General Physics 1000+ MCQ with answer for UPSC CDS

1. The inability of a body to change its state of rest or uniform motion along a straight line is called its
A. momentum
B. velocity
C. acceleration
D. inertia
Answer : D

2. A man stands in a lift which accelerates upwards. The resultant reaction force on the floor of the lift is
A. greater than the weight of the man
B. less than the weight of the man
C. same as the weight of the man
D. zero
Answer : A

3. Which of the following wires of same dimensions offers least resistance to the ,flow of current?
A. copper
B. aluminium
C. silver
D. nichrome
Answer : C

4. The weight of a body is
A. maximum at the equator
B. minimum at the equator
C. minimum at the poles
D. the same everywhere
Answer : B

5. A piece of ice is Boating In water kept in a beaker. When all the ice melts the level of water will
A. first rise and then fall
B. fall
C. remain the same
D. rise
Answer : C

6. The air inside an electric, bulb is removed to prevent
A. oxidation of the tungsten filament
B. bursting of the bulb
C. loss of light due to absorption
D. keeping the weight of the bulb less
Answer : A

7. The temperature of a large bucket-full of hot water (a few degrees below boiling point) is lower than a beaker full of boiling water. But
A. the hot water contains a much larger quantity of internal energy than the boiling water
B. the boiling water contains more quantity of internal energy than the warm water
C. both of them have got the same amount of internal energy.
D. nothing can be said definitely with the data given
Answer : A

8. The body of an electrical appliance is earthed in order that
A. electricity may not leak
B. there may be smooth flow of electricity
C. a short circuit may be prevented
D. current may pass to the earth in case of a short circuit without doing any harm to the person
Answer : D

9. The force of attraction or repulsion between two charged bodies is directly proportional to the product of the charges and inversely proportional to the square of distance between them. This was propounded by
A. Coulomb
B. Gilbert
C. Volta
D. Rutherford
Answer : A

10. An integrated circuit la more advantageous than a conventional circuit because
A. they make the electric equipment more reliable and easier for servicing
B. a faulty part of a conventional circuit may be difficult to locate and repair
C. if a part of the integrated circuit fails the entire circuit is simply replaced
D. All the above
Answer : D

11. Isotones are species of atoms containing
A. same number of protons but different number of neutrons
B. same number of neutrons but different number of protons
C. the same total number of protons and neutrons
D. same number of protons and different number of electrons
Answer : B

12. Formation of shadows can be explained by
A. rectilinear propagation of light
B. reflection
C. refraction
D. total internal reflection
Answer : A

13. Nuclear fusion is a process in which
A. the atoms and molecules lose their identity
B. nucleus is split into fragments
C. the nuclear reaction between two light atomic nuclei results in the formation of a heavier nucleus with release of a large quantity of nuclear energy in the process
D. absorption of neutron by a nucleus
Answer : C

14. The planet that moves fastest around the sun is
A. Mars
B. Venus
C. Earth
D. Mercury
Answer : D

15. A balloon ruled with hydrogen will
A. continue going upwards uninterrupted
B. reach a particular height and remain floating
C. burst after reaching some height
D. reach a particular height and start coming down
Answer : B

16. A series of east moving still pictures can be made to appear as a moving picture because the eye
A. can focus very rapidly as pictures change
B. is quicker than the brain
C. can see two images separated only if the interval' between seeing them is more than' one-tenth of a second
D. can shut out some of the light
Answer : C

17. A body has fallen from a height. Just before touching the pound it has
A. lost all its potential energy and gained an equivalent amount of kinetic energy
B. gained potential energy and lost kinetic energy
C. gained kinetic energy as well as potential energy
D. lost kinetic energy as well as potential energy
Answer : A

18. The unit of heat energy is
A. watt
B. degree
C. joule
D. erg
Answer : C

19. A tube light works on the principle of
A. chemical, heating and magnetic effects of electricity
B. discharge of electricity through gases
C. the action of ultraviolet radiation on certain fluorescent materials
D. Both (b) and (c) above
Answer : D

20. The tiniest of the stars belong to the group known as
A. Giant stars
B. White Dwarf stars
C. Neutron stars
D. Super-giant stars
Answer : C

21. When white light passes through a glass prism we get a spectrum on the other side of the prism. In the emergent beam the ray which is deviated least is
A. the violet ray
B. the red ray
C. the green ray
D. the blue ray
Answer : B

22. If a bar magnet is broken into two pieces
A. both pieces will lose their magnetism
B. one piece will have North Pole on both ends and the other South Pole on its both ends
C. each will remain a magnet with North Pole at one end and South Pole at the other
D. the longer piece will behave as a bar magnet while the smaller will have no magnetism at all
Answer : C

23. Which of the following apparatus is used in the electrolysis of water?
A. Voltmeter
B. Voltameter
C. Ammeter
D. Potentiometer
Answer : B

