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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. Why do you think Watson told the fellowship committee that his only real interest was crystallography?

2. Which of the following is the best definition of phages?

3. Where were Maurice and Rosy from?

4. Where did Watson and Francis go for the weekend after Rosy's lecture?

5. About how long did Crick think it would take he and Watson to narrow down the number of possible DNA structures?

Short Essay Questions

1. What has Watson done on a social aspect while trying to make X-ray photographs?

2. Why did Wilkins come to Naples?

3. How was Odile going to help Watson with his problem with eating the food at the local restaurants?

4. Why were the crystallized images important?

5. When Watson told Maurice about Pauling working on the DNA structure, what was Maurice more concerned with at the immediate moment?

6. How did Watson and Crick get Rosy's measurements at their Cambridge lab?

7. What would Francis find awkward in regards to the problem of DNA?

8. What realization did Watson come to years after their discovery of the structure of DNA in regards to Rosy?

9. Why did Watson sense a disaster with his sister?

10. What happened when Watson went to work trying to apply his pairs theory to the new base structures?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Write an essay on the idea that a scientist's life is not truly separable from the scientist's work. Use examples from the text to support your writing.

Essay Topic 2

Describe how the scientific process can be seen throughout this novel. Use specific examples and key words from the scientific process such as hypothesis, test, control, etc.

Essay Topic 3

At one point in the novel, Rosy seems very agitated and almost at the point of violence. Write an essay about this event including: Where does this fit of temper come from? Is it truly as the author describes it or is it somehow misinterpreted by him?

(see the answer keys)

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