Class X: Virtually True

Virtually True

1.       According to the newspaper, what had happened to Sebastian Shultz?

Ans: Some weeks ago, Sebastian was badly injured in a motorway accident.  He was taken to a hospital.  His condition was critical.  The doctors hoped that the boy would regain consciousness, but the boy remained in a coma.  The doctors feared that it could last forever.  But then there was a miracle. The boy awoke from the coma.

2. ‘Dad’s nutty about computers.’  What evidence is there to support this statement?

Ans.  Michael’s dad is nutty and crazy for computers.  He has a Pentium 150 Mhz. processor, 256 RAM, 1.2 GB hard disk and 16-speed CD-ROM, complete with speakers, printer, modem and scanner.  It can print, play music and create displays.  He couldn’t resist buying any of the new gadgets or gizmos that came on the market. 

3. In what way did the second game seem very real?

Ans.  The second game was ‘Dragonquest’.  In this game, Michael was a knight who had to rescue a princess from a dragon.  When Michael reached the tower where the princess had been imprisoned, he saw another knight there.  Michael at once knew that he was Sebastian Shultz of the previous game.  During the game, the two talked with each other and helped each other in fighting the dragon.  Thus the second game seemed very real. 

4. The last game has tanks, jeeps, helicopters and guns. What headings would you put this and the other games under?

Ans.  There are four games in this story:

1.    Wildwest

2.    Dragonquest

3.    Jailbreak

4.    Warzone

Each has been given very suitable heading.  Each heading suggests the theme of the game. 

 All these games can be put broadly under ‘Interactive Psycho-drive Games’

5. What was Michael’s theory about how Sebastian had entered the games?

Ans.  At the time of the accident, Sebastian was using his laptop to play a psycho-drive game.  His head banged against the laptop and thus his memory was saved with the computer’s own memory.  And when Michael played these games on the computer, he found Sebastian there. 

6. Read these lines from the story and then answer the questions. 

‘That was my idea’ said Sebastian excitedly.  If only it would go a bit faster.

i)                    Where was Sebastian when he spoke these words?

Ans. Sebastian was on the rooftop.

ii)  What was his idea, and what was he referring to?

Ans. His idea was to escape from the jail.  He was referring to the helicopter he had arranged for his escape. 

iii) Was the idea a good one, and did it eventually succeed?  How?

Ans. The idea was a good one but it did not work because the jail guards with their dogs reached there before they could escape by the helicopter. 

7. Why did the news of the ‘miracle recovery’ shock Michael?

Ans. The news was related to the miracle recovery of a fourteen-year-old boy, Sebastian Shultz.  It was reported that the boy had awoken from a coma that doctors feared might last forever.  The newspaper story carried the boy’s photograph also.  Now Michael knew this boy well because he had played psycho-drive computer games with him for those very days when he was said to be in a coma.  How could that be?  It was something shocking for him.

8. Michael’s meeting with Sebastian Shultz had been a chance meeting.  Where had it taken place and how?

Ans. Michael’s dad had bought some psycho-drive computer games at the Computer Fair.  While playing these games, Michael found a character named Sebastian Shultz in each one of them.  The first of these games was Wildwest. 

9. What kind of computers fascinated Michael and his dad?  Why?

Ans. Computers complete with speakers, printer, modem and scanner fascinated Michael and his dad.  They loved to play psycho-drive computer games and liked such computers best of all.  While playing these games, they felt as if they were themselves inside the game, battling with the others.

10. Describe the first place where Michael was virtually transported.

Ans. The first place where Michael was virtually transported was a saloon.  It was when he was playing the psycho-drive computer game called Wildwest. 

11. What help did Sebastian Shultz ask Michael for?  How did he convey this message?

Ans. Sebastian Shultz wanted Michael’s help to retrieve him from the memory of the computer.  He conveyed this message through a printer that was attached to the computer. 

12.  Why did Michael fail in rescuing Sebastian Shultz the first time?

Ans. The first time, Michael met Sebastian Shultz in a saloon.  Here they, as sheriffs, had an encounter with a gang of ruffians.  The ruffians followed them on their horses and fired at them.  A gunshot hit Sebastian and he slumped back against Michael.  Thus Michael failed in rescuing Sebastian.

13. The second attempt to rescue Sebastian Shultz was also disastrous.  Give reasons. 

Ans. This time, Michael tried to rescue Sebastian from the jail.  The two got out of their cell with the help of a skeleton swipe-card.  They ran upstairs where Sebastian hoped to escape by a helicopter.  A helicopter did come there, but before they could escape, the jail guards came there with their dogs.  In fear, Sebastian took a step backward and slipped down the roof.  He fell on the concrete floor below.  Thus the end was disastrous for Sebastian.    

14. Narrate the accident that injured Sebastian Shultz.

Ans. While going in a car on the motorway, Sebastian Shultz was playing psycho-drive computer games on his laptop.  There was an accident and his head banged against the computer.  Thus he was injured.  He was taken to a hospital in a state of unconsciousness. 

15. How had Sebastian Shultz entered the games?

Ans. Sebastian Shultz was injured in a motorway accident.  At the time of the accident, he was playing psycho-drive computer games.  His head banged against the laptop and his memory was saved into the computer’s own memory.  Thus Sebastian entered the games that were being played on his laptop. 

16.  How was Sebastian Shultz’s memory stored on Michael’s disk?  How did Michael discover that?

Ans. Michael’s dad had bought some psycho-drive computer games from the Computer Fair.  In fact, they belonged to Sebastian and had been stolen while he lay in a coma in the hospital.  When Michael plugged these games into his own computer, Sebastian’s memory got stored into his own disk. Michael came to know of it only when he read the newspaper report.