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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Chapter 7, "All in How You Look at Things," what does Foster say beginning writers often get too caught up in?
(a) Description.
(b) Exposition.
(c) Narrative.
(d) Dialogue.

2. According to "The Building Blocks of Arguments," what is the implicit argument of most nonfiction writing?
(a) That the subject matter is important enough to read about.
(b) That the reader should change their beliefs or behavior.
(c) That the writer has the authority to write about the subject.
(d) That the writer's angle on the subject is the correct one.

3. In Chapter 5, "It May Just Be Me, But..." Foster says that a source's quote can be "emended" (55). What happens to an emended quote?
(a) It is verified.
(b) It is shortened.
(c) It is updated.
(d) It is withdrawn.

4. The section of this book called "The Books in the Book" is what part of the book?
(a) A foreward.
(b) The introduction.
(c) A preface.
(d) An appendix.

5. In Chapter 7, "All in How You Look at Things," Foster discusses Pollan's How to Change Your Mind as an example of what?
(a) Science writing that begins in media res.
(b) Why self-help books are better off using a chronological structure.
(c) Science writing that does not use chronological order.
(d) Why self-help books can use many non-chronological structures.

6. In Chapter 1, "The Structure of Nonfiction Information," what does Foster mean when he uses the word "dichotomy"?
(a) The study of social policy.
(b) Something relatively unknown.
(c) A division between opposite things.
(d) A narrative told in the order in which events really happened.

7. Which form discussed in Chapter 3, "The Power of the Prologue," is generally not written by the author of the main piece of writing?
(a) Preface.
(b) Introduction.
(c) Foreward.
(d) Prologue.

8. In Chapter 4, "The Parts You Don't Read," what advice does Foster give about the copyright page?
(a) When reading as a part of research, never leave this page without recording the information it contains.
(b) This page contains important information about where the author got pieces of information used in the text.
(c) This information is just a legal notice and most readers should just ignore it.
(d) This page is optional and readers should not expect to find it in every book.

9. In Chapter 1, "The Structure of Nonfiction Information," Foster introduces the term "structural design," saying that it is similar to which term related to fiction?
(a) Narrative strategy.
(b) Plot structure.
(c) Story plan.
(d) Storyboard.

10. In Chapter 5, "It May Just Be Me, But..." what does Foster say is true about quotes attributed to anonymous sources?
(a) There is never a good reason to use a quote from an anonymous source.
(b) There are likely to be good reasons for the source to stay anonymous.
(c) These quotes are often just the reporter's interpretation of a source's meaning.
(d) These quotes are often made up.

11. In Chapter 3, "The Power of the Prologue," Foster uses the word "etymologically" to describe what?
(a) The origins of words.
(b) Similar sounding words.
(c) The opposites of words.
(d) The definitions of words.

12. In Chapter 7, "All in How You Look at Things," what does Foster say is the purpose of the academic five-paragraph essay?
(a) It teaches students to organize their thoughts.
(b) It is the most that students are capable of before college.
(c) It is a flexible and useful format for anything a student might need to write about.
(d) It is the preferred format for professional writing.

13. In Chapter 2, "The Ecology of the Nonfiction Biosphere," what does Foster call the rules governing different forms of nonfiction?
(a) Precepts.
(b) Laws.
(c) Grammar.
(d) Syntax.

14. In Chapter 5, "It May Just Be Me, But..." what does Foster say about offering a source the chance to correct themselves if they claim that they misspoke?
(a) This in unethical.
(b) This is part of the fair treatment of sources.
(c) This can make a story stronger.
(d) This creates inaccuracies.

15. In Chapter 8, "Bringing the News," Foster maintains that types of newspaper writing like advice columns and human interest stories exist for what reason?
(a) To fill up space not needed for daily news.
(b) Because readers can not live without them.
(c) Because they are traditional.
(d) To sell newspaper advertising.

Short Answer Questions

1. In Chapter 7, "All in How You Look at Things," what does Foster say the term "Fake News" originally referred to?

2. In Chapter 1, "The Structure of Nonfiction Information," what does Foster say the first job of the writer is, on page one?

3. In Chapter 2, "The Ecology of the Nonfiction Biosphere," where does Foster say editorial content can usually be found in the newspaper?

4. In Chapter 2, "The Ecology of the Nonfiction Biosphere," Foster calls a certain kind of reader the "cognoscenti." What kind of a reader is her referring to?

5. In Chapter 8, "Bringing the News," what reason does Foster give for journalists generally being proved correct despite public mistrust?

(see the answer keys)

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