# Take the Basic Physics Quiz. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [August 26, 2005, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726 "2005-08-26T14:05:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![JimOfAllTrades](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@JimOfAllTrades](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JimOfAllTrades)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 5:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/61 "2005-08-27T05:45:14Z")
87.5%. Last physics class was in high school over 30 years ago. And I think I deserve 90% because I don’t like their answer for #14. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Interrobang](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/interrobang/32/17463_2.png) [@Interrobang](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interrobang)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/62 "2005-08-27T06:20:55Z")
80% for this English major. I’m surprised – I was guessing as I took the test that I’d end up at around 60%, because I wasn’t sure about many of those answers. ---
**Author:** ![LVgeogeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b19c9b/32.png) [@LVgeogeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LVgeogeek)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 6:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/63 "2005-08-27T06:50:46Z")
I got a 95%. Missed 17 and 26. I have a geology degree and only did so-so in physiscs. ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 8:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/64 "2005-08-27T08:52:18Z")
Um, 45%. And, okay, in some science class I had in high school the instructor made a Very Big Deal out of steam v. water vapor. Boiling teapots, etc. Steam is what you can’t see, water vapor is what you can see, etc. I would say I got it backwards but my husband remembers the same. From a different school, different state, and different decade. Still a pretty bad score, though. But then I don’t actually believe in physics. ---
**Author:** ![KJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b2d939/32.png) [@KJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KJ)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/65 "2005-08-27T21:41:36Z")
I like these kinds of quizzes. I got a 90%. Missed #8 because I’m still confused about energy despite studying it for years in high school/college. Missed #28 partly because I second-guessed my original answer. Missed #29 because it was the one about the clouds. Missed #31 because it seemed like a trick question. (Their explanation told me stuff I didn’t know, though.) ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/66 "2005-08-27T23:20:01Z")
85% Not half bad for a formula-hating arithmetic-hating non-hard-sciences person like me 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Catalyst](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@Catalyst](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catalyst)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/67 "2005-08-28T01:31:43Z")
92.5%. I missed 15, 29, and 36. Remind me to kick Ben Franklin next time I see him. ---
**Author:** ![sunstone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunstone/32/3372_2.png) [@sunstone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sunstone)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/68 "2005-08-28T02:29:34Z")
90%…I missed three, but after reading the explanations, I better understand the test’s terminology. Water vapor vs waterdroplets…I knew that! (darn it!) ---
**Author:** ![rjk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@rjk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjk)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/69 "2005-08-28T02:50:57Z")
97.5 % I knew I shouldn’t think about voltage! ---
**Author:** ![wolf\_meister](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolf_meister/32/15202_2.png) [@wolf\_meister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolf_meister)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/70 "2005-08-28T03:38:07Z")
With all the “Dopers” reporting their scores and in particular, which questions they got wrong or which ones were unfair, I decided to copy the entire test to a geocities free website I have. (I have noted the appropriate credit and copyright). It’s easier to reference the questions this way, the true false “buttons” have been removed and the text is bigger. Here is the link: [http://www.geocities.com/internet\_web\_surfer\_dude/physics.htm](http://www.geocities.com/internet_web_surfer_dude/physics.htm) ---
**Author:** ![David\_Simmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@David\_Simmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_Simmons)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/71 "2005-08-28T04:17:30Z")
> [@Hilarity N. Suze](#): > > And, okay, in some science class I had in high school the instructor made a Very Big Deal out of steam v. water vapor. Boiling teapots, etc. Steam is what you can’t see, water vapor is what you can see, etc. There is a lot of confusion about steam and water vapor because in everyday, non-scientific terminology they are different. However, this was a physics quiz and the physics terminology should be used. Your high school instructor was wrong. Water vapor consists of individual water molecules that form a gas and the assembly of water molecules acts just like any other gas. Invisible, doesn’t form a free surface, expands to fill its container, etc. If you set a pan of water on the kitchen counter it will gradually evaporate. What comes off the surface is water vapor and you can’t see it. The stuff you can see that comes out of a tea kettle is tiny droplets of liquid water and is properly called mist. ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/72 "2005-08-28T04:59:23Z")
