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{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Beatles were an English rock band , formed in Liverpool in 1960 . With members John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr , they became widely regarded as the foremost and most influential act of the rock era . Rooted in skiffle , beat , and 1950s rock and roll , the Beatles later experimented with several musical styles , ranging from pop ballads and Indian music to psychedelia and hard rock , often incorporating classical elements in innovative ways . In the early 1960s , their enormous popularity first emerged as `` Beatlemania '' , but as the group 's music grew in sophistication , led by primary songwriters Lennon and McCartney , they came to be perceived as an embodiment of the ideals shared by the counterculture of the 1960s . \n \n The Beatles built their reputation playing clubs in Liverpool and Hamburg over a three-year period from 1960 , with Stuart Sutcliffe initially serving as bass player . The core of Lennon , McCartney and Harrison went through a succession of drummers , most notably Pete Best , before asking Starr to join them . Manager Brian Epstein moulded them into a professional act , and producer George Martin guided and developed their recordings , greatly expanding their popularity in the United Kingdom after their first hit , `` Love Me Do '' , in late 1962 . They acquired the nickname `` the Fab Four '' as Beatlemania grew in Britain the next year , and by early 1964 became international stars , leading the `` British Invasion '' of the United States pop market . From 1965 onwards , the Beatles produced increasingly innovative recordings , including the widely influential albums Rubber Soul ( 1965 ) , Revolver ( 1966 ) , Sgt . Pepper 's Lonely Hearts Club Band ( 1967 ) , The Beatles ( commonly known as the White Album , 1968 ) and Abbey Road ( 1969 ) . \n \n After their break-up in 1970 , they each enjoyed successful musical careers of varying lengths . McCartney and Starr , the surviving members , remain musically active . Lennon was shot and killed in December 1980 , and Harrison died of lung cancer in November 2001 . \n \n According to the RIAA , the Beatles are the best-selling music artists in the United States , with 178 million certified units . They have had more number-one albums on the British charts and sold more singles in the UK than any other act . In 2008 , the group topped Billboard magazine 's list of the all-time most successful `` Hot 100 '' artists ; , they hold the record for most number-one hits on the Hot 100 chart with twenty . They have received ten Grammy Awards , an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score and fifteen Ivor Novello Awards . Collectively included in Time magazine 's compilation of the twentieth century 's 100 most influential people , they are the best-selling band in history , with estimated sales of over 600 million records worldwide . The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988 , and all four were inducted individually from 1994 to 2015 . \n \n History \n \n 1957–62 : Formation , Hamburg , and UK popularity \n \n In March 1957 , John Lennon , then aged sixteen , formed a skiffle group with several friends from Quarry Bank school . They briefly called themselves the Blackjacks , before changing their name to the Quarrymen after discovering that a respected local group was already using the other name . Fifteen-year-old Paul McCartney joined as a rhythm guitarist shortly after he and Lennon met that July . In February 1958 , McCartney invited his friend George Harrison to watch the band . The fourteen-year-old auditioned for Lennon , impressing him with his playing , but Lennon initially thought Harrison was too young to join them . After a month of Harrison 's persistence , they enlisted him as their lead guitarist . By January 1959 , Lennon 's Quarry Bank friends had left the group , and he began studies at the Liverpool College of Art . The three guitarists , billing themselves at least three times as Johnny and the Moondogs , were playing rock and roll whenever they could find a drummer . Lennon 's art school friend Stuart Sutcliffe , who had recently sold one of his paintings and was persuaded to purchase a bass guitar , joined in January 1960 , and it was he who suggested changing the band 's name to Beatals , as a tribute to Buddy Holly and the Crickets . They used the name", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 83, "text": "john lennon" } ], "id": "qb_4714--The_Beatles.txt", "qid": "qb_4714", "question": "In 1966, in an interview with a London Evening Standard reporter, which Beatle stated that they had become ‘More popular than Jesus’?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Texas ( , ; ) is the second largest state in the United States by both area and population . Geographically located in the south central part of the country , Texas shares borders with the other US states of Louisiana to the east , Arkansas to the northeast , Oklahoma to the north , New Mexico to the west , and the Mexican states of Chihuahua , Coahuila , Nuevo León , and Tamaulipas to the southwest , while the Gulf of Mexico is to the southeast . \n \n Houston is the most populous city in Texas and the fourth largest in the US , while San Antonio is the second most populous in the state and seventh largest in the US . Dallas–Fort Worth and Greater Houston are the fourth and fifth largest metropolitan statistical areas in the country , respectively . Other major cities include Austin , the second most populous state capital in the US , and El Paso . Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State to signify its former status as an independent republic , and as a reminder of the state 's struggle for independence from Mexico . The `` Lone Star '' can be found on the Texan state flag and on the Texan state seal . The origin of the state name , Texas , is from the word , `` Tejas '' , which means 'friends ' in the Caddo language . \n \n Due to its size and geologic features such as the Balcones Fault , Texas contains diverse landscapes that resemble both the US southern and southwestern regions . Although Texas is popularly associated with the US southwestern deserts , less than 10 percent of Texas ' land area is desert . Most of the population centers are located in areas of former prairies , grasslands , forests , and the coastline . Traveling from east to west , one can observe terrain that ranges from coastal swamps and piney woods , to rolling plains and rugged hills , and finally the desert and mountains of the Big Bend . \n \n The term `` six flags over Texas '' For example , as used by the large Grand Prairie–based national and international amusement park operator Six Flags refers to several nations that have ruled over the territory . Spain was the first European country to claim the area of Texas . France held a short-lived colony . Mexico controlled the territory until 1836 when Texas won its independence , becoming an independent Republic . In 1845 , Texas joined the United States as the 28th state . The state 's annexation set off a chain of events that caused the Mexican–American War in 1846 . A slave state before the American Civil War , Texas declared its secession from the US in early 1861 , and officially joined the Confederate States of America on March 2 of the same year . After the Civil War and the restoration of its representation in the federal government , Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation . \n \n One Texan industry that thrived after the Civil War was cattle . Due to its long history as a center of the industry , Texas is associated with the image of the cowboy . The state 's economic fortunes changed in the early 20th century , when oil discoveries initiated an economic boom in the state . With strong investments in universities , Texas developed a diversified economy and high tech industry in the mid-20th century . As of 2010 it shares the top of the list of the most Fortune 500 companies with California at 57 . With a growing base of industry , the state leads in many industries , including agriculture , petrochemicals , energy , computers and electronics , aerospace , and biomedical sciences . Texas has led the nation in export revenue since 2002 and has the second-highest gross state product . \n \n Etymology \n \n The name Texas , based on the Caddo word tejas meaning `` friends '' or `` allies '' , was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in East Texas . \n \n During Spanish colonial rule , the area was officially known as the Nuevo Reino de Filipinas : La Provincia de Texas . \n \n Geography \n \n Texas is the second largest U.S. state , behind Alaska , with an area of 268820 sqmi . Though 10 percent larger than France and almost twice as large as Germany or Japan , it ranks only 27th worldwide amongst country subdivisions by size . If it were an independent country , Texas would be the 40th largest behind", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "jp_4295--Texas.txt", "qid": "jp_4295", "question": "What breed of cattle is the Texas state animal?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Calcium is a chemical element with symbol Ca and atomic number 20 . Calcium is a soft gray Group 2 alkaline earth metal , fifth-most-abundant element by mass in the Earth 's crust . The ion Ca2+ is also the fifth-most-abundant dissolved ion in seawater by both molarity and mass , after sodium , chloride , magnesium , and sulfate . Free calcium metal is too reactive to occur in nature . Calcium is produced in supernova nucleosynthesis . \n \n Calcium is essential for living organisms , particularly in cell physiology where movement of the calcium ion into and out of the cytoplasm functions as a signal for many cellular processes . As a major material used in mineralization of bone , teeth and shells , calcium is the most abundant metal by mass in many animals . \n \n Notable characteristics of the metal \n \n Calcium is reactive and relatively soft for a metal . Although harder than lead , it can be cut with a knife with difficulty . It is a silvery metallic element that can be extracted by electrolysis from a fused salt like calcium chloride . When exposed to the air , it rapidly forms a gray-white coating of calcium oxide and calcium nitride . In bulk form ( typically as chips or `` turnings '' ) , the metal is somewhat difficult to ignite , more difficult even than magnesium chips ; but , when lit , the metal burns in air with a brilliant high-intensity orange-red light . Calcium metal reacts with water , producing hydrogen gas at a moderate rate without generating much heat , making it useful for generating hydrogen . In powdered form , however , the reaction with water is extremely rapid , as the increased surface area of the powder accelerates the reaction . Part of the reason for the slowness of the calcium–water reaction is a partial passivation ( chemically protective coating ) of insoluble white calcium hydroxide ; in acidic solutions , where this compound is more soluble , calcium reacts vigorously . \n \n With a density of 1.54 g/cm3 , calcium is the lightest of the alkaline earth metals ; magnesium ( specific gravity 1.74 ) and beryllium ( 1.84 ) are denser though lighter in atomic mass . From strontium onward , the alkali earth metals become denser with increasing atomic mass . Calcium has two allotropes . \n \n Calcium metal has a higher electrical resistivity than copper or aluminium , yet weight-for-weight , due to its much lower density , it is a better conductor than either . Its use as such in terrestrial applications is usually limited by its high reactivity with air ; however , it has potential for use as wiring in off-world applications . \n \n Calcium is the fifth-most-abundant element by mass in the human body , where it is an important cellular ionic messenger with many functions . Calcium also serves as a structural element in bone . It is the relatively high atomic number of calcium that causes bone to be radio-opaque . Of the human body 's solid components after drying and burning of organics ( as for example , after cremation ) , about a third of the total `` mineral '' mass remaining is the approximately one kilogram of calcium that composes the average skeleton ( the remainder being mostly phosphorus and oxygen ) . \n \n H and K lines \n \n Visible spectra of many stars , including the Sun , exhibit strong emission lines of singly ionized calcium . Prominent among these are the H-line at 3968.5 Å and the K line at 3933.7 Å of singly ionized calcium , or Ca II . In the Sun or other stars with low temperatures , the prominence of the H and K lines in the visible spectra can be an indication of strong magnetic activity in the chromosphere . Periodic variations of these active regions can indicate the rotation periods of these stars . \n \n Compounds \n \n Most calcium salts are colorless . As with magnesium salts and other alkaline earth metal salts , to some degree soluble in water . Calcium is the main problematic ion in hard water , and reacts with soap to form soap scum and clogs plumbing with various minerals . \n \n Calcium chemistry is almost exclusively that of Ca2+ salts . Ca2+ is a `` hard cation '' , that is , it characteristically favors oxide ligands . Hence the abundance of carbonates , nitrates , phosphates , and sulfates . Most of these species crystallize with water . Because it is generally nontoxic and abundant , calcium is found in many useful materials and minerals . \n \n Combined", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "qw_3077--Calcium.txt", "qid": "qw_3077", "question": "What is the common name for a mixture of calcium silicates and aluminium, prepared by prolonged heating of limestone with clay, which slowly hardens when mixed with water?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Antoine-Joseph `` Adolphe '' Sax ( 6 November 1814 – c. 7 February 1894 ) was a Belgian inventor and musician who invented the saxophone in 1846 . He played the flute and clarinet , and his other inventions are the saxotromba , saxhorn and saxtuba . \n \n Early life \n \n Antoine-Joseph Sax was born on 6 November 1814 , in Dinant , Belgium , to Charles-Joseph Sax and his wife . While his first name was Antoine , he was referred to as Adolphe from childhood . His father and mother were instrument designers themselves , who made several changes to the design of the horn . Adolphe began to make his own instruments at an early age , entering two of his flutes and a clarinet into a competition at the age of 15 . He subsequently studied performance on those two instruments as well as voice at the Royal Conservatory of Brussels . \n \n According to the biography of Adolphe Sax , published on the city of Dinant 's website , Sax faced many near-death experiences . Over the course of his childhood , he : \n \n * fell from a height of three floors , hit his head on a stone and could barely stand \n * drank , at the age of three , a bowl full of vitriolized water and later swallowed a pin \n * burnt himself seriously in a gunpowder explosion \n * fell onto a hot cast iron frying pan , burning his one side as a result \n * survived poisoning and suffocation in his own bedroom , where varnished items were kept during the night \n * was hit on the head by a cobblestone \n * fell into a river and was saved by the skin of his teeth \n \n Also according to the biography , his mother once said that `` He 's a child condemned to misfortune ; he wo n't live '' . His neighbors called him `` little Sax , the ghost '' . \n \n Career \n \n After leaving the Royal Conservatory of Brussels , Sax began to experiment with new instrument designs , while his parents continued to make conventional instruments to bring in money . Adolphe 's first important invention was an improvement of the bass clarinet design , which he patented at the age of 24 . Sax relocated permanently to Paris in 1841 and began working on a new set of instruments exhibited there in 1844 . These were valved bugles , and although he had not invented the instrument itself , his examples were much more successful than those of his rivals and became known as saxhorns . They came in approximately seven different sizes , and paved the path to the creation of the flugelhorn . Today , saxhorns are sometimes used in concert bands and orchestras . The saxhorn also laid the groundwork for the modern euphonium . \n \n Sax also developed the saxotromba family , valved brass instruments with narrower bore than the saxhorns , in 1845 , though they survived only briefly . \n \n Saxhorn instruments spread rapidly . The saxhorn valves were accepted as state-of-the-art and are largely unchanged today . The advances made by Adolphe Sax were soon followed by the British brass band movement which exclusively adopted the saxhorn range . The Jedforest Instrumental Band formed in 1854 and The Hawick Saxhorn Band formed in 1855 , within the Scottish Borders , a decade after saxhorn models became available . \n \n The period around 1840 saw Sax inventing the clarinette-bourdon , an early unsuccessful design of contrabass clarinet . Around this time he also developed the instrument for which he is best known , the saxophone , patented on 28 June 1846 . The saxophone was invented for use in both orchestras and concert bands . Composer Hector Berlioz wrote approvingly of the new instrument in 1842 . By 1846 Sax had designed , on paper , a full range of saxophones ( from sopranino to subcontrabass ) . Although they never became standard orchestral instruments , the saxophones made his reputation and secured him a job , teaching at the Paris Conservatoire in 1857.Fred L. Hemke , The Early History of the Saxophone , ( Doctor of Musical Arts ( DMA ) dissertation ) , University of Wisconsin , 1975 , 249–250 . \n \n Sax continued to make instruments later in life and presided over the new saxophone class at the Paris Conservatoire . Rival instrument makers attacked the legitimacy of his patents and mounted a long campaign of litigation against Sax and his company . He was driven into bankruptcy in 1856 and again in 1873 . \n \n Sax", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 330, "text": "belgium" } ], "id": "sfq_20085--Adolphe_Sax.txt", "qid": "sfq_20085", "question": "In what country was Adolphe Sax, inventor of the saxophone, born?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Misanthropy is the general hatred , distrust or contempt of the human species or human nature . A misanthrope or misanthropist is someone who holds such views or feelings . The word 's origin is from the Greek words μῖσος ( misos , `` hatred '' ) and ἄνθρωπος ( anthrōpos , `` man , human '' ) . The condition is often confused with asociality . \n \n Western thought \n \n Literature \n \n Misanthropy has been ascribed to a number of writers of satire , such as William S. Gilbert ( `` I hate my fellow-man '' ) and William Shakespeare ( Timon of Athens ) . Jonathan Swift is widely believed to be misanthropic ( see A Tale of a Tub and , most especially , Book IV of Gulliver 's Travels ) . \n \n Philosophy \n \n In Western philosophy , misanthropy has been connected to isolation from human society . In Plato 's Phaedo , Socrates describes a misanthrope in relation to his fellow man : `` Misanthropy develops when without art one puts complete trust in somebody thinking the man absolutely true and sound and reliable and then a little later discovers him to be bad and unreliable ... and when it happens to someone often ... he ends up ... hating everyone . '' Misanthropy , then , is presented as a potential result of thwarted expectations or even excessively naïve optimism , since Plato argues that `` art '' would have allowed the potential misanthrope to recognize that the majority of men are to be found in between good and evil . Aristotle follows a more ontological route : the misanthrope , as an essentially solitary man , is not a man at all : he must be a beast or a god , a view reflected in the Renaissance view of misanthropy as a `` beast-like state '' . \n \n It is important to distinguish between philosophical pessimism and misanthropy . Immanuel Kant said that `` Of the crooked timber of humanity , no straight thing can ever be made '' , and yet this was not an expression of the uselessness of mankind itself . Kant further stated that hatred of mankind can take two distinctive forms , aversion from men ( Anthropophobia ) or enmity towards them . The condition can arise partly from dislike and partly from ill-will . \n \n Martin Heidegger had also been said to show misanthropy in his concern of the `` they '' —the tendency of people to conform to one view , which no one has really thought through , but is just followed because , `` they say so '' . This might be thought of as more of a criticism of conformity rather than people in general . Unlike Schopenhauer , Heidegger was opposed to any systematic ethics ; however , in some of his later thought he does see the possibility of harmony between people , as part of the four-fold , mortals , gods , earth and sky . \n \n Persian thought \n \n Certain thinkers such as Ibn al-Rawandi , a skeptic of Islam , and Muhammad ibn Zakariya ar-Razi often expressed misanthropic views . \n \n In the Judeo-Islamic philosophies , the Jewish philosopher Saadia Gaon uses the Platonic idea that the self-isolated man is dehumanized by friendlessness to argue against the misanthropy of anchorite asceticism and reclusiveness .", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 64, "text": "human species" } ], "id": "qg_2109--Misanthropy.txt", "qid": "qg_2109", "question": "A misanthrope is characterized by the hatred of what?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Roswell UFO incident refers to an event in mid 1947 , when a United States Air Force surveillance balloon crashed at a ranch near Roswell , New Mexico , prompting claims alleging the crash was of an extraterrestrial spaceship . \n \n After an initial spike of interest , the military reported that the crash was merely of a conventional weather balloon . Interest subsequently waned until the late 1970s when ufologists began promulgating a variety of increasingly elaborate conspiracy theories , claiming that one or more alien spacecraft had crash-landed , and that the extraterrestrial occupants had been recovered by the military who then engaged in a cover-up . \n \n In the 1990s , the US military published reports disclosing the true nature of the crashed Project Mogul balloon . Nevertheless , the Roswell incident continues to be of interest in popular media , and conspiracy theories surrounding the event persist . Roswell has been called `` the world 's most famous , most exhaustively investigated , and most thoroughly debunked UFO claim '' . \n \n Events of 1947 \n \n The sequence of events was triggered by the crash of a Project Mogul balloon near Roswell . : Olmsted writes `` When one of these balloons smashed into the sands of the New Mexico ranch , the military decided to hide the project 's real purpose . '' The official Air Force report ( Weaver & McAndrew 1995 ) had concluded ( p. 9 ) `` [ … ] the material recovered near Roswell was consistent with a balloon device and most likely from one of the MOGUL balloons that had not been previously recovered . '' On July 8 , 1947 , the Roswell Army Air Field ( RAAF ) public information officer Walter Haut , issued a press release stating that personnel from the field 's 509th Operations Group had recovered a `` flying disc '' , which had crashed on a ranch near Roswell . \n \n The military decided to conceal the true purpose of the crashed device – nuclear test monitoring – and instead inform the public that the crash was of a weather balloon . Later that day , the press reported that Commanding General of the Eighth Air Force Roger Ramey had stated that a weather balloon was recovered by the RAAF personnel . A press conference was held , featuring debris ( foil , rubber and wood ) said to be from the crashed object , which matched the weather balloon description . Historian Robert Goldberg wrote that the intended effect was achieved : `` the story died the next day '' . \n \n Subsequently the incident faded from the attention of UFO enthusiasts for more than 30 years . \n \n On June 14 , 1947 , William Brazel , a foreman working on the Foster homestead , noticed clusters of debris approximately 30 mi north of Roswell , New Mexico . This date—or `` about three weeks '' before July 8—appeared in later stories featuring Brazel , but the initial press release from the Roswell Army Air Field ( RAAF ) said the find was `` sometime last week '' , suggesting Brazel found the debris in early July . Brazel told the Roswell Daily Record that he and his son saw a `` large area of bright wreckage made up of rubber strips , tinfoil , a rather tough paper and sticks . '' He paid little attention to it but returned on July 4 with his son , wife and daughter to gather up the material . Some accounts have described Brazel as having gathered some of the material earlier , rolling it together and stashing it under some brush . The next day , Brazel heard reports about `` flying discs '' and wondered if that was what he had picked up . On July 7 , Brazel saw Sheriff Wilcox and `` whispered kinda confidential like '' that he may have found a flying disc . Another account quotes Wilcox as saying Brazel reported the object on July 6 . \n \n Wilcox called RAAF Major Jesse Marcel and a `` man in plainclothes '' accompanied Brazel back to the ranch where more pieces were picked up . `` [ We ] spent a couple of hours Monday afternoon [ July 7 ] looking for any more parts of the weather device '' , said Marcel . `` We found a few more patches of tinfoil and rubber . '' \n \n As described in the July 9 , 1947 edition of the Roswell Daily Record , \n \n The balloon which held it up , if that was how it worked , must have been 12 feet long ,", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 144, "text": "new mexico" } ], "id": "sfq_25253--Roswell_UFO_incident.txt", "qid": "sfq_25253", "question": "In which American state is Roswell, where it is claimed a U.F.O. crashed in 1947?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "A wasp is any insect of the order Hymenoptera and suborder Apocrita that is neither a bee nor an ant . This means that wasps are paraphyletic with respect to bees and ants , and that all three groups are descended from a common ancestor ; the Apocrita form a clade . \n \n The most commonly known wasps , such as yellow jackets and hornets , are in the family Vespidae and are eusocial , living together in a nest with an egg-laying queen and non-reproducing workers . Eusociality is favoured by the unusual haplodiploid system of sex determination in Hymenoptera , as it makes sisters exceptionally closely related to each other . However , the majority of wasp species are solitary , with each adult female living and breeding independently . Many of the solitary wasps are parasitoidal , meaning that they raise their young by laying eggs on or in other insects ( any life stage from egg to adult ) . Unlike true parasites , the wasp larvae eventually kill their hosts . Solitary wasps parasitize almost every pest insect , making wasps valuable in horticulture for biological pest control of species such as whitefly in tomatoes and other crops . \n \n Wasps first appeared in the fossil record in the Jurassic , and diversified into many surviving superfamilies by the Cretaceous . They are a successful and diverse group of insects with tens of thousands of described species ; wasps have spread to all parts of the world except for the polar regions . The largest social wasp is the Asian giant hornet , at up to 5 cm in length ; among the largest solitary wasps is the giant scoliid of Indonesia , Megascolia procer . The smallest wasps are solitary chalcid wasps in the family Mymaridae , including the world 's smallest known insect , with a body length of only , and the smallest known flying insect , only long . \n \n Wasps play many ecological roles . Some are predators , whether to feed themselves or to provision their nests . Many , notably the cuckoo wasps , are kleptoparasites , laying eggs in the nests of other wasps . Wasps have appeared in literature from Classical times , as the eponymous chorus of old men in Aristophanes ' 422 BC comedy Σφῆκες ( Sphēkes ) , The Wasps , and in science fiction from H. G. Wells 's 1904 novel The Food of the Gods and How It Came to Earth , featuring giant wasps with three-inch-long stings . The name `` Wasp '' has been used for many warships and other military equipment . \n \n Taxonomy and phylogeny \n \n Paraphyletic grouping \n \n The wasps are a cosmopolitan paraphyletic grouping of hundreds of thousands of species , consisting of the narrow-waisted Apocrita without the ants and bees . The Hymenoptera also contain the somewhat wasplike but unwaisted Symphyta , the sawflies . \n \n The term wasp is sometimes used more narrowly for the Vespidae , which includes the common wasp or yellow jacket genera Vespula and Dolichovespula and the hornets , Vespa ; or simply for the common wasp and close lookalikes . \n \n Fossils \n \n Hymenoptera in the form of Symphyta ( Xyelidae ) first appeared in the fossil record in the Lower Triassic . Apocrita , wasps in the broad sense , appeared in the Jurassic , and had diversified into many of the extant superfamilies by the Cretaceous ; they appear to have evolved from the Symphyta . Fig wasps with modern anatomical features first appeared in the Lower Cretaceous of the Crato Formation in Brazil , some 65 million years before the first fig trees . \n \n The Vespidae include the extinct genus Palaeovespa , seven species of which are known from the Eocene rocks of the Florissant fossil beds of Colorado and from fossilised Baltic amber in Europe . Also found in Baltic amber are crown wasps of the genus Electrostephanus . \n \n Diversity \n \n Wasps are a diverse group , estimated at over a hundred thousand described species around the world , and a great many more as yet undescribed . For example , there are over 800 species of fig trees , mostly in the tropics , and almost all of these has its own specific chalcid wasp to effect pollination . \n \n Many wasp species are parasitoids ; the females deposit eggs on or in a host arthropod on which the larvae then feed . Some larvae start off as parasitoids , but convert at a later stage to consuming the plant tissues that their host is feeding on . In other species , the eggs are laid directly into", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 2, "text": "wasp" } ], "id": "qf_3557--Wasp.txt", "qid": "qf_3557", "question": "If dogs are canine what are wasps?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Mary , Queen of Scots ( 8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587 ) , also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland , was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 to 24 July 1567 and Queen consort of France from 10 July 1559 to 5 December 1560 . \n \n Mary , the only surviving legitimate child of King James V of Scotland , was six days old when her father died and she acceded to the throne . She spent most of her childhood in France while Scotland was ruled by regents , and in 1558 , she married the Dauphin of France , Francis . He ascended the French throne as King Francis II in 1559 , and Mary briefly became queen consort of France , until his death in December 1560 . Widowed , Mary returned to Scotland , arriving in Leith on 19 August 1561 . Four years later , she married her first cousin , Henry Stuart , Lord Darnley , but their union was unhappy . In February 1567 , his residence was destroyed by an explosion , and Darnley was found murdered in the garden . \n \n James Hepburn , 4th Earl of Bothwell , was generally believed to have orchestrated Darnley 's death , but he was acquitted of the charge in April 1567 , and the following month he married Mary . Following an uprising against the couple , Mary was imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle . On 24 July 1567 , she was forced to abdicate in favour of James , her one-year-old son by Darnley . After an unsuccessful attempt to regain the throne , she fled southwards seeking the protection of her first cousin once removed , Queen Elizabeth I of England . Mary had previously claimed Elizabeth 's throne as her own and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics , including participants in a rebellion known as the Rising of the North . Perceiving her as a threat , Elizabeth had her confined in various castles and manor houses in the interior of England . After eighteen and a half years in custody , Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth , and was subsequently beheaded . \n \n Childhood and early reign \n \n Mary was born on 7 or 8 December 1542 at Linlithgow , Scotland , to James V , King of Scots , and his French second wife , Mary of Guise . She was said to have been born prematurely and was the only legitimate child of James to survive him . She was the great-niece of King Henry VIII of England , as her paternal grandmother , Margaret Tudor , was Henry VIII 's sister . On 14 December , six days after her birth , she became Queen of Scots when her father died , perhaps from the effects of a nervous collapse following the Battle of Solway Moss , or from drinking contaminated water while on campaign . \n \n A popular legend , first recorded by John Knox , states that James , hearing on his deathbed that his wife had given birth to a daughter , ruefully exclaimed , `` It cam wi ' a lass and it will gang wi ' a lass ! '' His House of Stewart had gained the throne of Scotland by the marriage of Marjorie Bruce , daughter of Robert the Bruce , to Walter Stewart , 6th High Steward of Scotland . The crown had come to his family through a woman , and would be lost from his family through a woman . This legendary statement came true much later—not through Mary , but through her descendant Queen Anne . \n \n Mary was baptised at the nearby Church of St Michael shortly after she was born . Rumours spread that she was weak and frail , but an English diplomat , Ralph Sadler , saw the infant at Linlithgow Palace in March 1543 , unwrapped by her nurse , and wrote , `` it is as goodly a child as I have seen of her age , and as like to live . '' \n \n As Mary was an infant when she inherited the throne , Scotland was ruled by regents until she became an adult . From the outset , there were two claims to the Regency : one from Catholic Cardinal Beaton , and the other from the Protestant Earl of Arran , who was next in line to the throne . Beaton 's claim was based on a version of the late king 's will that his opponents dismissed as a forgery . Arran , with the support of his friends and", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "odql_7350--Mary,_Queen_of_Scots.txt", "qid": "odql_7350", "question": "In which castle was Mary, Queen of Scots executed in 1587?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Rapping ( or emceeing , MCing , spitting bars , or rhyming ) is `` spoken or chanted rhyming lyrics '' . The components of rapping include `` content '' , `` flow '' ( rhythm and rhyme ) , and `` delivery '' . Rapping is distinct from spoken-word poetry in that it is performed in time to a beat ( external meter ) . \n Rapping is often associated with and a primary ingredient of hip-hop music , but the origins of the phenomenon can be said to predate hip-hop culture by centuries . It can also be found in alternative rock such as that of Cake , Gorillaz and the Red Hot Chili Peppers . Rapping is also used in Kwaito music , a genre that originated in Johannesburg , South Africa , and is composed of hip-hop elements . Another form of rap that predates hip hop was Muhammad Ali 's rhythmic poetry used to taunt his opponents in the 1960s and 1970s . \n \n Rapping can be delivered over a beat or without accompaniment . Stylistically , rap occupies a gray area between speech , prose , poetry , and singing . The word ( meaning originally `` to hit '' ) as used to describe quick speech or repartee predates the musical form . The word had been used in British English since the 16th century . It was part of the African-American dialect of English in the 1960s meaning `` to converse '' , and very soon after that in its present usage as a term denoting the musical style . Today , the terms `` rap '' and `` rapping '' are so closely associated with hip-hop music that many use the terms interchangeably . \n \n History \n \n Etymology and usage \n \n The English verb rap has various meanings , such as `` to strike , especially with a quick , smart , or light blow '' , as well `` to utter sharply or vigorously : to rap out a command '' . The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary gives a date of 1541 for the first recorded use of the word with the meaning `` to utter ( esp . an oath ) sharply , vigorously , or suddenly '' . Wentworth and Flexner 's Dictionary of American Slang gives the meaning `` to speak to , recognize , or acknowledge acquaintance with someone '' , dated 1932 , and a later meaning of `` to converse , esp . in an open and frank manner '' . It is these meanings from which the musical form of rapping derives , and this definition may be from a shortening of repartee . A rapper refers to a performer who `` raps '' . \n \n By the late 1960s , when Hubert G. Brown changed his name to H. Rap Brown , rap was a slang term referring to an oration or speech , such as was common among the `` hip '' crowd in the protest movements , but it did not come to be associated with a musical style for another decade . \n \n Rap was used to describe talking on records as early as 1971 , on Isaac Hayes ' album Black Moses with track names such as `` Ike 's Rap '' , `` Ike 's Rap II '' , `` Ike 's Rap III '' , and so on . Hayes ' `` husky-voiced sexy spoken 'raps ' became key components in his signature sound '' . \n Del the Funky Homosapien similarly states that rap was used to refer to talking in a stylistic manner in the early 1970s : `` I was born in '72 ... back then what rapping meant , basically , was you trying to convey something—you 're trying to convince somebody . That 's what rapping is , it 's in the way you talk . '' \n \n Roots \n \n Rapping can be traced back to its African roots . Centuries before hip-hop music existed , the griots of West Africa were delivering stories rhythmically , over drums and sparse instrumentation . Such connections have been acknowledged by many modern artists , modern day `` griots '' , spoken word artists , mainstream news sources , and academics . \n \n Blues music , rooted in the work songs and spirituals of slavery and influenced greatly by West African musical traditions , was first played by blacks , and later by some whites , in the Mississippi Delta region of the United States around the time of the Emancipation Proclamation . Grammy-winning blues musician/historian Elijah Wald and others have argued that the blues were being rapped as early as the 1920s . Wald", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "bb_8958--Rapping.txt", "qid": "bb_8958", "question": "Which rapper's real name is Curtis Jackson III?