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

Short Answer Questions

1. Which was the top-ranked race in practitioners of racial ranking?

2. Who feels that blacks are inferior and therefore deserve the status of a slave?

3. Motor functions are performed at the _________ of the brain.

4. What kind of disease can cause the brain to diminish in size before death?

5. Which view was based on the story of Adam and Eve?

Short Essay Questions

1. What did Blumenbach believe the anatomical structure differences between blacks and whites were the result of?

2. If given the races of Indian, Black, and White, how would these be ranked, according to the early craniometry methods?

3. What were Broca's numbers based upon, according to Gould's examination of his studies?

4. What did Robert Bennett Bean study as an investigator into craniometry?

5. What does Gould want to define ranking as?

6. What did David Hume believe about white men?

7. Who was Serres, in relation to the polygenism movement? What did he study and find to be true?

8. What does Gunnar Myrdal have to say about the situation of ranking people in society?

9. What does Gould want to study in relation to the science related to the arguments for biological determinism?

10. In the opening of this book, Gould quotes Socrates as saying all people should be educated and that they will belong to whom in order for society to remain stable?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

David Hume and Louis Agassiz worked on the idea of polygenism as it related to the superiority of the white race. Agassiz especially wanted to prove that blacks were inferior to whites, though his studies were problematic.

Part 1: What was the main idea behind Agassiz's work?

Part 2: What were the problems with Agassiz's study and its results?

Part 3: What were Agassiz's own experiences with blacks like? What was his reaction to those he did finally meet?

Essay Topic 2

The idea of evolution was one the impacted the study of intelligence and intelligence testing greatly in the nineteenth century. At the same time, this theory also became a way to support scientific studies, even when the designs were incorrect or flawed.

Part 1: Define the theory of evolution and name its creator.

Part 2: How does evolution impact the studies related to biological determinism?

Part 3: What are two scientific theories that resulted from the introduction of evolution to the discuss of intelligence?

Essay Topic 3

The idea of ranking people is the primary focus of this book. When we can rank people, we can classify them as more or less valuable to society, it seems.

Part 1: What are some of the other benefits of ranking people in this world?

Part 2: What are the disadvantages of ranking people in society?

Part 3: How are some ways we rank people already? Are there already systems of ranking present in this world? What are they? How do they work? Are they effective?

(see the answer keys)

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