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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. With which of the following departments is MacDonald noted to be affiliated?

2. In which of the following cities does Kemal note a Babylon death occurs?

3. Which of the following does Liz note contributed to the background documentation for Babylon?

4. From which of the following offices does Kemal note having been dispatched?

5. In the novel, the term “bollock” carries which of the following meanings?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Liz note as the path she will need to take to get Kemal the authorizations he needs to work on Babylon?

2. How does the Gnome characterize the economic scheme of Issyk-Kulistan?

3. What reasons does Liz cite for consultants seeking to reduce the presence of police officers in the field?

4. How does the Toymaker outfit himself for his date with Dorothy?

5. How does Liz compare her police work to priesthood?

6. What does Liz note as a benefit of her assignment to liaise with the Interpol agent for Babylon?

7. What reasons does MacDonald give for disinterest in creating artificial consciousness?

8. What reasons does the Toymaker note for determining to research steak consumption in Scotland?

9. To what does MacDonald note his former associate compared ATHENA?

10. What preparations does Dorothy make in her hotel room against a possible teleconference (272)?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What is to be made of the parallels in phrasing between Liz and the Toymaker in the ninth and tenth chapter (both remark that “Once is happenstance, but twice is enemy action” and that “Someone’s going to bleed for this. And it’s not going to be you”)? How does that significance emerge?

Essay Topic 2

Sources attest to the presence of Rule 34 on the short-lists for several prominent awards. Assuming that the nominations reflect popularity, what accounts for the popularity of the novel? How does it do so?

Essay Topic 3

Throughout the novel, higher education comes under censure. What is to be made of the pattern? How is it to be understood? What in the novel suggests as much, and how?

(see the answer keys)

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