Deck 22: Technology and the Global Environment

Question 1

In 2000,____ of Americans agreed or felt neutral that science and technology do more good than harm.

A)20%
B)30%
C)50%
D)60%
E)70%

Answer 1

E

Question 2

The idea that the complexities of modern technology ensure that all modern technology will inevitably fail is recognized by the term ____.

A)the matrix syndrome
B)technological determinism
C)normal accident
D)risk society
E)technopoly

Answer 2

C

Question 3

The application of scientific principles to the improvement of human life is called:

A)the matrix
B)technology
C)normal accidents
D)social improvements
E)the risk society

Answer 3

B

Question 4

When your computer crashes it is an illustration of:

A)the matrix syndrome
B)technological limitations
C)technological determinism
D)a normal accident
E)a risk society

Question 5

According to Brym and Lie,during "the era of naïve optimism" people regarded scientists:

A)as having ulterior motives for their work
B)as being under the control of big corporations and big government
C)as a sort of priesthood whose objectivity allowed them to stand outside the everyday world and perform near-magical acts
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 6

Which of the following is the main negative consequence of technological development?

A)decreasing social inequality
B)decreasing living standards
C)growing worker autonomy
D)widespread environmental degradation
E)increasing public ignorance of science

Question 7

Technological determinism is the view that:

A)people determine the shape and direction of technological change
B)technology determines the shape and direction of history
C)technology and people make history
D)neither technology nor people make history

Question 8

Increasingly,technological development has come under the influence of ____.

A)great creative geniuses
B)multinational corporations
C)national governments
D)scientists
E)multinational corporations and national governments

Question 9

The Matrix depicts a world where information technology and the representation of reality have become:

A)unimportant
B)more real than reality
C)an illusion
D)extensions of the physical world
E)extensions of the mental world

Question 10

In the mid-1980s,sociologist Charles Perrow coined the term:

A)risk society
B)normal accident
C)technopoly
D)technological determinism
E)environmentalism

Question 11

The world leader in scientific research,publications,and elite achievements is:

A)Japan
B)Germany
C)Russia
D)the United States

Question 12

Who first argued that technologies are invented in clusters?

A)Kropotkin
B)Vygotsky
C)Kondratiev
D)Khatchaturian
E)Fuller

Question 13

Which groups in American society experience more environmental risks than the average?

A)the poor
B)the young
C)urban dwellers
D)rural dwellers
E)the elderly

Question 14

The sociologist who is associated with the term "normal accidents" is:

A)Robert Oppenheimer
B)Karl Marx
C)Ulrich Beck
D)Charles Perrow
E)Neil Postman

Question 15

A risk society is a society in which:

A)nearly all people engage in risky behavior
B)young people tend to engage in risky behavior
C)technology distributes danger among all categories of the population
D)the risks of technology outweigh the benefits
E)the benefits of technology outweigh the risks

Question 16

Which of the following groups have to discover and promote environmental issues if they are to be turned into social problems?

A)policy-oriented scientists
B)the environmental movement
C)the mass media
D)respected organizations and institutions
E)all of these choices

Question 17

Brym and Lie argue that many people (including many sociologists)woke up to the fact that technological advance is not always beneficial when:

A)a series of widely publicized technological disasters took place in the 1970s and 1980s
B)the atom bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in 1945
C)the environmental movement became popular in the 1990s
D)global warming became a well-known danger in the 1990s
E)the atom bomb of 1945 followed by technological disasters of the 1970s and 1980s

Question 18

Which of the following events changed the way that many people look at technology and technological advancement?

A)the outbreak of "Legionnaires Disease"
B)leakage of dangerous and toxic chemicals at Love Canal
C)the Three Mile Island nuclear accident
D)the running aground of the Exxon Valdez in Prince William Sound,Alaska
E)all of these choices

Question 19

Technology transforms society,but it is under human control because:

A)nowadays humans always build safeguards into new technologies
B)human needs help to shape technological growth
C)technology is based on rational rather than emotional understandings of nature
D)human interests are always weighed against ecological interests
E)none of these choices

Question 20

Brym and Lie call the period when the great majority of people thought technology produces only progress and tangible benefits:

A)the era of naïve optimism
B)the era of rationality
C)the era of peace
D)the era of cooperation
E)the scientific era

Question 21

By the 1950s,most technological innovations were organized along:

A)craft lines
B)geographical divisions
C)by the interests of likeminded individuals
D)an industrial model
E)a postindustrial model

Question 22

The idea that contemporary society distributes risk among all categories of the population is associated with which of the following terms?

