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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. According to the Introduction, extinction is considered as unremarkable as what?

2. What is the name of Thorne's foreman?

3. Who does Levine eavesdrop on while waiting for his plan in the San Jose airport?

4. When Dodgson requests a meeting with the head of Biosyn, what does Dodgson tell him?

5. While other species in the animal kingdom fight for food, what do humans - in Malcolm's opinion - fight for?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the "Edge of Chaos"?

2. Describe at least three types of systems that complexity theory has studied.

3. Why do the other girls at school taunt Kelly?

4. Why is Jack Thorne, who was once a Stanford professor, much happier away from academia?

5. Why, in Malcolm's opinion, is his extinction theory untestable?

6. Why does the tissue sample that Malcolm sends to his contact at the zoo for analysis cause a stir at the zoo?

7. A statue of a raptor is outside the biology department at the university where Malcolm works. Why does Malcolm think the statue of the velociraptor is insulting to the raptor?

8. How does Dodgson convince the head of Biosyn to allow Dodgson one more opportunity to successfully gain the dinosaur DNA he has been seeking?

9. What two events occur in the 1970s that cause scientists to focus their attention on extinction?

10. According to Malcolm's speech, what is the average rate of extinction on the planet?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Throughout the course of the novel, Levine works with two very different men in order to prepare for his expedition - and then once on the island itself. Compare and contrast the relationship Levine has with Thorne to the relationship Hammond has with Malcolm. Then, compare and contrast the two men. How do these two relationships influence not only Levine, but the events that take place on the island?

Essay Topic 2

Compare and contrast Richard Levine with Lewis Dodgson.

a. How are the two characters similar in terms of their professional lives? How are they different?

b. How are the two characters similar in their personality characteristics, strengths, and weaknesses? How are they different?

c. Only one of these characters ultimately survives the ordeal on the Costa Rican island. Is Dodgson's death a result of his own doing or a result of dumb luck? Is Levine's survival a result of his own doing or a result of dumb luck? Support your reasoning for both.

d. Looking forward, how might this ordeal have affected each of these men as they moved forward with their lives? Would they be similarly affected or not? Explain your answers and your reasoning.

Essay Topic 3

After arriving on Isla Sorna, both Eddie Carr and Sarah Harding see the dinosaurs for the first time. Describe the reaction of each of these characters upon seeing the dinosaurs. Then, compare and contrast these two characters using their reaction to seeing the dinosaurs as the starting point for a larger discussion about how these two are different.

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