MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM

BY E-MT

Read the Question carefully.

1. A window is in the form of a rectangle surmounted by a semicircle. The total area of the
window is fixed. What should be the ratio of the areas of the semicircular part and the
rectangular part so that the total perimeter is minimum?

A. π: 2
B. π:4
C. ½π
D. 2π

2. At 8 A.M. ship A is 65 km due east of another ship B. Ship A is sailing due west at 10 km/h and
ship B is sailing due south at 15 km/h. If they continue sailing on their respective paths, when
will they be nearest to one another?
A. 10 am
B. 12 pm
C. 6 pm
D. 10 pm
3. A square tank of capacity 250 cubic meters has to be dug out. The cost of the land is ₱ 50 per
square meter. The cost of digging increases with the depth and for the whole tank it is ₱ 400
× h^2 where h meters is the depth of the tank. What should be the dimensions of the tank so
that the cost would be minimum?
A. 10 x 2.5
B. 2.5 x 10
C. 2.5 x 15
D. 1.0 x 2.5

4. It is the servicing, adjusting, and repairing of equipment.

A. Preventive Maintenance
B. Equipment Maintenance
C. Protective Equipment
D. Storing Equipment
5. It the process of bringing the surface of concrete to its final position and imparting the desired
surface texture.

A. Floating
B. Batching
C. Placing
D. Finishing
6. Estimate the hourly production in loose volume LCM of a 2.68-m^3 wheel loader excavating
sand and gravel (average material) from a pit and moving it to a stockpile. The average haul
distance is 61 m, the effective grade is 6%, the bucket fill factor is 1.00, and job efficiency is
50 min/h.

A. 170 LCM/hr
B. 168 LCM/hr
C. 181 LCM/hr
D. 148 LCM/hr Prepared by Engr. Matt
 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

7. Find the shrinkage of a soil that weighs 1661 kg/m^3 in its natural state and 2077 kg/m^3
after compaction.
A. 10%
B. 12%
C. 20%
D. 25%

8. Find the required theoretical power value to compress 2.8 m3 of free air per minute from
atmospheric (0.101 N/mm2 ) to 0.7 𝑁/𝑚𝑚2 indicate on the gauge 8.01 bar absolute.

A. 12.1 HP
B. 13.1 HP
C. 9.71 HP
D. 8.91 HP
9. If air is adopted as the flushing medium, the gauge pressure is usually 7 bar. Find the Annulus
velocity for a 13 mm diameter hole in the drilling rods about 2.23 m3 /mm of air at this
pressure will reach the bit when passed down a 30 meter stem.

A. 2.5 m/s
B. 5.1 m/s
C. 6.9 m/s
D. 5.4 m/s
10. A small plane is flying from Chicago to St. Louis, a distance of 258 mi. After flying at 130 mi/hr
for 45 min, the pilot finds that she is 12° off course. If she corrects the course and maintains
speed and direction for the remainder of the flight, how much longer will the flight take?

A. 0.9 hr
B. 1.1 hr
C. 1.3 hr
D. 2.0 hr
11. A sundial can be used to trace a moving shadow during the day to measure the time. The
raised part that casts the shadow is called the gnomon. In order to measure time accurately,
the angle the gnomon makes with the face of the dial must be the same as the latitude where
the sundial is used. If the latitude of Manila is 38°N, and the angle of elevation of the sun, a, is
63° at noon, how long will the shadow of a 12 in. gnomon be on the face of the sundial?

A. 13 in
B. 11 in
C. 20 in
D. 18 in

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

12. When certain keys on a piano are struck, a felt-covered hammer strikes two strings. If the
piano is out of tune, the tones from the two strings create a beat, and the sound is sour. If a
piano tuner counts 15 beats in 5 sec, how far apart are the frequencies of the two strings?

A. 12 cycles/sec
B. 5 cycles/sec
C. 10 cycles/sec
D. 3 cycles/sec
13. A tree casts a shadow of 32 m at the same time a vertical yardstick (3.0 m) casts a shadow of
2.2 m. How tall is the tree?
A. 44 m
B. 55 m
C. 50 m
D. 43 m

14. If we know that the distance from the earth to the sun is approximately 93,000,000 mi, and
we find that the largest angle between the earth–sun line and the earth–Venus line is 46°,
how far is Venus from the sun? (Assume that the earth and Venus have circular orbits around
the sun)

A. 47,000,000 mi
B. 57,000,000 mi
C. 67,000,000 mi
D. 77, 000,000 mi
15. A boat is cruising along the coast on a straight course. A rocky point is sighted at an angle of
31° from the course. After continuing 4.8 mi, another sighting is taken and the point is found
to be 55° from the course. How close will the boat come to the point?

