Deck 33: Atomic Nucleus and Radioactivity

Question 1

Radiation dosages based on potential damage is in

A)rads.
B)rems.
C)joules.
D)none of the above

Answer 1

rems.

Question 2

Alpha particles and beta particles are deflected by a magnetic field in

A)opposite directions.
B)perpendicular directions to each other.
C)the same direction.

Answer 2

opposite directions.

Question 3

Radiation dosage is commonly measured in

A)rads.
B)rems.
C)joules.
D)none of the above

Answer 3

rads.

Question 4

Which of these will penetrate into lead?

A)alpha particle
B)beta particle
C)gamma ray.
D)all of the above

Question 5

Radioactivity in the world is something

A)relatively new.
B)as old as the world itself.
C)to become frantic about.

Question 6

Which experiences the least electrical force in an electric field?

A)alpha particle
B)beta particle
C)electron
D)gamma ray
E)all the same

Question 7

The sources of both X-rays and gamma rays are

A)electron clouds.
B)the atomic nucleus.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 8

Which wavelengths are shortest?

A)light ray
B)X-ray
C)gamma ray

Question 9

Gamma rays are emitted by way of

A)ionizing radiation.
B)transitions within an atom's innermost electrons.
C)transitions within the atomic nucleus.
D)none of the above

Question 10

Which experiences the greatest electrical force in an electric field?

A)alpha particle
B)beta particle
C)electron
D)gamma ray
E)all the same

Question 11

Rays with the shortest wavelengths have the

A)highest frequencies and energies.
B)lowest frequencies and energies.
C)lowest frequencies but highest energies.

Question 12

Which will NOT bend when moving in a magnetic field?

A)alpha particle
B)beta particle
C)gamma ray
D)all bend the same

Question 13

A sample of highly-radioactive material is somewhat

A)warmer than the environment.
B)cooler than the environment.
C)neither of these

Question 14

Which radiation has no association with electric charge?

A)alpha
B)beta
C)gamma
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 15

Which is heated in its interior by nuclear processes?

A)Sun
B)Earth
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 16

The high temperature of Earth's interior is mainly due to

A)great internal pressure.
B)friction, as plates move past one another.
C)the Earth's natural heat.
D)radioactive processes.

Question 17

X-rays may be correctly regarded as

A)high frequency sound waves.
B)high frequency radio waves.
C)both of these
D)none of these

Question 18

X-rays are emitted by way of

A)ionizing radiation.
B)transitions within an atom's innermost electrons.
C)transitions within the atomic nucleus.
D)none of the above

Question 19

X-rays are similar to

A)alpha rays.
B)beta rays.
C)gamma rays.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 20

The sources of X-rays are

A)electron clouds.
B)the atomic nucleus.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 21

Cosmic rays originate in the

A)Earth's interior.
B)Earth's upper atmosphere.
C)Sun.
D)cosmos.
E)none of the above

Question 22

The radiation source closest to us originates in

A)medical treatments.
B)all kinds of power plants.
C)our own bodies.
D)none of the above

Question 23

Once an alpha particle is outside the nucleus it is

A)free to wander about the surrounding material.
B)quickly bound to a neighboring nucleus.
C)electrostatically repelled.
D)radioactive.

Question 24

A nucleon is either a

A)positron or an electron.
B)proton or an electron.
C)neutron or an electron.
D)proton or a neutron.

Question 25

The natural background radiation we personally encounter is

A)a trace amount.
B)about a quarter.
C)about half.
D)more than half.

Question 26

What must you do to get away from the harmful effects of radioactivity?

A)live at the North or South Poles.
B)go deep beneath Earth's surface.
C)go to the Moon.
D)die.

Question 27

Generally speaking, the larger a nucleus is, the greater its

A)stability.
B)instability.
C)neither stability nor instability

Question 28

The mass of an atomic nucleon is nearly

A)twice that of an electron.
B)four times that of an electron.
C)a thousand times that of an electron.
D)two thousand times that of an electron.

Question 29

The helium in a child's balloon is composed of

A)former alpha-particle.
B)former beta particles.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 30

Most of the radioactivity we personally encounter originates from

A)fallout from testing of nuclear weapons.
B)nuclear power plants.
C)medical X-rays.
D)the natural environment.

