Deck 5: Researching Your Subject

Question 1

Chapter 5 suggests that you do two things after conducting an interview. What are they?

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.

Answer 1

B, D

Question 2

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

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

Answer 2

B

Question 3

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 ___

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Which source has 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

Question 5

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 is "crowdsourced" on a wiki.

Question 6

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 best 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.

Question 7

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

Question 8

With which research method does the researcher have the LEAST amount of control?

A) field research
B) interviews
C) experiments
D) inquiries

Question 9

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 how you do your job?"
B) "What is the future of paper?"
C) "Do you think paperless reports are worth the effort required to learn the new software?"
D) "Why do you write reports?"

Question 10

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

Question 11

Which of the following tactics does Chapter 5 recommend for gathering information to use in a document?

A) triangulating your research methods
B) triangulating your research materials
C) recording your source notes only on a digital device
D) cross-referencing your citations

Question 12

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?"

Question 13

in which phase of the writing process is it best to conduct research?

A) editing
B) revising
C) proofreading
D) planning

Question 14

Chapter 5 advises researchers to look for information that is current. What are two other characteristics that the chapter says information from research should have?

A) lack of bias
B) well-known author
C) attractive design
D) comprehensiveness

Question 15

Which word best describes the kind of information found in reference works?

A) exploratory
B) experimental
C) cutting-edge
D) broad-based

Question 16

which of these is considered a traditional tool for secondary research?

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

Question 17

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

Question 18

conducting an experiment involves four stages. One is reporting the data. What are the other three?

A) duplicating the experiment
B) testing the hypothesis
C) establishing a hypothesis
D) selecting suitable test subjects
E) analyzing the data

Question 19

who is the world's biggest publisher?

A) Penguin Random House
B) the U.S. government
C) Wikipedia
D) the European Union

Question 20

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

Question 21

Secondary research is the process of creating technical information yourself, as opposed to collecting information that other people have discovered or created.

Question 22

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

Question 23

Chapter 5 identifies three common problems that occur when you use questionnaires to gather information. What are two of them?

Question 24

It is relatively easy to design field research to measure what you are interested in, but it is difficult to conduct field research.

Question 25

What kind of information is found in a periodical index?

Question 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.

Question 27

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

Question 28

What is the difference between secondary research and primary research?

Question 29

A periodical index contains lists of journal and magazine articles classified according to title, subject, and author.

Question 30

Chapter 5 suggests that you do three things when concluding an interview. What is one of them?

Question 31

one disadvantage of a questionnaire is that you cannot be sure the respondents are representative of the population you want to study.

Question 32

The tags that people use to categorize information they find on websites must be one-word descriptors without spaces or punctuation (such as "dallaszoo").

Question 33

Primary research is the set of sources that you consult while you are in the document-planning stage.

Question 34

Government publications are not usually listed in indexes or by abstract services.

Question 35

Chapter 5 advises researchers to look for information that is current. List two other characteristics of reliable information, according to the chapter.

Question 36

You should select research methods before determining what research questions to pursue.

Question 37

"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.

Question 38

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

Question 39

Chapter 5 lists five characteristics to consider when evaluating print and online sources. Name two of them.

Question 40

What is the function of an RSS feed?