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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How do ladybugs hibernate?
(a) ladybugs hibernate in large masses
(b) ladybugs hide beneath the bark on trees
(c) ladybugs hibernate under the roots of trees
(d) ladybugs die off in winter

2. How do blind people who suddenly gain sight usually see objects at first?
(a) as bigger than they really are
(b) as patches of colored light
(c) as black and white
(d) as all gray

3. What is the literal act of seeing?
(a) using binoculars to see a great distance
(b) watching for movement in the clouds
(c) opening the eyes and looking straight ahead
(d) learning how to spot the different wildlife

4. When Dillard raps on the goldfish bowl, what does the fish do?
(a) swims around the bowl three times
(b) swim to the surface
(c) stays perfectly still for ten seconds
(d) dive to the bottom

5. What does Dillard see as a passive mystery?
(a) if nature is benign
(b) the mountains around her
(c) if her brother would enjoy life in Tinker Creek
(d) if there are fish in the creek

6. How do praying mantises mate?
(a) the male kills the female when done and takes over the eggs
(b) A female will mate and devour up to seven male mantises
(c) the female lays eggs and the male comes by and fertilizes them
(d) they mate like people

7. Chlorophyll has a single atom of what substance in the center?
(a) hydrogen
(b) magnesium
(c) zinc
(d) carbon

8. In Chapter 5 Dillard writes about finding a snake. What appeared peculiar about the snake?
(a) it was pure white
(b) it had two heads
(c) it was tied in a knot
(d) it had a outer and inner skin

9. What is figurative seeing?
(a) seeing with the inner eye and looking beyond outward appearances
(b) watching the invisible
(c) seeing in dreams
(d) closing the eyes and seeing another world

10. How are Eskimos able to survive in such a harsh environment as theirs?
(a) they eat a lot of whale
(b) they had to possess an intimate understanding of their natural world
(c) their igloos are kept very warm
(d) they wear seal fur

11. Dillard says the agnostic asks who created the universe. What does a believer ask?
(a) who is God
(b) why am I in the universe
(c) why was the universe created
(d) what role does man play

12. What is one of Dillard's main occupations in the winter?
(a) reading
(b) sewing
(c) knitting
(d) watching television

13. What does the author believe separates humans from their creator and humans from each other?
(a) hate
(b) fear
(c) indifference
(d) self-consciousness

14. What changes about the view around Dillard's home when winter comes?
(a) the view looks stark and empty
(b) nothing changes about the view
(c) the snow covered trees block her view of the creek
(d) winter opens vistas around Dillard's home so she can see other homes

15. Why did early Eskimos love winter?
(a) it is a time to use their sleds to visit other Eskimos
(b) they like to celebrate winter soltice
(c) the whales are closer to shore
(d) the seals are easier to kill

Short Answer Questions

1. In Chapter 3, Dillard stalks a bird along the iced over creek. What kind of bird was it?

2. At a ranch, Dillard drew a horse. It wasn't a good picture. Others who lived at the ranch drew great horses. Why?

3. Why are starlings hated in the Tinker Creek area?

4. Dillard thought once that awesome artistry can be laced with savagery. To what did she refer?

5. How do mice reach the grain at the top of a stalk?

(see the answer keys)

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