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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. How long did Bohr and Heisenberg work together?

2. What is Bohr’s criticism of Heisenberg’s thought process?

3. What is notable about Heisenberg’s accepting the chair at Leipzig?

4. What does the uncertainty principle pertain to?

5. Which scientist insulted Heisenberg’s knowledge?

Short Essay Questions

1. What was the impetus for Heisenberg’s attaining the chair at Leipzig?

2. What would have happened if Heisenberg’s reactor had gone critical?

3. What does Heisenberg claim to think about his own plan for talking to Bohr about the atomic projects in Copenhagen?

4. How did Heisenberg describe Schrödinger’s mechanics?

5. What was strange about the cadmium that Heisenberg had in Haigerloch?

6. What extreme act does Heisenberg claim that Bohr would have been justified in doing?

7. Where does Heisenberg spend the last months of the war, and why?

8. What tendency does Bohr claim that Margrethe has?

9. How was Einstein’s theory important to Heisenberg’s work?

10. How much more time did Heisenberg think he needed to make his reaction work?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Both Heisenberg and Bohr were important scientists of the twentieth century. Research their work. What were their final, most enduring contributions to science? Which can be read metaphorically, in the context of the play?

Essay Topic 2

Margrethe states that Bohr’s refusal to continue the conversation was an act of friendship. What does she mean by this? How is this possible? What might have happened if Bohr had continued the conversation?

Essay Topic 3

Skiing is used as a metaphor throughout the play. Discuss Heisenberg’s assertion that making no decision would lead to death. What is the significance of “swerving” in the context of Copenhagen?

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