View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. In physics and fluid mechanics, what refers to the layer of fluid in the immediate vicinity of a bounding surface where effects of viscosity of the fluid are considered in detail?

2. What were used to address deep issues in theoretical physics according to the author in Chapter 8, "Images of Chaos"?

3. According to Gleick, Albert Libchaber had a similar background to who, living as a refugee during World War II?

4. Who began to call the global construction of fractals "the chaos game" according to the author in Chapter 8, "Images of Chaos"?

5. When was Heinz-Otto Peitgen born?

Short Essay Questions

1. To whom does the author compare the background of Albert Libchaber in Chapter 7, "The Experimenter"? When was Albert Libchaber born?

2. How does the author differentiate between theorists and experimentalists in Chapter 5, "Strange Attractors"?

3. Describe the Mandelbrot set. To what it is closely related?

4. How is Mitchell Feigenbaum described? What was his early life like, according to the author?

5. How is turbulence defined in Chapter 5, "Strange Attractors"?

6. Whose results did Albert Libchaber inadvertently recreate in Chapter 7, "The Experimenter"?

7. How had Albert Libchaber gained fame in his career, according to the author in Chapter 7, "The Experimenter"?

8. How are the Navier-Stokes equations defined? For whom are they named?

9. What interests in art and culture are described of Mitchell Feigenbaum in Chapter 6, "Universality"?

10. Who was Johann Wolfgang von Goethe? For what great work is he most well known?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Describe the early life of Benoit Mandelbrot and Mandelbrot's work as a mathematician. How did WWII affect the education Mandelbrot received?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the lives and works of Gustav Mahler and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and analyze their influence on Mitchell Feigenbaum. What work of Goethe's is quoted in the book?

Essay Topic 3

Describe Hendrik Houthakker, his work at Harvard University, and his reasons for inviting Benoit Mandelbrot to speak. What did Houthakker teach?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 790 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample