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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. Not only do chemicals hurt the soil, but they also ____________ the soil for years.

2. The organic ____________ insecticides like Malathion and parathion are in wide use in 1962, when the book was written.

3. Carson wonders - How can we as __________ beings continue to allow such rampant and unjustified killings?

4. Large areas of Michigan were sprayed in 1959 in order to try to control what insect?

5. Humankind is producing new ________ in the laboratory, though these used to be limited only to nature's actions.

Short Essay Questions

1. Why are chemicals seen as so harmful to the soil and to the life within the soil?

2. What were the results of the spraying of the Japanese beetle in Michigan in 1959?

3. What happened when people in Wyoming unintentionally destroyed the willows in a particular area?

4. What is the environmental problem that results from all of the water sources of the Earth being connected to each other?

5. What has the environment played an important role in forming, according to this chapter?

6. What are the smallest organisms on the Earth which live in the soil?

7. How has infectious disease been controlled in modern society?

8. What happens to the liver when it processes chemicals in the body?

9. What is seawater not able to be used for on the Earth?

10. Where does radiation tend to occur naturally, as it has for many years before the time of the humans?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Pesticides are the main concern of Carson throughout this book, and with good reason.

Part 1: List some of the chemicals which Carson describes in detail in this book.

Part 2: Choose one chemical and describe the ways in which it is affecting the Earth, according to Carson.

Part 3: Why are pesticides so important to discuss in relation to the management of the environment?

Essay Topic 2

But the truth is that mass spraying is not the only source of chemical contamination in the world.

Part 1: What are some other causes of chemical contamination in the world?

Part 2: Is most people's chemical exposure little by little or in one large dose? Why?

Part 3: What are some of the everyday sources of chemicals in our lives?

Essay Topic 3

As all of the Earth's water systems are connected, the pollution of one means the pollution of them all.

Part 1: Summarize one of the examples Carson presents in Chapter 4. What happened during this time of water pollution?

Part 2: What are the main concerns with it comes to water pollution?

Part 3: Is there any way to stop water pollution? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

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