Engineering Communication Exam Review
Course Introduction
Engineering Communication focuses on the principles and practices essential for effective communication within engineering contexts. The course covers a range of communication methods, including technical report writing, oral presentations, graphical and visual communication, and collaborative teamwork. Students learn to convey complex technical information clearly and concisely to diverse audiences, including peers, supervisors, and non-technical stakeholders. Emphasis is placed on the use of appropriate formats, language styles, visual aids, and digital tools to enhance understanding and facilitate problem-solving in professional engineering environments.
Recommended Textbook
Practical Strategies for Technical Communication 2nd Edition by Mike Markel
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15 Chapters
600 Verified Questions
600 Flashcards
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Introduction to Technical Communication
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40 Verified Questions
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Sample Questions
Q1) When you are answering questions from the audience, it is more important to appear authoritative than to appear polite.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q2) If you are presenting to nonnative speakers of English, which of the following should you do?
A) Survey your audience for the most frequently spoken languages and arrange for translations of your slides into those languages.
B) Offer to provide free translations of the slides to any interested audience members following the presentation.
C) Include, directly on your slides, brief translations of the most essential content in the most commonly spoken languages.
D) Use simple vocabulary and slow down the pace of your delivery.
Answer: D
Q3) In an oral presentation, what is an advance organizer?
Answer: An advance organizer is a statement that tells the listener what the speaker is about to discuss.
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3
Chapter 1: Introduction to Technical Communication
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which quality in the list below is evident in the revised version of the following paragraph?
Original: During our monthly meeting last month, we all came to the conclusion that overtime procedures are inadequate and that new procedures need to be initiated. I discussed this problem with our chief accountant, who was sympathetic and agreed to consider any changes we would like to make to the present procedures. Please bring your suggested changes to this month's departmental meeting scheduled for 2:30 P.M. next Wednesday afternoon.
Revision: During last month's meeting, we concluded that our overtime procedures need revision. Our chief accountant has agreed to consider any changes we would like to make to the present procedures. Please bring your suggested changes to this month's departmental meeting scheduled for 2:30 P.M. next Wednesday.
A) conciseness
B) accuracy
C) comprehensiveness
D) correctness
Answer: A
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4
Chapter 2: Understanding Ethical and Legal Obligations
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Sample Questions
Q1) When you post messages to social media, you lose control over them.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q2) Fair use is best described as a set of general guidelines on ways to use small parts of someone else's copyrighted material for purposes such as commentary, criticism, and research.
A)True
B)False
Answer: True
Q3) Chapter 2 encourages writers to avoid misleading readers. Which of these might mislead a reader?
A) a statement using a euphemism
B) a statement demonstrating the principle of the moral minimum
C) a statement that reproduces material under the fair-use concept
D) a statement with a visual image to reinforce its meaning
Answer: A
Q4) What term is used to describe the act of publishing a document you have already published elsewhere?
Answer: Self-plagiarism
Page 5
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Chapter 3: Writing Collaboratively
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Sample Questions
Q1) Chapter 3 offers seven suggestions for communicating diplomatically. Which of these is a suggestion from the chapter?
A) Avoid qualifier statements such as "I think" or "It seems to me."
B) Use strong language-it is better to appear overbearing than to appear weak and indecisive.
C) Follow your emotions if someone opposes you.
D) Ask pertinent questions.
Answer: D
Q2) Employees rarely use social media and other electronic tools to complete work tasks.
A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q3) one advantage of collaboration is that it can yield a more coherent document. A)True
B)False
Answer: False
Q4) Is email a synchronous or an asynchronous medium of communication?
Answer: Email is an asynchronous medium of communication.
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Chapter 4: Analyzing Your Audience and Purpose
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Sample Questions
Q1) Chapter 4 lists seven categories of cultural variables that lie "on the surface." Two of these categories of variables are political and economic. Name two more.
Q2) Which of the factors listed below did the writer of the following memo fail to take into account?
TO: University Faculty Advisers
FROM: David Gates, Ph.D., Department of Psychology
SUBJECT: New course offered-PSYC 499, Self-Fulfillment in a Global Society
Enclosed is a flyer briefly describing PSYC 499. After you read through the flyer, post it in a conspicuous place, e.g., on your door. Or, better yet, make copies and hand it out in your class. The course will explore how our society can maintain a sense of self in these increasingly uncertain times. So tell students in your courses and your advisees about this new timely course.
