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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 is the authors' point in opening the introduction by discussing common household products?

2. Which words best describes a material that has been downcycled?

3. What is eco-efficiency?

4. Which is an example of too much focus on efficiency?

5. What is one problem with recycled paper?

Short Essay Questions

1. Explain why the authors say that eco-efficiency is not possible.

2. List three examples of how a focus on efficiency in design can have negative consequences.

3. What do the authors mean by "crude product"? Also, give an example.

4. Describe the idea of eco-efficiency and how it proposes to solve the industry, consumer, and environment problems.

5. Describe why books are traditionally difficult to recycle and how this book itself is a more positive design.

6. Describe how the authors use soap as an example of designing products for "worst-case" scenarios.

7. Describe why the authors warn against too much efficiency in design.

8. Compare the ideas of less-bad and completely positive design.

9. Describe how Michael ends up working for the German Environmental Protection Agency.

10. Explain one example of how recycling is really downcycling of materials.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write a three-part essay to describe the effects the Industrial Revolution has had on the planet and society.

Part 1. Describe the landscape the Industrial Revolution has created in our cities and in agriculture.

Part 2. Explain how the Industrial Revolution has affected the environment and other living organisms.

Part 3. Describe the positive and negative changes that the Industrial Revolution has brought upon society.

Essay Topic 2

Write an essay to explain the problems with current recycling practices. Cover the following three points in your essay.

1. Describe how recycle is inefficient and creates problems with product quality.

2. Describe why more chemicals are needed in recycling than in creating a new product.

3. Give examples of products that are very problematic to recycle.

Essay Topic 3

Write a three-part essay to summarize the problems with the current trend in designing crude products.

Part 1. Describe what the authors mean by "crude products." Why do the authors consider these designs to be unintelligent and inelegant?

Part 2. Explain what the authors suggest should be the basis to design, instead of inventing more crude products.

Part 3. Describe how soaps and detergents are crude products that need an improvement in their design. How can we improve soaps and detergents?

(see the answer keys)

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