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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who was David and Henrietta's cousin that convinced David to look for work in the steel industry in Baltimore in 1941?
(a) Tommy Lacks.
(b) Johnny Pleasant.
(c) Joseph Lacks.
(d) Fred Garret.

2. Who was the press officer at the NFIP that wrote to George Gey in 1953 to say that he intended to write a more detailed article about Henrietta Lacks once her name was revealed in the press?
(a) Charles Bynum.
(b) Harry Eagle.
(c) Ronald H. Berg.
(d) William Scherer.

3. What was the nickname of Henrietta's cousin that tried to kill himself when he found out that Henrietta was marrying David?
(a) Cootie.
(b) Wild Willy.
(c) Crazy Joe.
(d) Jumpin' Joe.

4. Alexis Carrel died while he was awaiting trial for what crime?
(a) Impersonating a medical professional.
(b) Collaborating with the Nazis.
(c) Arson.
(d) Fraud and negligence.

5. Who was Ethel's husband that sexually abused Deborah Lacks when she was a child?
(a) Cliff.
(b) Cootie.
(c) Joe.
(d) Galen.

Short Answer Questions

1. What was Henrietta Lacks's name at birth?

2. What was the name of Deborah Lacks's first child?

3. When did George Papanicolaou publish a paper describing what is now known as the "Pap smear"?

4. What image did Mary Kubicek describe to the author as having instilled in her the realization that Henrietta Lacks was "a real person" in Part Two: Death, Chapter 12?

5. How many chromosomes are contained in a human cell?

Short Essay Questions

1. How were tissue samples obtained following Henrietta Lacks's death? Why were they obtained?

2. What was the objective for Dr. Richard TeLinde in using cancer cells and samples from Howard Jones in his research?

3. How does the author describe Courtney Speed in the narrative? What business(es) did Ms. Speed run at the time the author first met her?

4. What diagnosis did the doctors from Johns Hopkins reach regarding Henrietta's condition after her first visit? What treatment was available at this time for her condition?

5. How did the doctors at Johns Hopkins treat Henrietta Lacks after her recurrence of cancer in June of 1951?

6. How do you think Henrietta Lacks's life would have been different if her mother had not died when Henrietta was still a child? Why?

7. Who is Roland Pattillo, and why did Rebecca Skloot contact him regarding the Lacks family? How did Pattillo respond to Rebecca's inquiries?

8. What advancements did Alexis Carrel achieve in medical progress during his career?

9. What advancements and discoveries were made due to research using HeLa cells from 1960-1966?

10. What were Mary Kubicek's impressions of HeLa cells when she first began observing them? What were George Gey's impressions of the cells?

(see the answer keys)

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