Physics 007 sample midterm #1 (spring 2010)

10. Among the many observations of Tycho Brahe, one that did not support Aristotle'smodel of the Cosmos wasA) The position of the planetsB) The appearance of a supernova (exploding star) in 1572.C) The phases of the Moon.D) The position of the planet Jupiter which behaved very strangely in 1582.E) The variation in the orbit of Mars.11. During the Middle AgesA) All the works from the Greek civilization were lost forever.B) The telescope was invented.C) The Sun was almost universally believed to be at the center of the universe.D) The Earth was almost universally believed to be at the center of the universe.E) The teachings of the Catholic Church were completely ignored.12. Galileo found that the Moon had mountains and this distressed Aristotle's followersbecauseA) This meant that the moon did not moveB) This showed that the Sun moves around the EarthC) This contradicted the idea that the Moon was a perfect sphereD) The Moon was supposed to be made of cheeseE) This could only happen is the Earth circled the Moon13. A philosopher living in New York claims that every time he meditatates the number ofviolent crimes in California drops; if we follow Ochkam's reasonong one shouldA) Take this as a proof of the dominance of mind over matterB) Take his claim as true and give him a raiseC) Hire more philosophers and fewer policemen.D) Take this as a proof of the weak mindedness of all criminalsE) Be very skeptical as there is no clear connection between this man's mind and thatof the Califnornian criminals14. Newton's showed that the gravitational forceA) Depended on the speed of the bodiesB) Is independent of the distanceC) Decreases as the square of the distanceD) Increases with the distanceE) Had a different form for every planetPage 3