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Funny Girl is a 1963 musical ( opened on Broadway in 1964 ) with a book by Isobel Lennart , music by Jule Styne , and lyrics by Bob Merrill . The semi-biographical plot is based on the life and career of Broadway star , film actress and comedian Fanny Brice featuring her stormy relationship with entrepreneur and gambler Nick Arnstein . Its original title was My Man . \n \n The musical was produced by Ray Stark , who was Brice 's son-in-law via his marriage to her daughter Frances , and starred Barbra Streisand . The production was nominated for eight Tony Awards but , facing tough competition from Hello , Dolly ! , it failed to win in any categories . \n \n The original cast recording of Funny Girl was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2004 . \n \n Synopsis \n \n The musical is set in and around New York City just prior to and following World War I. Ziegfeld Follies star Fanny Brice , awaiting the return of her husband , Nicky Arnstein , from prison , reflects on their life together , and their story is told as a flashback . \n \n Act I \n \n Fanny is a stage-struck teen who gets her first job in vaudeville . Her mother and her friend Mrs. Strakosh try to dissuade her from show business because Fanny is not the typical beauty ( `` If a Girl Is n't Pretty '' ) . But Fanny perseveres ( `` I 'm the Greatest Star '' ) and is helped and encouraged by Eddie Ryan , a dancer she meets in the vaudeville shows . Once Fanny 's career takes off , Eddie and Mrs. Brice lament that once she 's on Broadway she 'll forget about them ( `` Who Taught Her Everything ? `` ) . Fanny performs a supposedly romantic number in the Follies , but she turns it into a classic comic routine , ending the number as a pregnant bride ( `` His Love Makes Me Beautiful '' ) . \n \n She meets the sophisticated and handsome Nick Arnstein , who accompanies Fanny to her mother 's opening night party on `` Henry Street '' . Fanny is clearly falling in love with Nick , while acknowledging their complex vulnerabilities ( `` People '' ) . Later they meet in Baltimore and have a private dinner at a swanky restaurant and declare their feelings ( `` You Are Woman '' ) . Fanny is determined to marry Nick , regardless of his gambling past ( `` Do n't Rain on My Parade '' ) . \n \n Act II \n \n They do marry and move to a mansion on Long Island ( `` Sadie , Sadie '' ) . In the meantime , Mrs. Strakosh and Eddie propose to Mrs. Brice that she should find a man to marry , now that her daughter is supporting her ( `` Find Yourself a Man . '' ) Fanny has become a major star with Ziegfeld and the Follies ( `` Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat '' ) . Nick asks Ziegfeld to invest in a gambling casino , but although Ziegfeld passes , Fanny insists on investing . When the venture fails and they lose their money , Fanny tries to make light of it , which propels Nick to get involved in a shady bond deal , resulting in his arrest for embezzlement . Fanny feels helpless but stronger than ever in her love for him ( `` The Music That Makes Me Dance '' ) . \n \n In the present , Fanny is waiting for Nick to arrive and has time to reflect on her situation . Nick arrives , newly released from prison , and he and Fanny decide to separate . She is heartbroken , but resolves to pick up her life again ( `` Do n't Rain on My Parade , Reprise '' ) . \n \n Background \n \n Ray Stark had commissioned an authorized biography of Brice , based on taped recollections she had dictated , but was unhappy with the result . It eventually cost him $ 50,000 to stop publication of The Fabulous Fanny , as it had been titled by the author . Stark then turned to Ben Hecht to write the screenplay for a biopic , but neither Hecht nor the ten writers who succeeded him were able to produce a version that satisfied Stark . Finally , Isobel Lennart submitted My Man , which pleased both Stark and Columbia Pictures executives , who offered Stark $ 400,000 plus a percentage of the gross for the property . \n \n After reading the screenplay , Mary Martin contacted Stark", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 504, "text": "streisand" } ], "id": "qf_981--Funny_Girl_(musical).txt", "qid": "qf_981", "question": "Which actress starred in 'Funny Girl'?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The First Doctor is the initial incarnation of the Doctor , the protagonist of the BBC science fiction television series Doctor Who . He was portrayed by the actor William Hartnell from 1963 to 1966 . Hartnell reprised the role once , in the tenth anniversary story The Three Doctors ( 1973 ) , although due to his failing health the story was written so he would not have to appear very extensively . \n \n Within the series ' narrative , the Doctor is a centuries-old alien Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey who travels in time and space in his TARDIS , frequently with companions . When the Doctor is critically injured , he can regenerate his body ; in doing so , his physical appearance and personality change . Hartnell 's Doctor is the Doctor 's `` original '' form . The regeneration plot device was introduced when Hartnell needed to leave the series , and consequently has extended the life of the show for many years . \n \n His original companions were his granddaughter Susan ( Carole Ann Ford ) and her schoolteachers Ian Chesterton ( William Russell ) and Barbara Wright ( Jacqueline Hill ) . Hartnell 's version of the Doctor was also the basis for the character played by the actor Peter Cushing in the 1965 and 1966 Dr. Who films , which do not share a continuity with the television series . \n \n Character biography \n \n The Doctor is a mysterious character and little is known about him except that he has a granddaughter , Susan Foreman , and that they come from another time and place . He has a ship that travels through time and space , the TARDIS , which is currently disguised as a police box ( Susan notes that it used to be able to change to blend in with its surroundings ) , and is bigger on the inside . The Doctor describes himself and Susan as `` exiles '' without specifying why or even whether their exile is self-imposed . It would not be until the last adventure of the Doctor 's second incarnation that the name of the Doctor 's people ( the Time Lords ) would be revealed , and the third incarnation before the name of his home planet ( Gallifrey ) was first spoken . \n \n The series ' first episode opens with a pair of schoolteachers in contemporary ( 1963 ) London , Ian Chesterton and Barbara Wright , investigating the mystery of Susan , a student who seems confused and even frustrated at how what she is learning in history and especially mathematics seems to be wrong . Following Susan to her supposed home , they discover the TARDIS in a junkyard , surprising both Susan and her grandfather the Doctor , who launches the ship in response to the discovery . Ian and Barbara are involuntarily taken on a journey back to the year 100,000 BC and spend two years adventuring through time and space with the Doctor , who at this point in the series has no control over the navigation systems of the TARDIS . \n \n It was as this incarnation that the Doctor first met the Daleks and the Cybermen , races that would become his most implacable foes . The TARDIS crew also observed many historical events such as the Reign of Terror in revolutionary France , meeting Marco Polo in China and The Aztecs in Mexico . When Susan fell in love with the human resistance fighter David Campbell , the Doctor left her behind to allow her to build a life for herself on 22nd century Earth ( The Dalek Invasion of Earth ) , although he promised to return some day . The Doctor , Ian and Barbara were then joined by Vicki , whom they saved in The Rescue from the planet Dido . \n \n At the conclusion of a chase through time by Daleks , Ian and Barbara used the Dalek time machine to go home ( The Chase ) , and their place in the TARDIS was taken by a future space pilot named Steven Taylor , who had been captured by the robot Mechanoids but escaped due to the Dalek attack . The Doctor met another member of his own race for the first time in the form of the Meddling Monk and had an adventure in Galaxy 4 . During the siege of Troy , Vicki decided to leave the TARDIS to stay with Troilus , adopting the name Cressida . The Doctor and Steven were next briefly joined by Trojan slave Katarina and a security agent from 4000 AD Sara Kingdom , but both were killed during the events", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 164, "text": "william hartnell" } ], "id": "qw_12453--First_Doctor.txt", "qid": "qw_12453", "question": "\"Who played the first doctor in the UK TV series \"\"Dr Who\"\"?\"" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Honours of Scotland , also known as the Scottish Regalia and the Scottish Crown Jewels , dating from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries , are the oldest set of crown jewels in the British Isles . The existing set were used for the coronation of Scottish monarchs from 1543 ( Mary I ) to 1651 ( Charles II ) . Since then , they have been used to represent Royal Assent to legislation in both the Estates of Parliament and Scottish Parliament , and have also been used at State occasions , including the first visit to Scotland as sovereign by King George IV in 1822 and the first visit to Scotland as sovereign by Queen Elizabeth in 1953 . \n \n There are three primary elements of the Honours of Scotland : the Crown , the Sceptre , and the Sword of State . These three elements also appear upon the crest of the royal coat of arms of Scotland and on the Scottish version of the royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom , where the red lion of the King of Scots is depicted wearing the Crown and holding both the Sword and the Sceptre . \n \n The Crown of Scotland \n \n The Crown of Scotland in its present form dates from 1540 when James V ordered the Edinburgh goldsmith John Mosman to refashion the original crown . James wore it to his consort 's coronation in the same year at the abbey church of Holyrood . The circlet at the base is made from Scottish gold and is encrusted with 22 gemstones and 20 precious stones taken from the former crown . Freshwater pearls from Scotland 's rivers were also used . The crown weighs 3 lb 10 oz ( 1644 g ) . The crown was remodelled in 1540 for James V when the velvet and ermine bonnet were added to bring it to its present form . It is not known exactly when the crown was originally made , but it can be seen in its pre-1540 form in the famous portrait of James IV of Scotland in the Book of Hours that was created for his marriage to Margaret Tudor in 1503 . \n \n The four golden arches of the Crown are ornamented with gold and red enamelled oak leaves , apparently of French workmanship . At the point where the arches meet there rests an orb of gold which is enamelled in blue and ornamented with gilt stars . This is surmounted by a large cross decorated in gold and black enamel with an amethyst in rectangular form , in the centre . The upper and two side extremities of the cross are adorned with pearls . \n \n The Sceptre of Scotland \n \n The Sceptre of Scotland was a gift from Pope Alexander VI to King James IV in 1494 , and was remodelled and lengthened in 1536 . It is made of silver gilt , and is topped by a finial with polished rock ( possibly Cairngorm ) and a Scottish pearl . The Sceptre includes several Christian symbols : stylised dolphins , symbols of the Church , appear on the head of the rod , as do images of the Virgin Mary holding a baby Christ , of Saint James the Great , and of Saint Andrew holding a saltire . \n \n The Sword of State of Scotland \n \n The Sword of State of Scotland was also a papal gift ; Pope Julius II presented it to James IV in 1507 ( see Blessed sword and hat ) . The etched blade , measuring 4.5 feet in length , includes figures of Saint Peter and Saint Paul , as well as the etched name of Julius II . The silver gilt handle bears figures of oak leaves and acorns . The sword , an example of Italian craftsmanship , was damaged in 1652 whilst being hidden from Cromwell 's troops , as it had to be broken in half to be properly concealed while it was being taken to safety . It is accompanied by a wooden scabbard which is covered with velvet and silver and hung from a woven silk and thread of gold belt . \n \n Historical background and current location \n \n After being used at the coronations of Mary , Queen of Scots , James VI , and Charles I , the regalia were last used at a coronation in 1651 for that of Charles II . Prior to this event , Charles I had been executed by order of the Parliament of England and the monarchy overthrown . Oliver Cromwell , the Lord Protector of England , Scotland , and Ireland , ordered almost all", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 4, "text": "honours of scotland" } ], "id": "sfq_18041--Honours_of_Scotland.txt", "qid": "sfq_18041", "question": "Kept in Edinburgh Castle, what are the Honours of Scotland?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Vito Andolini Corleone is a fictional character in Mario Puzo 's novel The Godfather and in Francis Ford Coppola 's film series based on the novel , where he was portrayed by Marlon Brando in The Godfather and , as a young man , by Robert De Niro in The Godfather Part II . \n \n Premiere Magazine listed Vito Corleone as the greatest film character in history . He was also selected as the 53rd greatest film character by Empire . \n \n Character overview \n \n Vito Corleone is the head of the Corleone crime family - the most powerful Mafia family in New York City . He is depicted as an orphaned Sicilian immigrant who builds a Mafia empire . Upon his death at the end of the novel , his youngest son , Michael , succeeds him as the head of the Corleone family . Vito has two other sons , Santino ( `` Sonny '' ) and Frederico ( `` Fredo '' or `` Freddie '' ) , as well as a daughter , Connie , all of whom play major roles in the story . He also informally adopts Sonny 's friend , Tom Hagen , who becomes the Family 's consigliere . \n \n Vito oversees a business founded on gambling , bootlegging , and union corruption , but he is known as a generous man who lives by a strict moral code of loyalty to friends and , above all , family . He is also known as a traditionalist who demands respect commensurate with his status ; even his closest friends refer to him as `` Godfather '' or `` Don Corleone '' rather than `` Vito '' . \n \n Vito prides himself on being careful and reasonable , but does not completely forsake violence . When his godson , singer Johnny Fontane , wants to be released from his contract with a bandleader , Vito offers to buy him out , but the bandleader refuses . Vito then threatens to kill the bandleader unless he releases Fontane for a much smaller sum . Later , when movie mogul Jack Woltz refuses to cast Fontane in a film role that could revitalize his waning career , Vito has Woltz 's champion race horse killed and the horse 's severed head placed in Woltz 's bed as a warning . In the novel , it is understood that when Vito offers to reason with someone , it should be taken as a warning - and if that warning goes unheeded , the person is likely to pay with his life . \n \n Early years \n \n The novel establishes Vito 's backstory , which is partially portrayed in The Godfather Part II . Vito Andolini was born in Corleone , Sicily December 7 , 1891 . In the novel , Vito is sent to the United States by his mother for his safety after his father is killed in retaliation for insulting the local Mafia boss . In the film , his father , Antonio , is murdered by the local Mafia boss , Don Ciccio , for refusing to pay tribute to him . His older brother , Paolo , swears revenge , but is also murdered . Vito 's mother goes to Ciccio and begs him to spare Vito . Ciccio refuses , reasoning that the boy will seek revenge as a grown man . Upon Ciccio 's refusal , Vito 's mother holds a knife to his throat , allowing her son to escape while she is killed . Family friends smuggle Vito out of Sicily , putting him on a ship with immigrants traveling to America . In the film , Ellis Island immigration officials rename him `` Vito Corleone '' , using his village for his surname . This was often the case on Ellis Island during the time period in which the scene takes place . He later adopts `` Andolini '' as his middle name to acknowledge his family heritage . In the novel , he takes his village 's name of Corleone to honor his origins . \n \n Vito is taken in by the Abbandando family , who are distant relations of his , in Little Italy on New York 's Lower East Side . Vito grows very close to the Abbadandos , particularly their son , Genco , who is like a brother to him . Vito earns an honest living at the Abbandandos ' grocery store , but the elder Abbandando is forced to fire him when Don Fanucci , a blackhander and the local neighborhood padrone , demands that the grocery hire his nephew . \n \n During this time , Vito befriends Peter Clemenza and Salvatore Tessio", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 175, "text": "marlon brando" } ], "id": "sfq_9237--Vito_Corleone.txt", "qid": "sfq_9237", "question": "Whose film roles include Terry Malloy, Stanley Kowalski and Vito Corleone?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "A seed is an embryonic plant enclosed in a protective outer covering . The formation of the seed is part of the process of reproduction in seed plants , the spermatophytes , including the gymnosperm and angiosperm plants . \n \n Seeds are the product of the ripened ovule , after fertilization by pollen and some growth within the mother plant . The embryo is developed from the zygote and the seed coat from the integuments of the ovule . \n \n Seeds have been an important development in the reproduction and success of gymnosperms and angiosperms plants , relative to more primitive plants such as ferns , mosses and liverworts , which do not have seeds and use other means to propagate themselves . Seed plants now dominate biological niches on land , from forests to grasslands both in hot and cold climates . \n \n The term `` seed '' also has a general meaning that antedates the above—anything that can be sown , e.g . `` seed '' potatoes , `` seeds '' of corn or sunflower `` seeds '' . In the case of sunflower and corn `` seeds '' , what is sown is the seed enclosed in a shell or husk , whereas the potato is a tuber . \n \n Many structures commonly referred to as `` seeds '' are actually dry fruits . Plants producing berries are called baccate . Sunflower seeds are sometimes sold commercially while still enclosed within the hard wall of the fruit , which must be split open to reach the seed . Different groups of plants have other modifications , the so-called stone fruits ( such as the peach ) have a hardened fruit layer ( the endocarp ) fused to and surrounding the actual seed . Nuts are the one-seeded , hard-shelled fruit of some plants with an indehiscent seed , such as an acorn or hazelnut . \n \n Production \n \n Seeds are produced in several related groups of plants , and their manner of production distinguishes the angiosperms ( `` enclosed seeds '' ) from the gymnosperms ( `` naked seeds '' ) . Angiosperm seeds are produced in a hard or fleshy structure called a fruit that encloses the seeds , hence the name . ( Some fruits have layers of both hard and fleshy material ) . In gymnosperms , no special structure develops to enclose the seeds , which begin their development `` naked '' on the bracts of cones . However , the seeds do become covered by the cone scales as they develop in some species of conifer . \n \n Seed production in natural plant populations varies widely from year-to-year in response to weather variables , insects and diseases , and internal cycles within the plants themselves . Over a 20-year period , for example , forests composed of loblolly pine and shortleaf pine produced from 0 to nearly 5 million sound pine seeds per hectare.Cain , M.D . ; Shelton , M.G . 2001 . Twenty years of natural loblolly and shortleaf pine seed production on the Crossett Experimental Forest in southeastern Arkansas . Southern Journal of Applied Forestry . 25 ( 1 ) : 40-45 . Over this period , there were six bumper , five poor , and nine good seed crops , when evaluated in regard to producing adequate seedlings for natural forest reproduction . \n \n Development \n \n Angiosperm ( flowering plants ) seeds consist of three genetically distinct constituents : ( 1 ) the embryo formed from the zygote , ( 2 ) the endosperm , which is normally triploid , ( 3 ) the seed coat from tissue derived from the maternal tissue of the ovule . In angiosperms , the process of seed development begins with double fertilization , which involves the fusion of two male gametes with the egg cell and the central cell to form the primary endosperm and the zygote . Right after fertilization , the zygote is mostly inactive , but the primary endosperm divides rapidly to form the endosperm tissue . This tissue becomes the food the young plant will consume until the roots have developed after germination . \n \n Ovule \n \n After fertilization the ovules develop into the seeds . The ovule consists of a number of components : \n * The funicle ( funiculus , funiculi ) or seed stalk which attaches the ovule to the placenta and hence ovary or fruit wall , at the pericarp . \n * The nucellus , the remnant of the megasporangium and main region of the ovule where the megagametophyte develops . \n * The micropyle , a small pore or opening in the apex of the integument of the ovule where", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "sfq_5451--Seed.txt", "qid": "sfq_5451", "question": "The seeds of the nux vomica tree contain which poison?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Downhill is an alpine skiing discipline . Unlike the other alpine skiing events , slalom , giant slalom , super giant slalom , and combined , which emphasize turning and technique , downhill is more about speed . Speeds of up to 130 km/h are common in international competition . Athletes must have an aerodynamically efficient tuck position to minimize drag and increase speed . \n \n The term downhill skiing is also used as a synonym for alpine skiing , both for the FIS sport and the recreational activity . \n \n History \n \n The rules for the Downhill were originally developed by Sir Arnold Lunn for the 1921 British National Ski Championships . The 100 mph barrier was broken by Johan Clarey at the 2013 Lauberhorn World Cup , beating previous record of 98 mph , set by Italian Stefan Thanei in 2005 . \n \n Course \n \n A typical course begins at or near the top of the mountain on a piste that is closed off to the public and groomed for the race . Gates are farther apart . The courses in the world 's most notable ski areas are well-established and do not change significantly year to year . \n \n The course is designed to challenge the best skiers in a variety of ways : skiing at high speeds , through challenging turns , shallow dips , flats , and small airs ( jumps ) . A good course will have all these elements in it , as well as some jumps intended to complicate matters and thrill both the racer and the spectators . \n \n Equipment \n \n Equipment for the Downhill is different from the alpine events that are lower-speed . Skis are 30 % longer than those used in slalom , for more stability at high speed . They usually have rounded , low-profile tips rather than pointed tips . Ski poles are bent so as to curve around the body as the racer stays in a `` tuck position '' and may have aerodynamic , cone-shaped baskets . As in other alpine disciplines , Downhill racers wear skin-tight suits to minimize drag , and helmets are mandatory . \n \n In an attempt to increase safety , the 2003-2004 season saw the FIS increased the minimum sidecut radius for Downhill skis to 45 m from 40 m , and impose minimum ski lengths for the first time : 218 cm for men , and 210 cm for women . \n \n Races \n \n In all forms of Downhill , both at a local youth-level as well as the higher FIS international level , racers are allowed extensive preparation for the race , which includes daily course inspection and discussion with their coaches and teammates as well as several practice runs before the actual race . Racers do not make any unnecessary turns while on the course , and try to do everything they can to maintain the most aerodynamic position while negotiating turns and jumps . \n \n Unlike Slalom and Giant Slalom , where racers have two combined times , in the Downhill , the race is a single run . Times are typically between 1:30 ( 1 minute , 30 seconds ) and 2:30 for World Cup courses and must be over 1 minute in length to meet international minimum standards . Tenths and hundredths and , occasionally , thousandths of seconds count : World Cup races and Olympic medals have sometimes been decided by as little as one or two hundredths of a second , and ties are not unheard of . \n \n The most successful all-time winners of World Cup Downhill races are Annemarie Moser-Pröll of Austria ( 36 wins , 7 women 's titles ) and Franz Klammer of Austria ( 25 wins , 5 men 's titles ) . Lindsey Vonn of the U.S. is currently dominant in woman 's downhill racing with a lifetime total of 37 World Cup downhill wins and 7 women 's titles . \n \n Risks \n \n On some courses , such as the Lauberhorn course in Wengen , Switzerland , and the Hahnenkamm course in Kitzbühel , Austria , speeds of up to 150 km/h are common . Safety netting and padding are placed in worrisome areas where race officials anticipate crashes . Despite these safety precautions , the ski racing community is well aware of the inherent risks of Downhill skiing , for it is possible for racers to suffer serious injury or death while practicing or competing . Three deaths among World Cup racers in recent years in downhill training or during a race were those of Austrians Gernot Reinstadler in 1991 , Ulrike Maier in 1994 and Frenchwoman Régine", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 3387, "text": "lindsey vonn" } ], "id": "odql_285--Downhill.txt", "qid": "odql_285", "question": "Also a three-times World Champion, which American skier won the gold medal in the Women's Downhill at the 2010 Winter Olympics?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Association football is the national sport in England , where the first modern set of rules for the code were established in 1863 , which were a major influence on the development of the modern Laws of the Game . With over 40,000 association football clubs , England has more clubs involved in the code than any other country as well as the world 's first club ( Sheffield F.C . ) , the world 's oldest professional association football club ( Notts County F.C ) , the oldest national governing body ( the Football Association ) , the first national team , the oldest national knockout competition ( the FA Cup ) and the oldest national league ( the Football League ) . Today the UK 's top domestic league , the Premier League , is one of the most popular and richest sports leagues in the world . \n \n The England National Football Team is one of only 8 teams to win the World Cup , in 1966 . A total of five English club teams have won the UEFA Champions League ( European Cup ) . \n \n History of English football \n \n Middle Ages \n \n Football was played in England as far back as medieval times . The first written evidence of a football match came in about 1170 , when William Fitzstephen wrote of his visit to London , `` After dinner all the youths of the city goes out into the fields for the very popular game of ball . '' He also went on to mention that each trade had their own team , `` The elders , the fathers , and the men of wealth come on horseback to view the contests of their juniors , and in their fashion sport with the young men ; and there seems to be aroused in these elders a stirring of natural heat by viewing so much activity and by participation in the joys of unrestrained youth . '' Kicking ball games are described in England from 1280 . \n \n In 1314 , Edward II , then the King of England , said about a sport of football and the use of footballs , `` certain tumults arising from great footballs in the fields of the public , from which many evils may arise . '' An account of an exclusively kicking `` football '' game from Nottinghamshire in the fifteenth century bears similarity to association football . By the 16th centuries references to organised teams and goals had appeared . There is evidence for refereed , team football games being played in English schools since at least 1581 . The eighteenth-century Gymnastic Society of London is , arguably , the world 's first football club . \n \n Developments in 19th century \n \n The Cambridge rules , first drawn up at Cambridge University in 1848 , were particularly influential in the development of subsequent codes , including association football . The Cambridge Rules were written at Trinity College , Cambridge , at a meeting attended by representatives from Eton , Harrow , Rugby , Winchester and Shrewsbury schools . They were not universally adopted . During the 1850s , many clubs unconnected to schools or universities were formed throughout the English-speaking world , to play various forms of football . Some came up with their own distinct codes of rules , most notably , Sheffield Football Club ( the world 's oldest club ) , formed by former public school pupils in 1857 , which led to formation of the Sheffield & Hallamshire Football Association in 1867 . In 1862 , John Charles Thring of Uppingham School also devised an influential set of rules . His brother , headmaster of the school Reverend Edward Thring , was a proponent of football as an alternative to masturbation , seen as weakening the boys , and through football hoped to encourage their development of perceived manly attributes which were present in the sport . These ongoing efforts contributed to the formation of The Football Association ( The FA ) in 1863 , which first met on 26 October 1863 at the Freemasons ' Tavern in Great Queen Street , London . \n The Sheffield FA played by its own rules until the 1870s with the FA absorbing some of its rules until there was little difference between the games . A match between Sheffield and Hallam F.C . on 29 December 1862 was one of the first matches to be recorded in a newspaper . \n \n With the modern passing game believed to have been innovated in London and with England being home to the oldest football clubs in the world dating from at least 1857 , the world 's", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "odql_12495--Football_in_England.txt", "qid": "odql_12495", "question": "Nicknamed “King of the Kippax”, Colin Bell made 394 appearances and scored 117 goals for which English football club between 1966 and 1979?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Ronald N. `` Ron '' Perlman ( born April 13 , 1950 ) is an American actor and voice actor . He is best known for his roles as Vincent in the television series Beauty and the Beast ( for which he won a Golden Globe ) , as the comic book character Hellboy in both 2004 's Hellboy and its 2008 sequel Hellboy II : The Golden Army , and as Clay Morrow in television series Sons of Anarchy . His most recent work was as the character `` Rust '' from Overkill Software 's video game PAYDAY 2 . \n \n Perlman is also well known as a frequent collaborator of Hellboy director Guillermo del Toro , also having roles in his films Cronos , Blade II , and Pacific Rim . He is also known for his voice-over work as the narrator of the post-apocalyptic game series Fallout , Clayface in Batman : The Animated Series , Killer Croc in The Batman , Slade in the animated series Teen Titans , The Lich in Adventure Time , The Stabbington Brothers in Disney 's animated film Tangled , and as the narrator of the television series 1000 Ways to Die . \n \n Early life \n \n Perlman was born in Washington Heights , New York . His mother , Dorothy ( Rosen ) , was a municipal employee , and his father , Bertram `` Bert '' Perlman , was a jazz drummer and repairman . Perlman stated in a 1988 interview that `` It was not a bad childhood but ... I had a perception of myself that was , I was terribly overweight as a young kid , and it was sort of a low self image . '' Perlman continued to say that this experience is one thing that attracts him to `` playing these sorts of deformed people who are very endearing . '' \n \n Perlman 's family was Jewish ( from Hungary on his father 's side and from Poland on his mother 's ) . Perlman had a Bar Mitzvah ceremony . He attended George Washington High School and later Lehman College in New York City in 1971 , which did not have a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Theatre at that time . He has said that he and his father were `` very close , '' and that it was his father , after seeing Perlman in a college production of Guys and Dolls , who told Perlman , `` You have to do this ... You understand this ? You got ta do this . '' Perlman says , `` So , he gave me permission to be an actor ... wow . '' Perlman attended the University of Minnesota , where he graduated with a master 's degree in theater arts in 1973 . \n \n Career \n \n Perlman started his career as a stage actor appearing in various productions and made his feature film debut in Jean-Jacques Annaud 's film Quest for Fire ( 1981 ) . Ron 's start in cinema was quite difficult . Jean-Jacques Annaud said that when he contacted Ron for playing Salvatore in The Name of the Rose ( 1986 ) , Ron was thinking of abandoning his career . \n After various minor and supporting roles in films and television series , his breakthrough role came when he played Vincent in the TV series Beauty and the Beast , opposite Linda Hamilton from 1987 to 1990 . This earned him a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series in 1989 . \n \n He went on to play roles in many films and television series throughout the 1980s and 1990s as well as the 2000s . His most notable film appearances were in films such as The Name of the Rose ( 1986 ) , Romeo is Bleeding ( 1993 ) , The Adventures of Huck Finn ( 1993 ) , Police Academy : Mission to Moscow ( 1994 ) , The Last Supper ( 1995 ) , The Island of Dr. Moreau ( 1996 ) , Alien : Resurrection ( 1997 ) , Enemy at the Gates ( 2001 ) , Blade II and Star Trek : Nemesis ( both 2002 ) and two Stephen King story-to-movie adaptations , Sleepwalkers and Desperation . His appearances in television series include Highlander : The Series , The Outer Limits and The Magnificent Seven . \n \n He played his first leading film role in 1995 , when he played `` One '' in Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Marc Caro 's French-language The City of Lost Children . In 2003 , Perlman starred in a commercial for Stella Artois beer . This commercial , which", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 246, "text": "hellboy" } ], "id": "qz_6906--Ron_Perlman.txt", "qid": "qz_6906", "question": "Ron Perlman plays which comic book superhero in 2 films of the Noughties?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Turkey ( ; ) , officially the Republic of Turkey ( Turkish : ; ) , is a parliamentary republic in Eurasia , mainly on the Anatolian peninsula in Western Asia , with a smaller portion on the Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe . Turkey is a democratic , secular , unitary , constitutional republic with a diverse cultural heritage . \n \n Turkey is bordered by eight countries : Syria and Iraq to the south ; Iran , Armenia , and the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan to the east ; Georgia to the northeast ; Bulgaria to the northwest ; and Greece to the west . The Black Sea is to the north , the Mediterranean Sea to the south , and the Aegean Sea to the west . The Bosphorus , the Sea of Marmara , and the Dardanelles , which together form the Turkish Straits , divide Thrace and Anatolia ; they also separate Europe and Asia . Turkey 's location between Europe and Asia makes it strategically important . \n \n Turkey has been inhabited since the paleolithic age by various ancient Anatolian civilizations : Aeolian , Dorian and Ionian Greeks , Thracians , Armenians , and Assyrians . After Alexander the Great 's conquest , the area was Hellenized , a process which continued under the Roman Empire and its transition into the Byzantine Empire . The Seljuk Turks began migrating into the area in the 11th century , starting the process of Turkification , which was accelerated by the Seljuk victory over the Byzantines at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 . The Seljuk Sultanate of Rûm ruled Anatolia until the Mongol invasion in 1243 , when it disintegrated into small Turkish beyliks . \n \n In the mid 14th century the Ottomans started uniting Anatolia and created an empire encompassing much of Southeastern Europe , Western Asia and North Africa , becoming a major power in Eurasia and Africa during the early modern period . The empire reached the peak of its power in the 16th century , especially during the reign ( 1520–1566 ) of Suleiman the Magnificent . After the second Ottoman siege of Vienna in 1683 and the end of the Great Turkish War in 1699 , the Ottoman Empire entered a long period of decline . The Tanzimat reforms of the 19th century , which aimed to modernize the Ottoman state , proved to be inadequate in most fields , and failed to stop the dissolution of the empire . \n \n Effectively controlled by the Three Pashas after the 1913 coup d'état , the Ottoman Empire entered World War I ( 1914–1918 ) on the side of the Central Powers and was ultimately defeated . During the war , the Ottoman government committed ethnic cleansing or genocide against its Armenian , Assyrian and Pontic Greek citizens.Schaller , Dominik J ; Zimmerer , Jürgen ( 2008 ) . `` Late Ottoman genocides : the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire and Young Turkish population and extermination policies – introduction '' . Journal of Genocide Research 10 ( 1 ) : 7–14 . doi:10.1080/14623520801950820 Following the war , the conglomeration of territories and peoples that formerly comprised the Ottoman Empire was divided into several new states . \n \n The Turkish War of Independence ( 1919–1922 ) , initiated by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and his colleagues in Anatolia , resulted in the establishment of the modern Republic of Turkey in 1923 , with Atatürk as its first president . \n \n Turkey 's official language is Turkish , a Turkic language , spoken by 85 % of the population . 72.5 % of the population are ethnic Turks ; and 27.5 % are legally recognized ( Armenians , Greeks , Jews ) and unrecognized ( Kurds , Circassians , Arabs , Albanians , Bosniaks , Georgians , etc . ) ethnic minorities . Kurds are the largest minority group . The vast majority of the population is Sunni Muslim , with Alevis making up the largest religious minority . \n \n Turkey is a charter member of the UN , early member of NATO , and a founding member of the OECD , OSCE , OIC and G-20 . After becoming one of the first members of the Council of Europe in 1949 , Turkey became an associate member of the EEC in 1963 , applied for full EEC membership in 1987 , joined the EU Customs Union in 1995 and started accession negotiations with the European Union in 2005 . Turkey 's growing economy and diplomatic initiatives have led to its recognition as a regional power . \n \n Etymology \n \n The name of Turkey ( Turkish : Türkiye ) is based on the ethnonym Türk . The first", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "bb_4481--Turkey.txt", "qid": "bb_4481", "question": "Comprising 100 Kuruş, what is Turkey's currency, first minted in the early 1400s as Ottoman money?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Prime Minister of Canada is an official who serves as the primary minister of the Crown , chair of the Cabinet , and thus head of government of Canada . Officially , the prime minister is appointed by the Governor General of Canada , but by constitutional convention , the prime minister must have the confidence of the elected House of Commons . Normally , this is the leader of the party caucus with the greatest number of seats in the house . But , if that leader lacks support of the majority , the governor general can appoint another leader who has that support or may dissolve parliament and call a new election . By constitutional convention , a prime minister holds a seat in parliament and , since the early 20th century , this has more specifically meant the House of Commons . \n \n The office is not outlined in any of the documents that constitute the written portion of the Constitution of Canada ; executive authority is formally vested in the sovereign and exercised on his or her behalf by the governor general . The prime ministership is part of Canada 's constitutional convention tradition . The office was modelled after that which existed in Britain at the time . Sir John A. Macdonald was commissioned by the Viscount Monck on 24 May 1867 to form the first government of the Canadian Confederation . On 1 July 1867 , the first ministry assumed office . \n \n The date for which a prime minister begins his or her term has been determined by the date that he or she is sworn into his or her portfolio , as an oath of office as prime minister is not required . However , since 1957 , the incoming prime minister has sworn an oath as prime minister . Before 1920 , prime ministers ' resignations were accepted immediately by the governor general and the last day of the ministries were the date he died or the date of resignation . Since 1920 , the outgoing prime minister has only formally resigned when the new government is ready to be formed . The Interpretation Act of 1967 states that `` where an appointment is made effective or terminates on a specified day , that appointment is considered to be effective or to terminate after the end of the previous day . '' Thus , although the outgoing prime minister formally resigns only hours before the incoming ministry swears their oaths , both during the day , the ministries are effectively changed at midnight the night before . Some sources , including the Parliament of Canada , apply this convention as far back as 1917 . \n \n Prime ministers \n \n Timeline \n \n Living former prime ministers \n \n As of , there are seven living former Prime Ministers of Canada , the oldest being John Turner ( born 1929 ) . The most recent former Prime Minister to die was Pierre Trudeau ( 1968–1979 , 1980–1984 ) , on 28 September 2000 . John A. Macdonald ( 1867–1873 , 1878–1891 ) and John Thompson ( 1892–1894 ) are the only serving Prime Ministers to have died in office .", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 2732, "text": "pierre trudeau" } ], "id": "qb_2753--List_of_Prime_Ministers_of_Canada.txt", "qid": "qb_2753", "question": "Who was the Prime Minister of Canada from 1980 to 1984?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "A blood type ( also called a blood group ) is a classification of blood based on the presence and absence of antibodies and also based on the presence or absence of inherited antigenic substances on the surface of red blood cells ( RBCs ) . These antigens may be proteins , carbohydrates , glycoproteins , or glycolipids , depending on the blood group system . Some of these antigens are also present on the surface of other types of cells of various tissues . Several of these red blood cell surface antigens can stem from one allele ( or an alternative version of a gene ) and collectively form a blood group system . \n Blood types are inherited and represent contributions from both parents . A total of 35 human blood group systems are now recognized by the International Society of Blood Transfusion ( ISBT ) . The two most important ones are ABO and the RhD antigen ; they determine someone 's blood type ( A , B , AB and O , with + , − or Null denoting RhD status ) . \n \n Many pregnant women carry a fetus with a blood type which is different from their own , which is not a problem . What can matter is whether the baby is RhD positive or negative . Mothers who are RhD- and carry a RhD+ baby can form antibodies against fetal RBCs . Sometimes these maternal antibodies are IgG , a small immunoglobulin , which can cross the placenta and cause hemolysis of fetal RBCs , which in turn can lead to hemolytic disease of the newborn called erythroblastosis fetalis , an illness of low fetal blood counts that ranges from mild to severe . Sometimes this is lethal for the fetus ; in these cases it is called hydrops fetalis . \n \n Blood group systems \n \n A complete blood type would describe a full set of 30 substances on the surface of RBCs , and an individual 's blood type is one of many possible combinations of blood-group antigens . Across the 35 blood groups , over 600 different blood-group antigens have been found , Almost always , an individual has the same blood group for life , but very rarely an individual 's blood type changes through addition or suppression of an antigen in infection , malignancy , or autoimmune disease . Another more common cause in blood type change is a bone marrow transplant . Bone-marrow transplants are performed for many leukemias and lymphomas , among other diseases . If a person receives bone marrow from someone who is a different ABO type ( e.g. , a type A patient receives a type O bone marrow ) , the patient 's blood type will eventually convert to the donor 's type . \n \n Some blood types are associated with inheritance of other diseases ; for example , the Kell antigen is sometimes associated with McLeod syndrome . Certain blood types may affect susceptibility to infections , an example being the resistance to specific malaria species seen in individuals lacking the Duffy antigen . The Duffy antigen , presumably as a result of natural selection , is more common in ethnic groups from areas with a high incidence of malaria . \n \n ABO blood group system \n \n The ABO system is the most important blood-group system in human-blood transfusion . The associated anti-A and anti-B antibodies are usually immunoglobulin M , abbreviated IgM , antibodies . ABO IgM antibodies are produced in the first years of life by sensitization to environmental substances such as food , bacteria , and viruses . The original terminology used by Dr. Karl Landsteiner in 1901 for the classification is A/B/C ; in later publications `` C '' became `` O '' . `` O '' is often called 0 ( zero , or null ) in other languages . The [ http : //bmg.gv.at/home/EN/Home Austrian Federal Ministry of Health ] claims the original terminology used by Dr. Karl Landsteiner in 1901 for the classification is 0 ( Zero ) /A/B/AB and that in later publications `` 0 '' became `` O '' in most of English language countries . \n \n Rh blood group system \n \n The Rh system ( Rh meaning Rhesus ) is the second most significant blood-group system in human-blood transfusion with currently 50 antigens . The most significant Rh antigen is the D antigen , because it is the most likely to provoke an immune system response of the five main Rh antigens . It is common for D-negative individuals not to have any anti-D IgG or IgM antibodies , because anti-D antibodies are not usually produced by sensitization against environmental substances . However", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 4, "text": "o" } ], "id": "bb_6411--Blood_type.txt", "qid": "bb_6411", "question": "The most common human bloodgroup is?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Harry Houdini ( born Erik Weisz , later Ehrich Weiss or Harry Weiss ; March 24 , 1874 – October 31 , 1926 ) was an American illusionist and stunt performer , noted for his sensational escape acts . He first attracted notice in vaudeville in the US and then as `` Harry Handcuff Houdini '' on a tour of Europe , where he challenged police forces to keep him locked up . Soon he extended his repertoire to include chains , ropes slung from skyscrapers , straitjackets under water , and having to escape from and hold his breath inside a sealed milk can . \n \n In 1904 , thousands watched as he tried to escape from special handcuffs commissioned by London 's Daily Mirror , keeping them in suspense for an hour . Another stunt saw him buried alive and only just able to claw himself to the surface , emerging in a state of near-breakdown . While many suspected that these escapes were faked , Houdini presented himself as the scourge of fake spiritualists . As President of the Society of American Magicians , he was keen to uphold professional standards and expose fraudulent artists . He was also quick to sue anyone who imitated his escape stunts . \n \n Houdini made several movies , but quit acting when it failed to bring in money . He was also a keen aviator , and aimed to become the first man to fly a plane in Australia . \n \n Early life \n \n Ehrich Weisz was born in Budapest to a Jewish family . His parents were Rabbi Mayer Sámuel Weisz ( 1829–1892 ) and Cecília Steiner ( 1841–1913 ) . Houdini was one of seven children : Herman M. ( 1863–1885 ) who was Houdini 's half-brother , by Rabbi Weisz 's first marriage ; Nathan J . ( 1870–1927 ) ; Gottfried William ( 1872–1925 ) ; Theodore ( 1876–1945 ) ; Leopold D. ( 1879–1962 ) ; and Carrie Gladys ( 1882–1959 ) , who was left almost blind after a childhood accident . \n \n Weisz arrived in the United States on July 3 , 1878 , on the SS Fresia with his mother ( who was pregnant ) and his four brothers . The family changed their name to the German spelling Weiss , and Erik became Ehrich . The family lived in Appleton , Wisconsin , where his father served as Rabbi of the Zion Reform Jewish Congregation . \n \n According to the 1880 census , the family lived on Appleton Street.1880 US Census with Samuel M. Weiss , Cecelia ( wife ) , Armin M. , Nathan J. , Ehrich , Theodore , and Leopold . On June 6 , 1882 , Rabbi Weiss became an American citizen . Losing his tenure at Zion in 1887 , Rabbi Weiss moved with Ehrich to New York City , where they lived in a boarding house on East 79th Street . He was joined by the rest of the family once Rabbi Weiss found permanent housing . As a child , Ehrich Weiss took several jobs , making his public début as a 9-year-old trapeze artist , calling himself `` Ehrich , the Prince of the Air '' . He was also a champion cross country runner in his youth . When Weiss became a professional magician he began calling himself `` Harry Houdini '' , after the French magician Jean Eugène Robert-Houdin , after reading Robert-Houdin 's autobiography in 1890 . Weiss incorrectly believed that an i at the end of a name meant `` like '' in French . In later life , Houdini claimed that the first part of his new name , Harry , was an homage to Harry Kellar , whom he also admired . \n \n The magician Joseph Rinn had coached Houdini as a teenager at the Pastime Athletic Club . \n \n Houdini was an active Freemason and was a member of St. Cecile Lodge # 568 in New York City . \n \n In 1918 , he registered for selective service as Harry Handcuff Houdini . \n \n Magic career \n \n He began his magic career in 1891 , but had little success . He appeared in a tent act with strongman Emil Jarrow . He performed in dime museums and sideshows , and even doubled as `` The Wild Man '' at a circus . Houdini focused initially on traditional card tricks . At one point , he billed himself as the `` King of Cards '' . He soon began experimenting with escape acts . \n \n In 1893 , while performing with his brother `` Dash '' ( Theodore ) at Coney Island as `` The", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 995, "text": "magician" } ], "id": "qw_4745--Harry_Houdini.txt", "qid": "qw_4745", "question": "Harry Houdini became famous as what?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The word oyster is used as a common name for a number of different families of saltwater clams , bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats . In some species the valves are highly calcified , and many are somewhat irregular in shape . Many , but not all , oysters are in the superfamily Ostreoidea . \n \n Some kinds of oysters are commonly consumed by humans , cooked or raw , the latter being a delicacy . Some kinds of pearl oysters are harvested for the pearl produced within the mantle . Windowpane oysters are harvested for their translucent shells , which are used to make various kinds of decorative objects . \n \n Etymology \n \n First attested in English during the 14th century , the word `` oyster '' comes from Old French oistre , in turn from Latin ostrea , the feminine form of ostreum , which is the latinisation of the Greek ὄστρεον ( ostreon ) , `` oyster '' . Compare ὀστέον ( osteon ) , `` bone '' . \n \n Types \n \n True oysters \n \n True oysters are members of the family Ostreidae . This family includes the edible oysters , which mainly belong to the genera Ostrea , Crassostrea , Ostreola , and Saccostrea . Examples include the Belon oyster , eastern oyster , Olympia oyster , Pacific oyster , and the Sydney rock oyster . \n \n Pearl oysters \n \n Almost all shell-bearing mollusks can secrete pearls , yet most are not very valuable . \n \n Pearl oysters are not closely related to true oysters , being members of a distinct family , the feathered oysters ( Pteriidae ) . Both cultured pearls and natural pearls can be extracted from pearl oysters , though other molluscs , such as the freshwater mussels , also yield pearls of commercial value . \n \n The largest pearl-bearing oyster is the marine Pinctada maxima , which is roughly the size of a dinner plate . Not all individual oysters produce pearls naturally . In fact , in a harvest of two and a half tons of oysters , only three to four oysters produce what commercial buyers consider to be absolute perfect pearls . \n \n In nature , pearl oysters produce pearls by covering a minute invasive object with nacre . Over the years , the irritating object is covered with enough layers of nacre to become a pearl . The many different types , colours and shapes of pearls depend on the natural pigment of the nacre , and the shape of the original irritant . \n \n Pearl farmers can culture a pearl by placing a nucleus , usually a piece of polished mussel shell , inside the oyster . In three to seven years , the oyster can produce a perfect pearl . These pearls are not as valuable as natural pearls , but look exactly the same . In fact , since the beginning of the 20th century , when several researchers discovered how to produce artificial pearls , the cultured pearl market has far outgrown the natural pearl market . \n \n Other types of oysters \n \n A number of bivalve molluscs ( other than true oysters and pearl oysters ) also have common names that include the word `` oyster '' , usually because they either taste like or look somewhat like true oysters , or because they yield noticeable pearls . Examples include : \n \n * Thorny oysters in the genus Spondylus \n * Pilgrim oyster , another term for a scallop , in reference to the scallop shell of St. James \n * Saddle oysters , members of the Anomiidae family also known as jingle shells \n * Dimydarian oysters , members of the family Dimyidae \n * Windowpane oysters \n \n File : Crassostrea_gigas_p1040847.jpg|Crassostrea gigas \n File : Ostrea edulis Marennes p1050142.jpg|Crassostrea gigas , opened \n \n In the Philippines , a local thorny oyster species known as Tikod Amo is a favorite seafood source in the southern part of the country . Because of its good flavor , it commands high prices . \n \n Anatomy \n \n Oysters are filter feeders , drawing water in over their gills through the beating of cilia . Suspended plankton and particles are trapped in the mucus of a gill , and from there are transported to the mouth , where they are eaten , digested , and expelled as feces or pseudofeces . Oysters feed most actively at temperatures above 10 °C . An oyster can filter up to 5 L of water per hour . The Chesapeake Bay 's once-flourishing oyster population historically filtered excess nutrients from the estuary 's entire water volume every", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "sfq_16100--Oyster.txt", "qid": "sfq_16100", "question": "After whom is the oyster dish, invented in New Orleans in 1899, named because of the intense richness of the sauce?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Poldark is a series of historical novels by Winston Graham , published from 1945 to 1953 and continued from 1973 to 2002 . The series comprises 12 novels : the first seven are set in the 18th century , concluding in Christmas 1799 ; the remaining five are concerned with the early years of the 19th century and the lives of the descendants of the previous novels ' main characters . Graham wrote the first four Poldark books during the 1940s and 1950s . Following a long hiatus , he decided to resume the series and published The Black Moon in 1973 . \n \n The main character Ross Poldark is a British Army officer who returns to his home in Cornwall from the American Revolutionary War only to find that his fiancée Elizabeth Chynoweth believed him dead and is about to marry his cousin Francis Poldark . Ross attempts to restore his own fortunes by reopening one of the family 's derelict tin mines . After several years , he marries Demelza Carne , a poor servant girl , and is gradually reconciled to the loss of Elizabeth 's love . \n \n The BBC has adapted the series for television twice : Poldark ( 1975 TV series ) aired in 1975 and 1977 , and a new version Poldark ( 2015 TV series ) premiered in 2015 . \n \n The Poldark novels \n \n All of the novels are subtitled A Novel of Cornwall . In a preface to The Black Moon , Graham explained his decision to revive the series after a two-decade hiatus . \n \n Main characters \n \n Ross Poldark \n \n Ross Poldark is the protagonist of the series . In his autobiography , Graham states that the character of Ross was , in part , based upon a fighter pilot he met on a train during World War II . In the first novel in the series , Ross Poldark , he returns home from the American Revolutionary War only to learn that his fiancée , Elizabeth , has given him up for dead and promised to marry his cousin , Francis . Life becomes bleak for Ross . A brooding and introspective character , he assumes his late father 's estate , which includes a failing copper mine . Having lost Elizabeth to Francis , he marries Demelza , the girl he originally hired as his scullery maid , and they soon have a baby called Julia . Over the next 20 years , four more children follow : Jeremy , Clowance , Isabella-Rose and Henry . \n \n Demelza Poldark , née Carne \n \n Taken home from Redruth Fair by Ross , miner 's daughter Demelza and her dog Garrick have an unpromising start . However , she soon develops into a charming , amusing , and lovely young woman , eventually winning the affection of Ross . Dark and earthy , she is the total opposite of the fragile Elizabeth . The two women are wary but polite towards each other . Demelza shows courage and fierce loyalty to Ross , but she is somewhat impulsive , causing trouble for both of them . \n \n Dwight Enys \n \n A young doctor who arrives in Cornwall after training in London . He strikes up a firm friendship with Ross , which proves to be strong and enduring . He is a very conscientious doctor , and generous , often not charging his poorest patients for his services . He becomes involved with a young miner 's wife , with tragic results . He eventually marries a young heiress , Caroline Penvenen . \n \n Caroline Enys , née Penvenen \n \n Caroline is an orphan , taken in and raised by her rich uncle Ray . Strong-willed and independent , she begins a romance with Dwight Enys against her uncle 's wishes , culminating in a disastrous plan to elope . They eventually marry several years later after Dwight is rescued from a prison camp in France . Caroline and Dwight 's first daughter , Sarah , has a congenital heart defect and dies in infancy . They go on to have two more daughters , named Sophie and Meliora . \n \n Elizabeth ( Poldark ) Warleggan , née Chynoweth \n \n She was Ross Poldark 's first love and he was probably hers , but thinking him dead in America , she marries Ross 's cousin Francis . Elizabeth is delicate and beautiful . She tries to be a good wife to Francis but has to watch her marriage fail due to Francis 's alcoholism , insecurity and unfaithfulness . After Francis 's death Elizabeth struggles with poverty and loneliness . She thus accepts", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 44, "text": "winston graham" } ], "id": "sfq_23126--Poldark.txt", "qid": "sfq_23126", "question": "Who wrote the Poldark series of historical novels?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Madama Butterfly ( ; Madame Butterfly ) is an opera in three acts ( originally two ) by Giacomo Puccini , with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa . The opera is based in part on the short story `` Madame Butterfly '' ( 1898 ) by John Luther Long , which in turn was based partially on stories told to Long by his sister Jennie Correll and partially on the semi-autobiographical 1887 French novel Madame Chrysanthème by Pierre Loti . Chadwick Jenkins , [ http : //www.columbia.edu/itc/music/NYCO/butterfly/luther.html `` The Original Story : John Luther Long and David Belasco '' ] on columbia.edu Long 's version was dramatized by David Belasco as a one-act play , Madame Butterfly : A Tragedy of Japan , which , after premiering in New York in 1900 , moved on to London , where Puccini saw it in the summer of that year . \n \n The original version of the opera , in two acts , had its premiere on 17 February 1904 at Teatro alla Scala in Milan . It was poorly received , despite such notable singers as soprano Rosina Storchio , tenor Giovanni Zenatello and baritone Giuseppe De Luca in its lead roles ; this was due in part to a late completion by Puccini , and thus inadequate time for rehearsals . Puccini revised the opera , splitting act 2 into two ( with the Humming Chorus as a bridge to what became act 3 ) and making other changes . Success ensued , starting with the first performance , on 28 May 1904 in Brescia . \n \n Madama Butterfly is a staple of the operatic repertoire around the world , ranked 6th by Operabase ; Puccini 's La bohème and Tosca rank 3rd and 5th . \n \n Production history \n \n Puccini wrote five versions of the opera ; the original two-act version , which was presented at the world premiere at La Scala on 17 February 1904 , was withdrawn after the disastrous premiere . Puccini then substantially rewrote it , this time in three acts . This second version was performed on 28 May 1904 in Brescia , where it was a great success . It was this second version that premiered in the United States in 1906 , first in Washington , D.C. , in October , and then in New York in November , performed by Henry Savage 's New English Opera Company ( so named because it performed in English-language translations ) . \n \n In 1906 , Puccini wrote a third version , which was performed at the Metropolitan Opera in New York . In 1907 , Puccini made several changes in the orchestral and vocal scores , and this became the fourth version , which was performed in Paris . \n \n In 1907 , Puccini made his final revisions to the opera in a fifth version , which has become known as the `` Standard Version '' and is the one which is most often performed around the world . However , the original 1904 version is occasionally performed as well . \n \n Performance history \n \n Premieres of the standard version in major opera houses throughout the world include those in the Teatro de la Opera de Buenos Aires on 2 July 1904 , under Arturo Toscanini , this being the first performance in the world outside Italy . Its first performance in Britain was in London on 10 July 1905 at the Royal Opera House , Covent Garden , while the first US performance was presented in English on 15 October 1906 , in Washington , D.C. , at the Columbia Theater . The first performance in New York took place on 12 November of the same year at the Garden Theatre . The Metropolitan Opera first performed the work on 11 February 1907 in the presence of the composer with Geraldine Farrar as Cio-Cio San , Enrico Caruso as Pinkerton , Louise Homer as Suzuki , Antonio Scotti as Sharpless , and Arturo Vigna conducting . Three years later , the first Australian performance was presented at the Theatre Royal in Sydney on 26 March 1910 , starring Amy Castles . \n \n Between 1915 and 1920 , Japan 's best-known opera singer Tamaki Miura won international fame for her performances as Cio-Cio-san . A memorial to this singer , along with one to Puccini , can be found in the Glover Garden in the port city of Nagasaki , where the opera is set . \n \n Roles \n \n Synopsis \n \n Time : 1904 . \n Place : Nagasaki , Japan . \n \n Act 1 \n \n In 1904 , a U.S . Naval officer named Pinkerton", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 21, "text": "madame butterfly" } ], "id": "sfq_16526--Madama_Butterfly.txt", "qid": "sfq_16526", "question": "In which Puccini opera does Lieutenant Pinkerton appear?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Carditis is the inflammation of the heart or its surroundings . \n \n It is usually studied and treated by specifying it as : \n * Pericarditis is the inflammation of the pericardium \n * Myocarditis is the inflammation of the heart muscle \n * Endocarditis is the inflammation of the endocardium \n * Pancarditis is the inflammation of the entire heart : the epicardium , the myocardium and the endocardium \n \n Reflux carditis refers to a possible outcome of esophageal reflux ( also known as GERD ) , and involves inflammation of the esophagus/stomach mucosa", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 36, "text": "heart" } ], "id": "bb_134--Carditis.txt", "qid": "bb_134", "question": "In medicine, carditis is the inflammation of which organ of the human body?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Governor of California is the chief executive of the California state government , commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Military Reserve , whose responsibilities also include making annual State of the State addresses to the California State Legislature , submitting the budget , and ensuring that state laws are enforced . The position was created in 1849 , the year before California became a state . \n The current governor is Jerry Brown , a Democrat who was inaugurated January 3 , 2011 , and who had previously served as governor from 1975 to 1983 . In October 2013 , Jerry Brown surpassed Earl Warren for the longest cumulative period of time served as governor . \n Gubernatorial elections , oath , and term of office \n \n Governors are elected by popular ballot and serve terms of four years , with a limit of two terms , if served after November 6 , 1990 . \n Governors take the following oath : \n \n I ( Governor ) do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California against all enemies foreign and domestic , that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of the State of California , that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties upon which I am about to enter . \n \n Governors take office on the first Monday after January 1 after their election . \n \n Gubernatorial removal \n \n There are two methods available to remove a governor before the expiration of the gubernatorial term of office . \n \n ; Impeachment and removal by the legislature \n The governor can be impeached for `` misconduct in office '' by the State Assembly and removed by a two-thirds vote of the State Senate . \n \n Recall by the voters \n Petitions signed by California state voters equal in number to 12 % of the last vote for the office of governor ( with signatures from each of 5 counties equal in number to 1 % of the last vote for governor in the county ) can launch a gubernatorial recall election . The voters can then vote on whether or not to recall the incumbent governor , and on the same ballot they can vote a potential replacement . If a majority of the voters in the election vote to recall the governor , then the person who gains a plurality of the votes in the replacement race will become governor . \n \n The 2003 California recall began with a petition drive that successfully forced sitting Democratic Governor Gray Davis into a special recall election . It marked the first time in the history of California that a governor faced a recall election . He was subsequently voted out of office , becoming the second governor in the history of the United States to be recalled after Lynn Frazier of North Dakota in 1921 . He was replaced by Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger . \n \n Relationship with Lieutenant Governor of California \n \n The Lieutenant Governor of California is separately elected during the same election , not jointly as the running mate of the gubernatorial candidate . California has had a governor and a lieutenant governor of different parties 26 of the past 31 years . This occasionally becomes significant , since the California Constitution provides that all the powers of the governor fall to the lieutenant governor whenever the governor is not in the state of California , with the lieutenant governor often signing or vetoing legislation , or making political appointments , whenever the governor leaves the state . The lieutenant governor is also the President of the California State Senate . In practice , there is a gentlemen 's agreement for the Lieutenant Governor not to perform more than perfunctory duties while the Governor is away from the state . This agreement was violated when Mike Curb was in office , as he signed several executive orders at odds with the Brown administration when Brown was out of the state . Court rulings have upheld the lieutenant governor 's right to perform the duties and assume all of the prerogatives of governor while the governor is out of the state . \n \n Gubernatorial facts \n \n Age and longevity \n \n * Peter Burnett had the longest post-governorship , 44 years . He left office in 1851 and died in 1895 . \n * Excluding governors who died in office , Robert Waterman had the shortest post-governorship . He died on", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 2929, "text": "arnold s" } ], "id": "qb_4718--Governor_of_California.txt", "qid": "qb_4718", "question": "Which actor became the 38th Governor of California, USA in 2003?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "`` Albatross '' is a guitar-based instrumental by Fleetwood Mac , released as a single in November 1968 , later featuring on the compilation albums The Pious Bird of Good Omen ( UK ) and English Rose ( US ) . It was a major hit in several countries and became Fleetwood Mac 's only Number 1 hit in the UK Singles Chart , spending one week at the top . It was re-released in the UK as a single in 1973 , and peaked at Number 2 in the charts . The piece was composed by Peter Green . The single has sold over 900,000 copies in the UK . \n \n Composition \n \n Santo & Johnny 's `` Sleep Walk '' ( 1959 ) reportedly inspired Peter Green for his 1968 instrumental `` Albatross '' , although the composition also resembles Chuck Berry 's 1957 instrumental `` Deep Feeling '' , itself derivative of the 1939 recording `` Floyd 's Guitar Blues '' by Andy Kirk and his 12 Clouds of Joy , featuring guitarist Floyd Smith . \n \n The composition and its arrangement suggest a relaxing sea setting , with cymbals imitating the sound of waves ( Mick Fleetwood played his drum kit using timpani mallets to give a muted sound ) and a dreamy solo from Green 's guitar . It contains four chords , E , Emaj7 , A , and F # m , played by Green on his Fender Stratocaster into an Orange Matamp OR100 . Green had been working on the piece for some time before the addition to the band of 18-year-old guitarist Danny Kirwan . Slide guitarist Jeremy Spencer was not generally inclined to work with Green , who had felt unable to realise the overall effect that he wanted . With Kirwan 's input , Green completed the piece and it was recorded just two months after Kirwan joined , without Spencer present . Although he was not a part of the recording sessions , Spencer was shown in video material miming to Green 's slide guitar parts . Kirwan 's instrumental `` Jigsaw Puzzle Blues '' was chosen for the B-side in most territories . `` Albatross '' has been re-released many times as a single in various countries , with many different B-sides . \n \n This composition is one of only a few tracks by the original line-up of Fleetwood Mac that is included on their later `` greatest hits '' and `` best of '' compilations . Many of their compilations only focus on hits from the 1970s and 1980s . However , other compositions from that period have gone on to become classic recordings in the hands of other performers – `` Black Magic Woman '' as recorded by Santana for example . Another example , `` Oh Well '' has gone on to become a rock standard . `` Albatross '' is the only Fleetwood Mac composition with the distinction of having inspired a Beatles song , `` Sun King '' from 1969 's Abbey Road . \n \n One of the earliest uses of the tune was on the soundtrack for the Rainer Werner Fassbinder sci-fi virtual reality film Welt am Draht ( usually translated as World on a Wire ) . It was featured ( along with `` Jigsaw Puzzle Blues '' ) in 1979 's Rock 'n ' Roll High School . It was also used by the BBC as the theme music to a long running travel programme in the 1960s and '70s . \n \n The piece was used as the background music to Marks & Spencer 's 2005 advertising campaign . In March of that year , Q magazine placed it at number 37 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks . \n \n Apart from being used in Welt am Draht ( World on a Wire ) , the track can also be heard in the film Man on Wire about Philippe Petit 's 1974 high-wire walk between the Twin Towers of New York 's World Trade Center . \n \n The distinctive slide guitar motif is a recurring theme on The KLF 's 1990 album Chill Out . \n \n The tune was covered by a German ambient musical project B-Tribe on their album Suave Suave in 1995 . \n \n Side notes \n \n Fleetwood Mac became associated with this piece in the British public consciousness despite having numerous other well-received singles . In other territories , however , the greater iconic body of Fleetwood Mac hits came after the departure of Peter Green in 1970 and other line-up changes took place ( including the addition of Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham in 1975 ) . This is particularly true", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 4104, "text": "true" } ], "id": "qf_3188--Albatross_(instrumental).txt", "qid": "qf_3188", "question": "Albatross was Fleetwood Mac's only No. 1 single hit. True or false?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "New Mexico ( ; ) is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States of America . It was admitted to the union as the 47th state on January 6 , 1912 . It is usually considered one of the Mountain States . New Mexico is the fifth-most extensive , the 36th-most populous , and the sixth-least densely populated of the 50 United States . \n \n Inhabited by indigenous peoples for thousands of years before European exploration , New Mexico was claimed in the colonial era as part of the Imperial Spanish viceroyalty of New Spain . Later , it was part of independent Mexico before becoming a U.S. territory and eventually a U.S. state . Among U.S. states , New Mexico has the highest percentage of Hispanics , including descendants of Spanish colonists who have lived in the area for more than 400 years . It has the second-highest percentage of Native Americans as a proportion of the population after Alaska , and the fourth-highest total number of Native Americans after California , Oklahoma , and Arizona . The major Native American nations in the state are Navajo , Pueblo , and Apache peoples . The demography and culture of the state are shaped by these strong Hispanic and Native American influences and expressed in the state flag . Its scarlet and gold colors are taken from the royal standards of Spain , along with the ancient sun symbol of the Zia , a Pueblo-related tribe . \n \n New Mexico , or ' in Spanish , is often incorrectly believed to have taken its name from the nation of Mexico . However , Spanish explorers recorded this region as New Mexico in 1563 , and again in 1581 . They believed it contained wealthy Indian cultures similar to those of the Aztec Empire . Mexico , formerly a part of New Spain , adopted its name centuries later in 1821 , after winning independence from Spanish rule . New Mexico was a part of the independent federal republic of Mexico for 12 years , 1836 through 1848 . During the colonial period , the two had developed as neighboring Spanish-speaking communities under Spanish rule and with relatively independent histories . \n \n Geography \n \n The state 's total area is 121412 sqmi . The eastern border of New Mexico lies along 103° W longitude with the state of Oklahoma , and three miles ( 5 km ) west of 103° W longitude with Texas . On the southern border , Texas makes up the eastern two-thirds , while the Mexican states of Chihuahua and Sonora make up the western third , with Chihuahua making up about 90 % of that . The western border with Arizona runs along the 109° 03 ' W longitude . The southwestern corner of the state is known as the Bootheel . The 37° N latitude parallel forms the northern boundary with Colorado . The states New Mexico , Colorado , Arizona , and Utah come together at the Four Corners in the northwestern corner of New Mexico . New Mexico , although a large state , has very little water . Its surface water area is about 250 sqmi . \n \n The New Mexican landscape ranges from wide , rose-colored deserts to broken mesas to high , snow-capped peaks . Despite New Mexico 's arid image , heavily forested mountain wildernesses cover a significant portion of the state , especially towards the north . The Sangre de Cristo Mountains , the southernmost part of the Rocky Mountains , run roughly north-south along the east side of the Rio Grande in the rugged , pastoral north . The most important of New Mexico 's rivers are the Rio Grande , Pecos , Canadian , San Juan , and Gila . The Rio Grande is tied for the fourth-longest river in the United States . \n \n The U.S. government protects millions of acres of New Mexico as national forests , including : \n * Carson National Forest \n * Cibola National Forest ( headquartered in Albuquerque ) \n * Lincoln National Forest \n * Santa Fe National Forest ( headquartered in Santa Fe ) \n * Gila National Forest \n * Gila Wilderness \n \n Areas managed by the National Park Service include : \n * Aztec Ruins National Monument at Aztec \n * Bandelier National Monument in Los Alamos \n * Capulin Volcano National Monument near Capulin \n * Carlsbad Caverns National Park near Carlsbad \n * Chaco Culture National Historical Park at Nageezi \n * El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro National Historic Trail \n * El Malpais National Monument in Grants \n * El Morro National Monument in Ramah \n * Fort Union National", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 3768, "text": "santa fe" } ], "id": "sfq_4643--New_Mexico.txt", "qid": "sfq_4643", "question": "What is the state capital of New Mexico?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Hearing , auditory perception , or audition is the ability to perceive sound by detecting vibrations , changes in the pressure of the surrounding medium through time , through an organ such as the ear . \n \n Background \n \n Sound may be heard through solid , liquid , or gaseous matter . It is one of the traditional five senses ; partial or total inability to hear is called hearing loss . \n \n In humans and other vertebrates , hearing is performed primarily by the auditory system : mechanical waves , known as vibrations are detected by the ear and transduced into nerve impulses that are perceived by the brain ( primarily in the temporal lobe ) . Like touch , audition requires sensitivity to the movement of molecules in the world outside the organism . Both hearing and touch are types of mechanosensation . \n \n Hearing mechanism \n \n There are three main components of the human ear : the outer ear , the middle ear , and the inner ear . \n \n Outer ear \n \n The outer ear includes the pinna , the visible part of the ear , as well as the ear canal which terminates at the eardrum , also called the tympanic membrane . The pinna serves to focus sound waves through the ear canal toward the eardrum . Because of the asymmetrical character of the outer ear of most mammals , sound is filtered differently on its way into the ear depending on what vertical location it is coming from . This gives these animals the ability to localize sound vertically . The eardrum is an airtight membrane , and when sound waves arrive there , they cause it to vibrate following the waveform of the sound . \n \n Middle ear \n \n The middle ear consists of a small air-filled chamber that is located medial to the eardrum . Within this chamber are the three smallest bones in the body , known collectively as the ossicles which include the malleus , incus and stapes ( sometimes referred to coloquially as the hammer , anvil and stirrup respectively ) . They aid in the transmission of the vibrations from the eardrum to the inner ear . While the middle ear may seem unnecessarily complex , the purpose of its unique construction is to overcome the impedance mismatch between air and water , by providing impedance matching . \n \n Also located in the middle ear are the stapedius and tensor tympani muscles which protect the hearing mechanism through a stiffening reflex . The stapes transmits sound waves to the inner ear through the oval window , a flexible membrane separating the air-filled middle ear from the fluid-filled inner ear . The round window , another flexible membrane , allows for the smooth displacement of the inner ear fluid caused by the entering sound waves . \n \n Inner ear \n \n The inner ear consists of the cochlea , which is a spiral-shaped , fluid-filled tube . It is divided lengthwise by the organ of Corti , which is the main organ of mechanical to neural transduction . Inside the organ of Corti is the basilar membrane , a structure that vibrates when waves from the middle ear propagate through the cochlear fluid – endolymph . The basilar membrane is tonotopic , so that each frequency has a characteristic place of resonance along it . Characteristic frequencies are high at the basal entrance to the cochlea , and low at the apex . Basilar membrane motion causes depolarization of the hair cells , specialized auditory receptors located within the organ of Corti . While the hair cells do not produce action potentials themselves , they release neurotransmitter at synapses with the fibers of the auditory nerve , which does produce action potentials . In this way , the patterns of oscillations on the basilar membrane are converted to spatiotemporal patterns of firings which transmit information about the sound to the brainstem . \n \n Neuronal \n \n The sound information from the cochlea travels via the auditory nerve to the cochlear nucleus in the brainstem . From there , the signals are projected to the inferior colliculus in the midbrain tectum . The inferior colliculus integrates auditory input with limited input from other parts of the brain and is involved in subconscious reflexes such as the auditory startle response . \n \n The inferior colliculus in turn projects to the medial geniculate nucleus , a part of the thalamus where sound information is relayed to the primary auditory cortex in the temporal lobe . Sound is believed to first become consciously experienced at the primary auditory cortex . Around the primary auditory cortex lies Wernickes area ,", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "bb_2440--Hearing.txt", "qid": "bb_2440", "question": "Sound, hearing, and non-electric musical instruments from the Greeks?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Squid are cephalopods of the order Teuthida , which comprises around 304 species . Like all other cephalopods , squid have a distinct head , bilateral symmetry , a mantle , and arms . Squid , like cuttlefish , have eight arms arranged in pairs and two , usually longer , tentacles . Squid are strong swimmers and certain species can `` fly '' for short distances out of the water . \n \n Taxonomy \n \n Squid are members of the class Cephalopoda , subclass Coleoidea , order Teuthida , which has two major suborders , Myopsina and Oegopsina ( including giant squid such as Architeuthis dux ) . Teuthida is the largest cephalopod order with around 300 species classified into 29 families . \n \n The order Teuthida is a member of the superorder Decapodiformes ( from the Greek for `` ten legs '' ) . Two other orders of decapodiform cephalopods are also called squid , although they are taxonomically distinct from Teuthida and differ recognizably in their gross anatomical features . They are the bobtail squid of order Sepiolida and the ram 's horn squid of the monotypic order Spirulida . The vampire squid , however , is more closely related to the octopuses than to any squid . \n * Class Cephalopoda \n * * Subclass Nautiloidea : nautilus \n * * Subclass Coleoidea : squid , octopus , cuttlefish \n * * * Superorder Octopodiformes \n * * * Superorder Decapodiformes \n * * * * ? Order †Boletzkyida \n * * * * Order Spirulida : ram 's horn squid \n * * * * Order Sepiida : cuttlefish \n * * * * Order Sepiolida : bobtail squid \n * * * * Order Teuthida : squid \n * * * * * Family †Plesioteuthididae ( incertae sedis ) \n * * * * * Suborder Myopsina \n * * * * * * Family Australiteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Loliginidae : inshore , calamari , and grass squid \n * * * * * Suborder Oegopsina \n * * * * * * Family Ancistrocheiridae : sharpear enope squid \n * * * * * * Family Architeuthidae : giant squid \n * * * * * * Family Bathyteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Batoteuthidae : bush-club squid \n * * * * * * Family Brachioteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Chiroteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Chtenopterygidae : comb-finned squid \n * * * * * * Family Cranchiidae : glass squid \n * * * * * * Family Cycloteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Enoploteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Gonatidae : armhook squid \n * * * * * * Family Histioteuthidae : jewel squid \n * * * * * * Family Joubiniteuthidae : Joubin 's squid \n * * * * * * Family Lepidoteuthidae : Grimaldi scaled squid \n * * * * * * Family Lycoteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Magnapinnidae : bigfin squid \n * * * * * * Family Mastigoteuthidae : whip-lash squid \n * * * * * * Family Neoteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Octopoteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Ommastrephidae : flying squid \n * * * * * * Family Onychoteuthidae : hooked squid \n * * * * * * Family Pholidoteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Promachoteuthidae \n * * * * * * Family Psychroteuthidae : glacial squid \n * * * * * * Family Pyroteuthidae : fire squid \n * * * * * * Family Thysanoteuthidae : rhomboid squid \n * * * * * * Family Walvisteuthidae \n * * * * * * Parateuthis tunicata ( incertae sedis ) \n \n Evolution \n \n Squid have differentiated from their ancestral molluscs such that the body plan has been condensed antero-posteriorly and extended dorso-ventrally . What before may have been the foot of the ancestor is modified into a complex set of tentacles and highly developed sense organs , including advanced eyes similar to those of vertebrates . \n \n The ancestral shell has been lost , with only an internal gladius , or pen , remaining . The pen is a feather-shaped internal structure that supports the squid 's mantle and serves as a site for muscle attachment . It is made of a chitin-like material . \n \n Description \n \n The main body mass is enclosed in the mantle , which has a swimming fin along each side . These fins , unlike in other marine organisms , are not the", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 430, "text": "cephalopoda" } ], "id": "sfq_18230--Squid.txt", "qid": "sfq_18230", "question": "Squids, cuttlefish and octopus belong to which class of marine mollusc?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Adrian Albert Mole is the fictional protagonist in a series of books by English author Sue Townsend . The character first appeared ( as Nigel ) in a BBC Radio 4 play in 1982 . The books are written in the form of a diary , with some additional content such as correspondence . The first two books appealed to many readers as a realistic and humorous treatment of the inner life of an adolescent boy . They also captured something of the zeitgeist of the UK during the Thatcher period . \n \n Themes \n \n The series has many themes . The first books concentrate on Adrian 's desires and ambitions in life ( to marry his teenage sweetheart , publish his poetry and novels , obtain financial security ) and his complete failure to achieve them . The series satirises human pretensions , and especially , in the first couple of volumes , teenage pretensions . \n \n The second theme is depiction of the social and political situation in Britain , with particular reference to left-wing politics in the 1980s in the first three books . For example , Mr and Mrs Mole 's divorce reflects rising divorce rates in the 1980s , and living together unmarried was becoming a norm . Adrian 's mother becomes a staunch feminist and briefly joins the Greenham Common campaigners . Pandora , Adrian 's love interest , and her parents are part of an intellectualised and left-wing middle class that attempted to embrace the working class . \n \n Humour arises from the outworking of larger social forces within a very ordinary household in a very ordinary part of Middle England . \n \n The last three books move in slightly new directions , showing Adrian as an adult in different environments . They are more focused on political satire , mainly examining New Labour , and in Weapons of Mass Destruction , the Iraq war . The intervening book , Adrian Mole : The Wilderness Years , mixes these themes , with events such as the Gulf War seen from Adrian 's naive and frustrated point of view , as well as depictions of his experiences of unemployment and public spending cutbacks , both major political issues at the time . In dealing with political events , a constant plot device is that Adrian makes confident predictions and statements that are known to be wrong by the reader , ranging from belief in the Hitler Diaries to an Iraqi victory in the Gulf War and Iraq 's Weapons of Mass Destruction . \n \n Biography \n \n Early life and young adulthood \n \n Adrian Albert Mole is born in 1967 and grows up with his parents in the city of Leicester ; he moves to Ashby-de-la-Zouch in England 's East Midlands . Adrian 's family are largely unskilled working class/lower middle class . He is an only child until the age of 15 , when his half-brother Brett and half-sister Rosie are born . Adrian is an average boy in many ways , not especially talented , but he does well enough at school and has friends . Deep inside , however , he perceives himself as a thwarted `` Great Writer '' , although his grand ambitions are completely at odds with his lack of literary talent . Adrian spends years working on his terrible novel , Lo ! The Flat Hills of My Homeland , never to be published ( partly because he wrote the first several drafts without vowels ) . Over several books , he develops a script for a white van serial killer comedy programme , which for some reason the BBC is reluctant to produce . \n \n As a young man he moves to London and takes a job in a Soho restaurant catering to media types . London is going through a foodie renaissance and offal is all the rage . Adrian is persuaded to feature as a celebrity chef in a television cookery programme called Offally Good ! ; although he is told the programme is a comedy , he typically fails to realise he is being set up as the stooge , the comic straight man . \n \n He befriends an old pensioner called Archie Tait whilst he is living back at home with his mother . When Archie dies , Adrian goes to live in his old house , since Archie had no real ties . He finds out that Glenn Bott is his son and can not pay Sharon all the money , so he cares for Glenn full-time . Glenn 's remedial teacher , Eleanor Flood , a convicted arsonist , burns Archie 's old house down . \n \n Adrian ends up", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 1260, "text": "pandora" } ], "id": "odql_10529--Adrian_Mole.txt", "qid": "odql_10529", "question": "In the Sue Townsend novels, what is the first name of the love of 'Adrian Mole's' life?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Herman 's Hermits are an English beat ( or pop ) band , formed in Manchester in 1964 . \n \n Originally called Herman & The Hermits , they were discovered by Harvey Lisberg , who signed them up to management . Lisberg sent a return plane ticket to Mickie Most so that he could come up from London to see the band play in Bolton . Most became the group 's record producer , controlling the band 's output . He emphasised a simple , non-threatening , clean-cut image , although the band originally played R & B numbers . This helped Herman 's Hermits become hugely successful in the mid-1960s but dampened the band 's songwriting ; Noone , Hopwood , Leckenby and Green 's songs were relegated to B-sides and album cuts . \n \n Their first hit was a cover of Earl-Jean 's `` I 'm into Something Good '' ( written by Gerry Goffin and Carole King ) , which reached No . 1 in the UK Singles Chart and No . 13 in the US in late 1964 . They never topped the British charts again , but had two US Billboard Hot 100 No.1s with `` Mrs. Brown , You 've Got a Lovely Daughter '' ( originally sung by Tom Courtenay in a 1963 British TV play ) and `` I 'm Henry the Eighth , I Am '' ( a British music hall song by Harry Champion dating from 1911 , which Peter Noone 's Irish grandfather had been in the habit of singing when Noone was young ) . These songs were aimed at a US fan base , with Peter Noone exaggerating his Mancunian accent . \n \n In the US , their records were released on the MGM label , a company which often featured musical performers they had signed to record deals in films . The Hermits appeared in several MGM movies , including When the Boys Meet the Girls ( 1965 ) and Hold On ! ( 1966 ) . They also starred in the film Mrs. Brown You 've Got a Lovely Daughter ( 1968 ) and appeared in the 1965 anthology film Pop Gear . \n \n Herman 's Hermits had four Top 3 hits in the US in 1965 , with the aforementioned No . 1 hits and `` Ca n't You Hear My Heartbeat '' ( US No . 2 ) . They recorded The Rays ' `` Silhouettes '' ( US No . 5 ) , Sam Cooke 's `` Wonderful World '' ( US No . 4 ) , `` Just a Little Bit Better '' ( US No . 7 ) , and `` A Must to Avoid '' ( US No . 8 ) in 1965 ; `` Listen People '' ( US No . 3 ) , George Formby 's `` Leaning on a Lamp Post '' from Me and My Girl ( US No . 9 ) , and the Ray Davies song `` Dandy '' ( US No . 5 ) in 1966 ; and `` There 's a Kind of Hush '' ( US No . 4 ) in 1967 . On WLS `` Mrs. Brown '' and `` Silhouettes '' were 1–2 on 14 May 1965 and exchanged positions the next week , a distinction matched only by The Beatles ' `` I Want to Hold Your Hand '' and `` She Loves You '' during 14 February – 6 March 1964 . They appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show , The Dean Martin Show and The Jackie Gleason Show . Continued success in the US proved elusive beyond 1967 , although they had as many Top Ten hits in Britain ( five ) in the period 1967 through 1970 as they had had there in the years of the mid-'sixties when the band were wowing American audiences and British audiences seemed more diffident . By the time the group recorded their final album of the 1960s , Rock 'n ' Roll Party , the band 's success in the US was history and the album was not released by MGM there . Peter Noone and Keith Hopwood left the band in 1971 . Herman 's Hermits reunited in 1973 to headline a successful British invasion tour of the US culminating with a standing-room-only performance at Madison Square Garden and an appearance on The Midnight Special ( without Hopwood ) . Later , a version of the band featuring Leckenby and Whitwam opened for The Monkees on reunion tours of the US . Noone declined an offer from tour organizers to appear , but later appeared with Davy Jones on a successful teen-idols tour . Karl Green began performing again in 2014 ,", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 246, "text": "mickie most" } ], "id": "qw_13493--Herman's_Hermits.txt", "qid": "qw_13493", "question": "Who was an English record producer for The Animals, Herman's Hermits, Donovan, Lulu, Nancy Sinatra, The Yardbirds, Suzi Quatro, Kim Wilde and the Jeff Beck Group?