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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What did the new methods Whittington and his team adopted help them do?

2. What does Gould focus on to bring the Burgess Shale into clear view?

3. What was Opabinia's frontal nozzle not?

4. What did Whittington conclude about Yohoia in 1975?

5. In what year did Leif Størmer describe the Burgess Shale arthropods in a treatise?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why are the Burgess Shale's arthropod designs odd?

2. Why did Gould write this book as an homage to the Burgess Shale?

3. Why do paleontologists find Opabinia unbelievable and fascinating?

4. What did people think Opabinia was and what did Whittington choose to believe about this idea?

5. How did Whittington try to uncover the bodily appendages of Opabinia?

6. Why did Whittington approach Yohoia less conservatively?

7. Why could the acceptance of the new interpretation create within humans a psychological shock?

8. What did using these new methods allow Whittington's team to do?

9. What is Chapter 3: Reconstruction of the Burgess Shale: Toward a New View of Life about?

10. What evidence favors Opabinia's uniqueness?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Chapter 2 focuses on the myth of the laboratory and of field work. What does Gould have to say about the myths behind these work stations? Discuss three examples that explain how Gould presents these working stations as mythic. Also, determine the similarities and differences between laboratory and field work.

Essay Topic 2

In Act 2, Gould discusses Whittington's shocking discovery after dissecting Opabinia's carapace. First, explain what the discovery was. Second, explain the discovery's significance for scientific research as a whole, and for the Burgess Shale in particular.

Essay Topic 3

Agree or disagree with the following statement: the scientist is responsible for the implications or consequences of his or her research regardless of its accuracy or inaccuracy. Cite three examples from the book that support your view. Explain you argument with solid reasoning and make sure to address what responsibility the public might have in this argument.

(see the answer keys)

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