A) reader's attitude toward the writer
B) reader's attitude toward the subject
C) reader's expectations about the subject
D) reader's expectations about the document
E) All responses are correct.
Q3) how do public agencies use social-media data?
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Chapter 5: Researching Your Subject
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Sample Questions
Q1) 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
Q2) What kind of information is found in a periodical index?
Q3) It is relatively easy to design field research to measure what you are interested in, but it is difficult to conduct field research.
A)True
B)False
Q4) who is the world's biggest publisher?
A) Penguin Random House
B) the U.S. government
C) Wikipedia
D) the European Union
Q5) What is the difference between secondary research and primary research?
Q6) Chapter 5 suggests that you do three things when concluding an interview. What is one of them?
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Chapter 6: Writing for Your Readers
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Sample Questions
Q1) New and important information should come at the beginning of a sentence, where readers will be sure to notice it.
A)True
B)False
Q2) A writer at ColdTec Accounting has just completed a draft of an internal report describing a recent drop in enrollment in a training course for new employees entitled "Web Linking and Publishing with Microsoft Excel 2007." Which of the following titles would be most appropriate for the report?
A) The Changing Needs of New Employees at ColdTec
B) Choosing a Training Class: "Web Linking and Publishing with Microsoft Excel 2007"
C) An Analysis of Declining Enrollment in "Web Linking and Publishing with Microsoft Excel 2007"
D) Declining Enrollment in Training Classes Offered at ColdTec
Q3) According to Chapter 6, what are the two types of paragraphs?
Q4) For accountants and human-resources personnel, the phrase per diem is an example of what type of language?
Q5) Identify two coherence devices discussed in Chapter 6.
Q6) What is a euphemism?
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Chapter 7: Designing Print and Online Documents
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Sample Questions
Q1) What is the design term for a straight line on a page or screen?
Q2) Which two of these design principles are NOT being employed if the headings in a document are in a particular color?
A) repetition
B) alignment
C) contrast
D) proximity
Q3) what can you do to make a website easy to navigate?
A) Use "Back to top" links on long pages.
B) Include a site map.
C) Use a table of contents at the top of long pages.
D) All responses are correct.
E) None of the responses are correct.
Q4) What is chunking?
Q5) In typography, what is leading?
Q6) What is the definition of white space?
Q7) Which design principle states that the human eye is drawn to-and the brain interprets-differences in appearance between two items?
Q8) margins serve four main purposes within a document. Identify two.
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Chapter 8: Creating Graphics
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Sample Questions
Q1) which of these is NOT an important benefit of graphics?
A) Graphics are indispensable in demonstrating logical and numerical relationships.
B) Graphics can communicate spatial information more effectively than words alone.
C) Graphics can efficiently fill unused space.
D) Graphics can communicate steps in a process more effectively than words alone.
Q2) A writer is creating a table that has 22 rows and 6 columns of data, all of which must appear on one page. To prevent readers from misinterpreting the data, which of the following techniques should the writer apply to the table?
A) drawing a horizontal rule after each row of data
B) using thick grid lines to help readers distinguish information in adjoining cells
C) grouping rows together in a logical order to help readers make comparisons
D) italicizing column heads
Q3) what is the most important characteristic of an infographic?
Q4) Where is the stub located in a table?
Q5) Why is it important to either begin graph axes at zero or mark them clearly?
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Chapter 9: Writing Correspondence
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Sample Questions
Q1) You are one of four people on a search committee interviewing candidates for a marketing manager position in your department. The Human Resources (HR) department has asked each person on the committee to provide feedback after every interview. The candidate you interviewed this afternoon, Mr. Zoolander, did not seem at ease, and you were disappointed in several of his responses to questions. Which passage would be best to include in your email to the HR department?
A) "I was disappointed with several of Mr. Zoolander's responses to our questions. He did not show that he had thought deeply about the issues our department is facing."
B) "Zoolander is a no-go. Kind of a bug-eyed weirdo if you ask me."
C) "Zoolander almost blew a gasket when I asked him for a specific example of his leadership. And he went to that college on the other side of the state? That's all you need to know right there."
