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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What does Bill say is ridiculous about a VCR?
(a) It can record twelve months in advance.
(b) It is being replaced by a DVD player.
(c) It costs so much.
(d) It has no remote.

2. What does Bill discuss at the beginning of his essay on design flaws?
(a) His son's running shoes.
(b) His daughter's jewelry.
(c) His son's jeans.
(d) His wife's clothing.

3. What part of the house does Bill regard as delightful and pretty much the same in every American household?
(a) The laundry room.
(b) The attic.
(c) The family room.
(d) The basement.

4. In "Wide-Open Spaces," according to Bryson, who was an idiot?
(a) Monty Hall.
(b) Daniel Boone.
(c) Samuel de Champlain.
(d) Grover Cleveland.

5. According to Bryson, why did a store in Michigan win a case brought against them by a customer?
(a) The store had a right to protect itself from shoplifting
(b) The customer had a history of suing every business in town.
(c) It had a really good lawyer.
(d) The store had a right to hire armed guards

6. How does Bill feel when he goes to a barbershop?
(a) Happy tot talk to someone with sense.
(b) He can get caught up on his reading.
(c) Helpless and insecure.
(d) Like he is going to empty his wallet.

7. According to Bryson, what is lacking in his New Hampshire town?
(a) Intelligent people.
(b) Pollution.
(c) Good entertainment.
(d) Crime.

8. According to Bryson in "Why No One Walks," how far does the average American walk in a day?
(a) About half a mile.
(b) About a mile.
(c) About 350 yards.
(d) About two miles.

9. Bryson nostalgically describes the movie theater where he grew up. Where is his home town?
(a) Des Moines, Iowa.
(b) Montgomery, Alabama.
(c) Dearborn, Michigan.
(d) Richford, Vermont.

10. How does Bill explain the popularity of motel chains in America?
(a) The chains are clean and efficient.
(b) Good marketing.
(c) Privately owned ones are expensive.
(d) People want the same thing wherever they go.

11. What does Bill tell the reader about crime in New Hampshire?
(a) Petty crime is a problem in the rural areas.
(b) Serious crime is on the increase.
(c) There were only four murders in the last reporting year.
(d) There is no death penalty.

12. Bryson says that 94% of Americans' trips from home involve the use of something in particular. What is that item?
(a) A cell phone.
(b) A credit card.
(c) A snack.
(d) A car.

13. What does Bill hate about flying now that he is back in the U.S.?
(a) Having to show photo identification at the airport.
(b) No meals are served.
(c) The price of tickets.
(d) The snacks are terrible.

14. What does Bill find to be a difficult adjustment for him when he returns to the U.S.?
(a) He left as a young man and came back middle-aged.
(b) He has forgotten American English.
(c) He finds it very noisy.
(d) He cannot find what he wants in the stores.

15. Bryson likes his privacy. Where does he especially find there is a lack of privacy in America?
(a) In clothing store changing rooms.
(b) On airplanes.
(c) In telephone booths.
(d) In public washrooms.

Short Answer Questions

1. What trait does Bill admit that he has in regards to simple everyday activities?

2. Why doesn't Bryson like gardening with his wife?

3. What does Bill miss about television in Britain?

4. How do 40,000 Americans die a year, according to Bryson?

5. Why did Bill decide to write "Friendly People?"

(see the answer keys)

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