A)the matrix syndrome
B)technological determinism
C)normal accidents
D)technopoly
E)risk society

Question 23

Mass-producing cars,sending a man to the moon,and other technology feats in the 1900s required:

A)enormous capital investment
B)detailed attention to the way work is organized
C)many technical experts
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 24

Who argued that the United States is the first country in which technology has taken control of culture?

A)Robert Oppenheimer
B)Karl Marx
C)Ulrich Beck
D)Charles Perrow
E)Neil Postman

Question 25

The Russian economist Nikolai Kondratiev noted that technologies are invented in clusters.Moreover,he noted that such flurries of creativity cause major economic growth spurts about ____ years later and have a lasting influence for ____ years.

A)1-2; 5-15
B)10-20; 25-35
C)30-40; 35-55
D)40-50; 40-50

Question 26

Which ideals govern the direction of most technological research and development?

A)human improvement
B)planetary improvement
C)conflict management
D)global sustainability
E)none of these choices

Question 27

Neil Postman calls a society in which people use technology instead of morality to solve all problems a ____.

A)risk society
B)technological nightmare
C)risk society
D)technopoly
E)postmodern society

Question 28

Large multinational corporations now routinely invest enormous sums in research and development to increase their chance of being the first to bring innovations to market.Therefore,the time lag between new discoveries and technological application:

A)is shrinking
B)is increasing
C)is remaining the same
D)is unknown
E)depends on the technological application

Question 29

In 1997,American research and development spending reached over $200 billion dollars,up from over $74 billion in 1960.During that same period the proportion of research and development spending by government:

A)rose from 33% of the total to 65%
B)stayed approximately the same: 33%
C)fell from 66% of the total to 33%
D)stayed approximately the same: 65%
E)none of these choices

Question 30

In a risk society,danger does not result from technological accidents alone.It is also due to increasing:

A)political threats
B)economic threats
C)environmental threats
D)criminal threats
E)terrorist threats

Question 31

According to Brym and Lie,access to large research grants,well-paying jobs,expensive state-of-the-art equipment,and the possibility of winning patents and achieving commercial success:

A)make scientific research less complicated now than it was just a decade ago
B)have little or no effect of the kind of research that scientists do
C)help to define the kind of research that scientists do
D)are far less important than individual interests,personal creativity,and the state of a field's intellectual development in defining the kind of research that scientists do

Question 32

After the 1940s,only the government and giant multinational corporations could sponsor most technological innovation because:

A)only they could afford to sustain the research efforts
B)only they had the patents to develop sophisticated technology
C)only they had the public support to create technology
D)only they had the interest in creating new products and technology
E)all of these choices

Question 33

The belief that technology is the major force shaping human society and history is called:

A)technopoly
B)risk society
C)normal accidents
D)technological determinism
E)all of these choices

Question 34

The United States had fewer than 10,000 research scientists before World War I.Today,it has:

A)less than 10,000 because of the reliance on computers
B)more than a million
C)just over 100,000
D)more than 10 million

Question 35

Thomas Edison was able to create his inventions due to:

A)his personal genius and commitment
B)the work of expensive team efforts
C)the support of large corporations such as General Electric
D)federal government support
E)his personal genius and commitment combined with expensive team efforts

Question 36

The idea that the United States is the first country in which technology has taken control of culture is known as:

A)the matrix syndrome
B)technopoly
C)technological determinism
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 37

According to Ulrich Beck,environmental threats are more widespread,chronic,and ambiguous than technological accidents.This makes environmental threats more:

A)stressful
B)predictable
C)manageable
D)organizational
E)risky

Question 38

The steam engine and the computer did not become major forces in society until:

A)they were mass-produced in the United States
B)they were invented
C)they were perfected
D)the Japanese mass-produced them
E)they were coupled with an urgent social need

Question 39

The era of big science and big technology was reached by the time:

A)the electric light bulb was created
B)the automobile came into existence
C)the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima
D)the diesel engine was invented
E)none of these choices

Question 40

What ideals govern the direction of most technological research and development?

A)human improvement
B)planetary improvement
C)military considerations
D)profit making concerns
E)both military and profit making concerns

Question 41

Which of the following is an environmental side effect of technology?

