What was this sci fi childrens book called? (something staircase)

Question: What was this sci fi childrens book called!? (something staircase)

it was about kids were taken and put in a science project where they were in this huge white room that was infinitley high where they were stuck on a staircase!. the staircase had levels and this thing that would give them food if they preformed!. these children were in there for years until an elevator came to get them!. it was very strange and im pretty sure people wont know the name!. but im dying to know!.Www@QuestionHome@Com

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

"House of Stairs" by William Sleator
http://en!.wikipedia!.org/wiki/House_of_St!.!.!.
" a future, five sixteen-year-olds are taken from state orphanages and placed in a strange building!. The building, neither a prison nor a hospital, has no walls, no ceiling, no floor: nothing but endless flights of stairs leading nowhere!. On one landing is a basin of running water that serves as a toilet, sink and drinking fountain; on another, a machine with lights that occasionally produces food!. The five must each learn to deal with the others' widely-divergent personalities, the lack of privacy, their apparent helplessness, and the strange machine that only feeds them under increasingly exacting circumstances!. One of the protagonists is a slightly slow boy who tends to follow authority; one is a rebellious juvenile deliquent girl; one is a spoiled girl who grew up amidst wealth but who was recently orphaned; one is a handsome, popular boy athlete; one is a pretty, passive girl who has a crush on the athlete!. Soon, it becomes clear that the machine - or those behind it - has a sinister agenda in store for the five main characters!. The question then becomes: Is death by starvation preferable to allowing the hidden authorities to reprogram their minds!? An epilogue reveals that they are subjects in a psychological experiment on conditioned human response, designed to create political pawns to be spies for the ruling "administration!."
Www@QuestionHome@Com

very interesting!. try booksearch!.com
u can type a summary and it will tell u the book!.!.!.!.!.
or type in a name and it will give u summary!.
hope this helped :)!!!!!!!!!!!Www@QuestionHome@Com