24. The SI unit of electric current is
A. the ampere
B. the volt
C. the ohm
D. the coulomb
Answer : A

25. Photocells are used
A. in burglar alarms
B. in automotive devices for light switches
C. television cameras
D. All the above
Answer : D

26. The period of a geostationary (synchronous) satellite orbiting the earth over the equator la
A. 16 hours
B. 12 hours
C. 20 hours
D. 24 hours
Answer : D

27. Mercury is used in thermometers because
A. it has high thermal conductivity
B. it has uniform expansivity
C. it has high boiling point and low freezing point
D. of all the above
Answer : D

28. Pyrometers are instruments used
A. for measuring the velocity of wind
B. in the manufacture of fireworks
C. in finding the coefficient of apparent expansion of a liquid
D. for measuring high temperatures
Answer : D

29. Heat is transmitted from one end of a metal rod to its other end by the method of
A. conduction
B. convection
C. radiation
D. sublimation
Answer : A

30. A body has fallen from a height. Just before touching the pound it has
A. lost all its potential energy and gained an equivalent amount of kinetic energy
B. gained potential energy and lost kinetic energy
C. gained kinetic energy as well as potential energy
D. lost kinetic energy as well as potential energy
Answer : A

31. The velocity required to place a vehicle in orbit round the moon is _________ that required to place it in orbit round the earth.
A. less than
B. greater than
C. equal to
D. greater than or equal to
Answer : A

32. In a longitudinal wave, the direction of propagation of the wave is
A. the same as the direction of the vibrations of the vibrating body
B. at right angles to the direction of the vibrations of the vibrating body
C. Both (a) and (b) above
D. None of the above
Answer : A

33. Photo-electric cells convert
A. electrical energy into light energy
B. light energy into electrical energy
C. light energy into heat energy
D. electrical energy into heat energy
Answer : B

34. Heat transfer
A. cools the body that transfers it
B. heats the body that absorbs the heat
C. may change the physical state of the substance
D. All the above
Answer : D

35. The freezer in a refrigerator is placed near the top
A. to keep it away from the hot compressor which is near the bottom
B. because of convenience
C. so that it can cool the whole interior by setting up convection currents
D. to prevent too much cooling
Answer : C

36. Which of the following is not electromagnetic waves?
A. heat waves
B. sound waves
C. radio waves
D. light waves
Answer : B

37. The brightest star visible to the naked eye is
A. Sirius
B. Vega
C. Rigel
D. Proxima Centauri
Answer : A

38. One finds it more difficult to walk on ice than on a concrete road because
A. there is more friction on ice than on concrete surface
B. ice is soft and spongy while concrete is hard
C. the friction between ice and the feet is less than that between the concrete and the feet
D. None of them
Answer : C

39. The mirage is a phenomenon
A. generally considered as a desert happening
B. caused by unequal heating of the several layers of the atmosphere above the desert
C. in which the refracted rays take a curved path resulting in total internal refection
D. All the above
Answer : D

40. When a particle in motion is acted upon by a force in a direction perpendicular to the direction of motion, the path followed by the particle will be
A. a straight line
B. an ellipse
C. a circle
D. a parabola
Answer : D

41. A sensitive instrument susceptible to magnetic infiuence can be protected from external magnetic field by
A. enclosing it in a thick walled iron box
B. wrapping it with an insulator
C. by placing it inside a glass case
D. by surrounding it with fine copper gauze
Answer : A

42. Holography is the technique of
A. taking photos of various objects
B. recording and reproducing three dimensional images
C. tracing out planets and stars in the sky
D. transmitting light waves
Answer : B

43. The unit of power in SI is
A. Joule
B. Newton
C. Joule/Sec
D. Erg/Sec
Answer : C

44. A boy is swinging a ball attached to a string in a horizontal circle. If the string snaps
A. the ball will travel towards the centre of the circle and fall down
B. it will continue to travel along a tangent to the circle at the point the ball was at the time of snapping and finally fall down
C. it will fall down at the same place where the string breaks
D. None of these
Answer : B

45. We see the sun before it actually rises on the horizon. This is due to
A. refraction
B. reflection
C. total internal reflection
D. parallax
Answer : A

46. Antiparticle of electron is
A. proton
B. antiproton
C. positron
D. neutron
Answer : C

47. The function of a ruse wire is
A. to stabilise the voltage
B. to decrease the current supply
C. to increase the current supply
D. to prevent an unduly high current from passing through a circuit
Answer : D

48. Electromagnets are used in
A. the telephone ear piece
B. the telegraph
C. the electric bell
D. All the above
Answer : D

49. Red Light is used as a dancer signal because
A. it is pleasing to the eye
B. it has a traditional colour
C. it is easily distinguishable
D. it is most sensitive to the human eye
Answer : D

50. When a bullet is fired from a gun
A. the gun moves forward
B. the gun jumps up
C. the gun does not move
D. the gun recoils with the same momentum as the bullet
Answer : D