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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. How many people are left at the party?
(a) 20 people, all Catherine's friends.
(b) No one--they all left right after the funeral.
(c) 40 people, all mathematicians.
(d) 10 people, all Claire's friends.

2. Why is Claire selling the house?
(a) She hates the house and always has.
(b) She wants to help Catherine, and feels this is the only way.
(c) She has no regard for anything but money.
(d) She cannot think of anything else to do with it.

3. What does Catherine insist on searching before Hal leaves?
(a) His wallet.
(b) His briefcase.
(c) His backpack.
(d) His computer files.

4. Who apologizes to whom about the events from the night before? (i.e., the fight, the 9-1-1 call, and the attempted theft)?
(a) Hal apologizes to Catherine--he should not have tried to take the notebook.
(b) Catherine apologizes to Hal--she should not have called the police.
(c) No one apologizes--they are still in a fight.
(d) They apologize to each other--they both handled the situation poorly.

5. What is Catherine's relation to Robert?
(a) She is his daughter.
(b) She is his boss.
(c) She is his sister.
(d) She is his wife.

6. Who interrupts Catherine and Robert's conversation?
(a) A stray dog.
(b) Claire.
(c) A passerby.
(d) Hal.

7. What is Hal carrying when he enters?
(a) A laptop computer.
(b) A backpack and a folded jacket.
(c) A briefcase and a parka.
(d) A bouquet of flowers and a card.

8. How old is Catherine turning?
(a) Thirty.
(b) Twenty.
(c) Thirty-five.
(d) Twenty-five.

9. Who is Sophie Germain?
(a) A woman Catherine previously thought was her mother.
(b) A woman who published great mathematical works under a pseudonym during the French Revolution.
(c) A woman who teaches at the University of Chicago and was very close to Robert.
(d) A woman whose husband stole her ideas and published her work under his name.

10. What is happening in the house after the funeral?
(a) A poetry reading.
(b) A party.
(c) A press conference.
(d) An auction.

11. What organic chemical(s) is contained in the beauty product Claire wishes Catherine to try?
(a) Honey.
(b) Vitamins and minerals.
(c) Jojaba.
(d) Green tea extract.

12. Why is Catherine upset with Claire at the end of Scene 2?
(a) She is angry that Claire has borrowed her clothes.
(b) She resents Claire swooping in and trying to take care of her.
(c) She is jealous that Claire is getting married.
(d) She despises the coffee that Claire has made.

13. According to the letter Catherine has memorized, is Gauss pleased to discover the letters he has received are from a woman?
(a) Yes, he regards her as courageous and genius.
(b) No, he thinks a woman's place is in the household.
(c) No, he thinks his ideas are the only valid ones.
(d) Yes, he hopes he can take her out on a date sometime.

14. What does Claire want Catherine to do?
(a) Go back to school in Chicago.
(b) Stay in the house where she and Robert lived.
(c) Go back to bed and rest.
(d) Move to New York, where Claire can keep an eye on her.

15. What is Imaginary Number, or i?
(a) A song of Hal's band's that consists of three minutes of silence.
(b) A theory of Hal's on which he is writing a paper.
(c) Catherine's favorite cereal.
(d) A theory of Robert's before his death.

Short Answer Questions

1. Why is Hal unhappy with his own work?

2. What was Robert's occupation?

3. Why does Hal say some of the older mathematicians use amphetamines?

4. Whose idea was it to have the band play at the house after the funeral?

5. Why is Claire in town?

(see the answer keys)

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