A)global warming
B)industrial pollution
C)the decline of biodiversity
D)genetic pollution
E)all of these choices

Question 42

For the 17 days of the Olympics,Atlanta closed its downtown to cars and operated public transit around the clock.As a result:

A)the performance of Olympic athletes improved
B)the performance of Olympic athletes was impaired
C)asthma attacks among children in the Atlanta area plummeted
D)global warming increased
E)all of these choices

Question 43

One of the serious concerns in using genetically engineered food and organisms is that:

A)we cannot predict the exact environmental consequences
B)we can predict only the positive environmental consequences
C)genetic manipulation will be too popular to keep up with demand
D)b and c
E)a and c

Question 44

A gradual increase in the world's average surface temperature is known as:

A)genetic pollution
B)industrial pollution
C)the decline of biodiversity
D)global warming
E)all of these choices

Question 45

According to Brym and Lie,the advantaged often:

A)try to protect the disadvantaged in society because they are vulnerable
B)put the disadvantaged in harm's way to avoid risk themselves
C)advertise the situations of the unfortunate to mobilize support on their behalf
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 46

The emission of various impurities into the air,water,and soil due to industrial processes are called:

A)genetic pollution
B)industrial pollution
C)the decline of biodiversity
D)global warming
E)greenhouse effect

Question 47

A form of oxygen that blocks ultraviolet radiation from the sun is called:

A)genetic pollution
B)industrial waste
C)the decline of biodiversity
D)acid rain
E)ozone

Question 48

A form of precipitation whose acidity eats away at,and may eventually destroy,forests and the ecosystems of lakes is known as:

A)genetic pollution
B)industrial waste
C)the decline of biodiversity
D)acid rain
E)ozone destruction

Question 49

The health risks and ecological dangers that may arise from artificially splicing genes together are called:

A)genetic pollution
B)industrial waste
C)the decline of biodiversity
D)acid rain
E)ozone destruction

Question 50

The enormous variety of plant and animal species inhabiting the earth is called:

A)genetic pollution
B)industrial waste
C)biodiversity
D)acid rain
E)ozone destruction

Question 51

A technique developed by molecular biologists in the last few decades that involves joining bits of DNA from a donor to the DNA of a host is called:

A)biodiversity
B)recombinant DNA
C)reorganized DNA
D)research DNA
E)malleable DNA

Question 52

When a nonnative organism enters a new environment it can:

A)adapt without a problem
B)destroy native organisms
C)revert to an older organismic form
D)destroy native organisms and revert to an older form
E)adapt without a problem and destroy native organisms

Question 53

According to research,about ____ species are becoming extinct annually?

A)100
B)500
C)750
D)1,000
E)none of these choices

Question 54

Oil refineries,chemical plants,toxic dumps,garbage incinerators,and other environmentally dangerous installations are most likely to be built in:

A)rich communities
B)middle-lass communities
C)poor communities
D)suburban communities
E)exurban communities

Question 55

Why do news reporters often publicize tornado disasters that strike trailer parks?

A)because the metal attracts tornados
B)because trailers usually suffer more damage than other types of dwellings and therefore make a more sensational story
C)because news reporters are drawn to stories of affirmation
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 56

Global warming became a social problem when:

A)it became big news
B)the environmental movement gave new legitimacy and momentum to research on global warming
C)respected and influential scientists promoted the issue
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 57

The accumulation of carbon dioxide in the air allows more solar radiation to enter the atmosphere and less heat to escape.This is known as:

A)genetic pollution
B)industrial pollution
C)the decline of biodiversity
D)the greenhouse effect
E)the decline of biodiversity

Question 58

Because some scientists,industrial interests,and politicians dispute the existence of environmental threats:

A)members of the public usually turn to non-biased research reports
B)few members of the public hold opinions about environmental problems
C)the public began to question whether environmental issues are in fact real social problems
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 59

When disaster strikes,economically and politically disadvantaged people tend to:

A)suffer to the same degree as advantaged people
B)rarely suffer because they have less to lose than advantaged people
C)suffer more the advantaged people because they are more vulnerable
D)avoid having their situations reported in the media
E)rush to the mass media to air their grievances

Question 60

Many scientists believe global warming is already producing serious climate change.As temperatures rise:

A)more water evaporates
B)there is more soil erosion
C)there is less cultivable land to grow food on
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 61

Some analysts believe the market and high technology will solve environmental problems.Which issues suggest that this is NOT the case?

