A Ton of Crap (48 page)

STEPHEN HAWKING

A Brief History of Time
Stephen Hawking has written many books. His most well-known book is
A Brief History of Time: From the Big Bang to Black Holes
, which was first published in 1988. The book explains immensely complex issues such as the big bang, black holes, and light cones so that the nonscientist can understand it. The book is so immensely popular, a documentary was made about it, and the New York Metropolitan Opera is turning it into an opera.

ICELANDIC

Phonology
Due to the fact that Icelandic is spoken by a small number of speakers in one concentrated area, there are relatively few dialects of the language. The language features diphthongs, monophthongs (pure vowels with a fixed articulation), and consonants that can be both voiced and unvoiced. In Icelandic, there is a contrast of aspiration (burst of air) between plosives (a consonant sound that stops airflow).

THE CONSTITUTION

Amendments to the Constitution
During the writing of the Constitution, the framers were aware that over time, certain changes would be necessary, and included the ability to amend the constitution. There have only been twenty-seven amendments to the U.S. Constitution. Some of the most well known are the Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery; the Nineteenth Amendment, which established women’s suffrage; and the Eighteenth Amendment, which prohibited the sale of alcohol. The Eighteenth Amendment was then repealed by the Twenty-first Amendment.

LITERARY TERMS

Metanoia
Metanoia, which comes from the Greek
metanoiein
, meaning to change one’s mind, is when a character goes through a complete breakdown, and then begins the process of healing or a change of mind or transformation. Metanoia is one form of catharsis.

SQUARE ROOTS

Higher Index Roots
Operations with higher roots such as cube roots, fourth roots, etc., are similar to square roots. With cube roots, take out factors that occur in threes. With a fourth root, take out factors that occur in fours, etc.

For example:

⁴
√16 = 
⁴
√2 × 2 × 2 × 2 = 2

³
√54 = 
³
√3 × 3 × 3 × 2 = 2
³
√3 × 2 = 2
³
√6

STEPHEN HAWKING

The Thorne-Hawking-Preskill Bet
The Thorne-Hawking-Preskill bet was a public bet made in 1997 between three physics theorists: Kip Thorne, John Preskill, and Stephen Hawking. The bet regarded the black hole information paradox. Hawking and Thorne argued that quantum mechanics needed to be rewritten due to the fact that the information carried by Hawking radiation must be new, and Preskill believed the opposite to be true. In 2004, Hawking conceded. In 2008, Hawking announced that he believed he had solved the paradox.

ICELANDIC

Useful Icelandic Phrases
Here are some helpful phrases to use when traveling to Iceland:

Hello.
Halló.

Good morning.
Godan dag.

Good afternoon.
Godan daginn.

Good night.
Goda nott.

Thank you.
Takk.

I don’t understand.
Eg skil ekki.

Do you speak English?
Talardu ensku?

How much is it?
Hvad kostar?

Goodbye.
Bless.

1. Which of the following is true?
   

   1. The Virginia Plan consisted of a powerful centralized government that had executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The New Jersey Plan would make changes to the Articles of Confederation and allow Congress to control taxes and trade to some degree.
      
   2. The New Jersey Plan consisted of a powerful centralized government that had executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The Virginia Plan would make changes to the Articles of Confederation and allow Congress to control taxes and trade to some degree.
      
   3. Both plans featured executive and legislative branches, but no judicial branch.
      
   4. Both plans featured legislative and judicial branches, but no executive branch for fear that the presidency would turn into another monarchy.
      

2. What did the Thirteenth
   Amendment do?
   

   1. Gave women the right to vote
      
   2. Prohibited alcohol
      
   3. Abolished slavery
      
   4. Repealed the prohibition of alcohol
      

3. What is a motif?
   

   1. When a character goes through a complete breakdown, and then begins the process of healing or a change of mind or transformation
      
   2. When there is room for different interpretations
      
   3. A narrative that is symbolic for something else
      
   4. A recurring image, phrase, element, expression, word, action, or object that has some sort of symbolic significance to the story
      

4. Which of the following is an example of a genre?
   

   1. Science fiction
      
   2. Romance
      
   3. Fantasy
      
   4. All of the above
      

5. What is 9√14 + 4√7?
   

   1. 9√14
      
   2. 9√7
      
   3. 9√49
      
   4. 9
      

6. What does
   equal?
   

   1. 9
      
   2. √27
      
   3. √3
      
   4. c. 3
      

7. Stephen Hawking proved that when two black holes merge:
   

   1. The surface area of the new hole is larger than the sum of the two black holes.
      
   2. The surface area of the new hole is equal to the sum of the two black holes.
      
   3. The surface area of the new hole is equal to the difference of the two black holes.
      
   4. The surface area of the new hole stays the same.
      

8. Stephen Hawking’s theory of singularity proved:
   

   1. The origins of our universe was in a singularity that ends.
      
   2. The origins of our universe was in a singularity which has no end.
      
   3. The origins of our universe was not in a singularity.
      
   4. The origins of our universe was in a singularity that stopped moving.
      

9. Modern Icelandic formed around 1550 with the introduction of:
   

   1. The printing press
      
   2. The Lutheran Reformation
      
   3. Translation of the Bible
      
   4. All of the above
      

10. What type of language is
    Icelandic?
    

    1. East Germanic
       
    2. West Slavonic
       
    3. Northern Germanic
       
    4. Southern Germanic