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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who was C.A. Gustafson?
(a) The father of one of the dead Smokejumpers.
(b) The pilot of the plane that dropped the Smokejumpers.
(c) The Speaker of the House.
(d) The Forest Service's Chief of Fire Control.

2. What did the blowup and its fire rising out of Mann Gulch look like?
(a) An atomic explosion in a laboratory in Arizona.
(b) An atomic explosion in Montana on its way to Nebraska.
(c) An atomic explosion as seen on television.
(d) An atomic explosion in Nevada on its way to Utah.

3. What words are in the Common Book of Prayer that beg to not die of sudden death?
(a) "Good Lord, watch over us."
(b) "Good Lord, deliver us."
(c) "Good Lord, help us."
(d) "Good Lord, be my shepherd."

4. Who did the author reference when he compared ghosts and tragic heroes?
(a) Hamlet from "Hamlet."
(b) Romeo from "Romeo and Juliet."
(c) Macduff from "Macbeth."
(d) Iago from "Othello."

5. What were the two nonhuman elements Maclean said were left after sight and fear were gone?
(a) Carbon monoxide and flames.
(b) Smoke and flames.
(c) Fire and carbon dioxide.
(d) Heat and toxic gases.

6. What was one of many reasons Maclean thought Henry Thol, Sr. should be proud of his son?
(a) His son died while protecting another man.
(b) His son carried a picture of his family with him.
(c) His son was the closest man to the top of the ridge.
(d) His son was not alone when he died.

7. When did the investigative committee that the chief forester assembled arrive in Mann Gulch?
(a) August 5.
(b) August 19.
(c) August 9.
(d) August 10.

8. What did Maclean believe the Smokejumpers had accomplished spiritually at the time of their deaths?
(a) Unite with earth, fire, and the sky.
(b) Praying to their gods.
(c) Asking for understanding.
(d) Unite with lost ones.

9. Who did Maclean watch play billiards nearly every day when he was a young teacher?
(a) Albert Abraham Michelson.
(b) Albert Simon Winchester.
(c) Albert William Conneley.
(d) Albert Adam Smith.

10. What did Mike Mansfield accomplish for the families of the fallen Smokejumpers?
(a) He tried to delay the Mann Gulch Report.
(b) He added funds to the Forest Service.
(c) He appointed a special advisor to assess the situation.
(d) He raised the burial allowance from $200 to $400 dollars.

11. At the end of his life, what did Maclean consider the ultimate drive of the human spirit?
(a) To escape death at any cost.
(b) To continue doing what we last hoped to do on earth.
(c) To die in peace.
(d) To cry out for compassion.

12. What was the name of the doctor who went in with the rescue crew the night of the fire?
(a) Dr. Thomas.
(b) Dr. Jansson.
(c) Dr. Hawkins.
(d) Dr. Williams.

13. What observation did Jansson and the doctor at the scene make about the final steps of the men who died on the hill?
(a) They were dead before they fell to the ground.
(b) They fell, then rose and took a few steps, then fell again.
(c) They fell and were instantly devoured by the fire.
(d) They fell and got up many times before dying.

14. What time was recorded on the watch found near the bodies?
(a) Three forty-five.
(b) Twenty minutes to ten.
(c) Four minutes to six.
(d) Nine thirty.

15. What year is generally seen as the beginning of modern scientific study of fire behavior?
(a) 1918.
(b) 1946.
(c) 1922.
(d) 1946.

Short Answer Questions

1. What did Laird and Maclean realize early in their investigation of the Mann Gulch fire?

2. How did one doctor describe death from suffocation and lack of oxygen in a fire?

3. What did thinking about the struggle for oxygen that the Smokejumpers' experienced remind the author of?

4. Who was Elmer Bloom?

5. What did Sallee and Rumsey say as they went up the last hillside?

(see the answer keys)

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