- 1. Hidden Figures, written by Margot Lee Shetterly, is a compelling historical narrative that shines a light on the remarkable contributions of African American women mathematicians at NASA during the early years of the U.S. space program. It tells the inspiring true stories of women such as Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan, and Mary Jackson, who overcame racial and gender barriers in a segregated America to make significant advancements in aerospace technology and mathematics. The book delves into the intersection of race, gender, and scientific achievement, highlighting how these women's expertise and perseverance were essential to the success of pivotal missions, including John Glenn's orbital flight. Shetterly's account is not only a tribute to these unsung heroes but also a powerful commentary on the broader social changes occurring during the Civil Rights Movement, emphasizing the important roles these women played both in their workplaces and in the fight for equality. Through meticulous research and engaging storytelling, Shetterly honors the legacy of these mathematicians, encouraging readers to recognize and appreciate the often-overlooked contributions of minorities in STEM fields.
Who was the first American to orbit Earth?
A) Neil Armstrong
B) John Glenn
C) Alan Shepard
D) Gus Grissom
- 2. What was Dorothy Vaughan's significant career achievement?
A) Designing the Saturn V rocket
B) Writing the Apollo guidance software
C) Becoming NASA's first black supervisor
D) Inventing the modern calculator
- 3. What was Katherine Johnson's most famous calculation?
A) Space Shuttle reentry path
B) Hubble Telescope orbit
C) Moon landing coordinates
D) Trajectory for John Glenn's Friendship 7 mission
- 4. Which NASA program featured prominently in the book?
A) Mercury program
B) Space Shuttle program
C) International Space Station
D) Mars Rover missions
- 5. What was Mary Jackson's engineering specialty?
A) Chemical engineering
B) Nuclear engineering
C) Electrical engineering
D) Aerospace engineering
- 6. How did the women combat workplace discrimination?
A) Through legal lawsuits
B) Through excellence and persistence
C) By seeking political office
D) By organizing strikes
- 7. What technological advancement threatened the human computers' jobs?
A) Satellite technology
B) Robotics
C) Nuclear power
D) Electronic computers
- 8. Which president set the goal of reaching the moon?
A) Lyndon Johnson
B) Dwight Eisenhower
C) Richard Nixon
D) John F. Kennedy
- 9. What was the 'West Area' at Langley?
A) Segregated workplace for black women
B) Administrative headquarters
C) Rocket testing facility
D) Aircraft hangar
- 10. How did Katherine Johnson gain access to previously restricted meetings?
A) Through legal action
B) Her mathematical contributions earned inclusion
C) Through family connections
D) By disguising herself
- 11. What did Mary Jackson have to do to become an engineer?
A) Move to another state
B) Take correspondence courses
C) Study abroad
D) Get special permission to attend white-only classes
- 12. What was the primary purpose of Langley Research Center?
A) Rocket manufacturing
B) Astronaut training
C) Satellite deployment
D) Aeronautics research
- 13. How did Dorothy Vaughan prepare for technological changes?
A) Wrote technical manuals
B) Learned programming languages
C) Studied rocket science
D) Became an astronaut
- 14. What barrier did Mary Jackson break?
A) First woman in space
B) First black astronaut
C) NASA's first black female engineer
D) First female NASA director
- 15. What was the Friendship 7?
A) Space program nickname
B) John Glenn's spacecraft
C) NASA's first computer
D) Langley research building
- 16. Where did many of the women mathematicians graduate from?
A) European universities
B) Ivy League universities
C) Historically Black Colleges
D) Military academies
- 17. Which program followed the Mercury program?
A) Space Shuttle program
B) Gemini program
C) Skylab program
D) Apollo program
- 18. Which mathematician was the first African American woman to become a NASA engineer?
A) Katherine Johnson
B) Christine Darden
C) Dorothy Vaughan
D) Mary Jackson
- 19. Which character becomes a supervisor of the West Area Computing unit?
A) Dorothy Vaughan
B) Katherine Johnson
C) Christine Darden
D) Mary Jackson
- 20. What segregation policy was practiced at NASA during this period?
A) Limited work hours
B) Separate facilities
C) Separate pay scales
D) No hiring of minorities
- 21. Which mathematician calculated the trajectory for Alan Shepard's spaceflight?
A) Katherine Johnson
B) Mary Jackson
C) Dorothy Vaughan
D) Christine Darden
- 22. Which character later worked on supersonic flight research?
A) Dorothy Vaughan
B) Katherine Johnson
C) Mary Jackson
D) Christine Darden
- 23. What was Dorothy Vaughan's first position at NACA?
A) Supervisor
B) Engineer
C) Mathematician
D) Teacher
- 24. What was the predecessor agency to NASA?
A) NOAA
B) NSF
C) NACA
D) DOD
- 25. What programming language did Dorothy Vaughan master?
A) FORTRAN
B) BASIC
C) ALGOL
D) COBOL
- 26. What educational background did most human computers have?
A) Physics degrees
B) Engineering degrees
C) Mathematics degrees
D) Computer science degrees
- 27. What was the name of the first American in space?
A) Neil Armstrong
B) Alan Shepard
C) Gus Grissom
D) John Glenn
- 28. What was the original publication year of 'Hidden Figures'?
A) 2018
B) 2014
C) 2012
D) 2016
- 29. Which historical period forms the backdrop of the book?
A) Civil Rights Movement
B) Great Depression
C) World War I
D) Vietnam War
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