Chapter 4 offers six suggestions for participating in a videoconference. Which of these
is NOT a suggestion from the chapter?
A) Practice using the videoconferencing system.
B) Dress as you would for a face-to-face meeting.
C) Arrange for technical support for all participants.
D) Speak louder than usual.
Chapter 8 discusses four broad goals of an audience. One is security. Which is NOT one
of the other three goals?
A) fair-mindedness
B) recognition
C) growth
D) connectedness
A technical writer is designing a manual to be used by technicians repairing stereo
systems. Repair technicians will be seated at workbenches with bright lighting
overhead. They will need both hands to work on the equipment while reading manual
instructions. Which of the following design decisions is inappropriate?
A) using perfect binding
B) choosing a size of 6 x 9 inches for the manual
C) printing on nonglare, tinted paper
D) making the manual as concise as possible
Although a lab report is organized as a single cohesive argument, most readers probably
will not read it in a linear fashion, from start to finish.
A) True
B) False
Which of these sentences shows parallel structure?
A) The line cook should follow the printed recipe; do notchange the chef’s dessert.
B) Our current structure is savingus money and reducing our downtime.
C) The speakers will include partners of accounting firms, businesspeople, and
insurance agents.
D) We need to buy more drywall, lumber, tools, and hire the subcontractors.
According to Chapter 2, ethicists such as Manuel Velasquez (2011) argue that
whistle-blowing is justified if three conditions are satisfied. One condition is that there
is strong evidence that the organization is doing something that is hurting or will hurt
other parties. What are the other two conditions? (Select both answers.)
A) The employee has made a serious but unsuccessful attempt to resolve the problem
through internal channels.
B) Whistle-blowing is reasonably certain to prevent or stop the wrongdoing.
C) The employee has suffered personal harm as a result of the wrongdoing, such as the
loss of a promotion, a substantial decrease in salary, or physical injury.
D) The wrongdoing involves members of a minority group or affects individuals
granted specific rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
A post hoc argument claims that because A preceded B, A must have caused B.
A) True
B) False
Which of the following is NOT a category of constraints on your ability to be
persuasive in a workplace document?
A) partitional
B) personnel
C) financial
D) political
What is an advance organizer?
A) a note card listing some of the major points of your presentation, prepared in
advance as a memory aid
B) a stress-relief exercise that you perform in the last few minutes before you begin to
speak, to shake off some of the nervousness that you will probably experience
C) an assistant or colleague who helps prepare the room to ensure that your audiovisual
aids are working, the lighting and room temperature are appropriate, and sufficient
seating is available for the audience
D) a statement that tells the listener what you are about to say
Why should a scientist or engineer avoid introducing new information in the conclusion
section?
A) The results section exists so that writers can reveal information they collected.
B) It is illogical to introduce new information in a section that serves a different
function.
C) It is ineffective to introduce new information in a section that serves a different
function.
D) All responses are correct.
Why should you use an audience profile sheet for a writing project?
A) It prompts you to ask questions about your target audience.
B) It helps you remember what you’ve learned about your target audience.
C) It helps you realize when you need to learn more about your target audience.
D) All responses are correct.
To make it easy for readers to find the information they need, many technical
documents are made up of small, independent sections.
A) True
B) False
What is the definition of queuing?
A) Queuing is a page-design technique in which two or three columns are distributed
evenly across the page.
B) Queuing is a page-design technique in which visual patterns show levels of
importance.
C) Queuing is a page-design technique in which text and graphics are arranged in a
symmetrical pattern.
D) Queuing is a page-design technique in which text and graphics are arranged in a
straight line, or queue.
Which part of a lab report or a scientific report might be distributed more widely than
the report itself?
A) the introduction
B) the discussion
C) the abstract
D) the acknowledgments
Ethical constraints arise from applicable laws on labor practices, environmental issues,
fair trade, consumer rights, and so forth.
A) True
B) False
In one state, West County and East County share a border. The state capital is in East
County. Many residents of West County (almost half of all adults in the county)
commute to East County for work. East County has high levels of air pollution, and
residents there must get their car exhaust systems tested every two years. Although
West County has less air pollution than East, the pollution levels in West are rising. The
state Department of Environmental Regulation orders that residents of West County
must now get their car exhaust systems tested every two years as well. What moral
standard best explains this decision by the Department of Environmental Regulation?
A) care
B) utility
C) rights
D) clarity
If you are rejected for a position, you should not write back to the employer.
A) True
B) False
Which of the following is involved in creating technical communication?
A) a company secretary writing a letter to a customer
B) an electrical engineer filling out a standardized form
C) a webmaster revising a company web page
D) a manager preparing an oral presentation
E) all of the above
The three phases of usability testing are revising, editing, and proofreading.
A) True
B) False
According to Chapter 3, today’s composition tools cannot help you do which of the
following?
A) convert text into infographics
B) cite and keep track of numerous research sources
C) translate text
D) convert handwriting into text
A directive is an informational document, not a persuasive one.
A) True
B) False
While reviewing a draft of a trip report discussing the importance of a presentation she
attended, a writer decides that some readers may not know what a particular term
means. If she wants to clarify the term briefly and unobtrusively, the writer should use
which of the following strategies?
A) Include a parenthetical definition.
B) Define the term in an appendix.
C) Include an extended definition.
D) Include a sentence definition.
How should you punctuate a restrictive modifier?
A) Use commas to separate it from the rest of the sentence.
B) Use dashes to separate it from the rest of the sentence.
C) Add no extra punctuation.
D) Precede it with a comma and the word which.
A writer wants to describe how screen printing works. Which of the following elements
is NOT likely to appear in the process description?
A) a diagram illustrating the parts of the screen-printing machine
B) a step-by-step guide to performing the process
C) a sentence definition of screen printing
D) a section heading or title indicating the nature and scope of the description
The outline view is a word-processing feature that suggests how you ought to outline
common types of documents such as letters and memos.
A) True
B) False
According to Chapter 21, it is better to plan ahead to say something funny or witty than
to do so spontaneously.
A) True
B) False
Chapter 2 lists four factors governing the fair-use exemption, which allows you to use
copyrighted material without permission under certain conditions. One factor is the
nature and purpose of the copyrighted work. What is another factor?
A) the effect of the use on the potential market for the copyrighted work
B) the degree of difficulty you might encounter if you did seek permission to use the
copyrighted work
C) whether the copyrighted work was published on the Internet, in which case it can be
considered to be in the public domain
D) whether you intended to cause the copyright holder any harmfinancial or
otherwiseby using the copyrighted material
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
Which of the following is NOT a principle for using the problem-methods-solution
pattern of organization?
A) Avoid overstating claims about your solution.
B) Describe your problem in general terms.
C) Describe your methods so that readers understand how and why you did what you
did.
D) Consider using graphics to complement your text.
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.
Chapter 15 describes a plain-text rsum. Which two of the following are forms of a
plain-text rsum?
A) a rsum created in PowerPoint and submitted on disk
B) an ASCII rsum
C) a rsum posted to a Usenet newsgroup
D) a rsum posted on an Internet discussion board
E) a text rsum
The best way to find keywords for your rsum is to study the job titles for jobs you like.
A) True
B) False
In a table, the stub is the right-hand column.
A) True
B) False
You are making a graphic for automotive technicians that illustrates the procedure for
performing a computerized vehicle inspection. Which of the following is the best
graphic for displaying this information?
A) organization chart
B) drawing
C) flowchart
D) diagram
Why might you include a common, familiar item in a photograph of an item being
discussed?
A) to give readers a sense of scale
B) to eliminate background clutter
C) to prevent manipulation of the photograph
D) to save space in your document
What advantage does using a trademark symbol confer upon an organization?
Chapter 10 describes six techniques for avoiding sexist language. What are two of
them?
To be persuasive, proposal writers must demonstrate that they understand readers’
needs. According to Chapter 16, what other two things must they demonstrate?
According to Chapter 9, what are the two types of paragraphs?
Why is it important to either begin graph axes at zero or mark them clearly?
In usability testing, what is informed consent?
What is the difference between a serif typeface and a sans-serif typeface?
According to Chapter 16, the introduction to a proposal must answer seven questions,
one of which is “What is the problem or opportunity?” What is another question the
introduction should answer?
Chapter 5 lists seven categories of cultural variables that lie “on the surface.” Two of
these categories of variables are political and economic. Name two more.
Chapter 4 contains examples of three forms that collaborative teams can use to help
ensure that the team’s efforts will be successful. List the forms.
In performing usability testing, why is it a bad idea to use your own company’s
employees as test participants?
What is the phrase “Special Restricted Incoming Materials Storage Area” an example
of?
What do the initials IFB stand for?
Chapter 12 offers six guidelines for using color in graphics. One is to use contrast
effectively. Name two other guidelines mentioned in the chapter.
What are indirect costs?
The back matter section of a recommendation report serves two primary purposes.
Identify one.