View a FREE sample

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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. The Civil Defense Council in the Reykjavik National Emergency Center is established in 1962 as what?
(a) Natural disaster preparedness center.
(b) Storm-monitoring communication headquarters.
(c) Command-post bomb shelter.
(d) Volcano eruption monitoring station.

2. What childhood fear does Magnus Magnusson share with the author?
(a) Heimaey will become a ghost town.
(b) Iceland will break in half.
(c) Vestmannaeyjar will fall into the sea.
(d) Helgafell will erupt.

3. The U.S. Army Air Corps' actions on an insulating vent on Mauna Loa volcano in 1935 result in what?
(a) Cooled lava.
(b) Temporary halt of lava flows.
(c) Debris buildup and redirected lava flows.
(d) Better seismic readings.

4. For the most part, residents of Heimaey are what during the 1973 eruptions?
(a) Indifferent.
(b) Panicked.
(c) Calm.
(d) Frightened.

5. What does "City Flow" do in Heimaey?
(a) Melts the moving mountain.
(b) Moves lava streams away from the town.
(c) Crushes houses in its path.
(d) Kills twenty-nine workers.

6. What happens when the north side of the volcanic mountain in Vestmannaeyjar breaks loose?
(a) It moves towards the town and harbor.
(b) It crushes most of the town's homes.
(c) It falls into the ocean depths.
(d) It melts into the lava flow.

7. Both Iceland and Hawaii are the world's most what?
(a) Dangerous places to live.
(b) Inhabited islands.
(c) Earthquake-prone islands.
(d) Productive geophysical hotspots.

8. After the eruptions of 1973 end, how many of Heimaey's evacuees return?
(a) Two-thirds.
(b) Only a handful.
(c) All of them.
(d) Half.

9. What is Thorbjorn Sigurgeirsson's idea to stop the flow of lava?
(a) Cooling it.
(b) Redirecting it.
(c) Digging channels and ditches.
(d) Building a metal wall.

10. In Heimaey, who is Sveinn Eiriksson?
(a) Volcano expert.
(b) Physician.
(c) Fire chief.
(d) Reporter.

11. How does Sigurdur Steinthorsson monitor volcanic gases during the 1973 eruption?
(a) Smoking cigars.
(b) Particle detector.
(c) Measuring static electricity.
(d) Infrared glasses.

12. To cool the lava flows of 1973, what does Valdimar Jonsson suggest?
(a) Using ten times more water.
(b) Stacking ice blocks along the lava's path.
(c) Redirecting the flow towards an iceberg.
(d) Using ice and snow.

13. Why do residents of Heimaey hose down oncoming lava?
(a) Because of local superstitions.
(b) Act of desperation in fear of the oncoming lava.
(c) Create a chilled wall of lava to stop the flow.
(d) It was attempted there before successfully.

14. What position does Magnus Magnusson hold in 1973?
(a) Governor.
(b) Prime Minister.
(c) Mayor.
(d) Ambassador.

15. In 1973, the eruptions in Heimaey begin on January 23 and continue vigorously before diminishing in strength through when?
(a) January 30th.
(b) February 25th.
(c) March 1st.
(d) February 5th.

Short Answer Questions

1. Thorbjorn Sigurgeirsson decides to try to stop the chunk of mountain moving towards Heimaey's town and harbor by:

2. In gallons, how much water is pumped onto the lava flows of Heimaey each day?

3. When workers in Vestmannaeyjar hose down lava, why do they keep moving?

4. How are residents and livestock evacuated from Heimaey during the 1973 eruptions?

5. What nickname do the residents of Heimaey give to Sveinn Eiriksson?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 538 words (approx. 2 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample