View a FREE sample

This quiz consists of 5 multiple choice and 5 short answer questions through Chapter 1, You Are Here, Chapter 2, Aberrations of Light.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Which of the following is NOT one of the major unknowns that Sagan says he will address in this book?
(a) Why humans should explore space.
(b) What humanity's future is.
(c) How humans can explore space.
(d) Whether or not there is intelligent life on nearby planets.

2. What abstract concept does Sagan specifically say he is optimistic about?
(a) Human destiny.
(b) The future.
(c) The human prospect.
(d) The human capacity for love and discovery.

3. How fast was Voyager I moving in 1990?
(a) 40,000 mph.
(b) 1,000 mph.
(c) 10,000 mph.
(d) 500 mph.

4. What means does Sagan suggest that humans use to represent and express their desire to wander?
(a) Trade.
(b) Adventures.
(c) Stories and symbols.
(d) Colonization.

5. What hazard threatened the Voyager craft in Sagan's plan to take a distant picture of Earth?
(a) Space dust.
(b) The Sun's rays.
(c) Cosmic rays.
(d) Micrometeorites.

Short Answer Questions

1. What was the state of the knowledge and belief about life on other planets at the time the book was written?

2. What is notable about the stars in Sagan's distant picture of the Earth?

3. What space probe was an important part of Sagan's career, and passed by a major planet in 1976?

4. What punishment did Galileo suffer as a result of his works?

5. What astronomical discovery did Galileo make that significantly damaged the geocentric theory?

(see the answer key)

This section contains 300 words (approx. 1 page at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample