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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. Who is Dr. Koenig?

2. What are Tyler Dupree and his two friends, the thirteen-year-old twins, Diane and Jason Lawton, doing?

3. What is a consequence of the way time works with the Spin?

4. What happened to Tyler's Mom?

5. What does Diane see happen?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does Jason hire Tyler to care for him?

2. Why does E. D. know about the attributes of Spin and why does he reveal this information to Jason?

3. Simon is the person Diane seems to have chosen for her lover at this time in her life and yet Jason thinks Simon is the least possible good for Diane. What do you think Jason means by this?

4. Why does Tyler decide to write the story of him and his friends?

5. Why did the NK religion end?

6. What does Ina tell En to do and why?

7. What is a consequence of the time difference inside and outside of Spin?

8. Both Jason and Tyler wonder what the Hypotheticals (the name given to the fictional Alien race possibly responsible for the Spin) aimed to accomplish with the Spin. What do you think may be accomplished?

9. Why does Diane leave Tyler in the hotel room?

10. What does Jason reveal about Perihelion's plans for Mars and why might this be significant?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Time is a concept that is easy to define but much more difficult to understand, both in Spin and in "real" life. Discuss the following:

Define time and then explain time.

Many philosophers say that time is a "human construct." What do you think this term means? If it is true, why do you think humans "constructed" time?

What would be the nature of our life if time either as a construct or absolute did not exist?

Essay Topic 2

Characters are an important element of most stories. Discuss one of the following:

Compare and contrast Jason to Tyler.

Compare and contrast Jason to Diane.

Compare and contrast Jason to E. D.

Essay Topic 3

Chapter one opens in the present but then flashes back to the past. This technique is done with a literary device called a flashback. There are a number of literary devices in this novel. Discuss one of the following:

Define "flashback" and give examples of it in the novel. What is the purpose of a flashback? How effective is the use of flashbacks in this story? What is a weakness of using flashbacks? Why do you think the author choices to use flashbacks in this story so often? Would this story be very different if told completely in chronological order? Why or why not? How would it change the plot?

Define metaphor and give examples of it in the novel. What is the purpose of a metaphor? How effective is the use of metaphors in this story? What is a weakness of using metaphors? Would this story be very different if there were no metaphors? Why or why not? How would it change the plot?

Choose one literary device that occurs in Spin and answer the following questions:

What is the purpose of the literary device? How effective is the use of the literary device in this story? What is a weakness of using this literary device? Would this story be very different if there were no occurrences of this literary device? Why or why not? How would it change the plot?

(see the answer keys)

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