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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. Cuban forecasters indicated that they had correctly predicted that the storm would not __________.

2. Isaac Cline's house was built with what components to prevent flooding?

3. It was estimated that at the height of the storm, the barometric pressure fell to __________.

4. What writer for the Dallas News took a train from Houston to Galveston?

5. Who insisted on staying in Isaac Cline's house, believing it to be capable of withstanding the storm?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did the passengers of the Galveston-Houston train escape?

2. What led to the entrapment of the Galveston-Houston train?

3. Where did Isaac and his family find themselves after the passing of the storm? How is the setting described?

4. What did the Weather Bureau refer to the storm as, despite Isaac's warnings in Part III: Spectacle? Who did Isaac go to warn locally?

5. What was Louise Hopkins doing as the flooding began in Galveston? Where did she go?

6. Describe the losses sustained by the Credo and Palmer families. How many were lost?

7. How does the author describe the arrival of the "Pensacola" in Galveston in Part V: Strange News?

8. What was the setting like when Colonel William Sterett's train became stalled? What did the passengers do?

9. Who was Colonel William Sterett? Why was he traveling to Galveston?

10. Who was at fault for the inaccurate forecasting by the US Weather Bureau?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Should the media censor information which could lead to panic? In the case of the hurricane of 1900, would the civilians have been better off knowing that a "cyclone" were approaching? What examples from contemporary society can we see of the media or governmental agencies censoring what is told to the public?

Essay Topic 2

Analyze and discuss the atmospheric conditions discussed in "Spiderwebs and Ice." What are the different strata of the atmosphere? Why does rain not deplete hurricanes and tropical storms? What are the basic elements of hurricanes? How did the conditions of the 1900 hurricane compare with others in this century?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and discuss the conflicts between the US Weather Bureau and the local Cuban forecasters. How was Willis Moore to blame for the animosity between the two? How many lives were potentially lost as a result of egoism? How does the author express this thematically in the narrative?

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