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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. What book did paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould write?

2. The oldest record of life found so far consists of fossilized traces of microbes discovered where?

3. Approximately how many okapi live in the rain forests of Zaire?

4. Anders Celsius, who designed the Celsius thermometer, was an:

5. The author states that extinction seems to be:

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Bryson say that fossils represent only a tiny fraction of life on Earth?

2. What are cyanobacteria? How did they affect the environment billions of years ago?

3. What type of scientific work did the monk and scientist Gregor Mendel do?

4. What does a Swedish DNA study reveal about the origins of modern man?

5. What does the author say about bacteria and humans, particularly their interaction?

6. How are traits determined genetically?

7. What did Charles Darwin do on the HMS Beagle?

8. What does the author say about radioactive waste being dumped into oceans?

9. What is cytoplasm?

10. How many elements occur naturally on Earth? How many are central to life?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

How did the dinosaurs become extinct? Explain the sequence of events that happened after the asteroid hit. What was the outcome to other life forms? What conditions changed in the aftermath? What group of animals became dominant following the dinosaur extinction?

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast the existence of bacteria on Earth with the existence of humans. Does one depend on the other? How so? Which organism is more resilient? Why?

Essay Topic 3

Describe who the following scientists were and how they started out in their careers, and explain what they are best known for:

1. Marie Curie.

2. Albert Einstein.

3. Carl Sagan.

(see the answer keys)

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