Vocabulary Assessment: The Automation Paradox

1. What does the term "automation" refer to in the context of the article?

A) The manual labor performed by blue-collar workers. B) The use of computers and automatic equipment to perform tasks. C) A legal process involving lawyers and paralegals. D) The redistribution of wealth among the middle class.

2. If a situation is described as a "paradox," it means that it:

A) Is entirely predictable and easy to understand. B) Involves catastrophic destruction. C) Seems self-contradictory but may actually be true. D) Only affects a small percentage of the population.

3. The phrase "hollowing out" of the middle class suggests that the middle class is:

A) Slowly losing jobs and disappearing, leaving an empty center. B) Becoming stronger and wealthier over time. C) Moving out of cities and into rural areas. D) Learning new skills at community colleges.

4. Which of the following is the best definition for the word "persistent"?

A) Happening quickly and ending suddenly. B) Easily resolved without effort. C) Covering a very wide area. D) Continuing firmly in spite of difficulty or opposition.

5. In the legal profession, the term "discovery" refers to:

A) The invention of a new type of computer software. B) The process of sorting through documents to find those relevant to a lawsuit. C) A judge's final ruling in a corporate trial. D) Hiring new paralegals to increase firm growth.

6. If a law firm is making "expansive" requests, their requests are:

A) Very broad, extensive, and wide-ranging. B) Very cheap and quick to process. C) Highly secretive and clandestine. D) Extremely specific and narrowly focused.

7. When software is used to "trawl" through documents, it means the software is:

A) Deleting documents to save space. B) Printing documents on a typographical press. C) Sifting heavily through them as part of a deep search. D) Translating the documents into another language.

8. What does it mean if employment in a certain sector has grown "robustly"?

A) It has grown weakly and unstably. B) It has grown in a strong, healthy, and vigorous way. C) It has grown only in blue-collar occupations. D) It has grown due to government intervention.

9. If workers with computers "substitute" for non-computerized workers, they are:

A) Helping the non-computerized workers do their jobs. B) Being used in place of the non-computerized workers. C) Training the non-computerized workers in new skills. D) Working collaboratively in the exact same role.

10. The author uses the phrase "robot apocalypse" to refer to:

A) A catastrophic, widespread destruction of human jobs by machines. B) The certification programs offered by community colleges. C) The daily routine of a white-collar office worker. D) A new type of software used exclusively by bank tellers.