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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Chapter Four, which of the following does Carr say became a prerequisite for intellectual achievement?
(a) The ability to write neatly.
(b) The ability to read very quickly.
(c) Silent, solitary reading.
(d) The ability to project one's voice in a debating hall.

2. What does Carr say he finds himself trapped in by the mid-1990s relating to computer equipment purchasing?
(a) An upgrade cycle.
(b) A process of trying to keep up with friends by purchasing the latest equipment.
(c) A frustrating cycle of devices breaking and Carr needing to spent a lot of money to replace them.
(d) A cycle of debt.

3. In what year was the HAL 9000 computer made operational, according to Carr in Chapter One?
(a) 1999.
(b) 1992.
(c) 2005.
(d) 2000.

4. What did a 2006 study by Jupiter Research reveal a huge overlap in, according to Carr in Chapter Five?
(a) Smartphone use and computer use.
(b) TV viewing and Smartphone use.
(c) TV viewing and Web surfing.
(d) Web surfing and eating.

5. What does the phrase scriptura continua refer to, according to Carr in Chapter Four?
(a) The fact that in the earliest days of the written word, there were no spaces between words.
(b) The popular novels of Ancient Greece.
(c) The long scrolls common in ancient Egypt.
(d) The serials people loved to read in Ancient Rome.

6. What did Aristotle think the primary function of the human brain was?
(a) To process auditory signals.
(b) To keep the heart beating.
(c) To keep the body from overheating.
(d) To keep the emotions in check.

7. Who was one of the inventors of BASIC, the first programming language to use common words and syntax?
(a) John Kemeny.
(b) Nicholas Carr.
(c) Bill Richardson.
(d) Steve Jobs.

8. What kind of sea slugs did Eric Kandel perform experiments on in the early 1970s?
(a) Cucumbers.
(b) Aplysia.
(c) Prickly slugs.
(d) Golangels.

9. Who wrote the book Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man?
(a) Walter Winchell.
(b) Merrion Crace.
(c) Marshall McLuhan.
(d) Nicholas Carr.

10. Who was the inventor of the typewriter?
(a) Johannes Burler.
(b) Hans Rasmus Johann Malling-Hansen.
(c) James Joyce.
(d) John Michael Gutenberg.

11. Carr writes that the computer is our servant, but it is simultaneously which of the following?
(a) Our friend.
(b) Our savior.
(c) Our master.
(d) Our confidant.

12. What else besides repeated physical actions can rewire the human brain?
(a) Direct exposure to bright sunlight.
(b) Herbs and spices.
(c) Purely mental activity.
(d) Having and walking a dog every day.

13. What skill was Plato best known for?
(a) Writing.
(b) Editing.
(c) Oration.
(d) Debating.

14. About how much did Carr spend on his first real computer purchase in 1986?
(a) $5,000.
(b) $10,000.
(c) $500.
(d) $2,000.

15. Which famous philosopher from the 1800s wrote an appreciative small piece about his love for the typewriter?
(a) Friedrich Nietzsche.
(b) Sigmund Freud.
(c) Karl Marx.
(d) William Shakespeare.

Short Answer Questions

1. Which alphabet became the model for most Western alphabets, according to Carr?

2. About how many bibles did Gutenberg print before running out of money?

3. What kind of type did Johannes Gutenberg invent with the printing press?

4. What did the psychologist Vaughan Bell saw the ability to focus on a single task represents in the history of psychological development?

5. As long ago as 8000 BC, what were some people using to keep track of livestock and other good for trading, according to Carr?

(see the answer keys)

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