20th Century Science: Online Quizzes and Learning Resources

Question 1

Which British physicist played a pivotal role in the development of the atomic bomb during World War II?

Accepted Answer

Ernest Rutherford

Answer

Albert Einstein

Answer

Isaac Newton

Answer

Stephen Hawking

Question 2

Who is widely recognized as the 'father of computer science' and made significant advancements in the field in the United Kingdom?

Accepted Answer

Alan Turing

Answer

Charles Babbage

Answer

Tim Berners-Lee

Answer

Ada Lovelace

Question 3

Which British scientist, in collaboration with James Watson, played a crucial role in discovering the structure of the DNA molecule?

Accepted Answer

Francis Crick

Answer

James Watson

Answer

Rosalind Franklin

Answer

Erwin Schrödinger

Question 4

Who holds the distinction of being the first British astronaut to venture into space?

Accepted Answer

Helen Sharman

Answer

Yuri Gagarin

Answer

Neil Armstrong

Answer

Buzz Aldrin

Question 5

What is the official name of the British government agency responsible for overseeing and coordinating space research and exploration activities?

Accepted Answer

UKSA

Answer

NASA

Answer

ESA

Answer

ISRO

Question 6

What was the name of the pioneering British computer, developed in the 1940s, that was one of the first to utilize stored programs?

Accepted Answer

EDSAC

Answer

Apple II

Answer

IBM PC

Answer

Altair 8800

Question 7

Identify the name of the British satellite that was successfully launched into orbit around the Earth in 1962, becoming the nation's first artificial satellite.

Accepted Answer

Ariel 1

Answer

Sputnik 1

Answer

Explorer 1

Answer

Vanguard 1

Question 8

Which British physicist gained recognition for their work on quantum mechanics and cosmology, making significant contributions to our understanding of the universe?

Accepted Answer

Stephen Hawking

Answer

Paul Dirac

Answer

Max Planck

Answer

Albert Einstein

Question 9

How did the development of computers enhance scientific progress in the 20th century?

Accepted Answer

Enabled faster data analysis and modeling

Accepted Answer

Allowed for the simulation of complex systems

Answer

Eliminated the need for human experimentation

Answer

Made scientific research obsolete

Question 10

Which of the following was the most significant impact of penicillin's discovery in the 20th century?

Accepted Answer

Reduced deaths from bacterial infections

Answer

Led to the creation of vaccines

Answer

Advanced genetic research

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT a fundamental principle of quantum mechanics?

Accepted Answer

Newton's laws of motion

Answer

Wave-particle duality

Answer

Uncertainty principle

Answer

Quantum superposition

Question 12

Scientists have a significant impact on society through their discoveries. Discuss the ethical responsibilities scientists have to society, using the development of the atomic bomb as an example.

Accepted Answer

Scientists have a responsibility to consider the potential societal impacts of their work and act accordingly.

Answer

Scientists should focus solely on advancing knowledge, regardless of societal consequences.

Answer

Ethical considerations should always come before scientific progress.

Answer

Scientists should only conduct research with immediate practical applications.

Question 13

Which technological advancement was crucial in transforming communication and data sharing during the space exploration era?

Accepted Answer

Satellites

Answer

Rockets

Answer

Space probes

Answer

Telescopes

Question 14

Which physicist is credited for pioneering research on nuclear fission?

Accepted Answer

Ernest Rutherford

Answer

James Clerk Maxwell

Answer

Michael Faraday

Answer

Isaac Newton

Question 15

Who is widely regarded as the 'father of computer science' and is known for their innovative work at the University of Cambridge?

Accepted Answer

Alan Turing

Answer

Charles Babbage

Answer

John von Neumann

Answer

Grace Hopper

Question 16

Which British satellite was the first non-Soviet spacecraft to successfully orbit the Earth?

Accepted Answer

Ariel 1

Answer

Sputnik 1

Answer

Vanguard 1

Answer

Explorer 1

Question 17

Who invented the World Wide Web while working at CERN?

Accepted Answer

Tim Berners-Lee

Answer

Vint Cerf

Answer

Robert Kahn

Answer

J.C.R. Licklider

Question 18

Which British scientist developed the theory of electromagnetic radiation and formulated Maxwell's equations?

Accepted Answer

James Clerk Maxwell

Answer

Michael Faraday

Answer

Lord Kelvin

Answer

William Herschel

Question 19

Who is credited as the inventor of the jet engine?

Accepted Answer

Frank Whittle

Answer

Hans von Ohain

Answer

Sergei Korolev

Answer

Konstantin Tsiolkovsky

Question 20

Which British chemist is known for their work on penicillin, for which they won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1945?

Accepted Answer

Alexander Fleming

Answer

Howard Florey

Answer

Ernst Chain

Answer

Selman Waksman

Question 21

Who is the contemporary British theoretical physicist and cosmologist known for their work on black hole thermodynamics and the Hawking radiation?

Accepted Answer

Stephen Hawking

Answer

Roger Penrose

Answer

Paul Dirac

Answer

Albert Einstein

Question 22

Who is recognized for being the first to split the atom?

Accepted Answer

Ernest Rutherford

Answer

Albert Einstein

Answer

Niels Bohr

Answer

James Chadwick

Question 23

Which British scientist notably contributed to artificial intelligence and codebreaking during World War II?

Accepted Answer

Alan Turing

Answer

Charles Babbage

Answer

Tim Berners-Lee

Answer

Stephen Hawking

Question 24

Gregor Mendel discovered which fundamental principle of genetics in the 19th century?

Accepted Answer

Law of independent assortment

Answer

Theory of evolution by natural selection

Answer

Structure of DNA

Answer

Genetic code

Question 25

Who proposed the theory of relativity, transforming our understanding of space, time, and gravity?

