

The PISA test does a much better job.

http://www.pisa.oecd.org/dataoecd/38/29/33707226.pdf

 

[OmCheeto]

...
But seriously, the conversion from cm to nm was about the only thing in the quiz that imho every scientifically literate person should get right.
...

Well, I was interested in the fact that I seemed to be the only person on the planet apparently that didn't know what a nano was, even though I'd spent several years in electrical engineering school. (This was about 30 years ago btw) But I remembered the term picofarads being used a lot. Why didn't I remember ever hearing about nanofarads, nor millifarads for that matter? So I googled it, and found a simple, yet still unexplained reason:

The millifarad is less used in practice, so that a capacitance of 4.7×10−3 F, for example, is sometimes written as 4700 µF; industrial parts at times use the abbreviation MFD. North American usage also avoids nanofarads: a capacitance of 1×10−9 F will frequently be indicated as 1000 pF; and a capacitance of 1×10−7 F as 0.1 μF.

I'll have to stop by the electronics store this afternoon and ask if they sell nano-range capacitors.

 

[Galteeth]

I got 66 percent.

In my defense, I'm not a professional scientist and I never finished college.

EDIT:
It would have been interesting to see percentages for individual questions amongst readers who took the quiz. I didn't think any of the questions were super obscure, i felt like I should have gotten all of them.

 

[PAllen]

Well, I was interested in the fact that I seemed to be the only person on the planet apparently that didn't know what a nano was, even though I'd spent several years in electrical engineering school. (This was about 30 years ago btw) But I remembered the term picofarads being used a lot. Why didn't I remember ever hearing about nanofarads, nor millifarads for that matter? So I googled it, and found a simple, yet still unexplained reason:

I have a nano in my car replacing 60 cds. It is a few centimeters. Wait, that can't be right ...

 

[zoobyshoe]

The PISA test does a much better job.

I predict the same people who did the best (scored over 90%) on the first quiz would also be the top scorers on the PISA test. You won't see a sudden drop due to eliminating success by memorization of vocabulary and trivia.

Outside of an autistic savant (or anyone who memorizes to memorize), anyone who finds themselves in possession of a bunch of science trivia (i.e. names of Saturn's moons) will have picked it up from sources that are just about guaranteed to also expose them to discussions of the scientific method.

 

[Evo]

Outside of an autistic savant (or anyone who memorizes to memorize), anyone who finds themselves in possession of a bunch of science trivia (i.e. names of Saturn's moons) will have picked it up from sources that are just about guaranteed to also expose them to discussions of the scientific method.

I found that most of my answers came from watching tv shows. Of course most of the shows I watch are science documentaries, so there are lots of answers and little of the method.

 

[lisab]

- In meteorology, what does the suffix -nimbus added to the name of a cloud indicate?

I got that one wrong too.

Spoiler

I really had no idea, but I remembered Harry Potter's broom was a "Nimbus 2000". Since one of the possible answers had something to do with altitude, I chose that one. I mean, who would name a broom after precipitation?!

 

[M Quack]

Nimbus, from the Latin for "dark cloud", may refer to: ...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nimbus

BTW, Radiospares France lists plenty of condensers with nF capacitance.

Nanosciences are all the rage now. Even Nature has sprouted a "Nanotechnology" branch. If your research proposal does not have "nano" in it, you might as well not bother writing it.

http://www.nature.com/nnano/index.html

 

[Whovian]

86%, mostly failed astronomy questions about which moons were where and who's the brightest next to the moon, etc. And I thought nimbus meant vertically developed, not precipitating.

94%. One was the one about nimbus (just as you did,) the next was the one about Bernoulli's Principle (long story, didn't fully understand what the question was asking,) and the other one I got wrong I can't remember.

 

[M Quack]

The millifarad is less used in practice...

Certain people do count in milliFarads. Granted, there are probably less than 10 installations of this type on the planet.

http://www.toulouse.lncmi.cnrs.fr/spip.php?page=article&id_article=98&lang=en

48 mF capacitor bank (back-calcualted from 14 MJ stored energy at 24 kV).

 

[Andre]

I got that one wrong too.
I really had no idea,..

Really, nimbo means trouble here or here.

 

[Pythagorean]

94%. One was the one about nimbus (just as you did,) the next was the one about Bernoulli's Principle (long story, didn't fully understand what the question was asking,) and the other one I got wrong I can't remember.

Bernoulli question was just asking about the relationship between velocity and pressure, if I recall (higher velocity --> lower pressure).

 

[Kholdstare]

Ah, but how many actually do science as a profession?

Do you not think that people who are not science professionals should know their science facts?

Although everybody do not do science, they should at least know the correct way to do science. In that way, they might consider the idea that the scientific fact that apparently seems to be true, might be wrong or misinterpreted.

Indeed to properly catch a wrong scientific data it needs scientific training in the field. But to know the basic way science works (like - discover new effect > theory and prediction > experimental results > comparison ... or that for a theory to be scientific it must be at least falsifiable) needs no exceptional skill. Everybody should know these. That would bring down a lot of hype and misconception around wrong scientific facts. Well, they themselves may not be able to prove those are wrong, but at least they will think that they can be wrong.

Apart from that everybody should have their scientific fact. But scientific journalism should be done carefully and drafts should be reviewed by experts before publication.

 

[AlephZero]

Certain people do count in milliFarads. Granted, there are probably less than 10 installations of this type on the planet.

http://www.toulouse.lncmi.cnrs.fr/spip.php?page=article&id_article=98&lang=en

48 mF capacitor bank (back-calcualted from 14 MJ stored energy at 24 kV).

I think something must be wrong there (maybe not noticing the difference beteen m for milli and M for mega?}

Milllifarad sized capacitors are common enough, though I've never seen their values given as anything except thousands of microfarads.

 

[Andre]

I think something must be wrong there (maybe not noticing the difference beteen m for milli and M for mega?}

Milllifarad sized capacitors are common enough, though I've never seen their values given as anything except thousands of microfarads.

EDLC's maybe?

 

[zoobyshoe]

I found that most of my answers came from watching tv shows. Of course most of the shows I watch are science documentaries, so there are lots of answers and little of the method.

Yeah but you said you couldn't resist the urge to cheat and never posted a score anyway. I was talking about the people who scored above 90% honestly and off the top of their heads. I am sure they'd all do best on the PISA test as well.

 

[OmCheeto]

Yeah but you said you couldn't resist the urge to cheat and never posted a score anyway. I was talking about the people who scored above 90% honestly and off the top of their heads. I am sure they'd all do best on the PISA test as well.

If it were not a multiple choice question quiz, I think I would have still gotten a good score. Based on the first 10 questions anyways.

1. Composing about 78 percent of the air at sea level, what is the most common gas in the Earth's atmosphere?
2. The Austrian monk Gregor Mendel's observations of what organism formed the basis for the science of genetics?
3. What term, which means the maximum absolute value of a periodically varying quantity, does the "A" in AM radio broadcasting stand for?
4. In 1989, the US postal service drew criticism from paleontologists for releasing a stamp with what obsolete genus name, which translates from Greek as "Thunder Lizard"?
5. Organic chemistry is the study of compounds that contain what element?
6. How many nanometers are there in a centimeter?
7. In physics, what letter is used to represent the speed of light in a vacuum?
8. The only two known planets in our solar system that lack any moons are Venus and what other planet?
9. What is the heaviest noble gas?
10. Approximately how old is the Earth?

now the last 10...

41. After the Moon, what is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows?
42. According to the standard model of Big Bang cosmology, approximately how old is the Universe?
43. What word, which derives from a Greek term meaning "unequal" or "bent," describes a triangle whose three sides are of unequal length?
44. Over half of the world's supply of what element, which gets its name from the epithet of the Greek goddess Athena, is used in catalytic converters?
45. In quantum mechanics, the physical constant used to describe the sizes of quanta – denoted as h – is named after what German physicist?
46. Approximately how long does it take light from the sun to reach Earth?
47. In meteorology, what does the suffix -nimbus added to the name of a cloud indicate?
48. What element, which has the atomic number 16 and is a bright yellow crystalline solid at room temperature, is referred to in the Bible as "brimstone"?
49. The moons Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto all orbit what planet?
50. What unit of measurement, which is equal to 33,000 foot-pounds per minute, did 18th-century steam engine entrepreneur James Watt come up with?

