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This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Chapter 6, Nothing but Music, The Essentials of Superstring Theory.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Two theories form the basis of modern physics, but are incompatible with one another. String theory attempts to reconcile these fields. What are these two theories?
(a) General relativity and special relativity.
(b) Quantum mechanics and the photoelectric effect.
(c) Gravity and general relativity.
(d) General relativity and quantum mechanics.

2. What discovery about string theory triggered the "superstring revolution"?
(a) It was found to encompass the four fundamental forces of matter.
(b) It was experimentally confirmed at Fermilab in the US.
(c) Einstein announced that it exactly matched his formulas for general relativity.
(d) Its approximate equations were solved for the first time.

3. What is the fundamental particle, the smallest possible bundle of energy, for the electromagnetic force?
(a) The photon.
(b) The electron.
(c) The neutrino.
(d) The gluon.

4. Which of the following is not true according to special relativity?
(a) Motion and time are relative; they depend on the observer.
(b) No object can move faster than the speed of light.
(c) Time does not pass for objects that are perfectly at rest.
(d) All objects move at a constant speed through space-time.

5. What is different about a particle of antimatter, compared to its normal counterpart?
(a) Complementary spin.
(b) Negative mass.
(c) Zero mass.
(d) Opposite electrical charge.

Short Answer Questions

1. In quantum mechanics, what is symmetry breaking?

2. What is the quantum, or messenger particle, of the weak force?

3. What are the characteristics of a wave?

4. Which physicist is credited with discovering that light is composed of particles?

5. Black holes are dense and massive cosmological bodies. What unique distinction do they have?

(see the answer key)

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