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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. In what year did Edward Lorenz create a weather simulator as described in Chapter 1, "The Butterfly Effect"?
2. According to Gleick in Chapter 3, "Life's Ups and Downs," what will lead to an increased, steady state in the idealized population?
3. The National Weather Service is one of the six scientific agencies that make up what division of the U.S. Government?
4. In Chapter 2, "Revolution," Gleick writes that the only problem with studying and experimenting with a new science is what?
5. What refers to the sensitive dependence on initial conditions; where a small change at one place in a nonlinear system can result in large differences to a later state?
Short Essay Questions
1. What psychological experiment does Thomas S. Kuhn describe in Chapter 2, "Revolution"?
2. How did the role of chaos theory affect ecologists in the 1970s as described in Chapter 3, "Life's Ups and Downs"?
3. What led to Benoit Mandelbrot's epiphany in Chapter 4, "A Geometry of Nature"? Where was Benoit Mandelbrot working at the time?
4. What were the biggest issues with weather forecasting during Lorenz's time as described in Chapter 1, "The Butterfly Effect"? How is the Butterfly Effect defined?
5. How is Edward Lorenz described in Chapter 1, "The Butterfly Effect"? Where was he working at the time?
6. Describe the weather simulator discussed in Chapter 1, "The Butterfly Effect." What weather conditions did it create?
7. In Chapter 2, "Revolution" Gleick refers to the pendulum as being the laboratory mouse of chaos, the new science. What metaphorical examples does Gleick give for other great scientists in this chapter?
8. How did Lorenz develop ways to reproduce complex behavior in Chapter 1, "The Butterfly Effect"?
9. What impact did The Structure of Scientific Revolutions have on the scientific community? What did Kuhn assert in the book?
10. How did Benoit Mandelbrot describe the ideal data source in Chapter 4, "A Geometry of Nature"?
Essay Topics
Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:
Essay Topic 1
Describe and discuss the Cantor set and the Noah and Joseph Effects. What is Cantor Dust and how was it discovered?
Essay Topic 2
Discuss Albert Libchaber's major contributions in experimental condensed matter physics. How did his discoveries relate to the Rayleigh-Benard systems?
Essay Topic 3
Describe Benoit Mandelbrot's work for International Business Machines Corporation. When was IBM founded and how was Mandelbrot involved in its evolution?
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This section contains 971 words (approx. 4 pages at 300 words per page) |
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