Abundio : uh-BOON-joe : Jun-Jun’s real name, and the name of his deceased father.

Alexander “Sasha” Topturov : TOPE-tour-ov : “Geo,” a man obsessed with ridding the planet of suffering by destroying all sentience.

Amita : uh-MEE-ta nog-a-RAH-jon : Math and computer science prodigy. Younger sister of Puneet.

Arnel : ar-NELL : Jun-Jun’s younger brother. Jun-Jun’s formulation of MNI-3 did not work on him.

Arnulfo : ar-NOOL-foe : Jun-Jun’s youngest brother. Used MNI-3 to learn martial arts.

Bohol : bo-HOLE : The Philippine island where Jun-Jun lives. This is a real place.

Carolyn Thomas : “Dr. Carol.” Neuroscientist/psychologist. Developer of truth-detecting brain scanning technology.

Cebu : seh-BOO : The island next to Bohol which has Cebu City, the second largest city in the Philippines.

Charlie Howard : Philanthropist and self-styled hacker who stole the formula for MNI-3 from Amita. Uses the nym “Steve.”

Del Grey : CIA analyst working on the Geo case.

Dodoy Po : DOE-doy poe : Stella Po’s husband.

Don-Don Baco : doan-doan BAH-co : Bodyguard of Gilberto Quimada. The one with the gold tooth.

Ed Pratt : Secret Service agent working on the Geo case.

Elia Cancilla : ELL-ee-a can-CHILL-a : Former grad school associate of Tino Dédalo who is building a Hall Weather Machine.

Elmo “Mo” Pindoy : moe pin-DOY : Friend of Jun-Jun. Helped Jun-Jun get his land back from Quimada.

Elpidio Medina : el-PEE-thee-oh may-THEE-nah : Panamanian youth who stows away on a ship carrying Geo’s attack weapon, TT2 (Tickle).

Geo. Individual or group trying to stop preparation efforts. In Book 2, we learn the force behind Geo is Alexander Topturov, a former associate of Tino Dédalo who is involved with distributing toxic materials to the public in an effort to disrupt preparations. Topturov is a survivor of the Chernobyl disaster, and he has health problems.

George Conrad : Langston’s father, computer scientist.

Gilberto Quimada : gill-BEAR-toe key-MA-da : corrupt lawyer who cheated Jun-Jun out of his land, and who secretly worked for a Hong Kong crime organization.

Gina Conrad : Langston’s sister, environmental activist.

Glenn Brown : Special Agent of the FBI specializing in cybercrime.

Gnomeasure : no measure : Amita’s anonymous handle that she uses to communicate with people who are using MNI-3.

Guo : GWO : Guo Tian Du. Deputy Master, then Dragon Master, of the Four Fists of Harmony.

Irene Johnson : Astrophysicist friend of Langston Conrad. Friend of Sam Ngco.

Jagna : HUG-nuh : Town nearest to Pahulayan. This is a real place.

Jun-Jun Lagahit : joon-joon la-GAH-heet : Philippine rice farmer. Jun-Jun is his nickname because he has the same name as his father, a common Filipino custom.

Kali : KAH-lee : Black hole which is approaching the Solar System.

Kate Acton : Primatologist, married to Langston.

kinaadman : keen-awe-ODD-mahn : Jun-Jun’s name for MNI-3, the cognitive enhancer.

Langston Conrad : Astrophysicist and nanotech enthusiast. Co-discoverer of Kali.

Luz : maried to Jun-Jun.

Maricel : MAR-ee-sell : Jun-Jun’s mother.

Matt Mendoza : Agent Brown’s FBI partner.

Melantho Peroff : mel-AN-tho PAIR-off : Accomplice of Topturov. Also known as “fnand.”

MNI : Em-en-eye (rhyme with Gemini) : Metaplastic Neural Inducer.

Pahulayan: Paw-who-LYE-yawn : Village where Jun-Jun lives. Not a real place.

Puneet Nagarajan : pooh-NEET nog-a-RAH-jon : Co-discoverer of Kali.

Radu Toma : RAH-doo TOME-a : Neuroscientist. Original developer of cognitive enhancement system MNI-3.

Rod Mathies : rod MATH-ease : Nanocom4 CIO.

Salvador Bitoon : SAL-va-dore bih-TOO-own : man who brought computers and MNI-3 to Jun-Jun.

Sam Ngco : sam [pre-nasalized breathy-voiced dental click]-o : Astrophysicist from Botswana who has been cognitively enhanced with MNI-3.

Stella Po : “Nurse” Po, a kind nurse who helped Jun-Jun get medical care for his daughter when she was dangerously ill.

Steve/Ben : Avatar which looks like Ben Franklin. Controlled by “Steve,” the nym used by a member of the group that gave the computers and MNI-3 to Jun-Jun.

Steven Ying : Mid-level deputy in the Four Fists of Harmony Hong Kong crime organization.

Tagbilaran : tog-bee-LAR-awn : Capital city of the island of Bohol. This is a real place.

Teresa Conrad : Langston’s mother, mathematician.

Tino Dédalo : TEE-no DEH-the-lo : Founder, along with wife Amalia, of Nanocom4, a nanotech startup developing the Tree of Life Architecture, a crowdsourced project to provide basic human needs after Kali.

Zero “Zed” Roundtree : Self-improving general AI researcher in the DOC Lab.