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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. What explanation does the expedition party give to the Mexicans they meet on Espiritu Santo Island?
(a) They are looking at useless animals out of general scientific interest.
(b) They are collecting curios which will fetch a good price back at home.
(c) They are just passing along, and their destination is Southeast Asia.
(d) They are attracted to the culture of the place and want to stay there for good.

2. Why are the particular dates chosen for an expedition?
(a) The dates were chosen based on the birthdates of the travelers because they wanted to celebrate at sea.
(b) The destination, the Sea of Cortez, is known to have dangerous storms that quiet down during the period chosen by the travelers.
(c) The expedition had to be done at a time when the travelers' children were vacationing with their grandparents.
(d) The travelling rules have just been lifted which enabled the travelers to journey to sea.

3. What are the two types of biologists, as discussed by John Steinbeck and Ed Ricketts?
(a) Those who study dead, preserved animals and those who study life in all its complexity.
(b) Those who have their own laboratory and those who rent a space for their laboratory works.
(c) Those who work at night and those who work during the day.
(d) Those who teach in the university and those who work for corporations.

4. What is a Sally Lightfoot crab?
(a) It is a particularly agile, small crab which seems to elude every attempt for its capture.
(b) It is a female crab with a very unique tattoo on its shell, shaped like a foot.
(c) It is a female crab which clings to people's feet.
(d) It is a small crab with giant feet, and the name is meant as a private joke among residents of Cabo San Lucas.

5. Which piece of equipment receives positive feedback from the author?
(a) The diesel engine.
(b) The diesel engine and the outboard motor.
(c) The outboard motor.
(d) None. Everything was trashed by the author.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who is Raul?

2. What is the concept explored by the author in the section that pertains to boats and men?

3. What do the Mexican officials do with the expedition party?

4. Why does the author rant about the outboard motor?

5. What happens to the porpoises, as observed by Steinbeck and Ricketts?

Short Essay Questions

1. Describe the Sea-Cow and how did it get its name? How does the expedition party relate to it? Does the expedition party treat the Sea-Cow fairly?

2. Briefly discuss the group's encounter when they try to have chicken for dinner. Can you give some rationale to the efforts the group went through just to have chicken for dinner?

3. Describe the members of the expedition team and their vehicle.

4. Steinbeck notices two men and a woman in Cabo San Lucas, paddling their canoe to the boat to do a little talking. He remarks that the indigenous people's sense of time is different from theirs. Describe the group that Steinbeck encounters, and what about their appearance invites such remarks from Steinbeck?

5. What is the Log of Sea Cortez and why was it created?

6. Describe Tiny's encounter with a sea turtle.

7. What are Steinbeck's thoughts on his expedition compared to those of Charles Darwin? What are the similarities and differences?

8. Briefly state the discussions made by Steinbeck and Ricketts on different ways of thinking, particularly looking at the society and the balance that is maintained all the time, as specified by their given example on employment.

9. Describe Steinbeck's theory on aphrodisiacs and how he encounters some in Cabo San Lucas.

10. Briefly discuss how Tony's personality is impressed upon the team members as they take turns manning the wheel.

(see the answer keys)

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