3. Sympathetically, who does McPhee blame for destructive actions against the natural order of the environment?
(a) Man.
(b) Foreign policy.
(c) The United Nations.
(d) The Executive branch of government.

4. Atchafalaya is a what?
(a) Waterfall.
(b) Mountain.
(c) River.
(d) City.

5. Every thousand years or so, the Mississippi River goes through a major shift that leaves behind what?
(a) Dry mudflats.
(b) Bayous and natural levees.
(c) Large, deep saltwater lakes.
(d) Stranded bird colonies.

6. What does the author say happens in the area of the Atchafalaya River in the spring of 1973?
(a) Dry conditions bring the river levels down, grounding countless boats.
(b) River levels rise and surrounding fields are covered in brown floodwater.
(c) Three hurricanes devastate the region, leaving millions homeless.
(d) Freak storms from the north bring snow to the region, freezing the rivers solid.

7. When the author recalls his first time in the Atchafalaya swamps with Charles Fryling in 1980, what does he fondly remember?
(a) Seeing lightning bugs for the first time.
(b) His first encounter with a baby alligator.
(c) The water rushing through locks and gates.
(d) Floating among trees under silently flying birds.

8. What is the author's role in this book?
(a) Influential politician.
(b) Passive observer.
(c) Investigative reporter.
(d) Trained scientist.

9. In the 1800s, why do levee districts and boards form in Louisiana?
(a) To spread levee costs.
(b) To control water levels.
(c) For diplomatic reasons.
(d) To establish water claims.

10. From St. Louis down to the Atchafalaya, General Sands takes note of what?
(a) Number of bird colonies.
(b) Complaints.
(c) Storms.
(d) Number of private boats.

11. The author tells stories of the following people in conflict with forces of nature:
(a) Engineers.
(b) All of the them.
(c) Residents.
(d) Government officials.

12. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers develops a plan to do what?
(a) Develop communities along the Mississippi River.
(b) Control natural shifts of the Mississippi River.
(c) Build twenty large dams on the Atchafalaya River.
(d) Protect the fish population of the Atchfalaya River.

13. At one point, Rabalais drives the author first to the Mississippi River and then to the Atchafalaya River, showing him that the Mississippi is 18 feet above sea level while the Atchafalaya is how many feet above sea level?
(a) Nineteen.
(b) Twenty-five.
(c) One.
(d) Five.

14. In the early days of New Orleans, residents build their homes on what?
(a) Metal bridges.
(b) Sand piles.
(c) Natural levees.
(d) Concrete risers.

15. Henry Shreve changes the Mississippi River by introducing what?
(a) Vegetation native to Mexico.
(b) New fish breeds.
(c) Gambling along the river.
(d) Mississippi steamboat.