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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. When was Jean le Rond d'Alembert born?

2. According to the author in Chapter 8, “Zero Hour at Ground Zero,” the universe may collapse under its own gravity or what?

3. When was Bernhard Riemann born?

4. What term in theoretical physics refers to an extension of string theory in which 11 dimensions of spacetime are identified?

5. What term refers to a branch of pure mathematics devoted primarily to the study of the integers?

Short Essay Questions

1. How did l’Hopital address the problem of zero, according to the author in Chapter 5, “Infinite Zeros and Infidel Mathematicians”?

2. How were Georg Cantor’s mathematical principles applied to his theology? Who disagreed with his vision and why?

3. What is expressed through the Rayleigh-Jeans law? How does this law relate to zero?

4. Who devised the concept of a limit in calculus? What problems did the limit solve?

5. How many dimensions are required for string theory to work? How are these dimensions described in Chapter 8, “Zero Hour at Ground Zero”?

6. How does the elimination of zero help general relativity theory, according to the author in Chapter 8, “Zero Hour at Ground Zero”?

7. What was discovered by Albert Einstein’s solution to the photoelectric effect?

8. How old is the universe estimated to be by astronomers today? How did they calculate this age?

9. How did the discovery of imaginary numbers affect the study of algebra?

10. What problem do black holes present in physics, according to the author in Chapter 8, “Zero Hour at Ground Zero”?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the biography and work of Filippo Brunelleschi and the introduction of linear perspective. What did paintings look like before the invention of the vanishing point? How did Brunelleschi discover the concept of the vanishing point? How did this concept involve zero?

Essay Topic 2

Define and discuss imaginary numbers and their impact on algebra and mathematic philosophy. Who discovered imaginary numbers and when? How do imaginary numbers behave in comparison to real numbers?

Essay Topic 3

Describe and discuss the biography and works of Leonardo Fibonacci during the Middle Ages, and Fibonacci’s influence in spreading the Hindu–Arabic numeral system in Europe. What is the Fibonacci number sequence? What works did Fibonacci write?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 830 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample