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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following is NOT one of the ways that early planets may have been made incapable of bearing life?
(a) Being pushed into a distant orbit.
(b) Falling into the sun.
(c) Being heavily bombarded by meteors.
(d) Being thrown into outer space.

2. Sagan suggest that modern religious thinking treats scientific evidence in what way?
(a) It is cautious about the evidence.
(b) It blatantly disregards the evidence.
(c) It makes no statements about the evidence.
(d) It intrudes on the evidence.

3. What visual resolution would be required to determine that humans are related to the intelligence on Earth?
(a) 1 cm.
(b) 10 meters.
(c) 1 meter.
(d) 10 cm.

4. Sagan uses what term to describe a theology that requires God to intentionally mislead human scientists?
(a) Dogmatic.
(b) Malevolent.
(c) Unsupportable.
(d) Typical.

5. What strange motion do all of the stars in the sky exhibit?
(a) They appear to drift towards the Earth.
(b) They tend to move towards each other.
(c) They change directions randomly.
(d) They move in identical tiny ellipses.

Short Answer Questions

1. What was Neptune's position in the solar system as of the writing of this book?

2. What does Sagan lament about the study of Titan?

3. Sagan helped to discover that Saturn provides what critical element to Titan?

4. What is the major difference between space exploration and human exploration in the past?

5. At the time this book was written, how many planets were known to exist around other stars?

Short Essay Questions

1. When this book was written, what was known about planets in other solar systems?

2. What seemingly important features of humanity does Sagan deny to be distinguishing?

3. What does the image of the "pale blue dot" suggest to Sagan?

4. What is the problem of perspective in estimating the importance of human beings?

5. What problems does NASA face in pursuing its missions?

6. What advantage make it more likely that the Voyager records will eventually be found?

7. How was Sagan involved in discoveries about Titan?

8. Describe the planet Neptune.

9. What does the Strong Anthropomorphic principle suggest?

10. What may have happened to other planets from the early solar system?

(see the answer keys)

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