PPSC Everyday Science Past Paper 2017 Solved MCQs with Answers
Solved Everyday Science MCQs from the PPSC 2017 past paper, each with the correct answer and a clear explanation. Ideal practice for PPSC, FPSC, NTS, CSS and PMS. All questions are extracted from the actual 2017 paper and verified before publication.
Average salinity of seawater:
Seawater has an average salinity of about 3.5 per cent, that is 35 grams of salt in a kilogram of water.
In modern periodic table elements are arranged by:
The modern periodic table arranges elements by atomic number.
Which of these is NOT a coinage metal?
Zinc is not a coinage metal. Copper, silver and gold form Group 11, the coinage metals.
What is the primary cause of earthquakes?
Earthquakes occur when tectonic plates lock together, strain builds along the fault, and the rock finally slips.
An earthquake is best described as:
An earthquake is the shaking of the crust by seismic waves released at a fault.
Plate tectonics is the theory that:
Plate tectonics holds that the rigid outer shell of the earth is broken into plates which move over the mantle beneath.
Smaller earthquakes can be caused by all of the following EXCEPT:
Volcanic activity, landslides, mine blasts and nuclear tests all set off small earthquakes. Lunar tides do not trigger them in any appreciable way.
Hot liquid and semi-liquid rock located under Earth's surface is called:
Molten rock below the surface is magma. Once it reaches the surface it is called lava.
Earthquakes and volcanoes occur mostly in:
Earthquakes and volcanoes concentrate in folded and faulted belts, that is along the margins of the plates.
Which instrument is used to detect and record earthquakes?
A seismograph detects and records the ground motion of an earthquake.
The Richter scale measures the:
The Richter scale measures the magnitude, that is the energy released by an earthquake.
Earthquakes rarely occur in:
Brazil sits in the stable interior of the South American plate, so earthquakes there are rare. Japan, Indonesia and Chile lie on active margins.
The Ring of Fire is also called:
The Ring of Fire is also called the Circum-Pacific Belt, and holds about three quarters of the world's volcanoes.
The point on Earth's surface directly above the hypocentre/focus of an earthquake is called the:
The point on the surface directly above the focus is the epicentre.
Surface waves are typically generated when the source of an earthquake is:
Surface waves are strongest when the focus is shallow, which is why shallow earthquakes do the most damage.
A P-wave (compressional wave) is a seismic body wave that shakes the ground:
A P-wave is a compressional wave, so the ground moves back and forth along the direction the wave travels. It is the first to arrive.
What was the magnitude of the largest earthquake ever recorded (1960, Chile)?
The Valdivia earthquake in Chile in 1960, of magnitude 9.5, is the strongest ever recorded.
A volcanic feature formed by the collapse of a volcano into itself is called a:
A caldera forms when a volcano collapses into its own emptied magma chamber.
According to the US Geologic Survey, approximately how many potentially active volcanoes are there worldwide?
The United States Geological Survey counts about 1,350 potentially active volcanoes worldwide.
The material that comes out of a volcano during eruption is in which states?
A volcano ejects solid material, liquid lava and gases together.
Mount Vesuvius in Italy is currently classified as:
Vesuvius is classed as dormant. It has not erupted since 1944, but it is not extinct and is closely watched.
Mauna Loa is an example of which type of volcano?
Mauna Loa is an active shield volcano, built up from thin runny lava into a broad gentle dome.
When magma is ejected by a volcano, the material is called:
Magma that has been ejected is called lava.
Which is the MOST COMMON type of volcano?
Cinder cones are the most common type of volcano, and the simplest in structure.
Cinder cones are also known as:
Cinder cones are also called scoria cones, after the frothy rock they are built from.
Stratovolcanoes are also called:
Stratovolcanoes are also called composite volcanoes, being built of alternating layers of lava and ash.
How many main types of volcanoes are there?
Four main types of volcano are recognised: shield, cinder cone, composite and lava dome.
Which of the following is NOT one of the four main types of volcanoes?
There is no such type as a magma volcano. The four types are shield, lava dome, cinder cone and composite.
Mount Semeru, which erupted in December 2021 and killed 14 people, is located in:
Mount Semeru, which erupted in December 2021, is on the island of Java in Indonesia.
Which type of volcano has broad, gentle slopes formed by low-viscosity lava?
A shield volcano has broad gentle slopes, because its low viscosity lava flows far before it sets.
From which language does the word 'tsunami' originate?
Tsunami is a Japanese word, meaning harbour wave.
A tsunami is an ocean wave triggered by:
A tsunami is set off by an undersea earthquake, a volcanic eruption, a submarine landslide or a landslide falling into the water.
What percentage of all tsunamis happen within the Pacific Ring of Fire?
About 80 per cent of tsunamis occur within the Pacific Ring of Fire.
Tsunamis are most commonly triggered by:
Most tsunamis are caused by large undersea earthquakes that displace the sea floor.
A flood occurs when:
A flood is water covering land that is normally dry, whatever the cause.
An avalanche is best described as:
An avalanche is a mass of snow, ice and rock sliding rapidly down a mountainside.
A cyclone is a system of winds rotating:
In the northern hemisphere a cyclone turns anticlockwise around a centre of low pressure.
Tropical cyclones of the Bay of Bengal are usually called:
The tropical storms of the Bay of Bengal are called cyclones. The same storm is a hurricane in the Atlantic and a typhoon in the western Pacific.
An anticyclone is caused by:
An anticyclone is a high pressure system, its winds spiralling outwards and bringing settled weather.
Hurricanes are tropical storms that form over the:
Hurricanes form over the North Atlantic and the north-east Pacific.
Typhoons are formed over which ocean?
Typhoons form over the north-west Pacific.
A drought is best defined as:
A drought is a prolonged period of rainfall well below the normal for that region.
A landslide is the:
A landslide is the downward movement of rock and debris detaching from a slope.
A blizzard is a severe snowstorm characterised by sustained winds of at least:
A blizzard has sustained winds of at least 56 km per hour with falling or blowing snow, lasting three hours or more.
Electricity is what kind of source of energy?
Electricity is a secondary source of energy, since it must be generated from a primary source such as coal, gas, water or sunlight.
Renewable energy is best defined as energy:
Renewable energy comes from natural processes that replenish at least as fast as we use them.
Which of the following is NOT a renewable energy source?
Coal is a fossil fuel and is not renewable. Solar, wind and geothermal are.
Which of the following is a non-renewable energy source?
Natural gas is a fossil fuel, and so non-renewable. Solar, wind and tidal are renewable.
About the PPSC Everyday Science Past Paper 2017
Every MCQ above is taken from the Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) Everyday Science papers held in 2017, with the correct answer and a written explanation for each. Past-paper practice is the most dependable way to prepare for PPSC, FPSC, NTS, CSS and PMS, because these papers repeat their themes, and often the questions themselves, from one year to the next.
Questions were checked against reliable sources before publication. Where a circulating source sheet carried a factual or wording error, we corrected it rather than reproducing the mistake. For chapter-wise preparation, work through our Everyday Science MCQs hub, which also lists every other year’s paper. Further reading: Pakistan Movement and the PPSC official website.
How to Use This Paper
Attempt the full quiz before looking at any answer, then read the explanation for every question you got wrong, including those you guessed correctly. A past paper is only useful if you close the gaps it exposes. Pro members can download the complete paper as a PDF with all answers and explanations for offline revision.