8th Grade Science: Final Review Packet, 2011 (Key) Purpose: Your final exam is cumulative, which means

it covers material from the whole year. This is not to torture you, it is to reinforce the main ideas, many of which youll need next year, and give you a chance to demonstrate that you meet all the standards. Inquiry, Unifying Concepts & Processes: These are the fancy words on your report card that basically mean making observations, graphing data, and drawing conclusions about the data. In other words, do you get the big picture about science? Do you understand the scientific method? 1. Define & give at least 1 example for each of the following: a. Observation: something you can see, count, measure (quantify). i. Example: students wearing both blue and yellow shirts. b. Inference: A conclusion you reach based on your observations (may or may not be correct) i. Example: students have several choices of gym shirt. ii. Example2: students are on 2 teams, yellow vs. blue 2. Write an hypothesis for the following question (use your imagination): Which type of gas, neon or helium, is the most effective in the tires of the Super Hamster-mobile? a. Must include: subject, verb, object, punctuation! b. Example: If helium is used in the SH-mobile tires, then the car will run best. c. Example: Neon will be the most effective gas to use in SH-mobile tires. 3. What is the purpose of graphs? To display data quickly & clearly 4. Describe the difference between variables and constants. a. Variables: Things that change (on purpose or as results). b. Constants: Things that stay the same. 5. Which type of graph would you use for each of the following sets of data? a. Your height every year from birth to age 12. line graph (change over time) b. Your 2nd quarter grades for science, math, social studies & religion. Bar graph (comparing quantities) 6. What 3 labels should be included on every graph? Title, x-axis, y-axis 7. What is the difference between constants and control group? a. Constants: parts of an experiment that are the same in all tests b. Control: standard of comparison (what normal results would be) 8. When is it ok to put things in your mouth during science lab? If Mrs. Maloney says so 9. Which would make an object under a microscope look bigger, 10X or 40X magnification? 10. What are the metric units for measuring the following? a. Length or distance meters (mm, cm, km) i. How many mm in 1 cm? 10 b. Liquid volume liters (ml) i. How many ml in 1 liter? 1000 c. Mass grams (mg, kg) i. How many milligrams in 1 gram? (1000 Science in Personal & Social Perspectives: 1. Scientists must not just ask themselves can we? but also should we? Describe 2 reasons for this need for ethics in science, and include an example. a. Just because something is possible, doesnt mean it is safe, fair or healthy. Energy and matter are tools that people choose to use for good or evil. b. It is impossible to predict all the possible outcomes of an action, like ripples in a pond. c. Example: cloning. Cloning tissues or organs could be lifesaving, but that same technology could be used to try to clone people, which is a really bad idea!

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d. Example: the Internet. Valuable research tool, or tool to exploit the vulnerable? The technology simply IS, it is what WE do with it that gives it value. Our faith calls us to stewardship of creation. What does that have to do with science? We only have one earth, and it is in our own best interest to care for it. We need clean air, clean water, & clean soil to live. Habitat conservation and restoration help to make sure our earth stays habitable. Science and technology help us to better understand and meet the needs of people and the earth. What are the 2 types of cloning? Reproductive, therapeutic Why is cloning controversial? It uses fertilized eggs (zygotes, embryos) Why is the church against human cloning? All life is sacred Why would habitat conservation/restoration have to accompany cloning extinct species? If the habitat is not restored, the species would just end up extinct again. What is the difference between renewable & nonrenewable resources? Renewable resources can be regenerated by the earth in less than 1 human lifetime (about 100 years), while nonrenewable resources take much longer (sometimes millions of years!) What are alternative energy resources? Non-fossil fuel energy resources Current research indicates all humans are descended from one tribe from: Africa Why is it challenging to balance the needs of both people and the environment? Sometimes the needs (and wants) of people conflict with the needs of the plants, animals, etc. in the environment. What did Alfred Nobel invent? Dynomite a. What is Nobel famous for today? The Nobel Peace Prize.

Earth & Space Science: This includes geology, weather & earth history. Refer to things labeled MFE, CSE, AAY, 1. Who came up with the theory of Continental Drift? Alfred Wegener a. Why didnt people believe him? He was a meteorologist b. What proofs did he come up with to support the theory? Shape/fit of continents, rock evidence, fossil evidence, glacier evidence 2. FYI: Continental Drift + Seafloor Spreading = Plate Tectonics 3. The word Pangaea means: all earth a. Pangaea was: when all the continents were joined together 4. If land is being added at mid-ocean ridges, why isnt the earth getting bigger? Because it is being subducted in other areas 5. What is the difference between lava & magma? Magma = hot molten rock w/in the earth, lava = hot molten rock that has erupted 6. What are the 3 types of volcano? Shield, cinder cone, composite a. Describe each volcano type including its shape: i. Shield: low & flat, formed from frequent quiet eruptions ii. Cinder cone: classic volcano shape, formed from violent eruptions iii. Composite: alternating quiet & violent eruptions. 7. What causes earthquakes? Tectonic plates stressed past their elastic limit 8. What is an earthquakes focus? The place on the surface of the earth above the epicenter (where the quake begins). 9. Why are earthquakes & volcanoes common at plate boundaries? Boundaries are interactive (grinding past each other, pressing together, pulling apart) 10. What is a caldera? Rain-filled crater (lake) formed by the collapsing cone of a volcano. 11. What is the Law of Superposition? In an undisturbed rock feature, the oldest layer is at the bottom. 12. FYI: Substances that are eroded from one place are deposited somewhere else. 13. Why is there little data about the earliest earth history? Few living things with hard parts to fossilize, much land has been eroded or subducted 14. FYI: Geologic time divisions get smaller as you get closer to the present because there is a lot more info about what is going on now. 15. The first humans are thought to have originated in: Africa