Question 31

When the nucleus of an atom emits only a gamma ray, the atom's atomic number

A)decreases.
B)remains unchanged.
C)increases.

Question 32

A quark is a fundamental particle

A)that makes up a nucleon.
B)much smaller than a nucleon.
C)not composed of smaller parts.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 33

The most harmful radiations are those that

A)kill living cells.
B)damage living cells.
C)don't encounter cells.

Question 34

When the nucleus of an atom emits an alpha particle, the atom's atomic number

A)decreases.
B)remains unchanged.
C)increases.

Question 35

Human damage is usually highest for radiation by

A)beta particles.
B)alpha particles.
C)either of the above
D)none of the above

Question 36

When the nucleus of an atom emits a beta particle, the atom's atomic number

A)decreases.
B)remains unchanged.
C)increases.

Question 37

Electric forces within an atomic nucleus tend to

A)hold it together.
B)push it apart.
C)neither of these

Question 38

Which is the strongest fundamental force?

A)gravitational force.
B)electric force.
C)nuclear strong force.
D)none of the above

Question 39

Nuclear stability is related to the balance between

A)attracting and repelling forces in the nucleus.
B)positive and negative ionic forces.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 40

The main source of Earth's natural heat is

A)molten-hot lava.
B)pressure on Earth's interior.
C)radioactivity in Earth's interior.
D)solar energy in the form of fossil fuels.

Question 41

For 1 gram of radioactive material that has a half-life of one year, after 4 years the original radioactive material left will be

A)0 g.
B)1/2 g.
C)1/4 g.
D)1/8 g.
E)none of the above

Question 42

For an isotope with a half-life of one day, at the end of three days the amount that remains is

A)none.
B)one-half.
C)one-quarter.
D)one-eighth.
E)none of the above

Question 43

Which device is used primarily to detect nuclear radiation?

A)synchrotron
B)linear accelerator
C)cyclotron
D)scintillation counter
E)none of the above

Question 44

Pure elements can be transformed into entirely different elements by

A)radioactive decay.
B)transmutation.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 45

In a smoke detector americium (A = 95)transmutes to neptunium (A = 93)by

A)beta emission.
B)alpha emission.
C)gamma emission.
D)none of the above

Question 46

A certain radioactive isotope placed near a Geiger counter registers 160 counts per minute. Eight hours later, the counter registers 10 counts per minute. What is the half-life of the isotope?

A)8 hours
B)6 hours
C)4 hours
D)2 hours
E)none of the above

Question 47

Some charged particles in a bubble chamber are seen to move in spirals due to

A)decreasing magnetic field.
B)decreasing electric charge.
C)perspective and parallax.
D)energy dissipation.

Question 48

When an element undergoes nuclear transmutation, the result is a completely different

A)isotope of the same element.
B)ion of the same element.
C)element.

Question 49

A certain radioactive isotope placed near a Geiger counter registers 120 counts per minute. If the half-life of the isotope is one day, what will be the count rate at the end of four days?

A)30 counts/min
B)15 counts/min
C)10 counts/min
D)7.5 counts/min
E)5 counts/min

Question 50

In which of these processes is an element transformed into a completely different element?

A)alpha decay
B)beta decay
C)both of these
D)none of the above

Question 51

Radium (A = 88)transmutes to radon (A = 86)by

A)beta emission.
B)alpha emission.
C)gamma emission.
D)none of the above

Question 52

The half-life of carbon 14 is 5730 years. If a 1-gram sample of old carbon is 1/8 as radioactive as 1-gram of a current sample, then the age of the old sample is about

A)716 years.
B)11,500 years.
C)17,200 years.
D)22,900 years.
E)46,000 years.

Question 53

The half-life of a radioactive substance is affected by

A)pressure.
B)temperature.
C)age.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 54

Which nucleus has the greatest neutron/proton ratio?

A)iron
B)gold
C)thorium
D)uranium

Question 55

The operation of a cloud chamber relies on

A)magnetization.
B)evaporation.
C)acceleration.
D)polarization.
E)condensation.

Question 56

For an isotope with a half-life of one day, at the end of two days the amount that remains is

A)none.
B)one-half.
C)one-quarter.
D)one-eighth.
E)none of the above

Question 57

A device that shows the bending of particle trails in liquid hydrogen is a

A)streamer chamber.
B)spark chamber.
C)bubble chamber.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 58

A magnetic field is applied to a cloud chamber for the purpose of

A)attracting electrons.
B)repelling electrons.
C)attracting protons.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 59

A Geiger counter placed 1 meter from a point source of radiation registers 100 counts per minute. If the Geiger counter is moved closer, half-way to the source, the counting rate will be

A)25 counts/min.
B)50 counts/min.
C)100 counts/min.
D)200 counts/min.
E)400 counts/min.

Question 60

The radioactive half-life of a material is the time for

A)half of an original quantity of the material to decay.
B)its decay rate to reduce to half.
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 61

When a nucleus emits a positron, its atomic number

A)increases by 1.
B)decreases by 1.
C)doesn't change.

Question 62

There is a greater proportion of carbon-14 in

A)new bones.
B)old bones.
C)same in each

Question 63

When uranium emits a beta particle, the result is

A)a uranium ion.
B)a different isotope of uranium.
C)the first transuranic element.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 64

An element will decay to an element with higher atomic number in the periodic table if it emits

A)a beta particle.
B)a gamma ray.
C)a proton.
D)an alpha particle.
E)none of the above

Question 65

Carbon-14 is produced in the atmosphere principally by

A)plants and animals.
B)cosmic-ray bombardment.
C)nitrogen bombardment.
D)photosynthesis.
E)none of the above

Question 66

The resulting atomic number of an element that emits 1 alpha particle, 1 positron, and 3 beta particles is

A)decreased by 2.
B)decreased by 1.
C)unchanged.
D)increased by 1.
E)increased by 2.

Question 67

Artificially induced radioactive elements generally have

A)long half-lives.
B)short half-lives.
C)no half-lives.

Question 68

When the hydrogen isotope tritium-3 emits a beta particle, it becomes an isotope of

A)hydrogen.
B)helium.
C)lithium.
D)carbon.
E)none of the above

Question 69

Which of the following isotopes is radioactive?

A)Carbon-12
B)Carbon-14
C)both of these
D)neither of these

Question 70

When thorium (A = 90)emits a beta particle, the resulting nucleus has atomic number

A)88.
B)89.
C)90.
D)92.
E)none of the above

Question 71

When radium (A = 88)emits an alpha particle, the resulting nucleus has atomic number

A)86.
B)88.
C)90.
D)92.
E)none of the above

Question 72

A hydrogen atom that emits an alpha particle is a routine occurrence in

A)the environment.
B)laboratories.
C)unlikely.
D)impossible.

Question 73

When a nucleus emits a beta particle, its atomic number

A)increases by 1.
B)decreases by 1.
C)increases by 2.
D)decreases by 2.
E)none of the above

Question 74

When U-239 emits a beta particle, the resulting nucleus has

A)90 protons.
B)91 protons.
C)92 protons.
D)93 protons.
E)94 protons.

Question 75

Free protons and neutrons are spewed throughout the atmosphere by

A)nitrogen decay.
B)carbon decay.
C)the bombardment of cosmic rays upon atoms.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 76

When uranium emits an alpha particle, the result is

A)thorium.
B)protactinium.
C)neptunium.
D)none of the above

Question 77

In 1919 Rutherford performed the first historic artificial transmutations of

A)hydrogen to helium.
B)nitrogen to oxygen.
C)carbon 12 to carbon 14.
D)none of the above

Question 78

In order for an atom to decay to an element that is one greater in atomic number, it can emit

A)one alpha particle and 3 beta particles.
B)one positron and 2 beta particles.
C)one beta particle.
D)all of the above
E)none of the above

Question 79

When U-238 emits an alpha particle, the resulting nucleus has

A)90 protons.
B)91 protons.
C)92 protons.
D)93 protons.
E)94 protons.

Question 80

Carbon dating requires that the object being tested contain

A)organic material.
B)inorganic material.
C)charcoal.
D)none of the above