Question 1
Question
What does it mean that the universe is homogenous?
Answer
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The universe looks the same from every perspective
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Galaxies are generally distributed evenly throughout the universe
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All stars in all galaxies have planetary systems just like ours
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The universe has looked the same at all times in its history
Question 2
Question
What do astronomers mean when they say that the universe is isotropic?
Answer
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More distant parts of the universe look just like nearby parts
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Intergalactic gas has the same density everywhere in the universe
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The laws of physics apply everywhere in the universe
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The universe is the same in every direction
Question 3
Question
Cosmological redshifts are calculated from observations of spectral lines from
Answer
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individual stars in different galaxies
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clouds of dust and gas in different galaxies
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spectra of entire galaxies
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rotations of the disks of distant galaxies
Question 4
Question
Astronomers observe that all galaxies are moving away from the Milky Way. According to the cosmological principle, this observation suggests that
Answer
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the Milky Way is at the center of the universe
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the Milky Way must be at the center of the expansion
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the Big Bang occurred at the current location of the Milky Way
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an observer in a distant galaxy would make the same observation
Question 5
Question
Some galaxies have redshifts (z) that if equated to Vr/c correspond to velocities greater than the speed of light. Special relativity is not violated
Answer
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because of relativistic beaming
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because it's a trick of the measurement angle
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because redshifts carry no information
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because those velocities do not measure motion through space
Question 6
Question
The Big Bang theory predicted
Answer
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the Hubble law
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the cosmic microwave background radiation
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the cosmological principle
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the abundance of helium
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the period-luminosity relationship of Cepheid variables
Question 7
Question
The simplest way to estimate the age of the universe is from
Answer
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using the slope of Hubble's Law
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the age of Moon rocks
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models of stellar evolution
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measurements of the abundances of elements
Question 8
Question
The CMB includes information about
Answer
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the age of the universe
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the temperature of the early universe
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the density of the early universe
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density fluctuations in the early universe
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the motion of Earth around the center of the Milky Way
Question 9
Question
Repeated measurements showing that the current helium abundance is much less than the value predicted by the Big Bang would imply that
Answer
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some part of the Big Bang theory is incorrect or incomplete
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the current helium abundance is wrong
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scientists don't know how to measure helium abundances
Question 10
Question
If the density of the universe is higher than the critical density, the universe will
Question 11
Question
Dark energy has been hypothesized to solve which problem?
Answer
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the universe is expanding
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the cosmic microwave background radiation is too smooth
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the expansion of the universe is accelerating
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stars orbit the centers of galaxies too fast
Question 12
Question
What problems of cosmology does inflation solve?
Answer
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flatness
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horizon
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fluctuation
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sphere
Question 13
Question
The first stars formed in the universe had [blank_start]fewer[blank_end] heavy elements and [blank_start]higher[blank_end] mass than the stars formed today.
Question 14
Question
We expect the kinds of galaxies that we see at a redshift of z = 4 to be:
Answer
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much like we see today
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smaller and much more irregular looking than today
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far more numerous but with more spiral galaxies
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larger versions of what we see today
Question 15
Question
Place the following in order of size, from smallest to largest.
[blank_start]a star[blank_end]
[blank_start]star clusters[blank_end]
[blank_start]a galaxy[blank_end][blank_start]the Local Group[blank_end]
[blank_start]Virgo Cluster[blank_end][blank_start]Laniakea[blank_end]
[blank_start]a wall[blank_end]
Answer
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a star
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star clusters
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a galaxy
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the Local Group
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Virgo Cluster
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Laniakea
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a wall
Question 16
Question
The dominant force in the formation of galaxies is
Question 17
Question
Larger galaxies form from the merging of small protogalaxies. That process is similar to the formation of:
Answer
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stars
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planets
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molecular clouds
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asteroids
Question 18
Question
Which of the following is a characteristic difference between cold and hot dark matter?
Question 19
Question
The dominant factor in the formation of galaxies is the distribution of [blank_start]dark matter[blank_end] in the early universe.