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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. The title of this chapter comes from Jean Rostand: "The obligation to endure gives us the right to ___________."

2. The population of Japanese Beetles in sprayed areas is ______________ .

3. Farms and orchards do NOT include these trees, in Carson's description.

4. What did the earthworms dine on that infected them with DDT?

5. Where was the population of Japanese Beetles effectively controlled?

Short Essay Questions

1. What kinds of foods contain the highest levels of chemicals?

2. How are commercial fishermen affected by the spread of chemicals among the fish population?

3. Why is it strange that a program was launched against the Southern population of fire ants?

4. What do the mitochondria of cells do within the body?

5. What are some of the diseases that insects can carry which are harmful to humans?

6. What happens when plants grow within the chemically-laced soil?

7. What are some of the ways humans have done great damage to other life forms, according to Carson?

8. What does Carson encourage readers to do in relation to the information they receive about pollution and pest control?

9. What was the immediate and devastating result of the spraying of the land for Dutch Elm Disease?

10. What caused the widespread application of chemicals in the time of World War II?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

The world that Carson describes in the beginning of "Silent Spring" is one that provokes several reactions from readers.

Part 1: Describe the first world that Carson envisions in the first chapter of the book.

Part 2: How does the world change as the description continues on?

Part 3: Why does Carson use this description in the beginning of the book?

Essay Topic 2

The use of pesticides is so rampant that it is causing troubles already, even at the time that this book was published in 1965.

Part 1: Why are pesticides so rampant in the world?

Part 2: What do scientists have a hard time doing because of the widespread use of pesticides?

Part 3: What are some of the physical effects of pesticide use? Where are pesticides now found?

Essay Topic 3

The cycle between the various areas of the environment begins to reveal just how intertwined everything is - and how horrible it would be if one part of the cycle is disrupted.

Part 1: Describe the cycle that takes place between the plants, the soil, and the animals.

Part 2: Why is the soil so important in this life cycle?

Part 3: What is the role of the insects and the mites in the soil?

(see the answer keys)

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