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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. _____________ must discern for themselves who is telling the truth.

2. What was not one of the results of the sprayings in Michigan?

3. There is a widespread, critical shortage of ____________ across the globe.

4. Radiation used to be limited to that which occurred naturally - in rocks, cosmic rays, and __________.

5. How was the large population of sagebrush destroyed in the West?

Short Essay Questions

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

2. What do more American children die from today than from any other disease, according to the book as it was written in its own time period?

3. Why did so many birds die as a result of the spraying for Dutch Elm Disease?

4. What was the cause of the salmon population downfall in the Miramichi River?

5. What were some of the lies the government told about the fire any population?

6. What happens during the sterilization method of insect control?

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

8. What has happened with synthetic pesticides within less than twenty years of their existence?

9. What human function is adversely affected by exposure to chemicals and to radiation, disrupting the universal currency of energy?

10. How is the development of chemical resistance within the insect population a strong example of natural selection?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The idea of weeds seems to be more of a man made idea rather than a real threat to the world.

Part 1: Describe how Carson sees the presence of weeds in relation to humans.

Part 2: Why are weeds still important to the Earth?

Part 3: Describe the example of the sagebrush versus the grasslands in the American West.

Essay Topic 2

Nature, despite all the humans do to it, still seems to put up a fight when it comes to the damage humans cause.

Part 1: In what ways does Nature fight back against pollution?

Part 2: Why don't we just let Nature take care of itself instead of taking control of the pollution situation?

Part 3: What are the two critical facts that humans overlook when it comes to nature?

Essay Topic 3

Life is something that has existed for millions of years, but the introduction of humans has altered the way life has changed.

Part 1: What does Carson have to say about the way humans have affected the world around them?

Part 2: What does Carson say about how the environment generally interacts with itself?

Part 3: What does Carson mean by the idea that "life does not have the luxury of time?"

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 664 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample