Human Space Exploration Book Project

Due 11/19 (A) or 11/20 (B)

Because we will be learning about space exploration this six weeks, I wanted to have you
experience several different perspectives on this, including fiction. You will have about
four weeks to complete the various parts of this project. For whichever option you pick,
you will complete the following (each is worth 1/3 of your grade):

Mock social media poster (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc.) for the protagonist.
Review, including synopsis, typed into Canvas.
Test (upon completion)

Please choose one of the following:

Title
The Martian
(2014; language warning)

Back to the Moon

(2012)

Higher Education
(1997)

Interstellar (DVD)
(2014; PG-13)

Have Space Suit Will Travel

(1958)

Author(s)

Number
Max.
of Pages Grade
Andy Weir
369 p.
125
Stranded on Mars by a dust storm that compromised his
space suit and forced his crew to leave him behind,
astronaut Mark Watney struggles to survive in spite of
minimal supplies and harsh environmental challenges
that test his ingenuity in unique ways.
Travis S. Taylor & Les Johnson
386 p.
125
As a U.S. mission to the moon prepares to lift off
decades after the 1969 lunar mission, a secret Chinese
trip to the moon is revealed when a distress signal is
received, prompting the U.S. team to turn a journey of
discovery into a desperate rescue mission.
Charles Sheffield & Jerry Pournelle
286 p.
100
When a misfired practical joke gets him kicked out of
school, Rick Luban thinks he has nowhere to go but
down. Instead, he gets a second chanceand a whole
new lifewhen he signs up for a career in asteroid
mining.
170 min.
80
The story of ex-pilot Cooper (Matthew McConaughey),
who must leave his family and Earth behind to lead an
expedition beyond this galaxy to discover whether
mankind has a future among the stars.
Robert A. Heinlein
249 p.
100
Kip Russell wants nothing more than to go to the moon.
But after entering a contest to help realize his dream,
he is thrust into a space adventure he could never have
imaginedwith the most unlikely of friends and
enemies

You are responsible for obtaining access to the book/video you select. These are all
available through the Arlington Public Library, but they do not have many copies. They
are generally available through Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com and probably at HalfPrice Books as well. (www.abebooks.com is also another option.)
If you have a different hard science science-fiction book (involving planetary/lunar
exploration) you would like to use instead, I will consider it. I will not consider any
other movies. If funds are truly a concern and the library is not an option, I have a few
copies of Have Space SuitWill Travel or Higher Education that you can check out.
This assignment will count as a project grade. While I might be able to give you class time
to read or work on it, I am making no promises. You will have almost four full weeks;
please use your time wisely. Your project will be graded using the following rubric (grades
will total 125/100/80, depending on your book source):
Poster
Representative
(protagonists
activities,
thoughts,
emotions)
Neatness
(text and
pictures)
Cleverness and
clarity

14/11/9
Protagonist is
easily recognizable.

10/8/6
Protagonist is
recognizable.

6/4/4
Protagonist is
somewhat
recognizable.

03
Protagonist is not
or is barely
recognizable.

Text is neat and

easy-to-read;
pictures are
mounted neatly.
Format and
content chosen fit
story and protagonist very well.

Text is fairly easy

to read; pictures
are mostly neatly
mounted.
Format and/or
content chosen fit
story and protagonist fairly well.

Text is difficult to
read OR pictures
are missing or
sloppy.
Format and/or
content chosen
dont fit the story.

Text is difficult to
read or missing,
and no pictures.
Format and
content dont
make sense.

Review w/ Synopsis
Review
Content &
Execution

Synopsis
Content

Synopsis
Execution

14/11/9
Complex and
supported opinions; proper spelling, grammar, and
punctuation.
Story and
protagonist are
well-summarized
Proper spelling,
grammar, and
punctuation.

10/8/6
Supported
opinions; mostly
correct spelling,
grammar, and
punctuation.
Story and/or
protagonist are
fairly wellsummarized.
Mostly correct
spelling, grammar,
and punctuation.

6/4/4
Vague or unsupported opinions;
multiple errors.

Important aspects
of the story or
protagonist are
missing.
Several spelling,
grammar, or punctuation errors.

Test % of questions correct .41/.34/.26

The test will be given in class on the due date.

03
I did/didnt like
it; serious spelling, grammar, or
punctuation errors;
plagiarism.
No synopsis or
copied from
book/video
description.
Multiple spelling,
grammar, or punctuation errors.