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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. What is the Delta Force planning to do to a prominent American official when boarding a Kiowa helicopter?

2. What do Xavia and Corky discover about the meteorite after testing the chondrules on the Goya?

3. Where do Rachel and Michael stay the night together?

4. Who first sees that Rachel has been shot on the Goya?

5. What does Senator Sexton do to Gabrielle when she suggests holding onto the information about the meteorite until Rachel is safe?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why does William Pickering tell Rachel he is lying about the meteorite when he reveals himself as the controller?

2. What are Gabrielle's suspicions about the meteorite in Chapter 95?

3. How does Gabrielle get to the fourth floor of NASA headquarters?

4. How are Rachel and Michael described at the White House in Chapter 133?

5. How does Rachel describe the expander cycle engine to Michael and Corky?

6. What does Senator Sexton do with Rachel's fax in Chapter 126?

7. What happens when the Delta Force arrives at the Goya in Chapter 110?

8. What is the nature of Xavia's phone message to Michael in Chapter 91?

9. What is the Delta Force's mission when they board a Kiowa helicopter?

10. How does Gabrielle get into Senator Sexton's office computer?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss the author's purpose for the story coming full circle at the end of the book. What is the likelihood that the author uses the epilogue as a way to insinuate that something like the meteorite hoax could occur again in the future?

Essay Topic 2

True to its title, the book does a good job of deceiving the readers leading them down many paths with no real truth and honesty found.

Part 1.) How does the author deceive the reader with characters like Marjorie Tench and Lawrence Ekstrom who seemed motivated to falsify the meteorite finding?

Part 2.) How does the author present several levels of deception in the book with the inclusion of Senator Sexton's bribery scheme?

Part 3.) What might the author be saying about the nature of politics and power based on his portrayal of deception in the book?

Essay Topic 3

Examine Rachel's fear of open water in the book. What purpose does the author have for giving one of the protagonists such a debilitating fear in the book?

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