General Science Flash Card Set 679197

Cards 10
Topics Blood Cells, Crust, Fronts, Momentum, Neutron, Power, Precipitation, Prefixes, Primary Consumers

Study Guide

Blood Cells

Blood is created in bone marrow and is made up of cells suspended in liquid plasma. Red blood cells carry oxygen, white blood cells fight infection, and platelets are cell fragments that allow blood to clot.

Crust

The crust is the Earth's outermost layer and is divided into oceanic and continental types. Oceanic crust is 3 miles (5 km) to 6 miles (10 km) thick and is composed primarily of denser rock. Continental crust is 20 to 30 miles (30 to 50 km) thick and composed primarily of less dense rock. The crust makes up approximately one percent of the Earth's total volume.

Fronts

An air mass is a large body of air that has similar moisture (density) and temperature characteristics. A front is a transition zone between two air masses.

Momentum

Momentum is a measure of how difficult it is for a moving object to stop and is calculated by multiplying the object's mass by its velocity: \(\vec{p} = m\vec{v}\). Like velocity, momentum is a vector quantity as it expresses force applied in a specific direction.

Neutron

A neutron is a subatomic particle found in the nucleus of an atom. It is neutral as it carries no electric charge.

Power

Power is the rate at which work is performed or work per unit time: \(P = {w \over t}\) and is measured in watts (W).

Precipitation

Rising into the atmosphere, the water condenses into clouds. When the clouds become too saturated with water, the water is released as snow or ice precipitation which may warm as it falls to reach Earth as rain.

Prefixes

A prefix is added to the base units of the metric system to indicate variations in size. Each prefix specifies a value relative to the base unit in a multiple of 10. Common prefixes are:

Prefix Symbol Relative Value Example
mega M 106 (1,000,000) Mm
kilo k 103 (1,000) km
base unit N/A 1 m
centi c 10-2 (1/100) cm
milli m 10-3 (1/1,000) mm
Primary Consumers

Primary consumers (herbivores) subsist on producers like plants and fungus. Examples are grasshoppers, cows, and plankton.