General Awareness · Science General

Inventors and Scientific Discoveries

4,616 Questions

This hub provides questions related to great inventors and their scientific discoveries. It covers the inventors of the telephone, radio, and microchips, alongside Nobel Prize winners. These facts are crucial for the general awareness section of major competitive exams.

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Inventors and Scientific Discoveries Questions

Multiple choice

Directions: Which of the given options best represents the information in the reading passage? Choose the appropriate number (1 – 4).

Which of the following statement is false?

Directions: Answer the given question based on the following passage:

ALBERT EINSTEIN
Albert Einstein is perhaps one of the most celebrated scientists in history, especially for the 20th century. His work in physics led to an era of new discoveries and knowledge of our universe. He is however, not just known for his famous equation e= mc2, but he is also known for his contributions to other fields in science. Without Einstein, we would not have computers, be able to travel into space or have a deeper understanding of our own biology, of outer space, time and the universe.
His first major discovery was made while he was pursuing his doctorate. This discovery was the formula that could accurately describe Brownian motion which is the movement of particles in a fluid, such as liquid or gas. The idea that the motion of particles can be explained by their interaction on the molecular level has been around since ancient times. Einstein however was the first to develop an accurate mathematical model for this movement. What is fascinating is that at one point it was considered to be incorrect. Einstein, through further experimentation, proved it otherwise.
His next discovery was even more amazing and helped to build the foundation of quantum physics. This was the discovery of the quantum nature of the photoelectric effect. This phenomenon had been observed by other scientists for some time. The effect comes about when light strikes certain types of photosensitive materials. In response, these materials emit electrons. According to classical theory, it was thought that light was a wave of pure energy. If this was so, then the intensity of the light would increase the energy of the electrons being emitted. What actually happens is that increased intensity of light only increases the amount of electrons being released, but does not increase their energy. Something was not right with this model and Einstein offered an alternative. Einstein proposed that light was not just a wave of energy, but a series of particles with a specific energy. This was the proposal of light being comprised of photons and this led to his winning the Nobel Prize for science in 1921.

  1. Einstein won the Nobel Prize for his contributions in the field of Science.

  2. Einstein was able to successfully prove that Brownian Movement was invalid.

  3. Apart from the equation e= mc2, Einstein also contributed to the discovery of computers.

  4. When light hits any material sensitive to light, electrons are emitted.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

(1) …… proposal of light being comprised of photons and this led to his winning the Nobel Prize for science in 1921.

(3) …. not just known for his famous equation e=mc2, but he is also known for his contributions to ..… computers …. (4) ….. photoelectric effect. This phenomenon had been observed by other scientists for some time. The effect comes about when light strikes certain types of photosensitive materials. In response, these materials emit electrons.
 

Option 2 is false because this in the passage it is stated that when Brownian movement was considered to be incorrect at one time, it was proved to be correct by Einstien through experimentation . 

Multiple choice

Consider the following statements:

  1. Tissues are the first level of organisation for living things.
  2. Aristotle is called the father of biology.

Which of the given statements is/are correct?

  1. Only 1

  2. Only 2

  3. Both 1 and 2

  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect. Cells are the first level of organisation for living things. The correct order of levels of organisation of living organisms is: Cell level - Tissue level - Organ level - Organism Statement 2 is correct. Aristotle is called the father of biology because he accomplished great things in biology such as empirical research program, classification of living things, theory of biological forms, etc.

Multiple choice

Who invented the high language C?

  1. Bjarne Stroustrup

  2. Dennis M Ritchie

  3. Douglas Engelbart

  4. Niklaus Wirth

  5. Donald Knuth
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Dennis M Ritchie developed C language.

Multiple choice

Plasma membrane was discovered by which of the following scientists?

  1. Matthias Schleiden

  2. Theodore Schwann

  3. Rudolf Virchow

  4. Schleiden and Schwann

  5. Singer and Nicolson
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Theodore Schwann (1839), a British Zoologist, studied different types of animal cells and reported that cells had a thin outer layer, which is today known as the ‘plasma membrane.

Multiple choice

Which scientists were the first to discover the trilaminar structure of plasma membrane?

  1. Gorter-Grendel

  2. Davson-Danielli

  3. Robertson-Grendel

  4. Singer-Nicolson
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

In 1935, Davson-Danielli proposed plasma membrane is the three-layered symmetric structure. After that in 1959 and 1972, Robertson and Singer-Nicolson proposed the distinct structural model in details respectively, where Singer-Nicolson Model of plasma membrane was widely accepted. In 1925, Gorter-Grendel proposed the lipid bilayer membrane of the plasma membrane.

Multiple choice

On the basis of ribosomal-RNA genes, three-domain biological classification; archaea, bacteria, and eukarya for the first time was introduced by

  1. Carl Woese

  2. Cavalier-Smith

  3. Whittaker

  4. Chatton

  5. Linnaeus
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

The three-domain system is a biological classification introduced by Carl Woese in 1990, that divides cellular life forms into archaea, bacteria, and eukarya domains on the basis of differences in 16S rRNA genes.

Multiple choice

Penicillin was discovered by

  1. S.A. Waksman

  2. Alexander Fleming

  3. Paul Ehrlich

  4. Domagk

  5. Thomson
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

Penicillin was discovered by Alexander Fleming.

Multiple choice

Which of the following is not correct regarding cathode ray tube?

  1. It is also called as Braun’s tube.

  2. Wehnelt cylinder is not used in cathode ray tube.

  3. It was invented by Karl Ferdinand Braun.

  4. It was invented in 1897.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

(1) The cathode ray tube was invented by the German Physicist Karl Ferdinand Braun in 1897 and is today used in computer monitors, TV sets etc. (2) The source of the electron beam is the electron gun which produces a stream of electrons through thermionic emission at heated cathode and focuses it into a thin beam by control grid. (The control grid is also called as Wehnelt cylinder.) So, 2nd option is incorrect.

Multiple choice

Who discovered proton?

  1. Rutherford

  2. Goldstein

  3. Thomson

  4. Chadwick

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

He is widely credited with first splitting the atom in 1917 in a nuclear reaction between nitrogen and alpha particles, in which he also discovered and named the proton.

 
 

Multiple choice

The name “Waterman” is associated with the discovery of

  1. balloon

  2. transistor

  3. bycycle

  4. pen
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Lewis Edson Waterman is credited with inventing the practical fountain pen in 1884 after a pen he was using to sign an insurance document leaked. His innovation revolutionized writing instruments by incorporating a reliable ink feed system.

Multiple choice

Who gave Tunica Corpus Theory?

  1. Hofmeister

  2. Nageli

  3. Strasburger

  4. Schmidt

  5. -
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

Schmidt in 1924 proposed this theory for the organisation of shoot apex. According to this theory, the shoot apex can be differentiated into two regions of unlike structure and appearance, a central core, the corpus with large cells dividing irregularly to result in volume growth. It is surrounded by an outer enveloping layer called the tunica.