Paleontology's Public Intellectual

15 Points Per Correct Answer - No time limit  

1. Even as a child, Gould was obsessed with dinosaurs. However, dinosaurs were not as 'cool' in the 40's as they are today. What nickname did Gould earn for his interests? Dinosaur breath Fossil face Bonehead Dino boy

2. Gould became a professor at a very young age- 26. At what university did he teach? UCLA Yale Harvard Columbia

3. At the age of 30 Gould and Niles Eldredge coauthored a paper on a new theory of evolutionary science quite different from strict Darwinism. What was this theory called? Allopatric speciation Punctuated equilibrium Founder effect Convergent evolution

4. Gould was most famous as an author of short essays on science. In which magazine were these essays originally published? Smithsonian Natural History Science The Scientist

5. One of Gould's books was titled 'The Panda's Thumb.' What did the panda's thumb have to do with evolution? An example of very gradual evolution An example of convergent evolution An example of imperfect design An example of paleontological detective work

6. One of Gould's works was called 'The Mismeasure of Man.' What was this book about? Physical differences between men and women Rate of growth of human skeletons The heredity of intelligence Physical differences between human races

7. Gould wrote many essays for the 'New York Review of Books.' However, many of them were not about books on science. What were they about? Baseball Computers Stamp collecting Education

8. Another of Gould's reviews for the 'New York Review of Books' was a scathing review of a book by Charles Murray. What was the subject of this book that so aroused Gould's ire? Creationism in the public schools Theories of racial intelligence Warm-blooded dinosaurs Astrology

9. Gould appeared as an expert witness in several court cases. What did the cases concern? Generic drug marketing Affirmative action Teaching creationism to schoolchildren Ownership of dinosaur fossils

10. Gould appeared as himself on one episode of a famous television series. Which one? The Cosby Show The Simpsons Star Trek-The Next Generation CSI

11. Fill in the blank for the following quote from Gould-'Teaching _____________is like teaching English but making grammar optional.' science without ethics medicine without compassion math without statistics biology without evolution

12. What were Gould's political views best characterized as? Conservative Liberal Apolitical Middle of the road

13. Which of the following was a hobby of Gould's? Singing in a choir Raising pigeons Mushroom hunting Knitting

14. In 1980, Gould was diagnosed with abdominal mesothelioma, a type of cancer. The cancer went into remission for some years, then returned. Gould worked very hard to finish his magnum opus, probably knowing that he had little time left. What was this book called? The Structure of Evolutionary Theory Creationism- The False Doctrine Equilibrium and Evolution A Brief History of Evolution

15. Another of Gould's most famous essays is called, 'The Median Isn't the Message.' What is the subject of this essay? Mediocrity in science education Statistics of cancer survival The average person's views of science Fraud in science research