A. 4.0mi
B. 5.0 mi
C. 6.0 mi
D. 7.0 mi

16. A lighthouse shows successive one-second flashes of red, white, green, white, red. A second
lighthouse does the same only with two-second flashes. The six-second sequence of the
lighthouse is repeatedly steadily as is the twelve-second sequence of the other Lighthouse.
What fraction of the time do the two lights show the same color if the given sequence start at
the same time?

A. 1/2
B. 1/5
C. 1/6
D. 1/4

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

17. Compacting applies energy to a soil to consolidate it by compressing air voids to increase the
soil’s dry density. Which of these are the objectives of proper compacting?
I. Minimize settling
II. Increase the soil′ sload bearing characteristics
III. Increase soil stability
IV. Reduces water penetration
V. Protects slopes that will drain water away

A. I, II, III and IV

B. II, III, IV and V
C. I, III, IV and V
D. All of the above

18. The 25,000 lb Hubble space telescope was launched April 1990 and placed in a 380 mi
circular orbit above the earth’s surface. It completes one orbit every 97 min, going from a
dawn-to-dusk cycle nearly 15 times a day. If the radius of the earth is 3,964 mi, what is the
linear velocity of the space telescope in miles per hour (mph)?

A. 16,000 mph
B. 19, 000 mph
C. 11, 000 mph
D. 17, 000 mph
19. To encourage Elmer's promising tennis career, his father offers him a price if he wins (at
least) two tennis sets in a row in a three-get series to be played with his father and the club
champion alternately: Cather-champion-father or champion-father-champion, according to
Elmer' choice. The champion is a better player than Elmer's father. Which should Elmer
choose?

A. Father, Champion, Father at 0.512 probability

B. Father, Champion, Father at 0.384 probability
C. Champion, Father, Champion at 0.384 probability
D. Champion, Father, Champion at 0.512 probability
E.
20. If an underwater flashlight is directed toward the surface of a swimming pool, at what angle
of incidence a will the light beam be totally reflected if he index of refraction for water is
n1=1.33 and that for air n2=1.00 and the angle of refraction b is 90°.

A. 90.1°
B. 48.8°
C. 52.4°
D. 88.8°
1.
21. The path of the typhoon "Mark" passes through Batanes Island at a certain location whose
depth of water above the bottom of the sea equal to 150 m. Determine the approximate
velocity of the wave propagation kph.

A. 68.6 kph
B. 65.8 kph
C. 77.8 kph
D. 74.9 kph Prepared by Engr. Matt
 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

22. Four projects are being considered (A, B, C, and D). Write an integer program to find the best
set of projects if the total capital budget is limited to $100 million. Besides the data in the
following table, we must allow for the fact that project D can be undertaken only if project C
is (D depends on C) and that A and B are synergistic projects. Each project can be done once
at most.

A. 2.0
B. 1.0
C. 8.0
D. 4.0

23. Many bridges are built of steel-reinforced concrete. As long as the steel is protected from
corrosion, the bridge lives are very long. The cost difference between proper maintenance
and early replacement is also very large. For example, a particular bridge would cost
$200,000 now to repair or $1.8M in 10 years to replace. The state highway department claims
it uses an interest rate of 8%, but it has decided to replace the bridge later due to a current
shortage of funds. The stage agency also anticipates some federal funding for the replacement
bridge. What is the implied interest rate for choosing to replace later rather than to repair
now?

A. 24.60%
B. 12.90%
C. 18.01%
D. 42.60%

24. It occurs as concrete hardens, being greater in wet mixes Curing helps to limit its effects and
therefore concrete in the actual structure should be thoroughly and continuously moistened
for some considerable period after placing.

A. Curing
B. Hardening
C. Shrinkage
D. Finishing

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

25. A large number of test results produce a standard deviation, a 1.5 N/mm2, and average
strength of 10 N/mm2 . If 5% of results are permitted to fail. What should be the minimum
design strength of the mix?

A. 5.10 N/mm2
B. 2.80 N/mm2
C. 7.06 N/mm2
D. 9.10 N/mm2
26. It is the result when the solids settle under the action of gravity leave the layer of water, and
consequently a porous and weak final surface. It increased cement and / or use of an air-
entraining agent in the mix that will help to counter the effect.

A. Segragation
B. Bledding
C. Flooring
D. Mixing
27. Concrete floors and ground slabs are normally broken up by a construction joints into bays
or strips about 6 or 7m wide up to 20 m long. Walls are normally divided into panels with
vertical construction joints at about 10 m centers.

A. Horizontal joints
B. Construction joints
C. Vertical joints
D. Concrete joints
28. Calculate the maximum pressure produced when placing 75 mm slump concrete at a rate of
2 m/h shuttering 2.5 m high and 250 mm wide. Assume the temperature of the concrete in
the formwork is initially 15°C and vibration is continuous.

A. 65 kn/m2
B. 25 kn/m2
C. 56 kn/m2
D. 70 kn/m2
29. When concrete is held under a sustained compressive stress, permanent deformation occurs
causing a reduction in length. The amount of reduction is proportional to the stress in the
section and increases with time. Up to 10% loss of stress may be caused by

A. Brittle
B. Hardens
C. Elastic
D. Creep

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

30. Accurately set out between support pegs acts as a guide for a sensor mounted on a pivot arm
of the paving machine. It is only required at one side of the machine as a built-in cross fall
control mechanism operated automatically or manually sets the height of the opposite pivot
arm.
A. Stringline
B. Shoe
C. Sensor
D. Wire line
31. Carol and George are both engineers. In 2001, their combined income was $105,000. How
much did their income need to be in 2008 to have the same purchasing power?

A. 542, 709
B. 124,907
C. 701,971
D. 904,871

32. The community of Upper Snowshoe has expanded its winter tourism very rapidly. Three
years ago, they built a new, 10,000-kW power plant for $4.5M. The local construction cost
index was 135 at that time, and it has risen to 157 now. In current dollars, what is the
estimated cost of a 16,000-kW power plant?

A. 8 Million
B. 7 Million
C. 8 Million
D. 9 Million

33. Speed limit would only be appropriate on very high standard expressways, which have a low
crash rate. The expressways should have a high standard geometry and should be free of
roadside hazards, if hazards exist and they cannot be removed or modified, they should be
shielded with a safety barriers.

A. 80 kph
B. 120 kph
C. 100 kph
D. 60 kph
34. Parking and maneuvering associated with angle parking to be executed completely clear of
through lanes. A physical separation in the form of an outer separator should be made
between the parking- maneuvering area and the through traffic lanes.

A. National Road
B. Expressway
C. Municipal Road
D. Local Road

35. Labor laws in a certain country require factory owners to give every worker a holiday
whenever one of them has birthday and to hire without discrimination on grounds of
birthdays. Except for these holidays, they work 365-day year. The owner wants to maximize

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

the expected total number of man days worked per year in a factory. How many workers do
factory have in a certain country?

A. 378
B. 264
C. 355
D. 364
36. What is the reaction time to be used for the road safety design? This value is applied to the
whole range of design speeds?

A. 2.5 𝑠𝑒𝑐
B. 2.6 sec
C. 3.5 sec
D. 3.6 sec

37. The provision of safety sight distance depends on the characteristics of the road environment
such as:

I. Road geometry-grade and curvature sight limitation.

II. Road surface sealed or unsealed smooth or rough.
III. Road illumination at night
IV. Road topography
A. I, II and III only
B. I, II and IV only
C. II, III and IV only
D. All of the above
38. A gravel supply company charges P1200 for delivery plus P200 per cubic meter. Find a
formula for the function g such that g(x) is the price for x cubic meters of gravel with the
number between 0 and 1200 as the domain.

A. 12 + 2
B. 12 + 2x
C. 2 + x + 12
D. 2x 2 + 12𝑥
39. A copper wire has nominal breaking strength of 300 Ma and a reduction of area of 77%.
Calculate the true tensile strength (breaking load/true area).
A. 1304 MPa
B. 1400 MPa
C. 1290 MPa
D. 1000 MPa

40. It is suited for the edge of the traveled way where it is generally considered should not mount
the curb or side walk. This type are used for areas where operating speeds are generally less
than 60 kph and where parking of vehicles is allowed.
A. Barrier curb
B. Drop curb
C. Drainage
D. Edge Prepared by Engr. Matt
 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

41. A crawler tractor weighing 36t is towing a rubber-tired scraper weighing 45.5t up a grade of
4%. What is the total resistance (kg) of the combination if the rolling resistance factor is 50
kg/t?
A. 1500 kg
B. 5535 kg
C. 5155 kg
D. 0 kg

42. The basic lane width appropriate for national road.

A. 1.80 m
B. 2.40 m
C. 3.35 m
D. 5.10 m
43. A berth structure projecting out from the shoreline.

A. Wharf
B. Pier
C. Groin
D. Break water

44. A painter needs to find the area of the gable end of a house. What is the area of the gable if it
is a triangle with two sides of 42 ft. that meet at a 105° angle?

