Technical Communication with 2016 MLA

Update 11th Edition Markel Test Bank

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1. Chapter 6 advises researchers to look for information that is current. What are two other
characteristics of reliable information that the chapter says you should look for? (Select
both answers.)
A) lack of bias
B) well-known author
C) attractive design
D) comprehensiveness

2. Chapter 6 suggests that you do two things after conducting an interview. What are they?
(Select both answers.)
A) Transcribe the audio recording of the interview.
B) Write down the important information from the interview.
C) Ask for a follow-up interview.
D) Send a brief thank-you note to the respondent.

3. Print is a common medium for publishing information. Chapter 6 identifies four other
publishing media. What are two other media listed in the chapter? (Select both answers.)
A) microfilm
B) microfiche
C) websites
D) social media

4. According to Chapter 6, conducting an experiment involves four stages. One is

reporting the data. What are the other three? (Select the three that apply.)
A) duplicating the experiment
B) testing the hypothesis
C) establishing a hypothesis
D) selecting suitable test subjects
E) analyzing the data

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5. Which source is least likely to be valuable when you have a question about new trends
in the semiconductor industry?
A) an encyclopedia
B) a journal article published this year
C) the blog of an analyst who covers the semiconductor industry
D) the website for a semiconductor magazine

6. Which of the following types of research is least like field research?

A) observations
B) inquiries
C) demonstrations
D) inspections

7. According to Chapter 6, which of these is considered a traditional tool for secondary

research?
A) online catalog
B) tagged content
C) questionnaire
D) microblog

8. What is the term for demographic information about individuals who use and follow
social media?
A) big data
B) analysis
C) analytics
D) mined data

9. Your manager has asked you to recommend which of two new types of digital camera to
buy for your company's publications department. Which of the following is likely to be
the best source of information for your report?
A) website
B) book
C) scholarly article
D) abstract service

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10. A writer is developing a questionnaire asking users about their experiences with a
company's website. Which of the following questions is NOT flawed?
A) I was able to easily find answers to my questions.
Disagree _____ Neutral _____ Agree _____
B) Should we make this site better?
Yes ___ No ___
C) List the top three reasons you visit this site:
_________________
_________________
_________________
D) The flawed graphics made it hard for me to order parts using this site.
Yes __ No __

11. A writer who is researching a state agency's transition from paper-based reports to
paperless electronic reports has scheduled an interview with a senior writer at the
agency. Which of the following interview questions is likely to be most effective?
A) How do you think electronic reports will change your job?
B) What is the future of paper?
C) Do you think paperless reports are worth the effort to learn the new software?
D) Why do you write reports?

12. You are writing a report analyzing whether your company should hire a new vendor to
provide data-warehousing services. You have found a white paper online that looks
promising. How can you judge the degree to which the authors are unbiased?
A) Check to see if the authors have offices in the same cities as your potential data-
service vendors.
B) Check to see if the authors work as industry-wide consultants or as contractors for
specific vendors.
C) Check to see if the authors have advanced degrees.
D) Check to see if the authors appear to be related to each other.

13. You are writing a report about technical methods used for desalination of seawater.
Which of these resources is least likely to provide the technical information you need?
A) a website for professional water-treatment engineers
B) a book about industrial desalination
C) a discussion board about ecology
D) a blog by a leading expert in desalination

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14. With which research method does the researcher have the least amount of control?
A) field research
B) interviews
C) experiments
D) inquiries

15. According to Chapter 6, in which phase of the writing process is it best to conduct
research?
A) editing
B) revising
C) proofreading
D) planning

16. Which word best describes the kind of information found in reference works?
A) exploratory
B) experimental
C) cutting-edge
D) foundational

17. Which of these resources is NOT likely to appear in a library's online database?
A) proceedings from an annual academic conference
B) posts from a blog
C) articles from a magazine
D) articles from a national newspaper

18. You are interviewing the mayor of your city for a report on the prospects for high-tech
manufacturing there. Which of the following questions will be most effective in an
interview?
A) Are tax incentives helping to retain expanding companies?
B) How well are tax incentives helping to retain expanding companies?
C) How long have you been the mayor?
D) Do companies complain about the tax system here?

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19. Which statement best compares the information found on a wiki with the information
from an edited website?
A) The lack of editors on a wiki means that authors on the site can be trusted to speak
the truth.
B) The lack of editors on a wiki means that authors on the site may mix truth with
fiction.
C) The lack of editors on a wiki means that a wiki can be updated quickly. Faster is
better.
D) Edited websites lack the accountability created when content gets "crowdsourced"
on a wiki.

20. Which source reflects the highest degree of authority on the subject of shale-oil deposits
in North America?
A) an article in an encyclopedia
B) an article in a national newspaper
C) an article in a journal for geological research
D) an article in a journal on public policy

21. Secondary research is the process of creating technical information yourself, as opposed
to collecting information that other people have discovered or created.
A) True
B) False

22. A periodical index contains lists of journal and magazine articles classified according to
title, subject, and author.
A) True
B) False

23. Government publications are not usually listed in indexes or by abstract services.
A) True
B) False

24. According to Chapter 6, "How will China's rapid industrial development affect the
global energy market over the next decade?" is more likely to be a workplace research
question than an academic research question.
A) True
B) False

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25. According to Chapter 6, one disadvantage of a questionnaire is that you cannot be sure
the respondents are representative of the population you want to study.
A) True
B) False

26. When obtaining information on products and services from websites, discussion boards,
and blogs, it is important not to assume that vendors' claims are accurate.
A) True
B) False

27. Primary research is the set of sources that you consult while you are in the document-
planning stage.
A) True
B) False

28. It is relatively easy to design field research to measure what you are interested in, but it
is difficult to conduct field research.
A) True
B) False

29. You should select research methods before determining what research questions to
pursue.
A) True
B) False

30. The tags that people use to categorize information they find on websites must be one-
word descriptors without spaces or punctuation (such as “dallaszoo”).
A) True
B) False

31. Chapter 6 advises researchers to look for information that is current. List two other
characteristics of reliable information, according to the chapter.

32. Print is a typical medium for publishing information. However, Chapter 6 identifies
three other media. List them.

33. What is the difference between secondary research and primary research?

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34. What kind of information is found in a periodical index?

35. Chapter 6 lists five characteristics to consider when evaluating print and online sources.
Name two of them.

36. One stage of conducting an experiment is to establish a hypothesis. What is the next
stage?

37. Chapter 6 suggests that you do three things when concluding an interview. What is one
of them?

38. Your research leads you to the following information. What is the name for this kind of
information when it is presented in this fashion?

Title: ENVIRONMENT: THE THIRD DIMENSION OF THE LAND-USE

TRANSPORT INTERACTION
Author: WOOLLEY, JE; YOUNG, TM
Publication Year: 1994
Language: ENGLISH
Pages: 223–39
Journal Name: PAPERS OF THE AUSTRALASIAN TRANSPORT RESEARCH
FORUM, 1994, VOL 19, Journal Number: NA, Journal Volume: NA
Corporate Source: UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. TRANSPORT RESEARCH
CENTRE, PARKVILLE VICTORIA 3052 AUSTRALIA
This paper outlines some of the interactions and relationships between traffic/transport
systems, land-use, and environmental amenity, leading to a detailed discussion of a PC-
based environmental impact assessment system. The system consists of a traffic network
model, a vehicle energy and emissions (noise and air) model, a pollutant dispersion
model, and a land-use impact model. The vehicle energy and emissions model estimates
the energy used and the levels of noise and air pollution generated from traffic streams.
These traffic streams are a function of traffic flow, travel conditions, vehicle type, and
fuel type. The assessment system will allow the user to predict and assess the
environmental impact of road traffic, transport infrastructure, and travel demand
management schemes. The system has the ability to detect relative differences in levels
of pollution and energy use between alternative schemes, while the schemes are still in
the planning stage. Considerable community benefits will result from the use of a
method whereby route and facility location decisions can be made with full knowledge
of the possible impacts.

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39. What is the function of the hashtag symbol (#) that is used on a number of social-media
platforms?

40. What is the function of an RSS feed?

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Answer Key
1. A, D
2. B, D
3. C, D
4. B, C, E
5. A
6. B
7. A
8. C
9. A
10. C
11. A
12. B
13. C
14. A
15. D
16. D
17. B
18. B
19. B
20. C
21. B
22. A
23. A
24. B
25. A
26. A
27. B
28. B
29. B
30. B
31. The other characteristics are that reliable information is accurate, unbiased,
comprehensive, appropriately technical, and clear.
32. The other three media are online databases, websites, and social media.
33. Secondary research is collecting information that has already been acquired or created
by someone. Primary research is creating or collecting new information yourself.
34. A periodical index contains bibliographic information about articles, classified
according to title, subject, and author.
35. The five characteristics are authorship, publisher, knowledge of the literature, accuracy
and verifiability of the information, and timeliness.
36. The next stage is to test the hypothesis.
37. The three things are to thank the respondent, to ask for a follow-up interview if that
would be helpful, and to ask for permission to quote the respondent.
38. An abstract

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39. A hashtag is a descriptive keyword assigned to an item to make that item easier to
search for.
40. An RSS feed allows readers to check a single location for alerts to new content posted
on selected websites.

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