Everyday Science
Everyday Science asks about the body, matter, energy, the solar system and household technology - the physics and biology behind ordinary life. Questions are factual and short, so consolidate units, names of instruments, vitamins and organ functions.
Facts worth memorising
- Newton's laws: inertia (1st), F = ma (2nd), action–reaction (3rd).
- Work = force × distance (joule); Power = work ÷ time (watt).
- Blood groups: A, B, AB, O; O negative is the universal donor, AB positive the universal recipient.
- Vitamin deficiency: A–night blindness, B1–beri-beri, C–scurvy, D–rickets, K–clotting failure.
- Photosynthesis: 6CO₂ + 6H₂O → C₆H₁₂O₆ + 6O₂, in the presence of chlorophyll and sunlight.
- pH below 7 acidic, above 7 basic; litmus red in acid, blue in base.
- Instruments: barometer (pressure), hygrometer (humidity), seismograph (earthquakes), anemometer (wind speed), ammeter (current).
Worked example
"How much work is done in lifting a 10 kg mass through 2 m? (g = 9.8 m/s²)" Work = force × distance = (m × g) × h = 10 × 9.8 × 2 = 196 joules. Note the reasoning step: the force needed equals the weight (mg), not the mass alone - dropping the g is the standard error.
Traps
- Mixing mass (kg) with weight (newtons).
- Confusing the universal donor (O−) with the most common group (O+ in many populations).
- Swapping the deficiency diseases of vitamins B1 and C.
- Reading a pH of 7 as acidic rather than neutral.