Practice Test

Please solve the following questions. This is not a real exam, it will not be graded, and you do not need to submit your solutions to anyone. The questions are simply intended to help you practice for the real exam.

These questions will not appear in the exam itself. Students who don't genuinely attempt to solve the questions on their own, and only memorize the solutions, will have a very hard time in the actual exam!

This sample exam is online, but the real exam will be given in person, at a time and place indicated on the course website.

THIS IS NOT THE ACTUAL EXAM!
THIS IS JUST A PRACTICE EXAM!
THE REAL EXAM IS IN PERSON!

If you need any clarifications for these questions, you can ask for them on the course Teams channel.

Question 1

Astronomy is...

A science, which means it is based on theories that are proven to be 100% correct and can never be disputed.
A pseudo-science, which means it claims to be a science but does not use the scientific method to test the validity of hypotheses.
A science, which means it uses the scientific method to test the validity of hypotheses.

Question 2

I am located 20 degrees north of the equator and 40 degrees west of the Prime Meridian. What are my coordinates?

Latitude 20° N, longitude 40° W.
Latitude 20° W, longitude 40° N.
Latitude 40° S, longitude 20° E.

Question 3

What was Ptolemy's important text on astronomy?

Almagest.
Enuma Anu Enlil.
The Tetrabiblos.

Question 4

Which of the following numbers is the largest?

2 × 10⁷
4 × 10⁵
5 × 10⁶

Question 5

"Last year, when Mars was in retrograde, I broke my arm. Clearly, there must be a connection!" This is an example of...

The appeal to tradition fallacy.
The appeal to popularity fallacy.
The correlation implies causation fallacy.

Question 6

What is special about the constellations of the zodiac?

They are the constellations that the Sun appear to pass through over the course of a year.
The stars in these constellations are closer to Earth compared to those in other constellations.
They allow astrologers to produce reliable horoscopes.

Question 7

Ptolemy's model...

Accurately describes the structure of the solar system.
Does not accurately describe the structure of the solar system.
Accurately described the structure of the solar system in Ptolemy's time, but this structure has changed since then.

Question 8

I am in the south pole. What is directly above me?

The south celestial pole.
The north celestial pole.
The celestial equator.

Question 9

A very important part of the scientific method in astronomy is:

Testing hypotheses by comparing them against important books such as Ptolemy's Almagest.
Testing hypotheses by comparing them against observations.
Testing hypotheses by comparing them against experimental results in the lab.

Question 10

What did Carlson's 1985 astrology experiment prove?

That astrologers cannot correctly predict a person's personality test results given the person's time and place of birth.
That astrologers can correctly predict a person's personality test results given the person's time and place of birth.
That astrologers cannot correctly predict a person's time and place of birth given the person's personality test results.

Question 11

When a planet is in retrograde...

It looks to us like it's moving backwards in its orbit, but actually it's still moving forward.
You should avoid any big investments.
It looks to us like it's still moving forward in its orbit, but actually it's moving backwards.

Question 12

One full rotation of the Earth around its axis corresponds to...

A day.
A month.
A year.

Question 13

The Big Dipper is...

An asterism.
A constellation.
A planet.

Question 14

Which of the following is not a reliable source of information about astronomy?

The website for the James Webb Space Telescope, a space telescope operated by NASA, the Canadian Space Agency, and the European Space Agency.
Social media posts.
Encyclopedia Britannica.

Question 15

Which supercluster does the Milky Way belong to?

The Virgo Supercluster.
The Leo Supercluster.
The Pisces Supercluster.

Question 16

In science, what is a hypothesis?

An idea that has not yet been tested.
An idea that has been rigorously tested and is correct to the best of our current knowledge.
An idea that is 100% correct and will never be replaced.

Question 17

What is the Barnum effect?

The cognitive bias that makes people think a horoscope describes them individually, while in fact it is intentionally vague enough to describe anyone.
The astrological phenomenon that ensures the horoscope actually describes each individual person accurately.
The effect that produces astrological predictions.

Question 18

Two scientists have published competing hypotheses. Since they contradict each other, only one can be correct. How will we determine which hypothesis is correct?

The hypothesis whose predictions have been verified in experiments is the correct one.
The hypothesis from the scientist with a PhD from the more prestigious university is the correct one.
The hypothesis that is easier to understand is the correct one.

Question 19

Which planet's orbits are larger than the Earth's orbit?

Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
Mercury and Venus.

Question 20

What is Occam's razor?

The principle that says simpler theories are easier to understand than complex ones, and therefore should be preferred.
The principle that says complex theories have more predictive value than simpler ones, and therefore should be preferred.
The principle that says simpler theories have more predictive value than complex ones, and therefore should be preferred.

Question 21

When was stellar parallax first measured successfully?

By the Babylonians, around 4,000 years ago.
By Friedrich Bessel, in 1838.
By the ancient Greeks, around 2,000 years ago.

Question 22

The orbits of the planets in the solar system are...

Epicycles.
Circles.
Ellipses.

Question 23

The Greeks believed that the Earth was at the center of the universe...

Because they did not know about stellar parallax.
Because they observed stellar parallax.
Because they did not observe stellar parallax.

Question 24

A celestial object which can produce its own light is...

A star.
A planet.
Either a star or a planet.

Question 25

A radio message was sent in 2150 from Earth to the distant planet Wolf 359 c, approximately 8 light-years away. When will the message get to the other planet? (Remember: radio waves travel at the speed of light.)

In the year 2150.
In the year 2160.
In the year 2158.