A. 852 ft 2
B. 855 ft 2
C. 255 ft 2
D. 851 ft 2
45. The bucket volume contained within the bucket when following the outline of the bucket
sides is referred to as:

A. Heap capacity
B. Bucket load capacity
C. Water line capacity
D. Plate line capacity
46. A contractor has 50 men of the same capacity at work on a job. They can compete the job in
30 days, the working day being 8 hours, but the contract expire in 20 days. He decides to put
20 additional men. If all the men get P3.00 per day for a full or part day and if the liquidated
damages are P100 for every full or part day he requires over his contract. How many days
could he finish the job?

A. 12
B. 22
C. 32
D. 10

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

47. The average score for Mathematics test is 77 and the standard deviation is 8. Compute the
probability that any one student scored between 61 and 93.

A. 95.4 %
B. 90.1 %
C. 88.9 %
D. 75.5 %
48. The wave length of a shallow-water wave is 80 m long and its period of oscillation is 7.2
seconds. If it has a depth of water equal to 30 m, compute the velocity of the wave in m/s.
A. 12.90 m/s
B. 9.10 m/s
C. 12.90 m/s
D. 11. 04 m/s

49. An ellipse has an eccentricity of 1/3 and the distance between the foci is equal to 4. Compute
the length of the latus rectum.
A. 21.90
B. 13.22
C. 10.67
D. 15.45

50. A boat is being pulled toward a dock by a rope attached to its bow through a pulley on the
dock 7 feet above the bow. If the ropes hauled in at a rate of 4ft/sec, how fast is the boat
approaching the dock when 25 feet of rope is out?

A. 25/6
B. 20/6
C. 12/9
D. 10/7

51. A circular hole 4 inches in diameter and 1 feet deep in a metal block is rebored to increase
the diameter to 4.12 inches. Estimate the amount of metal removed.

A. 2.88 π
B. 3.60 π
C. 1.20 π
D. 2.40 π
52. It is the difference between the actual travel time and a given segment of a transportation
system and some ideal travel time for that segment.

A. Travel time
B. Queue time
C. Delay
D. Service time

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

53. Cracks approximately at right angles to the pavement centerline. These may be caused by
shrinkage or differential thermal stress of the asphalt concrete or maybe reflective cracks.

A. Longitudinal cracking
B. Block cracking
C. Alligator cracking
D. Transverse cracking
54. Smith and Jones, both 50% marks men, decide to fight a duel in which they exchange alternate
shots until one is hit. What are the odds in favor of the man who shoots first?

A. 1/4
B. 1/2
C. 1/3
D. 2/3

55. Most important process to prepare concrete.

A. Water cement ratio

B. Batching
C. Flushing
D. Admixture
56. The engineering group of Julies Bakeshop must decide to spend P90, 000 on a new project.
This project will cost P5, 000 per year for operations and it will increase revenues by P20,
000 annually. Both costs and revenues will continue for 10 years. How much interest is
incurred in this project?

A. 0.1056
B. 0.5690
C. 0.1290
D. 0.1902
57. A contractor can buy dump trucks for P800, 000 each (surplus or rent them for P1189 per
truck per day. The truck has a salvage value of P100, 000 at the end of its useful life of 5 yrs.
Annual cost of maintenance is P20, 000.00. If money is worth 14% per annum, determine the
number of days per year that a truck must be used to warrant the purchase of the truck.

A. 180 days
B. 150 days
C. 200 days
D. 120 days
58. An icicle forming from a dripping gutter is in the shape of a cone five times as long as it is
wide (at the top). A few hours later it has doubled in length and the generating angle has also
doubled. How does its present weight compare with previous weight?

A. 33 times
B. 30 times
C. 20 times
D. 10 times

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

59. The interior satellite TV antenna is a dish having the shape of a paraboloid that has diameter
12 feet and is 2 feet deep. Find the distance from the center of the dish to the focus.

A. 3.5 ft
B. 4.5 ft
C. 2.0 ft
D. 1.5 ft
60. Estimate the actual bucket load in bank cubic meter for a loader bucket whose heaped
capacity is 3.82 m^3. The soil bucket fill factor is 0.90 and its load factor is 0.80.

