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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. How does Frock suggest the members of the Whittlesey Expedition were killed?

2. What is the name of the new exhibit being developed for the museum?

3. What is the Secure Area?

4. Who is William Smithback?

5. What does Whittlesey see on the dead body on the trial before him that tells him it is human?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is a ballistics analysis and why does Pendergast suggest one be done on the blood at the crime scene in Chapter 14?

2. What do the scientists at the independent lab tell Pendergast and D'Agosta in Chapter 23 about the DNA sample taken from the claw found in the chest of one of the victims?

3. What family crisis is taking place in the Green family, forcing Margo to make a decision that could end her dreams of completing her education?

4. Where does Whittlesey find Crocker? What does the marks on the body say to Whittlesey about Crocker's fate?

5. What is Margo Green working on at the Museum of Natural History? Who is her adviser?

6. Why does Smithback suggest the search for a killer in the museum would be nearly impossible?

7. What is Dr. Whittlesey doing as the novel begins? Why is this important?

8. What is odd about the DNA sample the lab tech examines in Chapter 17?

9. What is the Callisto Effect?

10. What does Smithback ask Kawakita to help him with in Chapter 25? Why does Kawakita refuse?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Who is Whittlesey? What expedition did he go on? To where? What was the purpose of the expedition? Did Whittlesey find what he was looking for? What happened to the scientists involved in the expedition? Was this related to the relics crated and sent back to the museum? If so, explain. What is assumed was Dr. Whittllesey's fate? What did his journal say about the expedition? Was this helpful tot he murder investigation? What letter did Margo find in the crates related to the expedition? Was this letter helpful in learning about the nature of the creature? What item of Whittlesey's was found in the creature's lair? What conclusion did investigators come to when seeing this item? Is this conclusion correct?

Essay Topic 2

Discuss the Museum of Natural History. How true to the real museum were the writers of this novel? Discuss what real visitors to the Museum of Natural History might hope to see. How do the real exhibits of the museum compare to the fictional exhibit discussed in this novel? Why did the writers chose to set their novel in such a setting? How does the setting of this novel affect the overall plot of the novel? How might the novel have been different if it were set somewhere else?

Essay Topic 3

Discuss scientific expeditions. What are they? What is the purpose of an expedition? Who goes on these expeditions? Are they restricted just to scientists? What happens to the artifacts taken during these expeditions? For what purpose are these artifacts taken? Should they be taken? Compare and contrast a real expedition with the Whittlesey expedition discussed in this novel. For example, compare the Whittlesey expedition with the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Discuss the details of each, what the explorers hoped to find, and what the end result was. What did each of these expeditions do for civilization?

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