1. Pair up things that belong together
a. bottle of San Pellegrino water
b. basic science
c. transistor
d. rainfall in the Alps during the Roman times
2. Identify the item that you did not pay for
a. bonuses of the CEO's of top ten US banks
b. national labs
c. nation-building in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, etc
d. none of the above, there is no such thing as free lunch
3. Strong science needs strong workforce. It is best if it is left to
(choose one that applies to your country).
a. free market
b. charitable organizations
c. military
d. other countries
4. Educational system is critical for the scientific develpment of the
country. Your children would benefit most from:
a. public school system
b. religious education (yeshiva, catholic school, madrasa, etc)
c. going abroad
d. tax refund and a home schooling voucher
5. Choose the ending that is not correct.
Calculus is
a. a small stone used for counting
b. an abnormal concretion in the body, usually formed of mineral salts
and found in the gallbladder, kidney, or urinary bladder
c. rapidly developing part of modern mathematics
6. Which one of the following sentences is true.
Basic science
a. has high priority for support
b. attracts a lot of fanatical supporters
c. has determined the outcome of O.J. Simpson trial
d. drives the politics of climate change legislation
7. Creation of scientific ideas is important because
a. it is of great interest to the society
b. it often involves people that may not be employable outside academia
c. it is tied to the prosperity of the country
8. Life is ubiquitus in the universe but nobody seems to be heading in
our direction. Is it because
a. we are not worth talking to?
b. we are not worth listening to?
c. both of the above
9. Name one item that does not belong with the remaining ones
a. science and education
b. neutrinos
c. religion
d. drugs and alcohol
10. The greatest gift a calculus teacher can bestow on humanity is:
a. to teach students a mnemonic rule how to integrate sin^5(x)cos^7(x)
that they will remember twenty years after taking the class
b. to identify future politicians in the class and give them good
grades
c. to go beyond calculus and teach them about stochastic PDEs.
11. Mathematicians and statisticians often do not get along. (Assuming that you err with p-value 0.05) this is because
a. mathematicians are jerks who put everybody down
b. mathematicians are jerks who put everybody down
c. mathematicians are jerks who put everybody down
Answers
1. a-c, d-b 2. d 3. d (for USA) c (for North Korea) 4. c 5. c 6. b 7. b 8. c 9. b 10. b 11. a through c
For each correct answer you get one point.
If your score is 11 points then you have answered the first question
correctly. Spot on mate - you are ready to talk to the big fish in the
Office of Science and Technology Policy and advocate for basic science research. Unfortunately, correct answers to the remaining questions indicate cynical and pessimistic outlook on life that is inconsistent with your message.
a. bottle of San Pellegrino water
b. basic science
c. transistor
d. rainfall in the Alps during the Roman times
2. Identify the item that you did not pay for
a. bonuses of the CEO's of top ten US banks
b. national labs
c. nation-building in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, etc
d. none of the above, there is no such thing as free lunch
3. Strong science needs strong workforce. It is best if it is left to
(choose one that applies to your country).
a. free market
b. charitable organizations
c. military
d. other countries
4. Educational system is critical for the scientific develpment of the
country. Your children would benefit most from:
a. public school system
b. religious education (yeshiva, catholic school, madrasa, etc)
c. going abroad
d. tax refund and a home schooling voucher
5. Choose the ending that is not correct.
Calculus is
a. a small stone used for counting
b. an abnormal concretion in the body, usually formed of mineral salts
and found in the gallbladder, kidney, or urinary bladder
c. rapidly developing part of modern mathematics
6. Which one of the following sentences is true.
Basic science
a. has high priority for support
b. attracts a lot of fanatical supporters
c. has determined the outcome of O.J. Simpson trial
d. drives the politics of climate change legislation
7. Creation of scientific ideas is important because
a. it is of great interest to the society
b. it often involves people that may not be employable outside academia
c. it is tied to the prosperity of the country
8. Life is ubiquitus in the universe but nobody seems to be heading in
our direction. Is it because
a. we are not worth talking to?
b. we are not worth listening to?
c. both of the above
9. Name one item that does not belong with the remaining ones
a. science and education
b. neutrinos
c. religion
d. drugs and alcohol
10. The greatest gift a calculus teacher can bestow on humanity is:
a. to teach students a mnemonic rule how to integrate sin^5(x)cos^7(x)
that they will remember twenty years after taking the class
b. to identify future politicians in the class and give them good
grades
c. to go beyond calculus and teach them about stochastic PDEs.
11. Mathematicians and statisticians often do not get along. (Assuming that you err with p-value 0.05) this is because
a. mathematicians are jerks who put everybody down
b. mathematicians are jerks who put everybody down
c. mathematicians are jerks who put everybody down
Answers
1. a-c, d-b 2. d 3. d (for USA) c (for North Korea) 4. c 5. c 6. b 7. b 8. c 9. b 10. b 11. a through c
For each correct answer you get one point.
If your score is 11 points then you have answered the first question
correctly. Spot on mate - you are ready to talk to the big fish in the
Office of Science and Technology Policy and advocate for basic science research. Unfortunately, correct answers to the remaining questions indicate cynical and pessimistic outlook on life that is inconsistent with your message.