Accepted Answer

Albert Einstein

Answer

Isaac Newton

Answer

Marie Curie

Answer

Max Planck

Question 26

Name the first artificial satellite to orbit the Earth.

Accepted Answer

Sputnik 1

Answer

Explorer 1

Answer

Vostok 1

Answer

Gemini 3

Question 27

Who is referred to as the 'Father of the Internet'?

Accepted Answer

Tim Berners-Lee

Answer

Steve Jobs

Answer

Bill Gates

Answer

Elon Musk

Question 28

Identify an example of a renewable energy source.

Accepted Answer

Solar power

Answer

Coal

Answer

Natural gas

Answer

Nuclear power

Question 29

Who played a crucial role in the Manhattan Project as a British physicist?

Accepted Answer

Ernest Rutherford

Answer

J.J. Thomson

Answer

Stephen Hawking

Answer

Paul Dirac

Question 30

Who developed the first electronic digital computer?

Accepted Answer

Alan Turing

Answer

Charles Babbage

Answer

Isaac Newton

Answer

Tim Berners-Lee

Question 31

What was the name of the British satellite that launched in 1962?

Accepted Answer

Ariel 1

Answer

Sputnik 1

Answer

Luna 1

Answer

Vanguard 1

Question 32

Which of the following is NOT a major field of scientific advancement covered in this unit?

Accepted Answer

Artificial Intelligence

Answer

Quantum Mechanics

Answer

Genetics

Answer

Astrophysics

Question 33

Who proposed the idea of a Turing machine as a British mathematician?

Accepted Answer

Alan Turing

Answer

Charles Babbage

Answer

Ada Lovelace

Answer

Grace Hopper

Question 34

Which of the following is NOT a significant contribution made by British scientists and engineers to the field of renewable energy?

Accepted Answer

Development of nuclear fusion technology

Answer

Pioneering offshore wind farm development

Answer

Advancements in solar cell efficiency

Question 35

Which British physicist made groundbreaking contributions to the development of nuclear physics in the early 20th century?

Accepted Answer

Ernest Rutherford

Answer

James Clerk Maxwell

Answer

Niels Bohr

Answer

Albert Einstein

Question 36

Who is credited with inventing the first electronic, programmable computer, known as the Colossus, during World War II?

Accepted Answer

Tommy Flowers

Answer

John Atanasoff

Answer

Charles Babbage

Answer

Alan Turing

Question 37

Who was the first British astronaut to travel into space?

Accepted Answer

Helen Sharman

Answer

Tim Peake

Answer

Neil Armstrong

Answer

Yuri Gagarin

Question 38

Which British scientist developed the theory of evolution by natural selection?

Accepted Answer

Charles Darwin

Answer

Alfred Russel Wallace

Answer

Thomas Malthus

Answer

Jean-Baptiste Lamarck

Question 39

Which British scientist discovered penicillin, revolutionizing the field of medicine?

Accepted Answer

Alexander Fleming

Answer

Louis Pasteur

Answer

Edward Jenner

Answer

Jonas Salk

Question 40

Who invented the World Wide Web (WWW)?

Accepted Answer

Tim Berners-Lee

Answer

Steve Jobs

Answer

Vinton Cerf

Answer

Marc Andreessen

Question 41

Who was the first female British Prime Minister?

Accepted Answer

Margaret Thatcher

Answer

Elizabeth I

Answer

Theresa May

Answer

Victoria

Question 42

Which British physicist played a pivotal role in the development of nuclear fission?

Accepted Answer

Ernest Rutherford

Answer

Stephen Hawking

Answer

Alan Turing

Answer

James Clerk Maxwell

Question 43

What was the official name of the first nuclear reactor built in the UK?

Accepted Answer

GLEEP

Answer

Windscale

Answer

Calder Hall

Answer

Dounreay

Question 44

Which British scientist proposed the theory of natural selection?

Accepted Answer

Charles Darwin

Answer

Alfred Russel Wallace

Answer

Thomas Henry Huxley

Question 45

Which British computer was used to decipher the German Enigma code during World War II?

Accepted Answer

Colossus

Answer

Sinclair ZX Spectrum

Answer

Manchester Mark I

Answer

EDSAC

Question 46

Which model, developed by James Watson and Francis Crick, describes the structure of DNA?

Accepted Answer

Double Helix

Answer

Triple Helix

Answer

Pleated Sheet

Answer

Linear Chain

Question 47

What breakthrough discovery in 1928 revolutionized the treatment of bacterial infections?

Accepted Answer

Penicillin

Answer

Insulin

Answer

Vaccines

Answer

Aspirin

Question 48

James Chadwick's discovery of which subatomic particle in 1932 was crucial for understanding the atom's nucleus?

Accepted Answer

Neutron

Answer

Quark

Answer

Proton

Answer

Electron

Question 49

What was the name of the UK's first successful artificial satellite launched into orbit?

Accepted Answer

Ariel 1

Answer

Prospero

Answer

Skynet 1

Answer

Black Arrow

Question 50

Which invention of the 1950s revolutionized electronics and paved the way for smaller, faster computers?

Accepted Answer

Transistor

Answer

Integrated Circuit

Answer

Vacuum Tube

Answer

Microprocessor

Question 51

Which renowned British scientist, known for his work on black holes, significantly advanced our understanding of the universe in the late 20th century?

Accepted Answer

Stephen Hawking

Answer

Rosalind Franklin

Answer

Alan Turing

Answer

Peter Higgs

Question 52

What revolutionary medical imaging technology, invented in the early 20th century, allowed doctors to see inside the human body without surgery?

Accepted Answer

X-ray machine

Answer

Electrocardiograph (ECG)

Answer

Blood pressure monitor

Answer

Stethoscope