                      LOST AT SEA SURVIVAL QUIZ


Instructions:  You are adrift on a private yacht in the south pacific.
     As a consequence of a fire of unknown origin, much of the yacht and
it's contents have been destroyed. The yacht is now slowly sinking. Your
location is unclear because of the destruction of critical navigational
equipment and because you and the crew were distracted trying to bring
the fire under control. Your best estimate is that you are approximately
one thousand miles south-southwest of the nearest land.

     Below is a list of fifteen items that are intact and undamaged after
the fire. In addition to these articles, you have a servicable rubber life
raft with oars large enough to carry yourself, the crew, and all the items
listed below. The total contents of all survivor's pockets are a package
of cigarettes, several books of matches, and five one dollar bills.

     Your task is to rank the fifteen items below in terms of their
importance to your survival. Place the number 1 by the most important item,
the number 2 by the second most important, and so on through number 15,
the least important.

     ______ Sextant

     ______ Shaving mirror

     ______ Five gallon can of water

     ______ Mosquito netting

     ______ One case of U.S. Army C rations

     ______ Maps of the Pacific Ocean

     ______ Seat cushion (flotation device approved by the coast guard)

     ______ Two gallon can of oil-gas mixture

     ______ Small transistor radio

     ______ Shark repellent

     ______ Twenty square feet of opaque plastic

     ______ One quart of 160 proof Puerto Rican rum

     ______ Fifteen feet of nylon rope

     ______ Two boxes of chocolate bars

     ______ Fishing kit

     Although there is no "correct score", this is an exercise of how a
person prioritizes in an emergency situation.  The score is calculated by
subtracting your answers from the coast guard "suggested" answers, then
adding the results together.  According to the source of this quiz, the
average score is 52.

The correct answers will be found in this database - article #120.

