Practice Questions for Lecture 1: Mission to Mars, the MARTE Project, and an Introduction to Rio Tinto, Spain.

1. What are the requirements for Life?
2. Why is Rio Tinto an important Mars Analog?
3. What are the effects of drilling on microbes?
4. What are the components of a bottom hole assembly drilling system?
5. What is the Bore Hole Inspection System?

Practice Questions for Lecture 2: The Wonders of a Mars Analog: Biology at Rio Tinto

1. What causes the red color of the Rio Tinto region?
2. What kinds of reactions are occurring in the Tinto River?
3. How do bacteria contribute to these reactions?
4. What use might algae that can live near high concentrations of metals have here on earth?
5. Why does Mars appear red?

Practice Questions for Lecture 3: Subsurface Microbiology

1. What is the definition of subsurface microbiology?
2. How deep can microbes live?
3. How big is the subsurface biosphere?
4. What is the microbial metabolism cycle?
5. What is the difference between the detrital and productive ecosystems?

Practice Questions for Lecture 4: Spain's Iberian Pyrite Belt

1. What causes the change in the pH of the Rio Tinto as it nears the Ocean?
2. What is special about the life found in the Rio Tinto river itself?
3. What are the most common metals found in the Rio Tinto region?
4. What effect did volcanic activity have on the formation of the Rio Tinto region?
5. How do fault lines near the river affect the acidity of the Rio Tinto?

Practice Questions for Lecture 5: Issues and Challenges for Robotic Drilling

1. What are some reasons to drill on Mars?
2. What are possible methods for drilling into the Martian subsurface?
3. What aspects of drilling make it unpredictable for an autonomous driller?
4. What are some of the mission constraints facing autonomous drilling?
5. What are some of the sensors that are required to allow a robot to drill autonomously?

Practice Questions for Lecture 6: Drilling on M.A.R.T.E

1. What information can scientists learn from studying the strata of a planet?
2. What are the two standard techniques for probing the strata of a planet?
3. What are some requirements for successful drilling in a space environment?
4. What are some specific geophysical attributes that the Bore Hole Inspection Tool analyzes?
5. What is the function of the camera on the Bore Hole Inspection Tool?

Practice Questions for Lecture 7: Molecular Biology Techniques for Searching for Life on Mars

Practice Questions for Lecture 8:Searching for Life on Mars-Sample Handling

1. Why is it important to avoid contamination in extracted samples?
2. What are some examples of field contamination?
3. What are methods for detecting contamination that are being used in the MARTE project?
4. What are methods to control contamination of samples?
5. What is SOLID?
   

Essay Question

Some of the unique attributes of the Rio Tinto presentations are that they have been presented in a synchronous mode, bi- lingual, cross cultural, and team taught by an outstanding group of subject matter experts, in an on-line distance education mode.

1. How does this Distance Education offering compare with your traditional or untraditional classroom experiences?
OR
2. How have advancements in Distance Education Technologies begun to affect the way educators and school administrators structure teaching and learning communities?

Other Useful information

All Assignments are due by the 31st of October to the course professor, Jim Beck by regular mail.

Test will be posted on the 24th of October and will be due by the 31st. You will be able to print out the test, complete it, and sign it. You then will be required to send the signed test in through regular mail to Jim Beck.

Final Test: Download Word Document

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Last updated 7/23/03