Name: ____________________________________
Class: _____________
Date: _____________
Self Assessment: Nuclear Processes
1. For
202
88
Ra, the number 202 refers to the _____.
a) atomic number
b) neutrons
c) mass number
d) atomic mass
2. Which of the following is a medical application of radiation?
a) carbon 14 dating of wood artifacts
b) plutonium 238 in heart pacemakers
c) gamma irradiation of food
d) uranium 238 in power plants
3. Which kind of radiation can be stopped by paper?
a) alpha
b) beta
c) positron
d) gamma
4. In a radioactive series,
234
91
Pa becomes
234
92
U. What kind of decay is this?
a) gamma
b) alpha
c) beta
d) positron
5. An animal fossil is estimated to be 75,000 years old. What dating method was most likely used?
a) uranium lead
b) carbon 14
c) potassium argon
d) molybdenum technetium
PAGE 1
Name: ____________________________________
Class: _____________
Date: _____________
Self Assessment: Nuclear Processes
6. Which two radioactive elements did the Curies discover?
a) radium and uranium
b) uranium and plutonium
c) thorium and polonium
d) polonium and radium
7. In our solar system's Sun, deuterium and tritium (isotopes of hydrogen) combine to form helium. What type
of reaction is this?
a) fission
b) plasma
c) fusion
d) decay
8. What is a benefit of using nuclear power?
a) thermal pollution of rivers
b) less air pollution
c) meltdown of reactors
d) nuclear waste
9. The particle released by positron decay is _____.
4
a) 2 He
b)
0
1
e
1
c) 1 H
d)
0
+1
PAGE 2
e
Name: ____________________________________
Class: _____________
Date: _____________
Self Assessment: Nuclear Processes
10. Today you have 2.5 grams of phosphorus 32 (half life 14.28 days). How much will you have 60 days
from now?
a) 1.3 g
b) 0.16 g
c) 2.5 g
d) 0.63 g
PAGE 3
ANSWER KEY
1. c
2. b
3. a
4. c
5. c
6. d
ANSWER KEY Page 1
7. c
8. b
9. d
10. b