A)the operation of imperfect price signals
B)the continuing importance of political pressure in prompting action on environmental issues
C)the slow pace of change
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 62

Why are environmentally dangerous installations most likely to be built in poor communities with a high percentage of African Americans and Hispanic Americans?

A)disadvantaged people are often too politically weak to oppose such facilities
B)the job opportunities afforded by such installations may appear attractive to them
C)both of these choices
D)none of these choices

Question 63

The anti-nuclear movement is an example of a movement that forced a change in government and corporate policy.Its success illustrates:

A)imperfect price signals
B)the importance of political pressure in prompting action on environmental issues
C)the slow pace of change
D)the rapid pace of change
E)none of these choices

Question 64

Which countries are responsible for most of the world's environmental damage?

A)poor countries
B)rich countries
C)semideveloped (semiperipheral)countries
D)all countries are equally responsible

Question 65

According to Charles Darwin,human survival depends on:

A)competition
B)cooperation
C)competition and cooperation
D)social evolution
E)none of these choices

Question 66

The ____ cost of a commodity is the total cost to produce the product and to resolve any environmental damage caused by using the product.

A)market
B)social
C)total
D)true
E)regulated

Question 67

Biopiracy is the term sometimes used to refer to:

A)the use of recombinant DNA by large multinational corporations that dominate the pharmaceutical,seed,and agrochemical industries
B)genetic pollution
C)the theft of patents by environmentalists
D)the patenting of naturally occurring DNA by large multinational corporations that dominate the pharmaceutical,seed,and agrochemical industries

Question 68

The ability of the market and high technology to respond effectively to environmental issues is illustrated by:

A)the "green revolution" of the 1960s
B)the introduction of diesel-electric hybrid cars by General Motors and Ford
C)the decline in industrial pollution in the United States between 1990 and 1999
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 69

Brym and Lie argue that:

A)most people have good strategies for surviving environmental disasters
B)most people are not prepared to make big sacrifices for remote and abstract goals
C)many serious environmental disasters may have to occur before most people wake up to the need to act on environmental problems
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 70

Which of the following are among the advantages of web-based education?

A)portability
B)ease of use
C)students can learn at their own speed
D)students can learn in their own style
E)all of these choices

Question 71

The underprivileged countries of the world face ____ environmental dangers compared to the privileged countries.

A)more
B)less
C)the same level of
D)an unknown level of

Question 72

The United States has less than ____% of the world's population and uses about ____% of the world's resources.

A)20%; 50%
B)15%; 40%
C)10%; 30%
D)5%; 25%

Question 73

The tendency to heap environmental dangers on disadvantaged racial minorities is called:

A)environmental dumping
B)community pollution
C)environmental racism
D)ecological prejudice
E)racist environmentalism

Question 74

Which of the following are some of the disadvantages of web-based learning?

A)it makes it difficult to control the quality of education
B)dropout rates are higher for distance education courses
C)distance education is likely to spread primarily among low-cost,low-status institutions
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 75

The richest fifth of humanity now earns about ____ more than the poorest fifth.

A)20 times
B)40 times
C)60 times
D)80 times
E)100 times

Question 76

Surveys suggest that most members of the American public:

A)are not well aware of environmental issues
B)think they can do little about environmental problems
C)believe that governments should not pass more laws to protect the environment
D)are not willing to pay much higher taxes to protect the environment
E)are willing to pay much higher prices to protect the environment

Question 77

According to Brym and Lie,the possibility of genetically programming babies to have extraordinary intellectual and physical potential is likely to:

A)speed up and improve the slow and imperfect process of natural evolution
B)be enjoyed only by the well to do
C)introduce an era of increased social inequality and low mobility
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 78

The 75-mile strip along the lower Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge is nicknamed "Cancer Alley" because the region suffers from a disproportionately high rate of cancer.The majority of the people who like in this area are racial minorities.This is an example of:

A)environmental dumping
B)community pollution
C)environmental racism
D)ecological prejudice
E)racist environmentalism

Question 79

The price of many commodities does not reflect their actual cost to society.This illustrates:

A)the operation of imperfect price signals
B)the importance of political pressure in prompting action on environmental issues
C)the slow pace of change
D)all of these choices
E)none of these choices

Question 80

On average,people in the less developed countries are ____ concerned about the environment than (as)people in rich countries.

A)more
B)less
C)as
D)much less