NOTE: SKIP QUESTIONS 4,11,12 IF WE DIDN'T USE A COURSE READER THIS SEMESTER


                              ASTROBIO QUIZ
                              _____________

1) Which of the following is NOT a factor in the Drake Equation?
  a) the age of the universe
  b) the number of habitable planets in the galaxy
  c) the fraction of planets that actually have life
  d) fraction of planets with life that will develop radio communication
  e) the lifetime of a civilization


2) In relation to SETI, the radio frequency range between 1420 and 1720 MHz 
is known as:
  a) the prime frequency range.
  b) the lighthouse window.
  c) the water hole.
  d) the Drake range.
  e) the FM window.
Hint: the radio frequency for hydrogen emission is 1420 MHz and the
highest radio frequency for the OH molecule is 1720 MHz.


3) Suppose that right now an alien civilization is searching for intelligent 
life in the galaxy by observing radio waves. What is the maximum distance
that alien civilization could be from Earth if it were to detect our radio
broadcast signals?
  a) about 1420 light years
  b) about 50 light years
  c) about 25,000 light years
  d) about 100,000 light years
  e) exactly 1 Ozma


4) The article "The Origin of Life on the Earth" by L. Orgel can best be
summarized as a description of the ________ hypothesis.
  a) "inorganic protein synthesis"
  b) "DNA world"
  c) "origin of amino acids"
  d) "RNA world"
  e) "clay life"


5) A zone around each star in which the temperature neither rises so high 
that water cannot condense on the surface nor fall so low that the 
planet freezes permanently: this region is called  _____.
  a) the zone of avoidance 
  b) the habitable zone
  c) the bio-zone
  d) the class-M planet zone
  e) the water hole zone


6) Layered pillars of rock made of colonies of cyanobacteria and silt are
known  as _____, and were among the first organisms to release oxygen into 
the atmosphere.
  a) glycogen
  b) panspermia 
  c) ribosomes
  d) mitochondria
  e) stromatolites


7) Which of the following is NOT related to a methods by which astronomers
detect extrasolar planets?
  a) Radial Velocity/Doppler Effect
  b) Astrometry
  c) Gravitational Microlensing
  d) Photometric Transits
  e) Radar


8) In addition to reproduction and storing genetic information, DNA is 
also ultimately responsible for initiating the  _______.
  a) the creation of polymers of saccharides.
  b) storage of energy.
  c) storage of eucaryotic organelles.
  d) photosynthesis.
  e) the synthesis of proteins. 


9) The three domains of life on Earth are called bacteria, eucarya, and _____.
  a) protista
  b) archaea
  c) mitochondria
  d) extremophilia
  e) cambria 


                      .........................
EXTRA CREDIT: 


10) All the amino-acid monomers found in life on Earth ...
  a) contain only carbon-13.
  b) contain at least one silicon atom.
  c) are made of protein.
  d) are used in photosynthesis.
  e) are of the left-handed variety.


11) Who wrote the following quote (in 1959)?
"...one must [conclude] that news affirming the existence of UFOs is welcome,
but skepticism seems to be undesirable. Disbelief is discouraged. 
This creates ...a tendency...to believe in saucers and to want them to be
real, unconsciously helped along by [the] press..."
  a) Carl Jung
  b) Gerard Kuiper
  c) Frank Drake
  d) Rosalind Franklin
  e) Barney & Betty Hill
(this is based on S. Dick's chapter in the Course Reader)


12) Based on the article "Meet the Relatives", the DNA in chimps and humans
is about ___%  identical.
  a) 10%
  b) 50%
  c) 75%
  d) 80%
  e) 99%