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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. In what year did Sonny Lacks undergo quintuple bypass surgery?
(a) 2006.
(b) 2001.
(c) 2005.
(d) 2003.

2. Rebecca Skloot states in Part Three: Immortality, Chapter 24 that a search of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office database shows how many patents involving HeLa cells?
(a) 32,000.
(b) 5,000.
(c) 17,000.
(d) 12,000.

3. In what year did Deborah Lacks marry James Pullum?
(a) 1988.
(b) 1977.
(c) 1990.
(d) 1981.

4. How old was Deborah's grandson Alfred when Deborah Lacks died?
(a) 12.
(b) 16.
(c) 8.
(d) 5.

5. The researcher at Johns Hopkins that showed Deborah her mother's cells explained to her that Henrietta's cancer developed due to what virus?
(a) Campoletis aprilis ichnovirus.
(b) Abelson murine leukemia virus.
(c) Human papillomavirus.
(d) Abaca mosiac virus.

Short Answer Questions

1. Where was Barbara Wyche working as a sociologist when she wrote to Congress demanding recognition for Henrietta Lacks's contribution to science?

2. Who was the researcher at Johns Hopkins who showed Deborah her mother's cells?

3. What DNA testing company is described by the author in the Afterword as only providing customers with genealogical information "if they first sign a form granting permission for their samples to be stored for future research"?

4. Where did Roland Pattillo grow up?

5. Who is the director of the Institute for Science, Law and Technology at the Illinois Institute of Technology that is cited in the Afterword?

Short Essay Questions

1. When did Deborah Lacks die? What is significant about the timing of her death in Rebecca Skloot's narrative?

2. What gift did Rebecca Skloot give to Deborah Lacks when she first met her in person? How did Deborah respond?

3. How does the author describe her meeting with Zakariyya in Part Three: Immortality – Chapter 30?

4. What are the two main points of controversy regarding tissue research, according to the author in the Afterword?

5. What concerns did Deborah Lacks present to Rebecca Skloot during their first in-person meeting? What were Deborah's fears about HeLa cells and their use?

6. Why did Deborah Lacks fail to attend the Foundation for Cancer Research's event dedicated to her mother in Part Three: Immortality – Chapter 37?

7. How did the members of the Lacks family respond to the new found fame they received on Henrietta's behalf in Part Three: Immortality – Chapter 28?

8. What information did Rebecca and Deborah discover about Elsie and the conditions she lived in at Crownsville in Part Three: Immortality – Chapter 33?

9. Based on Skloot's statements in the Afterword, what is the likelihood that your DNA is on file somewhere? Why?

10. What did Deborah discover during her visit to her doctor after she returned from her research travels with Rebecca Skloot in 2001?

(see the answer keys)

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