The ORIGIN and EVOLUTION of LIFE HERE and ELSEWHERE
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If a meteor impact killed the dinosaurs, it was most likely due to
the resulting 
    a) shock wave.
    b) shower of small, high speed fragments.
    c) change in the Earth's orbit, changing the Sun's intensity.
   $d) dust blocking sunlight, killing plants.

You design a weapon that can vaporize any Earth-approaching asteroid.
Thank you!  How often on average will you have to fire it to protect
life on Earth?  Approximately every 100
    a) billion years.
   $b) million years.
    c) thousand years.
    d) years.

Viruses have genetic material like plants and animals,
but they are not considered to be living because they do not
  $a) metabolize.  
   b) breathe.
   c) reproduce.
   d) expire.

What important concepts were needed by Darwin to show that evolution
could work through natural selection? 
    a) Catastrophism and floods
    b) Cyclic changes
    c) Earth's internal heat
   $d) Vast time spans and change
	   
Natural mutations occur in reproduction of life on Earth because 
    a) of solar radiation, natural uranium and other carcinogens.
    b) natural amino acids are chemicals that can cause mutations 
   $c) of errors in DNA reproduction in cell nuclei.
    d) sperm and eggs combine genes randomly.
                                                              
Which effect plays little role in permitting human life   
to flourish on Earth?                                                     
    a) Greenhouse gases lock in warmth; prevent icy winters
    b) Jupiter protects Earth from most major comet impacts
    c) Ozone protects us from ultraviolet radiation
   $d) The Moon protects Earth from most cosmic rays

Life as we know it on Earth could only form in a "habitable zone",
which is the range  
    a) in the galaxy where there is enough oxygen.
   $b) of distances from a star where most water will be liquid.
    c) of latitudes that stay warm during an ice age.
    d) of time when there is no longer bombardment by comets and asteroids. 

Up until the late 1900s, no direct evidence existed for planets around
stars other than the Sun.  Now that many planets have been
detected, we have a better knowledge of what fraction of 
    a) planets are near to stars.
   $b) stars have planets.
    c) planets support life.
    d) civilizations can detect planets.

You are designing an experiment to detect planets
around other stars.  What is your most effective technique?
    a) Direct imaging to see the planet.
    b) Astrometric detection of the star's orbital motion.
    c) Detection of radio emissions.
   $d) Measuring the Doppler shift in the star's spectrum.

You are conducting a search for life outside the solar system.
To maximize your chances, choose which kind of stars you would
study to search for planets
    a) main sequence stars like our Sun
    b) single rather than binary stars
    c) stable rather than pulsating stars
    d) stars at least a few billion years old
   $e) All of these answers are correct

Classified as a carbonaceous chondrite, the 100 kilogram
Murchison meteorite is suspected to be of cometary origin due
to its high water content of 12%.  More than 92 different amino acids
have been identified in the meteorite, only 19 of which are found on
Earth.  Which theories about comets might these facts support?
    a) They contributed to formation of the oceans and early life on Earth.
    b) Cometary material evaporates easily.
    c) Comets spend a small fraction of their orbital period near the Sun.
   $d) All the above.

There are about a trillion stars in the Milky Way Galaxy.  Very
roughly, how many Earth-like planets are there likely to be in the
galaxy?    
    a) 1
   $b) 1 billion
    c) 1 million
    d) 100 trillion
    e) 1000

Living organisms like those on the Earth may exist on 
planets going around stars other than the Sun because         
    a) we have detected comets in other stellar systems.
    b) life here may have been 'planted' by other civilizations.
    c) lifeforms on Earth may have disseminated elsewhere.
   $d) the laws of physics and chemistry are universal.
    e) some stars emit radio signals.

We might be less likely to find life around an old "Population II"
star in the halo of the Milky Way because those stars 
    a) are out of the plane of the galaxy
    b) are too hot and blue
   $c) may lack heavier elements basic to biological chemistry
    d) usually pass through the center of the galaxy
                                                     
Life is less likely to evolve on planets around massive
main sequence stars because massive stars 
   a) pull planets inward wth their powerful gravity
   b) engulf planets inside their large radii
  $c) cease nuclear burning more quickly than required for evolution 
   d) heat planets until they evaporate

There are several physical quantities in the universe that are very
finely-tuned to a value that seems to permit our existence.  The
anthropic principle interprets this, crudely paraphrased, as 
   a) We MUST exist because the Universe has these properties. 
   b) The universe must exist because WE do. 
   c) We are alone and unique in the universe. 
   d) We are at the CENTER of the universe.