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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. Which clock did Captain Cook select to use on his second voyage around the world?

2. How long did it take Harrison to build H1?

3. What was the size of the H1?

4. When Harrison was asked to hand his plans over to the British government, what was his reaction?

5. After successfully testing the H-4, how much of the Longitude Prize did Harrison receive?

Short Essay Questions

1. Who were Harrison's enemies? Why?

2. What was the problem with Maskelyne's lunar-distance method?

3. Explain the relationship between Harrison and Jefferys.

4. Describe Harrison's relationship with the Board of Longitude.

5. What role did the astronomers elitism play in the quest for solving the longitude problem?

6. What effect did Harrison's success have on the Longitude Act and the Board of Longitude?

7. According to the Royal Academy of Astronomers, why was Harrison not "worthy" to solve the problem of longitude?

8. What happened to clockmaking after Harrison's death?

9. What effect did Harrison's clocks have on Britain?

10. Describe the progression of Harrison's clocks in Chapter 8: The Grasshopper Goes to Sea.

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Examine Sobel's writing style. How does she balance fact and opinion to further the plot of the book? Does her style lend itself more to fiction or nonfiction?

Essay Topic 2

When the Board of Longitude established a large monetary prize, many inventors came forward with ideas on how to solve the problem. In an essay, analyze whether or not the monetary award associated with the longitude prize helped to spur ideas for solving longitude or created a setback in time wasted having to consider crackpot schemes.

Essay Topic 3

Complete a historical analysis of John Harrison. How would you describe him? What qualities did he posses that helped him to be successful?

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