D) "Mr. Zoolander presents a curious case for this committee. I think his nervousness belies his enthusiasm for the position, but one cannot be too sure. I find myself in a position of ambivalence."
Q2) What does the notation cc stand for in a letter, memo, or email?
Q3) Provide an example of a correspondence cliché.
Q4) What is flaming?
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Page 12
Chapter 10: Writing Job-Application Materials
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Sample Questions
Q1) What are the four parts of the body of a job-application letter?
Q2) which of these is NOT a guideline for developing your professional brand?
A) Research what others have done.
B) Highlight your job skills.
C) Focus on problem-solving and accomplishments.
D) Focus on academic accomplishments and awards.
Q3) Which of the following statements about plain-text résumés is true?
A) The word plain refers to the language you use to write such a résumé.
B) The word plain refers to the visual style of this type of résumé.
C) The word plain refers to the email you use to send the résumé.
D) The word plain refers to the formatting of the résumé.
Q4) As you develop your professional brand online, you should include keywords that employers look for in your field.
A)True
B)False
Q5) The best way to find keywords for your résumé is to study the job titles for jobs you like.
A)True
B)False
Q6) Why is it important to include keywords in your LinkedIn profile?
Page 13
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Chapter 11: Writing Proposals
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Sample Questions
Q1) which of these is NOT a useful guideline for creating a proposal for an audience in a different culture?
A) Budget time for translation.
B) Understand that what makes an argument persuasive can differ from one culture to another.
C) Focus on costs.
D) Ask if the prospective customer will do a read-through.
Q2) what is a common name for the leader of a proposed research project?
A) principal investigator
B) research lead
C) investigator-in-principle
D) project principal
Q3) What does IFB stand for?
Q4) Formative evaluations are intended to assess the quality of a completed project.
A)True
B)False
Q5) one way to demonstrate professionalism in a proposal is to discuss your work history.
A)True
B)False
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Chapter 12: Writing Informational Reports
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of these is NOT a typical field report as described by Chapter 12?
A) a report on a visit to a potential building site for an office for a client
B) a report on maintenance performed on a broken piece of machinery in a shop
C) a report on an inspection conducted at a customer's site
D) a report on an experiment conducted in your company's laboratory
Q2) Which of the following statements about incident reports is NOT true?
A) Incident reports can be created by filling in report forms.
B) Incident reports often contain graphics and video.
C) Incident reports usually run a few pages long.
D) Specialized types of incident reports go by other names, such as accident reports.
Q3) When you are recording meeting minutes and an argument arises, you should record both the argument and its outcome in order to ensure comprehensiveness.
A)True
B)False
Q4) Whether you have good news or bad news to share, it is important to keep a professional, measured tone in an informational report.
A)True
B)False
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Page 15
Chapter 13: Writing Recommendation Reports
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following questions would be answered in a feasibility report?
A) Which university has the most prestigious business school?
B) Which truck has more of the options we want, the Ford or the Chevrolet?
C) Is it ethical to pursue this course of action?
D) Is it practical to pursue this course of action?
Q2) In what order should definitions relevant to a report be presented in a glossary?
Q3) What fundamental question does the recommendations section of a recommendation report answer?
Q4) The essential questions answered in the introduction of a recommendation report are similar to those answered when introducing what other kind of document?
A) a proposal
B) an incident report
C) meeting minutes
D) a job-application letter
Q5) A feasibility report is an argument that answers three kinds of questions. One kind is questions of possibility. What is one other kind of question?
Q6) Into what two categories can criteria be classified?
Q7) In a decision matrix, which factor demonstrates a criterion's importance?
Page 16
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Chapter 14: Writing Definitions, Descriptions, and Instructions
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which two types of organizational patterns are most common for mechanism descriptions?
A) comparison and contrast
B) functional
C) spatial
D) radial
Q2) According to Chapter 14, many companies are uneasy about using instructional videos and rely on printed documentation instead.
A)True
B)False
Q3) According to Chapter 14, what is an effective way to conclude a description?
A) with a restatement of key points from the introduction
B) with a summary of major points and, in some cases, a brief description of how the parts or process steps work together
C) with information on maintenance or troubleshooting
D) with distinguishing characteristics
Q4) In what way is the definition "Booting a computer is when you turn it on" flawed?
Q5) What are the three types of descriptions discussed in Chapter 14?
Page 17
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