PRAXIS II General Science: Content Knowledge, Part II Exam

This general science exam will assess your readiness to teach science at the secondary school level. You'll be given one hour to complete 60 multiple-choice questions. The will be 17 questions regarding science technology and society; 11 questions regarding life science, 16 questions regarding chemistry, and 16 questions on physics.

Earth Space Science: Science, Technology, and Society
This section of the exam will cover biotechnology, conservation of resources, consumer products, energy production, the impact of science and technology on daily life, and the usage of science and technology in daily life. Under the astronomy section of this exam stars, the structure of the solar system, space exploration, and theories of the origin of the universe will be covered. In the meteorology section, your knowledge of climate and climatic change, forecasting, maps, frontal systems, high and low pressure systems, humidity, clouds and precipitation, seasonal and latitudinal variation of solar radiation, and the structure and properties of the atmosphere will be assessed. Knowledge of the ocean floor, chemistry of seawater, waves, tides and currents will be assessed in the oceanography section of the exam. Fossils, minerals, earthquakes, volcanoes, plate tectonic theory, and the Earth's history will be assessed in the geology section of the exam.

Life Science
This section of the exam will assess your knowledge of anatomy and physiology of the animals., food webs and energy flow, ecosystems, social behavior and population dynamics, sexual and asexual reproduction, the structure and function of roots, leaves, and stems of plants; theories of evolution, protein synthesis, genetic engineering, human genetic disorders, Mendelian and non-Mendelian inheritance, DNA replication, and the structure and function of the cell.

Chemistry
The section of the exam will assess your knowledge of the periodic table, the mole and chemical bonding, the kinetic theory, states of matter, electrochemistry, endothermic and exothermic reactions, stoichiometry, inorganic compounds and, solutions and solubility.

Physics
This section of the exam will assess your knowledge of Newton's law of motion, periodic, circular, projectile, and straight-line motion; gravity, torque, friction, energy conservation, Archimedes principal, transformers, motors, magnetism, electrical circuits, static electricity, current electricity, electromagnetic radiation, Doppler effect, reflection, refraction, diffraction, and characteristics of transverse and longitudinal waves.

PRAXIS II General Science: Content Knowledge, Part II Practice Questions

1. The essential benefits of information technology include:

A. word and number processing
B. research on the Internet
C. greater efficiency
D. All of the above

2. Which of the following is not part of the history of digital animation?

A. Sepia
B. Zoetrope
C. Stop-action photography
D. Computer-generated

3. Which of the following is not a core theory of physics?

A. Classical mechanics
B. Energy
C. Electromagnetism
D. Thermodynamics

4. Which of the following is not a discipline of chemistry?

A. Organic
B. Inorganic
C. Entropy
D. Biochemistry

5. Customer relationship management studies:

A. how customers buy
B. what customers buy
C. why customer buy
D. All of the above

Answer Key For General Science Content Knowledge Part II

1. Answer: D

There are six basic concepts important to understanding information technology (IT):

• BINARY: brief representations of long strings of numbers used in computations. Only zeroes and ones are used to represent these number strings.
• ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange): letters and punctuations signs combined with strings of binary numbers
• HIERARCHY: There is an order to understanding and using information technology; this concept is sometimes referred to as "nesting quality."
• WORLD WIDE WEB: the www is a communication tool that links information via bursts of binary data.
• STORED PROGRAM: a CPU (central processing unit) stores multiple sets of instructions and determines the next step in a process.
• ROUTING: Sequences of binary numbers move through a connected network.

The three essential applicable benefits of the basic concepts are:

• WORD AND NUMBER PROCESSING: formatting of documents and spreadsheets
• SEARCHING THE INTERNET: using the ASCII encoding system to find information
• GREATER EFFICIENCY: increased speed in finding, comparing, and transmitting data

2. Answer: A

Animation is the process of making drawings and inanimate objects appear to move. It began in the mid 1850s with the use of the zoetrope to simulate movement, graduated to stop-action photography, as seen in the early cartoons of Walt Disney in the 1930s, and has progressed to the computer-generated films currently being produced. (The first totally computer-generated film was "Toy Story" in 1995.)

Digital animation creates moving images using a computer. It is the same process used to produce movement on television and in films (originally known as motion pictures). A simple explanation for the process follows: An image is displayed on the screen then is quickly replaced with another image that is similar to the first but has shifted ever so slightly. This process is repeated as many times as necessary to complete the desired action. The images are then layered onto a virtual skeleton. Details are added (eyes, mouth, ears, hair, etc.), and all the related images are shown sequentially, creating the illusion of movement. Computer animation has come a long way since the days of the zoetrope.

3. Answer: B

Physics is a fundamental, experimental science that studies matter, motion, energy, space, and time and how they interact. Its goal is to understand the natural world by formulating and testing hypotheses in an effort to develop scientific laws that predict other phenomena. Physics is one of the oldest sciences; humans have been trying to figure out how the world works for thousands of years.

Physicists specialize in either theoretical (the development of new theories) or experimental (testing theories and discovering new phenomena) research. Physics is divided into four disciplines: condensed matter physics; atomic, molecular, and optical physics; high-energy physics; and astronomy and astrophysics. Other sciences are complex applications of the laws of physics.

The core theories of physics, as described in Webster's New Explorer Desk Encyclopedia, are:

• CLASSICAL MECHANICS: the motion of objects
• ELECTROMAGNETISM: interaction between charged particles
• RELATIVITY: measurement changes in various states of motion
• THERMODYNAMICS: relationship between heat, work, temperature, and energy
• QUANTUM MECHANICS: mathematical explanation of atomic and subatomic systems
• OPTICS: production, propagation, changes, and manipulation of light

4. Answer: C

Chemistry grew out of the practice known as alchemy, a philosophical and spiritual discipline that investigated the possibility of transforming base metals into gold. Modern chemistry is the physical science that studies the composition, structure, properties, and reactions of atoms, molecules, crystals, and other aggregate matter by themselves or in relationship to each other. It is sometimes called the "central science" because it connects the other natural sciences.

Chemistry studies matter in relation to energy (the capacity to do work) and entropy (the measurement of energy unable to do work) and the spontaneity of chemical reactions (the changing of matter into one or more substances).

Chemistry is divided into several disciplines based on the type of matter being studied:

• ORGANIC CHEMISTRY studies compounds that contain carbon. Note: Certain carbon compounds are considered inorganic compounds.
• INORGANIC CHEMISTRY studies mineral compounds.
• BIOCHEMISTRY studies organisms capable of responding to stimuli, reproduction, and growth.
• PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY studies energy systems at the macro, molecular, and submolecular levels.
• ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY studies matter and its chemical composition and structure.

5. Answer: D

Customer relationship management (CRM) is a multilayered method of capturing, storing, and analyzing information about current customers. It identifies a company's best customers. It helps marketers understand their specific needs so they can plan and execute more effective marketing strategies. CRM helps management and sales teams develop relationships with the decision makers, which will ultimately lead to more sales. It is a well-known and proven fact that people buy from people, not from companies. By providing sales teams and marketers with information about the twenty percent of customers who buy eighty percent of the goods and services offered by a company, sales and profits increase and customer satisfaction improves.

Practitioners of CRM study customer behavior: how they buy, what they buy, when they buy, and why they buy. To understand and be effective using customer relationship management, marketers must be familiar with psychology, sociology, and anthropology, as well as micro- and macroeconomics. CRM is a powerful tool when used correctly and applied judiciously.