Hi Everyone,
It’s time to announce the winner of the fifth Sapien Loop Quiz for this year. First, I would like to thank all the participants. Sadly, the turnout was not great.
The questions were spread across three parts of the book, and they were a little tougher than usual. I aim to expand the contest to the whole book. Ten days should have been sufficient time to respond.
The quality of the answers was not good either. Only two participants answered more than half of the questions correctly. Maybe, the questions were a little difficult this time. The next quiz is not until September. That quiz will cover the whole book. That should give everyone time to finish reading the book.
How to Play!
For those who did not enter, here is a quick recap of how to play. The quiz contains nine multiple-choice questions. Each question has five possible answers. The participant is required to select the correct answer from the five options. The participant who answers the most questions correctly wins the contest. If there is a tie, the participant who entered first wins. There is also a requirement for the winner to answer at least five questions correctly. This is my way of ensuring that the participants read the book.
The prize for each contest is 30 Hive Power. The entries of the first twelve participants are upvoted.
For more information about this quiz as well as the questions, click on the link below:
Answers to the quiz are as follows:
Question 1: D
Question 2: C
Question 3: B
Question 4: E
Question 5: C
Question 6: E
Question 7: E
Question 6: D
Question 7: A
Explanations
Question 1: In Chapter 67, Senyek is introduced as the head of the Economic Institute.
Question 2: In Chapter 2, the Business Sector, the book states that the Sapey Business Sector consists of twenty industries.
Question 3: Jeed is first mentioned in Chapter 47. Mikayla, a specialist, introduces Darius to Jeed in Chapter 48. Jeed is promoted as a rehabilitation region to help troubled youth. Darius goes there to cure his depression. Jeed seems like a fun place, but as the story progresses, it gradually reveals that the motivations behind Jeed are far more sinister. If Sapiens fail the program, they are lobotomised. If they pass, they stay on as staff. However, nobody returns home or has a normal life ever again.
Chapter 50 shows the consequences of trying to escape. Later chapters, e.g., Chapters 59 and 62, reveal the more sinister activities. The real purpose of Jeed is explained in Part 5 (beyond the scope of the quiz, but an advantage to know).
Question 4: In Chapter 40, the book explains what occurs in Cellrebrum. A combination of drugs and virtual reality simulations are used for a variety of purposes. All of the answers outlined in the question are suggested or actually conducted at some point in the story.
Question 5: In Chapter 35, Collingswaggle went over to Pardi's home to discuss strategy with him. The twins had prepared several burritos. They were aware that Collingswaggle was coming. We can tell that from their reaction to him at the door. They also wanted him to have a burrito. This indicates intent for something, good or bad.
Were they doing it to help Pardi, or were they just being naughty. Both answers seem plausible. However, I intended it to be a product of the twins’ mischief rather than a strategic move for Pardi. Pardi capitalised on Collinswaggle’s reaction to get his message across. The biggest hint to this is in Chapter 36, where the book mentions that Pardi removed hot chilies from his own burrito. This indicates the twins had the same plan for Pardi as Collingswaggle.
Question 6: In Chapter 52, a panel of ‘experts’ believes the Sapes are attacking each other because of the contamination of the water. Pardi explains that the contamination is from ground flaking. He offers a solution that he can develop to protect Sapiens from the contamination.
In Chapter 66, during the election debate, doubt is raised about the real cause of the Sapes aggression. Part 4 confirms that there were no toxic substances in the water until the Carvaress Company intentionally introduced them.
Question 7: In Chapter 70, Demarcus meets Lily. He has many questions, and Lily has even more answers. She tells him about his ability to become invisible and shapeshift. She tells him about another species known as the Linap. She explains how their history has been a lie. Much more is explained at the beginning of Part 4.
Question 8: In Chapter 62, it appears that Jennifer might be a specialist like Mikayla. However, by the end of that chapter, it is revealed that Jennifer is AI and has been performing the function of assessing rehabilitation cases. However, nothing is ever as it seems in Sapien Loop.
In Chapter 65, Jennifer becomes an upgrade for Dr. Cortex. Jennifer also becomes implanted into Vulay and Zolam. She is able to fully control them, thus making them slaves. Assessing rehabilitation cases was just her initial assignment.
Question 9: In Chapter 8: Darius meets Victor. Victor uses the meeting to get to know Darius as well as impart some of his ideology onto him. The essence of the conversation revolves around questioning the world they lived in. Darius already has a similar way of thinking. Thus, the two are compatible in that aspect.
Victor also wants to push Darius’ boundaries beyond what he can observe to what potentially could be. He uses an analogy regarding hands. We know we have one hand less if everyone has one hand more. If we all had the same number of hands, we would not know we were missing a hand. The residents do not miss true freedom because they do not know what true freedom really is.
Note: All books are open to interpretation. The answers provided best reflect my intentions regarding the characters, their actions, and the plots in the story.
Winners
Overall, this contest had just seven participants. There was a two-way tie for first place; both @stekene and @justclickindiva answered five out of nine questions correctly. @stekene wins this contest based on the tiebreaker rule of responding first.
In a couple of weeks, I will begin my economics challenge series for 2024. This challenge series will last until the end of August or the beginning of September. The Sapien Loop Quiz will return in September. For the remaining quizzes, questions will come from anywhere in the book.
My New Book, Sapien Loop
I have published an ebook on Amazon; it is titled ‘Sapien Loop: End of an Era’. The book is fiction. I do not normally write fiction. However, I felt it was appropriate considering what is happening in the world today. Freedom is the most important thing we have, but we are gradually losing it. I have covered this in many of my posts.
In the story, most citizens do not understand the concept of freedom because they have never really experienced it. In essence, the story is about an alien world that might represent our not-so-distant future. There are many other elements to the story that are an abstract and exaggerated version of our reality. I believe this book to be an important read, and I believe it has the potential to change the way you think.
Brief Summary of Sapien Lopp
This story is based on the fictional planet Sapia and its sole country, Sapey. Sapey is portrayed as a form of utopia for all its citizens. No poverty. No war. Almost no crime. Opportunities for all.
This was enough for most citizens, but not all. In one of the small regions, some of the citizens had become discontent. They felt something important was missing in their lives. Their discontent did not go unnoticed. Some of the Sapey elite wanted to weaponise this discontent to gain more power. This created more chaos than they anticipated. This led to further widespread social unrest.
On top of the chaos, ambition and greed provoked another enemy. This enemy was on a mission to settle both new and old scores.
If you want to buy a copy of the book, below are links to the relevant Amazon websites for each country it is available in. The book is priced at approximately US$5.08.
- Amazon USA
- Amazon UK
- Amazon Germany
- Amazon France
- Amazon Spain
- Amazon Italy
- Amazon Netherlands
- Amazon Japan
- Amazon Brazil
- Amazon Canada
- Amazon Mexico
- Amazon Australia
- Amazon India
I am also running monthly contests where participants are required to answer questions based on the book. The prize is 30 Hive Power plus upvotes for the first twelve entries. You can recover the cost of the book with just one win.
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