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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. Goats are associated with the discovery of _____, when it was observed they became frisky after eating the red berries.

2. Psychoactive drugs serve as bridges between the worlds of matter and spirit, or in modern language _______and consciousness.

3. The French romantics were said to have experimented with ________ after Napoleon's troops brought it back with them from Egypt.

4. What is a good place to experiment and a place to try out new plants and techniques without having to risk a lot?

5. When the ___________ harvest failed in England in 1794, it seems that the poor were not going to be able to buy the bread they needed.

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the experience Pollan had when the police almost found his large marijuana plants in his backyard?

2. What does Pollan begin to realize after the powerful storm that ruined a part of the famous gardens of Versailles?

3. What is the most important thing to an animal's survival, according to the discussion of plants?

4. Why were the Irish open to farming the potato in order to provide food for themselves?

5. What are some of the reasons why potatoes were not very popular in Europe around the late 1500s?

6. What are the various ingredients which might be used in witches' spells?

7. Where was marijuana primarily grown up until the early 1980s when the war on drugs began?

8. As the various lands in Europe began to rely on the potato, what were the positive benefits of this situation?

9. What is the rationale that Pollan gives for growing pot as he decides to do when it is not as much of a legal issue?

10. What does genetic engineering promise to do for the crops which are growing with these modifications?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

At one point, Pollan points out that the tulip offers no nutritional value, while the fruit and the seeds provide sustenance.

Part 1: Why do you think Pollan included such a contradiction in this book?

Part 2: Do you think that Pollan's contradiction causes his book to be less valuable to a reader?

Part 3: Do you think it's possible to create a book without contradicting one's self?

Essay Topic 2

The idea of tulipomania is one which seems to be silly and yet completely true at the same time.

Part 1: Why do you think so many people gravitated to the tulip?

Part 2: What are your impressions of the tulip? Do you find it beautiful?

Part 3: How do you think a flower can become a part of a craze in the world? Does this seem like a necessary situation?

Essay Topic 3

When the reader sees that marijuana is one of the plants in the book, they can have a variety of reactions.

Part 1: Why do you think Pollan decided to include marijuana in this book?

Part 2: Do you agree that marijuana should be included in a book about how plants change humans as much as humans change plants?

Part 3: How do you think marijuana has affected humans, in your experience?

(see the answer keys)

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