I missed Nimbus also.

Didn't we all learn that in 3rd grade?

There was a question in the middle, biology!, where I had to stop and tell myself; "You will only be confused by the choices". So I picked a word from my brain, and it was the correct one!

38. What type of cell division in eukaryotic cells is divided into prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase?
meiosis
mitosis
fission
senescence
+1.2.2
reason: guessed before I saw the choices

In all truthiness, I have not a clue what any of the above means...

 

[Galteeth]

If it were not a multiple choice question quiz, I think I would have still gotten a good score. Based on the first 10 questions anyways.
now the last 10...I missed Nimbus also.

Didn't we all learn that in 3rd grade?

There was a question in the middle, biology!, where I had to stop and tell myself; "You will only be confused by the choices". So I picked a word from my brain, and it was the correct one!
In all truthiness, I have not a clue what any of the above means...

Meiosis is cell division that only occurs in reproductive cells, i.e, gametes. The process results in for example in humans, 23 chromosomes, as opposed to mitosis which ours in normal cell division where all the chromosomes are copied.
n
Fission occurs in prokaryotes.

Senescene refers to biological aging.

 

[zoobyshoe]

I only scored 82% mind you, but I can remember in general where I learned the ones I did know:

1. Composing about 78 percent of the air at sea level, what is the most common gas in the Earth's atmosphere?

I learned this in high school.

2. The Austrian monk Gregor Mendel's observations of what organism formed the basis for the science of genetics?

Also high school

3. What term, which means the maximum absolute value of a periodically varying quantity, does the "A" in AM radio broadcasting stand for?

Learned this from personal reading.

4. In 1989, the US postal service drew criticism from paleontologists for releasing a stamp with what obsolete genus name, which translates from Greek as "Thunder Lizard"?

Personal reading

5. Organic chemistry is the study of compounds that contain what element?

Personal reading.

6. How many nanometers are there in a centimeter?

Got this wrong.

7. In physics, what letter is used to represent the speed of light in a vacuum?

Learned this at PF.

8. The only two known planets in our solar system that lack any moons are Venus and what other planet?

Got this wrong.

9. What is the heaviest noble gas?

Learned this from the cancer scare concerning this gas many years back.

10. Approximately how old is the Earth?

Got this wrong.
now the last 10...

41. After the Moon, what is the brightest natural object in the night sky, reaching an apparent magnitude of −4.6, bright enough to cast shadows?

Learned this from watching the x-files.

42. According to the standard model of Big Bang cosmology, approximately how old is the Universe?

Got this wrong.

43. What word, which derives from a Greek term meaning "unequal" or "bent," describes a triangle whose three sides are of unequal length?

Learned this in high school.

44. Over half of the world's supply of what element, which gets its name from the epithet of the Greek goddess Athena, is used in catalytic converters?

I learned Athena's epithet when I was in a production of Oedipus Rex in college.

45. In quantum mechanics, the physical constant used to describe the sizes of quanta – denoted as h – is named after what German physicist?

Learned this at PF.

46. Approximately how long does it take light from the sun to reach Earth?

Learned this in high school.

47. In meteorology, what does the suffix -nimbus added to the name of a cloud indicate?

High school. (I seem to be the only person here who got this right, I guess.)

48. What element, which has the atomic number 16 and is a bright yellow crystalline solid at room temperature, is referred to in the Bible as "brimstone"?

Learned this from personal reading.

49. The moons Io, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto all orbit what planet?

Learned this from 2010, the sequel to 2001.

50. What unit of measurement, which is equal to 33,000 foot-pounds per minute, did 18th-century steam engine entrepreneur James Watt come up with?

Learned this from personal reading.

38. What type of cell division in eukaryotic cells is divided into prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase?

High school.

 

[Evo]

I found that 25 questions in all of my answers were from tv shows. I had missed two that I kicked myself for. I knew it was pea plants, but said fruit flies. So I started checking my answers before I clicked. Then decided that was wrong, so stopped taking the *test*.

 

[ViolentCorpse]

72%