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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 number is used in the joke about the population of the city?

2. Why do people notice the coincidences?

3. Paulos denies that the personality is closely tied to which of the following?

4. What type of doctor was he?

5. What does the man carry to help with the problem?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the Archimedes Principle?

2. What is the coincidence surrounding Christopher Columbus?

3. What is the example used by Paulos to demonstrate the connections between people?

4. What do doctors often do that is mathematically incorrect?

5. Why do people tend to be fascinated by coincidences?

6. The author believes that people are often obsessed by what topics?

7. Where does the author believe most people fit in?

8. Why does Paulos argue about the existence of coincidences?

9. What is Paulos' suggestion for making math more understandable to the general public?

10. Who was the mathematician responsible for discovering one of the most important discoveries?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is the purpose of polling? How is it done? What missteps can cause a poll to be inaccurate? How can the issue be resolved? Give at least three examples of polls, methods, and why they are important.

Essay Topic 2

Paulos tells a story of a man who is afraid of a bomb being aboard his airplane. Recount the story and the motive behind the man's actions. Does it make sense to you? According to Paulos' explanation, was it a logical or irrational move? What are the probabilities that the man was right? What are the odds that the bomb would go off in the man's briefcase? What might you have done in a similar situation?

Essay Topic 3

Name at least five major or famous examples of probabilities and coincidences such as the Lincoln/Kennedy connection and the Columbus/Fermi correlation. Explain each in a coincidental sense and a probability sense.

(see the answer keys)

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