Think you're hip to the beat of Canadian consciousness? Grab a pencil and test your savvy with these 15 questions, adapted from What Canadians Think (Doubleday Canada, 2005) by Darrell Bricker and John Wright.

1. Where do most of us want Health Care money spent?
a) more doctors
b) a national homecare program
c) reducing waiting lists for diagnostic services
d) a national pharmacare program

2. Whom do we trust the most?
a) doctors
b) firefighters
c) pilots
d) pharmacists

3. What is our favourite thing to do online?
a) instant messaging
b) online banking
c) e-mail
d) do online quizzes about what Canadians think

4. What percentage of Canadians feel the world is changing too quickly?
a) 80%
b) 30%
c) 40%
d) 55%

5. In order of most to least, what would Canadians do if they won $10 million?
a) share it with family
b) pay off debt
c) donate to charity
d) travel

6. In what province are parents most concerned about their kids' education costs?
a) Ontario
b) Atlantic Canada
c) Quebec
d) Saskatchewan/Manitoba

7. What percent of Canadians think barbecue season is "all year long"?
a) 40%
b) 65%
c) 25%
d) 50% -- all the men

8. What are the top two extra-curricular activities our kids are doing after school?
a) hockey and piano
b) swimming and soccer
c) martial arts and piano
d) swimming and piano

9. Oral hygiene: what part of cleaning our mouths do far more women do than men?
a) actually brush their teeth
b) brush their tongue
c) floss
d) check their gums

10. What is the number one thing Canadians look for on a food label?
a) fibre
b) calories
c) total fat
d) saturated fat

11. What do we hide the most from our spouses?
a) failure at work
b) how much we paid for something
c) damage to the car
d) something involving a child's behaviour or grades

12. In which province are you most likely to get your heart broken?
a) Prince Edward Island
b) Saskatchewan
c) Quebec
d) British Columbia

13. OK, how many Canadian pet owners allow their pets in their beds?
a) 100%
b) 44%
c) 69%
d) 60%

14. Who do we think are the funniest Canadians?
a) Quebeckers
b) Albertans
c) Newfoundlanders
d) Nova Scotians

15. Which province is most likely to believe we are different from the U.S.?
a) Quebec
b) British Columbia
c) Newfoundland
d) Manitoba

Answers:
1. c) Nearly two-thirds (63%) of Canadians believe that reducing waiting lists for diagnostic services like MRIs and CAT scans should be a top priority for more health care spending.

2. b) 94% of Canadians would put their trust in a firefighter. Pharmacists are close behind at 91%, with doctors at 85% and airline pilots at 81%.

3. c) 93% of everyone plugged into the net use it to send e-mail (what the other seven per cent is doing I'm not sure). The number two thing we do is check the weather (65%). Only half (50%) use instant messaging and 53% use the web for online banking.

4. c) 43% of Canadians feel the world is changing too quickly and this is a major cause of stress. Frighteningly, the percentage of Canadians who agree there has been a time when they've been under so much stress that they've wanted to commit suicide is 17.

5. a - c - d - b: a) 50% would share with family, c) 39% would donate to charity, d) 35% would travel and b) only 23% of us would use it to pay off debt. Only 10% would quit their jobs!

6. d) 95% of parents in Saskatchewan and Manitoba are worried about funding their children's education. Atlantic Canada follows at 93%, with Ontario at 86% -- parents in Quebec are the least worried at 74%.

7. a) 40% of Canadians will tromp through the snow to enjoy a juicy flame-broiled burger, and most of these brave souls hail from Alberta (in fact, 57% of all Albertans will barbecue all year round).

8. d) Swimming and piano top the chart with 16% of all Canadian kids enrolled. Soccer is next at 15% with hockey close behind at 13%. Only 6% of kids are doing martial arts after school.

9. b) Women are far more likely to remember to brush their tongues than men (62% vs. 47%). Women also floss more (69% vs. 55%) and check their gums more (57% vs. 49%). There were no stats on regular brushing, and frankly we just don't want to know.

10. a) 80% of Canadians look for how much fibre is in their food. Vitamins are close behind at 79%. Counting calories is important to 74%, and 67% look at total fat, while just 63% observe saturated fats.

11. b) 33% of us hide what we have paid for something from our spouses. The next highest item was hiding a child's behaviour or grades at 13%, failure at work took 7% and damage to the car rested at 5%.

12. b) Saskatchewan -- more people have suffered a broken heart there than anywhere else. Interestingly, the place where you are least likely to get a broken heart is Quebec (ah, l'amour!). 43% of all Canadians say they have suffered a broken heart at one time or another.

13. c) 69% of pet owners allow their pets in their beds at night -- well, 69% admitted to it.

14. c) Over one-third (33%) of Canadians think Newfoundlanders have the best sense of humour. 13% think Quebeckers are funny while only 1% think Prince Edward Islanders can get a laugh.

15. b) British Columbians are most likely to say we are different from the Americans. The
province whose residents are least likely to think so is Alberta.

Score:
11 - 15
Congratulations! You have your finger on the pulse of what Canadians think today. Celebrate with a 100% all-Canadian beef burger cooked outside on the barbecue.

6 - 10
Not bad! It's hard to predict a collective brain of 35 million, so great effort. Go snuggle in bed with Mr. Whiskers and read a good Canadian magazine.

0 - 5
You live deep inside the Canadian Shield with your eyes closed and fingers in your ears. Try to get out a little more.