In this exhibition we asked you to classify 10 statements as true or false. These questions were adapted from a 2019 international inquiry about the study of mathematics and science (TIMMS). Click here to find out more.
Statement 1: Vitamins can provide the human body with long-term immunity against some diseases.
FALSE: Vitamins have many benefits for health, but do not offer long-term immunity against diseases.
Statement 2: Normally, candy has more calcium than cheese.
FALSE: Cheese and other milk products are natural sources of calcium. Candy is not.
Statement 3: John has diabetes. He should avoid fruit juice.
TRUE: People with diabetes should avoid foods and drinks high in sugar, and fruit juice is naturally high in sugar.
Statement 4: The flu can be transmitted from person to person when sharing food.
TRUE: The flu can be transmitted through droplets. If these droplets land on food, people who eat it can get the flu too.
Statement 5: When they first appeared on Earth, organisms lived in the air.
FALSE: Scientists believe life first appeared in fissures that release water heated by the Earth.
Statement 6: Birds, bats and butterflies all have feathers.
FALSE: Birds have feathers, but butterflies and bats do not.
Statement 7: When a car tire runs over a can and crushes it completely, the atoms are not destroyed.
TRUE: When a tin is crushed, it changes not because the atoms are destroyed but because their relative positions change.
Statement 8: The Earth rotates on its axis once every 24 hours.
TRUE: The Earth takes 24 hours to do a full rotation on its axis.
Statement 9: The lunula is the crescent-shaped whitish area at the base of fingernails.
TRUE: The lunula is indeed the crescent-shaped whitish area at the base of the fingernails.
Statement 10: Aldebaran is the brightest star of the Orion constellation.
FALSE: Aldebaran is the brightest star of the Taurus constellation, not Orion.