a. They crossed the Red Sea into what country? Yemen b. How did they get to Australia? Boats/rafts c. How did they get to North America? Walked across the land bridge from Russia to Alaska (sea levels were lower then). 16. FYI: Neanderthals were another species of human that became extinct. 17. How is the sun responsible for all the weather on earth? Heating the earths surfaces unevenly. 18. Sketch & label an example of the water cycle. Evaporation, condensation, precipitation Life Science: This is basically genetics. 1. Compare & contrast sexual & asexual reproduction: a. Sexual: two parents donate cells: DNA mixed in offspring b. Asexual: one parent makes an exact copy of itself 2. Define diploid and haploid Diploid = whole number of chromosomes for adult, Haploid = half the number of chromosomes for an adult 3. What kind of cells are produced with mitosis? Identical (bacteria, skin cells, etc.) 4. What kind of cells are produced with meiosis? Sex cells (sperm, egg) 5. What does DNA stand for? Deoxyribonucleic Acid a. Which cells contain DNA? All, each and every one! 6. FYI: humans have 46 chromosomes in our body cells. 7. What is the difference between genotype & phenotype? a. Genotype: the genes (chromosomes) an organism has b. Phenotype: the physical appearance of a living thing 8. What are mutations? Random, permanent changes in the DNA 9. What is the difference between dominant & recessive traits? Dominant traits are always expressed when present. Recessive traits are only seen in the absence of dominant traits. a. How do you represent (write) dominant & recessive traits? Dominant traits are written with capital letters, recessive traits with lower case. 10. Define heterozygous, (1 dominant, 1 recessive: Aa) homozygous dominant, (2 Dominant alleles: AA) and homozygous recessive (2 recessive alleles: aa) 11. Draw a Punnett square for the offspring of 2 heterozygous parents. 12. Who was Gregor Mendel? Monk who observed pea plants: father of modern genetics 13. Define genetics: study of heredity 14. Define heredity: passing on of traits from one generation to the next 15. What is the difference between organic & inorganic? Organic = alive, or used to be alive. Inorganic = not alive and never was. a. Give an example of each material: organic: leaf, puppy, caterpillar. Inorganic: rock, rain, sand Physical Science: Includes Chemistry, Electricity & Magnetism 1. Know your atomic particles! a. Protons: positive, mass = 1, nucleus b. Neutrons: no charge, mass = 1, nucleus c. Electrons: negative, no mass, orbits nucleus 2. Defineion: positively or negatively charged atom 3. Define isotope: atoms of the same element w/different numbers of neutrons 4. What does atomic number tell you? Number of protons 5. What does mass number tell you? Protons + neutrons 6. What does the 2 in H2O tell you? There are 2 Hydrogen atoms for every 1 Oxygen 7. When balancing a chemical equation, you must have the same number of each type of atom on the reactant side and the product side. 8. What are some signs of a chemical reaction? Change of smell, color or texture. Bubbling, fizzing. Different product from reactant. Cant put it back the way it was.

9. What do all the elements in the same column of the periodic table have in common? Same number of valence electrons 10. What is the difference between kinetic & potential energy? Kinetic = energy of motion, potential = stored energy 11. What is the law of conservation of energy? Energy cant be created or destroyed, it only changes form 12. FYI: like charges repel, opposites attract. 13. What is resistance? Energy lost as light or heat from electrons running into each other 14. What is the relationship between voltage, amperes & ohms? V = (amps)(ohms) a. What happens to the brightness of a bulb if you add volts? It increases 15. Define circuit: closed path electricity follows 16. What is the difference between a series circuit & a parallel circuit? Series has just 1 path for current to follow, parallel has several. 17. The North poles of 2 magnets would: repel each other 18. What is the difference between a motor and a generator? Motors change electrical energy to kinetic, generators change kinetic energy to electrical. 19. How much resistance do superconductors have? O (zero) 20. MRI stands for: Magnetic Resonance Imaging 21. Electromagnets are made from: wrapping a current-carrying wire around a piece of metal