85%, I shouldn’t have rushed or I would have gotten a couple more right just for reading them correctly. ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 5:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/73 "2005-08-28T05:39:11Z")
90% here. I missed: 1. Energy…work…yeah, whatever. 2. Duh. Brain fart here. F=m1m2 over whatever. So the force is the same for both. 3. Yeah, me too. But upon reflection, I agree the answer is “false.” 4. I SUCKED at electrical physics in college. For some reason, I’ve just never been able to wrap my head around it. Odd. Not bad, though. Better than I would have expected. I bet I would have done better on a quiz about subatomic particle physics. ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 7:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/74 "2005-08-28T07:27:29Z")
I got a 90%. I never actually took a physics class, but I read a lot of science articles. For those of you complaining about semantics, remember that science uses strict definitions of words that may or may not correspond to the popular definitions. I especially can’t see anything wrong with question 16 - acceleration is a change in velocity, which can be speed, direction, or both. The question clearly states that the car is going around a corner, therefore changing direction, therefore changing velocity, therefore accelerating. The ones I missed are 15, 29, 34, and 36. ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/75 "2005-08-28T08:25:15Z")
'Nuther 87.5. The cloud tripped me up. ---
**Author:** ![Jman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jman/32/4416_2.png) [@Jman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jman)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 9:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/76 "2005-08-28T09:07:59Z")
> [@engineer\_comp\_geek](#): > > I got 34 wrong (kinda embarassing for a EE to get one of the electrical questions wrong) but I still think the way it’s worded that you could interpret it either way. It’s nitpicking over the exact usage of the word “force” which again is semantics, not physics. Another EE who missed that one. Sorry, I hate playing the semantics game. I ended up with a 90% overall, but that pissed me off. Sure, it’s not really a ‘force’ but it’s the reason the electrons are moving. ---
**Author:** ![David\_Simmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@David\_Simmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_Simmons)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/77 "2005-08-28T15:30:21Z")
> [@Jman](#): > > Another EE who missed that one. Sorry, I hate playing the semantics game. I ended up with a 90% overall, but that pissed me off. Sure, it’s not really a ‘force’ but it’s the reason the electrons are moving. Right. It might not in and of itself be a force but it sure acts like one. And isn’t electro-motive force the common name for a potential difference. From another EE who missed it. I think the question was poorly worded (cried the losers). ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/78 "2005-08-28T15:34:40Z")
> [@BMalion](#): > > Here is a neat little [Basic Physics Quiz](http://www.intuitor.com/physics_test/) , I got a disappointing 77.5%. I’m not as smart as I thought I was. > > I’ll need to bone up on Newton’s Laws and some basic energy information. The simple information I just picked up about gravity is fascinating! > > I may not need to know this stuff to pay my bills and mow my lawn, but I think it’s important dammit! If we do not have a basic grasp of physics we can be fooled by all kinds of hoaxes and charlatans. > > So what’s your score? 90%. And me a starving poet. I’d like to thank professors Heinlein and Asimov ---
**Author:** ![David\_Simmons](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/9de053/32.png) [@David\_Simmons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/David_Simmons)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/79 "2005-08-28T15:36:51Z")
P.S. I’m also a little torqued over the one about a feather and a hammer on the moon. This was billed as a **basic** physics test but I don’t think the fact that the moon might have a teeny, weeny residual atmosphere is part of **basic** physics. ---
**Author:** ![Cheesesteak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cheesesteak/32/3694_2.png) [@Cheesesteak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cheesesteak)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726/80 "2005-08-28T21:24:59Z")
92.5% I missed 8 which was a flat out screw up on my part. Missed 29, which I don’t feel too bad about since it was a definitional question rather than a conceptual question, and everyone else seemed to miss it too. Missed 34 on voltage. I would have felt better about 34 if they had actually told us what the force IS that moves electrons through a circuit. I mean, electrons are partices with mass, right? And they go from moving nowhere to moving somewhere when you connect the circuit, right? So, some force is applied to the electron, from some source and makes it move, what is it if not voltage? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/take-the-basic-physics-quiz/318726.md?page=5)