Deck 9: Project Scheduling: Networks, duration Estimation, and Critical Path

Question 1

Preceding activities are those that must occur before others can be done.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

Laddering is a technique that allows the project manager to redraw the network to more closely sequence project subtasks to make the overall network sequence more efficient.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

The late finish times are determined by taking a(n)________ through the network.

Answer 3

backward pass

Question 4

A(n)________ is a point when an activity is either started or completed.

Question 5

A backward pass is performed when it is necessary to undo some work that has been performed in order to complete it properly.

Question 6

The amount of time that an activity may be delayed from its early start without delaying the entire project is ________.

Question 7

Burst activities are those with two or more successor activities.

Question 8

A(n)________ is a project schedule whose start and finish dates reflect expected resource availability.

Question 9

Float is always measured in exactly the same way as slack.

Question 10

________ is the identification of the project objectives and the ordered activity necessary to complete the project.

Question 11

At a burst point in a backward pass,the largest succeeding late start becomes the late finish for that node.

Question 12

In assigning a value for the most pessimistic (b)duration,the project manager should estimate the duration of the activity to have a 99% likelihood that it will take b or less amount of time.

Question 13

Negative float exists when a project's critical path has been completed more quickly than anticipated.

Question 14

Hammock activities break a task into greater levels of detail so that each task is represented as two or more subtasks that each have their own duration and precedence requirements.

Question 15

Activity float is the difference between the late finish and early finish for the activity in question.

Question 16

A merge activity has two or more immediate predecessors.

Question 17

The PERT technique assumes that durations are more deterministic.

Question 18

The late start time should be calculated using a forward pass through the network.

Question 19

At a merge point in a forward pass,the largest preceding early finish becomes the early start for that node.

Question 20

You must know the mean of an activity in order to determine its standard deviation.

Question 21

Activities that can be worked on simultaneously are ________ activities.

Question 22

________ activities have two or more immediate successors.

Question 23

Pessimistic and optimistic values are estimated at the ________% confidence level.

Question 24

Concurrent activities are:

A)activities that must be done one after the other.
B)activities that can be performed at the same time.
C)activities that use labor from the same group of workers.
D)activities that use resources from the same resource pool.

Question 25

An activity with two or more immediate predecessors is a(n):

A)merge activity.
B)burst activity.
C)float activity.
D)event.

Question 26

The longest route through the network is the ________.

Question 27

The term ordered activity means:

A)tasks must either precede or follow other tasks in project planning and management.
B)tasks cannot be performed unless the project manager issues a specific command to perform the work.
C)prior project planning removes the need for any rush so that tasks can be performed in a methodical fashion.
D)tasks are not performed unless the customer issues a specific request to perform the work.

Question 28

In the beta distribution,the longer tail is located ________.

Question 29

________ activities have two or more immediate predecessors.

Question 30

Because an activity's pessimistic estimate may represent a much greater deviation from the most likely time than its optimistic estimate,the ________ better represents the distribution of possible alternative durations.

Question 31

Thanks to excessive dilly dallying,the subcontractor grossly exceeded the slack on his portion of the project,resulting in ________.

Question 32

Serial activities are those that:

A)flow from one to the next in sequence.
B)have sequential numbers.
C)have the same numbers.
D)should be performed simultaneously.

Question 33

The amount of time an activity may be delayed from its early start without delaying the finish of the project is the:

A)delay.
B)float.
C)late start.
D)late finish.

Question 34

These can be located by doing a backward pass through a network.

A)critical paths
B)merge activities
C)successors
D)burst activities

Question 35

The least amount of float is found:

A)in a resource-limited schedule.
B)after a burst activity.
C)on the critical path.
D)after a merge activity.

Question 36

Prior to creating a network,it is important to:

A)identify all loops through activities.
B)identify the party responsible for each activity.
C)calculate the float for each activity.
D)understand the activity precedence.

Question 37

A sequence of activities defined by the project network logic is a(n):

A)event.
B)path.
C)node.
D)route.

Question 38

________ activities can be used as summaries for some subsets of the activities identified in the overall project network.

Question 39

There is no slack on the project ________.

Question 40

One of the defining points of a network,a junction point joined to some or all of the others by dependency lines,is called a(n):

A)event.
B)path.
C)node.
D)burst.

Question 41

The variance of an activity is given by:

A)[1/6(b-a)]2.
B)1/6[b-a].
C)[1/36(b-a)]2.
D)1/36[b-a].

Question 42

An activity has a pessimistic time that is three times as long as its most likely time and five times as long as its optimistic time.If the activity variance is 10,what is the expected time?

A)about 10 days
B)about 14 days
C)about 19 days
D)about 23 days

Question 43

Ray's shipment of materials hit every red light and traffic jam on the way to the site.Upon arrival,half of the material was judged defective,necessitating a trip back to the supplier,and then the same arduous journey back to the site once the new materials were loaded.Traffic was a little better on the second round but the flat tire and subsequent repair caused as much if not more delay than the first trip.In the final analysis:

A)the project activity of Material Delivery was pretty close to the optimistic estimate.
B)the project activity of Material Delivery was pretty close to the most likely estimate.
C)the project activity of Material Delivery had a much higher variance than anticipated.
D)the project activity of Material Delivery was pretty close to the pessimistic estimate.

Question 44

The length of time expected to complete an activity assuming that its development proceeds normally is called the:

A)optimistic duration.
B)pessimistic duration.
C)most likely duration.
D)normal duration.

Question 45

What is the late start time for Activity E given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table?

A)12
B)13
C)14
D)15

Question 46

An activity has an optimistic time estimate of 15 days,a most likely estimate of 24 days,and a pessimistic estimate of 40 days.What is the variance of the activity?

A)4.17
B)25.17
C)17.36
D)10.33

Question 47

Based on the activity network pictured,what is the best statement?

A)Before starting Activity C,Activity A and Activity B must be completed.
B)Before starting Activity D,Activity A and Activity B need to be completed.
C)Before starting Activity E,Activity A and Activity B need to be completed.
D)Before starting Activity C,Activity A and Activity D must be completed.

Question 48

An activity has an optimistic time estimate of 7 days,a most likely estimate of 12 days,and a pessimistic estimate of 20 days.What is the expected duration of the activity?

A)13 days
B)13.5 days
C)12 days
D)12.5 days

Question 49

What is the early start time for Activity D given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table?

A)5
B)9
C)13
D)18

Question 50

Network logic suggests that:

A)Activity D can start any time.
B)Activity A must be complete before Activity B can be done.
C)Activities A,B and C must be complete before Activity D can be done.
D)Activity C must begin before Activity B begins.

Question 51

An activity has an optimistic time estimate of 15 days,a most likely estimate of 24 days,and a pessimistic estimate of 40 days.What is the expected duration of the activity?

A)less than 27 days but greater than or equal to 26 days
B)less than 26 days but greater than or equal to 25 days
C)less than 25 days but greater than or equal to 24 days
D)less than 24 days

Question 52

Which of these statements about this network is best?

A)Activities A and B are serial activities.
B)Activities B and C are serial activities.
C)Activities A and C are serial activities.
D)Activity D is a merge activity.

Question 53

What is the late finish time for Activity D given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table?

A)14
B)13
C)12
D)11

Question 54

Based on the activity network pictured,what is the best statement?

A)Activity C is a burst activity.
B)Activity E has one predecessor,Activity B.
C)Activity A and Activity C are merge activities.
D)There are no serial activities in this network.

Question 55

What is the late start time for Activity B given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table?

A)18
B)9
C)13
D)5

Question 56

What is the earliest that Activity D can begin if Activity A takes 3 days,Activity B takes 5 days,and Activity C takes 7 days?

A)day 15
B)day 7
C)day 5
D)day 3

Question 57

An activity has an optimistic time estimate of 7 days,a most likely estimate of 12 days,and a pessimistic estimate of 20 days.What is the expected standard deviation of the activity?

A)between 2 and 3 days
B)between 3 and 4 days
C)between 4 and 5 days
D)between 5 and 6 days

Question 58

Activity Z has estimates a = 5,b = 10,m = 7;activity X has estimates a = 4,b = 11,m = 6;and activity Y has estimates a = 3,b = 12,m = 8.Which of the following statements is best?

A)Activity X is longer than Activity Y.
B)Activity X has a higher standard deviation than Activity Z.
C)Activity Z is shorter than Activity Y.
D)Activity Y has a smaller variance than Activity Z.

Question 59

What is the early start time for Activity G given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table?

A)14
B)15
C)16
D)17

Question 60

What is the early finish time for Activity F given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table?

A)17
B)12
C)13
D)26

Question 61

Project Test Bank is composed of activities we will refer to as A,B,C,and D for convenience (and lack of creativity).Durations and precedence requirements are shown in the table.Each of these activities can be conveniently laddered into two sub-activities of equal duration.The first half of each activity serves as the predecessor to its second half and the first half of the original following activity.What is the expected completion time of the laddered project?

A)34
B)38
C)42
D)48

Question 62

Use the network diagram and activity lengths in the nodes to determine the early start time for activity D.

A)8
B)13
C)14
D)21

Question 63

Use the network diagram and activity lengths in the nodes to determine the late finish time for activity C.

A)12
B)13
C)14
D)15

Question 64

Project Test Bank is composed of activities we will refer to as A,B,C,and D for convenience (and lack of creativity).Durations and precedence requirements are shown in the table.Each of these activities can be conveniently laddered into two sub-activities of equal duration,so activity C in the original project becomes two activities,C1 and C2,each of which lasts 7 days.The first half of each activity serves as the predecessor to its second half and the first half of the original following activity.What is the difference in the late start time for activity C in the original project and activity C1 in the laddered project?

A)3
B)5
C)7
D)9

Question 65

Use the network diagram and activity lengths in the nodes to determine the late start time for activity F.

A)21
B)24
C)26
D)23

Question 66

Use the network diagram and activity lengths in the nodes to determine the early start time for activity D.

A)8
B)13
C)14
D)21

Question 67

Use the information in the table to determine the slack time for Activity B.

A)6 days
B)4 days
C)2 days
D)0 days

Question 68

What is the float start time for Activity C given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table?

A)1
B)2
C)3
D)4

Question 69

What is the slack time for Activity B given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table?

A)7
B)6
C)5
D)4

Question 70

Use the information in the table to determine the late finish time for Activity B.

A)day 17
B)day 26
C)day 20
D)day 23

Question 71

Project Test Bank is composed of activities we will refer to as A,B,C,and D for convenience (and lack of creativity).Durations and precedence requirements are shown in the table.Each of these activities can be conveniently laddered into two sub-activities of equal duration.The first half of each activity serves as the predecessor to its second half and the first half of the original following activity.What is the expected completion time of the laddered project?

A)34
B)38
C)42
D)48

Question 72

Use the information in the table to determine the late start time for Activity E.

A)day 23
B)day 26
C)day 32
D)day 17

Question 73

Use the information in the table to determine the early finish time for Activity D.

A)day 23
B)day 26
C)day 29
D)day 32

Question 74

What is the slack time for activity E?

A)1 day
B)0 days
C)2 days
D)4 days

Question 75

Use the network diagram and activity lengths in the nodes to determine the early finish time for activity G.

A)26
B)25
C)24
D)23

Question 76

Use the information in the table to determine the early start time for Activity B.

A)day 10
B)day 8
C)day 9
D)day 11

Question 77

Use the network diagram and activity lengths in the nodes to determine the slack time for activity D.

A)3
B)2
C)1
D)0

Question 78

There's an old saying,"The job is not finished until the paperwork is done." From an activity network standpoint,this does not necessarily mean that the paperwork can't begin until the last non-paperwork activity is completed.It might be possible to work on some paperwork as early activities are completed.In order to depict this in an activity network:

A)hammock activities could be drawn.
B)subroutines could be added.
C)shortcuts can be added to the network.
D)laddering could be used to redraw the network.

Question 79

What is the slack time for Activity C given the activity times and precedence requirements shown in the table?

A)2
B)1
C)0
D)3

Question 80

A gentleman farmer maniacally works on academic projects to raise funds for his true passion,farming.He has identified seven tasks and developed three time estimates (all in days)of the next big project on the farm,replacing the fence at the comedy pasture.Tasks,precedence requirements,and time estimates are shown in the table.What is the expected completion time of the project?

A)32 days
B)33 days
C)34 days
D)35 days