Quiz on Why We SHould Save Earth Before Colonizing Mars

According to “Why We Should Save Earth Before Colonizing Mars,” how could we clean up our planet? Choose three options.

• get rid of the plastic in the oceans

• switch from gas cars to electric cars

• get rid of the nitrogen dioxide in the atmosphere

• be smarter about how and why we build

• be smarter about where and when we explore

According to “Why We Should Save Earth Before Colonizing Mars,” how many of the planets we have discovered during space exploration resemble Earth?

• most of them

• none of them

• only one of them

• very few of them

According to “Why We Should Save Earth Before Colonizing Mars,” why do some groups believe we “must get off this planet for good”?

• because our civilization has already damaged Earth beyond repair

• because a rock struck Earth and destroyed life millions of years ago

• because our young species could grow and thrive faster in other places

• because there are thousands of dangerous rocks headed for Earth right now

According to “Why We Should Save Earth Before Colonizing Mars,” what does NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory do?

• supplies the European Space Agency with telescopes

• develops new methods of space travel

• searches for other Earth-like planets

• tracks Near-Earth Objects

If someone is gesturing ominously, which of the following must be true?

• The gesture helps you understand what to do.

• The gesture helps you understand where something is.

• The gesture suggests something bad is about to happen.

• The gesture suggests something good is about to happen.

What does the word anxious mean in the following sentence? Once Camille became informed about the wonderful, unique world that existed deep in the ocean, she was anxious to learn more.

• feeling uncertain about a decision

• wanting something very badly

• finding something spooky

• experiencing worry

Which of the following best shows the meaning of calamitous?

• The fire completely destroyed the building.

• Some of the milk spilled as the child poured.

• A sense of peace settled over the quiet room.

• Several victories left the team feeling amazing.

Part A: Which sentence best summarizes a claim the author makes in “Why We Should Save Earth Before Colonizing Mars”?

• Earth is where we first lived, so we owe the planet a lot.

• It will be too expensive and time-consuming to terraform Mars.

• Earth already has the things we would have to create to survive on other planets.

• If we destroy Earth too soon, a planet like Mars might not be ready for us in time.

Part A: Which sentence best summarizes a claim the author makes in “Why We Should Save Earth Before Colonizing Mars”?

Part B: Which quotation from “Why We Should Save Earth Before Colonizing Mars” most clearly supports the answer to Part A?

• Thus, I’m increasingly becoming more and more appreciative of what Earth offers and why we should be doing more to protect it . . .

• But arguably in the nearer term, we need to ensure that the planet we are so anxious to leave is also one in which we would want to return.

• In terms of calamitous impactors, the odds remain in our favor.

• And if we aren’t out terraforming nearby star systems in another half million years, our civilization may have long disappeared anyway.

According to “Why We Should Save Earth Before Colonizing Mars,” which of the following does the author consider the most serious threat to Earth?

• a space object making harmful impact

• the failure to thoroughly explore space

• humans failing to care for the environment

• too many humans moving to another planet