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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 degree does Gaal have?

2. What kind of business does Hardin own?

3. Who informs Gaal that he is under detention from the government of Trantor?

4. What does Lord Dorwin promise the Foundation?

5. How many years have passed when the Encyclopedists chapter opens?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Hari Seldon calculate that a disaster will befall the Empire in 300 years?

2. What reason does Gaal's lawyer give him for not being able to have a hearing with the Emperor?

3. What does Seldon tell the commission when they ask him if there is any way to change the outcome of his prediction?

4. What is Lord Dorwin's purpose for visiting Terminus?

5. What does the image of Hari Seldon tell the board was the true purpose of the Encyclopedia?

6. What does Hardin tell Pirenne is Terminus' interest beyond the Encyclopedia?

7. What unsettling experience does Gaal have as he travels up to the observation tower in Trantor?

8. How does Asimov describe Gaal Dornick?

9. What is Seldon's punishment from the Emperor?

10. What does Gaal see from the observation tower of the Luxor hotel?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Discuss how Hari Seldon is more than just a character, but a unifying force throughout the novel. How does he embody certain themes of Foundation?

Essay Topic 2

What are the political ramifications of blurring the lines between religion and ideology? Discuss the layers to the theme of religion in the novel, from creation to missionaries to apathy.

Essay Topic 3

Discuss the decline of the Empire and how Seldon was able to predict its demise. How does the character Lord Dorwin personify the loss of virtue that seemed to be at the heart of the Empire's decline?

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