40 People’s Choice Questions—Select the best answer

1. In the southwest, where water supply is at issue, the toilet that minimally meets code is rated at

A. 5.0 gallons per flush
B. 3.5 gallons per flush
C. 1.6 gallons per flush
D. 0.5 gallons per flush

2. Xeriscaping your site is

A. using native, draught-resistant vegetation
B. planting dessert foliage
C. introducing species of exotic plants
D. using more hardscape than vegetation

3. A composting toilet can operate by

A. using natural processes to decompose fecal matter and kitchen scraps
B. incinerating fecal matter
C. using heat and agitation to aid natural processes to decompose fecal matter
D. any of the above

4. On-site water supply can be attained by using

A. a well
B. roof catchment and a cistern
C. a stream
D. all of the above

5. The Moscow waste water treatment plant features

A. activated sludge secondary treatment
B. an experimental constructed wetlands for tertiary treatment
C. a gravity feed process that uses its own methane for combustion to maintain system health
D. all of the above

6. In Moscow the Sweet Avenue project for Paradise Creek is design to

A. prevent flooding
B. help restore the health of the creek
C. send runoff to the wastewater treatment plant
D. all of the above

7. A room with an acoustic goal of silence is

A. the Boston Public Library reading room
B. the waiting room at New York’s Grand Central Station
C. the lobby of San Francisco’s Mark Hopkins Hotel
D. none of the above

8. A sound that is at the threshold of human hearing has

A. a frequency of about 60 hertz
B. a wavelength of about 12"
C. an intensity of 0 dB
D. all of the above

9. A sound measured as 25 dB is perceived by an average human being as being

A. twice as loud as a sound measured as 5 dB
B. four times as loud as a sound measured as 5 dB
C. five times as loud as a sound measured as 5 dB
D. none of the above

10. The most effective way to absorb a bass sound with a wide range of frequencies is to use

A. thin absorptive materials
B. thick absorptive materials
C. a Helmholz resonator
D. any of the above

11. To understand the propagation of sound on a suburban site it is most critical to model the characteristics of

A. sound transmission in a free field
B. sound absorption and reflection
C. sound transmission through various materials
D. all of the above

12. If you wanted to design an effective musical performance hall that was not dependent on electronic acoustic enhancement, you would be best served to begin with

A. a shoebox form
B. a wide room
C. a surround configuration
D. an outdoor bandshell

13. Used to the acoustic environment of the Kibbie Dome, the Vandal football team will experience (assume equal attendance)

A. louder crowd noise at outdoor Martin Stadium in Pullman
B. quieter crowd noise at outdoor Martin Stadium in Pullman
C. no change in crowd noise at outdoor Martin Stadium in Pullman
D. louder crowd noise, but longer reverberation time, at outdoor Martin Stadium in Pullman

14. A sound barrier with an STC of 65 will

A. be effective at mitigating sounds up to 65 dB
B. cause an NR of 65 dB in a room
C. reduce sounds transmitted through the barrier by 65dB
D. all of the above

15. A planer emitting a high pitched wail when in action can be made less offensive by

A. using acoustically absorptive materials in its vicinity
B. mounting it on base isolators to prevent structure-borne sound transmission
C. using earplugs or "Mickey Mouse ears"
D. all of the above

16. An open office plan can provide an acoustically effective environment for its workers by

A. avoiding direct sight lines between cubicles
B. providing white noise as a masking background sound source
C. using partitions that feature a stiff barrier and sound absorptive upholstery
D. all of the above

17. The reverberation time of a 4’ x 4’ x 8’ high shower stall with highly reflective walls
(a = 0.01) is about

A. 4 seconds
B. 1 second
C. 0.4 seconds
D. 0.1 seconds

18. An accurate physical acoustic model, built to 1" = 1’, will accurately model sounds

A. of all frequencies
B. at frequencies ten times higher than actual
C. at frequencies twelve times higher than actual
D. at frequencies 40% lower than actual

19. For sounds produced at its perimeter, a circular room with reflective walls will demonstrate the acoustic phenomenon of

A. creep
B. flutter echo
C. focusing
D. all of the above

20. La Scala in Milan is a hall that is most appropriate for

A. theatrical performance
B. opera and ballet
C. symphonic performance
D. all of the above when its acoustics are adjusted electronically

21. A radiant heating or cooling system provides comfort primarily via

A. conditioned air
B. control of surface temperatures
C. avoidance of breezes
D. none of the above

22. The most appropriate HVAC system for a mid-rise multi-use building is

A. VAV
B. dual duct
C. DX
D. any of the above

23. The minimum number of mechanical floors for you newly designed 120-story ziggurat would be

A. one
B. three
C. five
D. ten

24. Daylighting is a feature of

A. intelligent building design
B. energy-conserving building design
C. sustainable architecture
D. all of the above

25. If a line source provides 4 footcandles of illumination to a surface four feet away, it will provide a surface eight feet away with

A. 16 footcandles
B. 4 footcandles
C. 2 footcandles
D. 1 footcandle

26. It would be most thermal and luminously effective to use a horizontal aperture skylight in

A. a humid climate
B. an arid climate
C. a temperate climate
D. none of the above

27. An office daylighted by south-facing windows requires

A. translucent glazing
B. shading devices
C. light shelves
D. all of the above

28. Light levels in a daylighted gallery can be predicted by

A. computer modeling such as Lightscape
B. physical models
C. hand calculations like the GDDM
D. all of the above

29. Electronic ballasts for fluorescent lamps out shine magnetic ballasts because they can

A. eliminate visible flicker
B. provide step dimming
C. improve color rendering
D. all of the above

30. The electric lighting strategy that can prevent glare on office computer screens and eliminate dark wall-ceiling junctions is

A. general diffuse
B. indirect
C. direct with parabolic diffusers
D. direct–indirect

31. For ordinary office tasks illumination

A. of 30 footcandles is sufficient
B. needs to be at least 75 footcandles
C. should be about 125 footcandles
D. should be over ten times the background luminance

32. In theory in a room with raked seating, illuminated by a luminous ceiling,

A. all seats will receive equal illumination
B. seats near the walls will receive less illumination
C. seats near the ceiling will receive more illumination
D. illumination will be highest directly below the fixtures

33. In a daylighted single-person office electric lighting use can be reduced by providing

A. infrared occupancy sensors
B. a manual on-off switch
C. photocells that control continuously dimmed indirect lighting fixtures
D. all of the above

34. Three hundred years ago the primary fuel for energy generation was

A. wood
B. coal
C. petroleum
D. nuclear fission

35. Photovoltaic arrays integrated into a building’s roof can be a primary source of

A. daylight
B. electricity
C. hot water
D. all of the above

36. The life-cycle cost of a building is dependent on

A. the price of nuclear fuel
B. the expected life of the building
C. environmental and health costs
D. all of the above

37. Environmental costs of building can be assessed in terms of

A. BTUs
B. ecological disturbance
C. resource depletion
D. all of the above

38. Water can become polluted by

A. falling as rain
B. flowing over parking lots
C. percolating through the earth
D. all of the above

39. Western US cities have addressed water shortage problems by

A. instituting subsidence
B. encouraging xeriscaping
C. requiring ultra-low flush toilets
D. all of the above

40. You can use a roof to harvest adequate potable rainwater for residential use

A. only in a rainy climate
B. if the roof is made of shingles
C. if the roof drains to a cistern
D. all of the above