Weather
What is the process where water changes from a liquid to a gas?
Evaporation
What body system creates red blood cells?
Skeletal System
What do we call an organism that produces its own food using sunlight? How do they make food?
Producer, Photosynthesis
Define the term "friction.
force that opposes or slows down motion between two objects in contact
What term describes characteristics that you are born with and receive from your parents?
What are three different types of data a meteorologist can collect to predict the weather?
Wind speed, air pressure, wind direction
Circulatory, Nervous, Digestive, Respiratory, Skeletal, Muscular
Name the three types of organisms found in an ecosystem based on the role they play.
Producers, consumers, and decomposers
Name three factors that affect how an object moves.
gravity, friction, and mass (or change in mass), different types of friction, air resistance
Give an example of an acquired trait (a characteristic you develop during your lifetime)
Answers vary
How does the sun's energy affect the water cycle?
By increasing or decreasing the evaporation/transpiration
How does the respiratory system work with the circulatory system to deliver oxygen throughout the body?
the lungs take in oxygen, and the circulatory system (blood) transports it to all cells
Explain the difference between a forest ecosystem and a grassland ecosystem in terms of the organisms they support.
forests have trees and shade-loving plants; grasslands have grasses and open-space plants; each supports different animal populations adapted to those conditions
How does increasing the mass of an object affect its motion?
a heavier object requires more force to move it or will move more slowly with the same force applied
What is the difference between an instinct and a learned behavior?
an instinct is a behavior you're born with (natural), and a learned behavior is one you develop through experience
Explain how the ocean influences weather patterns in North Carolina.
the ocean absorbs and releases heat, which affects air temperature and weather patterns
Describe how the skeletal and muscular systems work together to help you move.
bones provide structure and leverage, muscles contract and pull on bones to create movement
In a pond ecosystem, a frog eats insects, and a heron eats frogs. If all the insects suddenly disappeared, what would happen to the frog population and the heron population? Explain why.
the frog population would decrease (no food), and the heron population would also decrease (fewer frogs to eat)
A skateboarder is rolling down a smooth hill versus a rough hill. On which hill will the skateboard move faster, and why?
the smooth hill, because there is less friction between the skateboard and the smooth surface
Your dog has brown fur (inherited from its parents), but you teach it to sit on command. Which trait is inherited, and which is acquired? Explain your answer.
brown fur is inherited (from genes/parents); sitting on command is acquired (learned through training)
A hurricane is moving toward the coast with wind speeds of 150 mph. Based on what you know about severe weather, what conditions would you expect in coastal areas, and how might the ocean have contributed to this storm's formation? Give two conditions.
high winds, heavy rain/flooding, storm surge; the warm ocean water provided energy to strengthen the hurricane
You eat a sandwich. Trace the journey of that sandwich through your digestive, circulatory, and muscular systems. What happens at each stage?
digestion breaks it down into nutrients; the circulatory system absorbs and transports nutrients to cells; muscles use the energy to contract and move
A salt marsh is being destroyed to build a parking lot. Using what you know about ecosystems and interconnected relationships, explain what might happen to the plants, animals, and other organisms that depend on this ecosystem.
plants and animals would lose their habitat; food chains would be broken; populations would decline or migrate; decomposers would have less organic matter; the entire ecosystem's balance would be disrupted, affecting the ocean and surrounding areas
You're designing a marble race track. You want one section where marbles slow down significantly and another section where they speed up. Describe what surfaces and slopes you would use in each section and explain the forces involved.
rough/textured surface with a slight upward slope to slow down (friction opposes motion, gravity pulls down slope); smooth surface with a downward slope to speed up (less friction, gravity pulls down slope accelerates motion)
A woman has naturally curly hair, but straightens it with a flat iron. If this woman has children, will their children have straight hair or curly hair? Explain why.
the children will have curly hair because acquired traits (from the flat iron) cannot be passed to offspring—only inherited traits from genes are passed down