A. 2.75 BCM
B. 3.6 BCM
C. 2.57 BCM
D. 4.78 BCM
61. The amount of time (in minute) devoted to commercial on a TV channel during any half-hour
program is a random variable whose mean is 6.3 min and whose standard deviation is 0.866
min. What is the approximate probability that a person who watches 36 half hour program
will be exposed to over 220 minute of commercial?
A. 0.215
B. 0.190
C. 0.905
D. 0.742

62. Find the network required to accelerate a 1000 kg car from 20 m/s to 30 m/s.

A. 2.1 x 105 J
B. 3.5 x 105 J
C. 3.9 x 105 J
D. 2.5 x 105 J
63. A triangular field has sides of lengths 125 yards, 160 yards and 225 yards. Approximately the
number of acres in the field.
A. 2 acres
B. 3 acres
C. 4 acres
D. 5 acres

64. X-rays of an unknown wavelength are diffracted 43.4° by copper whose lattice constant a is
0.3615 mm. separate determination indicate that this diffraction line for copper is the 1 st
order n=1. What is the wavelength of the x-rays?
A. 0.1435 mm
B. 0.1543 mm
C. 0.1243 mm
D. 0.1143 mm

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
BY E-MT

65. A point P on level ground 3 km due north of a point Q. A runner proceeds in the direction N
25°E from Q to a point R and then from R to P in the direction S 70°W. What is the distance of
run?
A. 4.2 km
B. 3.90 km
C. 1.79 km
D. 5.77 km

66. A man and a horse pulling on a large piece of granite. The man is pulling with a force of 200
lb and the horse is pulling with a force of 100 lb, 50° away from the direction in which the
man is pulling. Find the magnitude and direction of the resultant force.

A. 1381 lb & 8°
B. 1138 lb & 8°
C. 1179 lb & 36°
D. 1771 lb & 36°
67. The following are some ways in which productivity can be increased and costs minimized
during construction. Which one is the best for minimizing during construction?
I. Good work planning and properly organizing work.
II. Carefully selecting and training workers and managers.
III. Efficiently scheduling labor, materials, and equipment.
IV. Using laborsaving techniques, such as prefabrication and preassembly.
V. Minimizing rework through timely quality control.
VI. Preventing accidents through good safety procedures.

A. I, II and III
B. I, III, IV and V
C. II, III, IV, V, VI
D. All of the above
68. For many projects certain parts of the project cannot be completed until other parts of the
projects are completed. This means that the activities are __________

A. Deterministic
B. Stochastic
C. Interdependent
D. Independent

69. The process of unloading steel to a temporary storage area and then moving it from storage
to the point of erection is called:

A. Floating
B. Vibrating
C. Yarding
D. Flushing

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 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
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70. It is a light application of a slow-setting asphalt emulsion diluted by one to three parts of
water. It is used to seal small cracks and voids and to rejuvenate old asphalt surfaces.

A. Sand seal
B. Slurry seal
C. Fog seal
D. Emulsion

71. The area and volume of a certain sphere are both 4-digit numbers times π. What is the radius
of the sphere?
A. 16
B. 17
C. 18
D. 19

72. A bridge across a river is in the form of an arc of s circle. A boy walking across the bridge finds
that 27 feet from the shore the bridge is 9 feet above the water. He continues on to the center
of the span and finds that the bridge is now 10 feet above the water. How deep is the river?

A. 70
B. 80
C. 90
D. 100
73. Mr. X veers to the right when he walks. The curvature of his path is proportional to his
latitude. He starts walking north from point A on the equator, in the area of a large level plain,
and finds he is proceeding east when he is one mile north of the equator. He continues
walking and arrives back at the equator at point B. What is the straight line distance from A
to B?
A. a trifle less than 1.2 miles
B. a trifle more than 1.2 miles
C. a trifle less than 2.2 miles
D. a trifle more than 2.2 miles

74. The plates which are placed in between the flat-footed rails and wooden sleepers on a railway
track are known as

A. Bearing plate
B. Bearing
C. Flat bearing
D. Railing
75. These are used to connect the fish plates to the rails at each joint, bearing plates and chairs
to wooden sleepers.

A. Plate
B. Bearing
C. Bolts
D. Joint

Prepared by Engr. Matt

 MSTE PRE-BOARD EXAM
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Answer Key Answer Key Answer Key

1. B 26. B 51. A
2. A 27. C 52. C
3. A 28. C 53. D
4. B 29. D 54. D
5. D 30. A 55. B
6. B 31. B 56. A
7. C 32. A 57. C
8. B 33. C 58. A
9. D 34. A 59. B
10. C 35. D 60. A
11. A 36. A 61. C
12. D 37. A 62. D
13. A 38. B 63. A
14. C 39. A 64. B
15. B 40. A 65. D
16. C 41. B 66. B
17. D 42. C 67. D
18. D 43. B 68. C
19. D 44. A 69. C
20. B 45. D 70. C
21. C 46. B 71. B
22. B 47. A 72. B
23. A 48. D 73. A
24. C 49. C 74. A
25. C 50. A 75. C

Prepared by Engr. Matt