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Vodka ( , ) is a distilled beverage composed primarily of water and ethanol , sometimes with traces of impurities and flavorings . Traditionally , vodka is made by the distillation of fermented cereal grains or potatoes , though some modern brands use other substances , such as fruits or sugar . \n \n Since the 1890s , the standard Polish , Russian , Belarusian , Ukrainian , Estonian , Latvian , Lithuanian and Czech vodkas are 40 % alcohol by volume ABV ( 80 US proof ) , a percentage that is widely misattributed to Dmitri Mendeleev . The European Union has established a minimum of 37.5 % ABV for any `` European vodka '' to be named as such .. Gin and Vodka Association . ginvodka.org Products sold as `` vodka '' in the United States must have a minimum alcohol content of 40 % . Even with these loose restrictions , most vodka sold contains 40 % ABV . For homemade vodkas and distilled beverages referred to as `` moonshine '' , see moonshine by country . \n \n Vodka is traditionally drunk neat ( not mixed with any water , ice , or other mixer ) , though it is often served chilled in the vodka belt countries ( Belarus , Estonia , Finland , Iceland , Latvia , Lithuania , Norway , Poland , Russia , Sweden , Ukraine ) . It is also commonly used in cocktails and mixed drinks , such as the vodka martini , Cosmopolitan , vodka tonic , Screwdriver , Greyhound , Black or White Russian , Moscow Mule , and Bloody Mary . \n \n Etymology \n \n The name `` vodka '' is a diminutive form of the Slavic word voda ( water ) , interpreted as little water : root вод- ( vod- ) [ water ] + -к- ( -k- ) ( diminutive suffix , among other functions ) + -a ( postfix of feminine gender ) . \n \n The word `` vodka '' was recorded for the first time in 1405 in Akta Grodzkie , the court documents from the Palatinate of Sandomierz in Poland . At the time , the word vodka ( wódka ) referred to medicines and cosmetic products , while the beverage was called gorzałka ( from the Old Polish gorzeć meaning `` to burn '' ) , which is also the source of Ukrainian horilka ( горілка ) . The word vodka written in Cyrillic appeared first in 1533 , in relation to a medicinal drink brought from Poland to Russia by the merchants of Kievan Rus ' . \n \n Although the word vodka could be found in early manuscripts and in lubok pictograms , it began to appear in Russian dictionaries only in the mid-19th century . It was attested in Sámuel Gyarmathi 's Russian-German-Hungarian glossary of 1799 , where it is glossed with Latin vinum adustum ( `` burnt [ i.e . distilled ] wine '' ) . \n \n In English literature the word vodka was attested already in the late 18th century . In a book of his travels published in English in 1780 ( presumably , a translation from German ) , Johann Gottlieb Georgi correctly explained that `` Kabak in the Russian language signifies a public house for the common people to drink vodka ( a sort of brandy ) in . '' William Tooke in 1799 glossed vodka as `` rectified corn-spirits '' . In French , Théophile Gautier in 1800 glossed it as a `` grain liquor '' served with meals in Poland ( eau-de-vie de grain ) . \n \n Another possible connection of `` vodka '' with `` water '' is the name of the medieval alcoholic beverage aqua vitae ( Latin , literally , `` water of life '' ) , which is reflected in Polish okowita , Ukrainian оковита , Belarusian акавіта , and Scandinavian akvavit . ( Note that whiskey has a similar etymology , from the Irish/Scottish Gaelic uisce beatha/uisge-beatha . ) \n \n People in the area of vodka 's probable origin have names for vodka with roots meaning `` to burn '' : ; ; ; ; Samogitian : degtėnė , is also in use , colloquially and in proverbs ) ; ; . In Russian during the 17th and 18th centuries , горящѣе вино or горячее вино ( goryashchee vino , `` burning wine '' or `` hot wine '' ) was widely used . Others languages include the German Branntwein , Danish brændevin , , , and ( although the latter terms refer to any strong alcoholic beverage ) . \n \n History \n \n Scholars debate the beginnings of vodka . It is a contentious issue because very little", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 1342, "text": "screwdriver" } ], "id": "sfq_18118--Vodka.txt", "qid": "sfq_18118", "question": "Which cocktail allegedly gets its name from the practice of 1950's American engineers stirring vodka into their cans of orange juice with this tool?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "A chemical element or element is a species of atoms having the same number of protons in their atomic nuclei ( i.e . the same atomic number , Z ) . There are 118 elements that have been identified , of which the first 94 occur naturally on Earth with the remaining 24 being synthetic elements . There are 80 elements that have at least one stable isotope and 38 that have exclusively radioactive isotopes , which decay over time into other elements . Iron is the most abundant element ( by mass ) making up Earth , while oxygen is the most common element in the crust of Earth . \n \n Chemical elements constitute all of the ordinary matter of the universe . However astronomical observations suggest that ordinary observable matter is only approximately 15 % of the matter in the universe : the remainder is dark matter , the composition of which is unknown , but it is not composed of chemical elements . \n The two lightest elements , hydrogen and helium were mostly formed in the Big Bang and are the most common elements in the universe . The next three elements ( lithium , beryllium and boron ) were formed mostly by cosmic ray spallation , and are thus more rare than those that follow . Formation of elements with from six to twenty six protons occurred and continues to occur in main sequence stars via stellar nucleosynthesis . The high abundance of oxygen , silicon , and iron on Earth reflects their common production in such stars . Elements with greater than twenty-six protons are formed by supernova nucleosynthesis in supernovae , which , when they explode , blast these elements far into space as supernova remnants , where they may become incorporated into planets when they are formed . \n \n The term `` element '' is used for a kind of atoms with a given number of protons ( regardless of whether they are or they are not ionized or chemically bonded , e.g . hydrogen in water ) as well as for a pure chemical substance consisting of a single element ( e.g . hydrogen gas ) . For the second meaning , the terms `` elementary substance '' and `` simple substance '' have been suggested , but they have not gained much acceptance in the English-language chemical literature , whereas in some other languages their equivalent is widely used ( e.g . French corps simple , Russian простое вещество ) . One element can form multiple substances different by their structure ; they are called allotropes of the element . \n \n When different elements are chemically combined , with the atoms held together by chemical bonds , they form chemical compounds . Only a minority of elements are found uncombined as relatively pure minerals . Among the more common of such `` native elements '' are copper , silver , gold , carbon ( as coal , graphite , or diamonds ) , and sulfur . All but a few of the most inert elements , such as noble gases and noble metals , are usually found on Earth in chemically combined form , as chemical compounds . While about 32 of the chemical elements occur on Earth in native uncombined forms , most of these occur as mixtures . For example , atmospheric air is primarily a mixture of nitrogen , oxygen , and argon , and native solid elements occur in alloys , such as that of iron and nickel . \n \n The history of the discovery and use of the elements began with primitive human societies that found native elements like carbon , sulfur , copper and gold . Later civilizations extracted elemental copper , tin , lead and iron from their ores by smelting , using charcoal . Alchemists and chemists subsequently identified many more , with almost all of the naturally-occurring elements becoming known by 1900 . \n \n The properties of the chemical elements are summarized on the periodic table , which organizes the elements by increasing atomic number into rows ( `` periods '' ) in which the columns ( `` groups '' ) share recurring ( `` periodic '' ) physical and chemical properties . Save for unstable radioactive elements with short half-lives , all of the elements are available industrially , most of them in high degrees of purity . \n \n Description \n \n The lightest chemical elements are hydrogen and helium , both created by Big Bang nucleosynthesis during the first 20 minutes of the universe in a ratio of around 3:1 by mass ( or 12:1 by number of atoms ) , along with tiny traces of the next two elements , lithium and", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 1067, "text": "lithium" } ], "id": "dpql_4255--Chemical_element.txt", "qid": "dpql_4255", "question": "What is the lightest solid element?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Barry David Elliott ( born 24 December 1944 ) and Paul Harman Elliott ( born 18 October 1947 ) are English children 's entertainers , better known as Barry Chuckle and Paul Chuckle as the double-act the Chuckle Brothers . They are known for their work on their BBC show ChuckleVision , which celebrated its 21st series in 2010 with a stage tour titled An Audience with the Chuckle Brothers . The comedy of the Chuckle Brothers usually derives from slapstick and other visual gags , and their catchphrases include `` To me , to you '' and `` Oh dear , oh dear '' . \n \n Early life \n \n The brothers were born in Rotherham to Amy and James Patton Elliott , in 1944 and 1947 . Their father was a well-known Gang Show performer whose stage name was Gene Patton ; he worked with the 18-year-old Peter Sellers in 1943 in The No . 10 Gang and gave performances in London , Orkney and the Hebrides , Iceland , the Far East , India , and Burma . They have two older brothers called Jimmy and Brian , who are known professionally as the Patton Brothers and who have appeared in Chucklevision , Jimmy as the nameless character known colloquially as `` No Slacking '' , and Brian as another unnamed character known as `` Getoutofit '' . \n \n Prior to becoming an entertainer , Paul 's first job was working in a Sheffield steelworks . \n \n Career \n \n Television \n \n The Chuckle Brothers won the television talent show Opportunity Knocks in 1967 , followed by success on New Faces in 1974 . In the late 1970s and early 1980s , the four brothers appeared as a quartet on TV . In April 1979 , they appeared on the BBC comedy series Lennie and Jerry hosted by Lennie Bennett and Jerry Stevens . They made two appearances on the game show 3-2-1 , hosted by Ted Rogers , in January 1980 and April 1982 respectively . On Christmas Day in 1980 , they took part in a televised children 's show which saw the Brothers entertaining around 250 children from the Leeds area in Yeadon Town Hall . \n \n They did not have further success until the launch of the BBC television show , Chuckle Hounds , in 1985 . These short programmes , which were aimed at pre-school children and contained no dialogue , had the brothers dressed up in giant dog costumes . In 1987 , the Brothers began their most famous show , ChuckleVision , which lasted for twenty-one series over twenty-two years . The series ended its run in December 2009 . In 1998 , ChuckleVision was nominated for a Children 's BAFTA Award in the category `` Best Children 's Television Series '' . Real-life siblings Jimmy and Brian Patton also made regular appearances in the show . \n \n From 1996 to 1998 the Chuckle Brothers also presented a children 's game show titled To Me , To You ! , named after their signature catchphrase . The format , which incorporated a `` treasure island '' theme , involved two teams who participated in rounds competing for prizes on a shopping trolley ( which was made to resemble a bamboo structure ) . By rolling a die , the teams had to draw the trolley to their end of the playing board ; the `` squares '' on the path to both ends represented challenges . When this was achieved , new prizes were added to the trolley , which was reset to the middle of the board . \n \n In May 2008 , the brothers appeared in the BBC documentary series Comedy Map of Britain . They appeared in the TV series Celebrity Coach Trip in November 2010 and won the show , lasting the whole trip . In November 2011 , they starred in a series of TV advertisements for the UK-based van insurance comparison website , Van Compare . In October 2012 , they appeared on Comedy World Cup on Channel 4 . On 15 March 2013 , they were featured in David Walliams ' sketch for Comic Relief , in which Walliams knocked on the brothers ' door with important information to give to them ; Paul responded with `` To me ? '' \n \n Since the 2013 Christmas Special , Barry has made regular appearances on Still Open All Hours as Dog owner , Mr Marshall . \n \n Stage \n \n As well as regular TV appearances , Paul and Barry have appeared on stage in venues across the UK . Their past comedy and parody shows have included The Blackpool Tower Circus ( 1974 )", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 150, "text": "barry chuckle" } ], "id": "odql_7521--Chuckle_Brothers.txt", "qid": "odql_7521", "question": "How are the comedians Paul and Barry Elliot better known?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Astrid Peth is a fictional character played by Kylie Minogue in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who . She is a one-off companion of the Tenth Doctor who appears in the episode `` Voyage of the Damned '' , which was first broadcast in the UK on 25 December 2007 . Minogue 's casting in the role was a major coup for Doctor Who , her fame attracting much publicity for `` Voyage of the Damned '' . Subsequently , much of the episode 's success in terms of viewing figures was attributed to Minogue 's appearance in the role . \n \n Conception \n \n Russell T Davies announced that Astrid Peth would be the next companion after Martha Jones ( played by Freema Agyeman ) on 14 August 2007 . Astrid 's surname , Peth , was confirmed in the Christmas edition of Radio Times . Davies has stated that the character was always going to be a `` one-off '' even before Minogue was cast and that Astrid would demonstrate `` a whole new take – again – on what a companion can be '' . The name Astrid Peth generated some speculation before the episode 's broadcast over the findings that Astrid is an anagram of TARDIS , and that Peth means thing in Welsh . However , the episode established no such connection . On Doctor Who Confidential , Minogue describes Astrid as a `` dreamer '' and that meeting with the Doctor rekindles Astrid 's desire to explore . Later in his book A Writer 's Tale Davies discussed with co-author Benjamin Cook how he had originally named the character `` Peth '' in a treatment but it bugged him , he later renamed her to `` Astrid '' giving the reason that it `` ... sounds more spacey , more like a futuristing Doctor 's companion '' . \n \n Character history \n \n Astrid appears in the episode `` Voyage of the Damned '' . She is introduced aboard the starship Titanic as a waitress from the planet Sto with a dream of seeing the stars . Meeting the Tenth Doctor aboard Titanic , she quickly befriends him . She accompanies the Doctor ( David Tennant ) on a trip organised by Titanics resident historian , Mr Copper ( Clive Swift ) , teleporting with some Titanic passengers down to Earth where she and the Doctor meet Wilfred Mott ( Bernard Cribbins ) . Upon their return to the ship , she and the Doctor discover the plan of Max Capricorn ( George Costigan ) to destroy the Titanic , its passengers and the nearby people of Earth with his villainous angelic robots , the Host . As they attempt to save the ship , Astrid grows increasingly fond of the Doctor , kissing him as part of what she assures is an `` old tradition '' on Sto . In the episode 's climax , Astrid sacrifices herself to save the Doctor from Capricorn by driving Capricorn off a platform with a forklift truck and both appear to fall to their deaths . Later , realising Astrid was still wearing a teleporter bracelet , the Doctor attempts to recall her atoms in an attempt to resurrect her , but there is insufficient power aboard the damaged Titanic to do so . Astrid reappears spectral and bewildered , as the Doctor gives her a goodbye kiss before freeing her sentient atoms ( described as `` stardust '' ) to roam space as energy . \n \n In `` Journey 's End '' , Davros taunts the Doctor about the countless people who have died for him . A clip from `` Voyage of the Damned '' featuring Astrid is shown as part of a montage . \n \n Casting \n \n The BBC officially announced that Minogue was to feature as Astrid in the episode `` Voyage of the Damned '' on 3 July 2007 . The official announcement followed rumours regarding Minogue 's casting having already circulated in the press , although the episode 's writer Russell T Davies had denied these rumours in in-house BBC publication Ariel in an attempt to keep the news secret for longer . Furthermore , Minogue herself had confirmed that she would be appearing in the episode in InStyle magazine , whilst the London paper Standard Lite published a photograph of Minogue 's creative director Will Baker carrying a 'to do list ' with a note about a Doctor Who script on it , thus indicating that Minogue would be in the episode . Minogue had also been sighted filming for Doctor Who by members of the public before the official announcement of her casting . Baker , a long-term Doctor Who", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 47, "text": "kylie minogue" } ], "id": "qb_1814--Astrid_Peth.txt", "qid": "qb_1814", "question": "Which female singer starred as Astrid Peth in the 2007 ‘Dr Who’ Christmas special?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Bree Van de Kamp ( also known in the series as Bree Hodge and Bree Weston ) is a fictional character and one of the four protagonists on the ABC television series Desperate Housewives . She is played by actress Marcia Cross , who has received multiple awards and nominations for her portrayal , including an Emmy Award nomination , three Golden Globe Award nominations , and two Screen Actors Guild Awards . Cross ' portrayal of Bree has been widely praised by critics and fans . \n \n Cross originally auditioned for the role of Mary Alice Young , but series creator Marc Cherry thought she was better suited for the role of Bree . Dana Delany , who eventually was cast as Katherine Mayfair , was originally chosen for the role but turned it down , saying it was too similar to her role in Pasadena . Bree 's main struggle throughout the series has been her attempts to maintain a perfect life despite various obstacles such as widowhood , divorce , and alcoholism hindering her . She has been married three times ; to Rex Van de Kamp ( Steven Culp ) , Orson Hodge ( Kyle MacLachlan ) and Trip Weston ( Scott Bakula ) . \n \n Character profile \n \n Bree Van de Kamp is one of the four main protagonists in Desperate Housewives . Bree grew up in Rhode Island when her father married a woman named Eleanor , after her mother 's death , with whom she did not get along . In order to escape her stepmother 's demands , Bree left for Lake Forest College near Chicago . Bree also mentioned on one of Eleanor 's visits that she had to work for every kind word she ever was given from her step-mother . Bree met Rex Van de Kamp at a meeting of the Young Republicans . After they graduated , they married and had two children , Andrew and Danielle , and moved to Fairview . \n \n Bree is recognized for her perfectionist attitude and work ethic , which at times border on neurosis and obsessive–compulsive disorder . While the writers have shied away from an official diagnosis , the character is recognised as suffering from obsessive–compulsive personality disorder . The character herself refers to her `` quirks '' in terms of anal retentiveness but Rex once mentioned it by the name . Bree 's perfectionism may stem from when her mother was killed in a hit and run : a 10-year-old Bree cleaned her blood off the road outside the house . She said that once everything was spotless , she felt much better . \n \n Bree is known for her homemaking talents on the level of Martha Stewart , particularly her gourmet meals , breakfast treats and pineapple bran muffins . She is also well-versed in firearm training ; she owns four guns and is a card-carrying member of the National Rifle Association . Bree supports the Republican Party , as stated in the season 3 opener , and is also known for being a member of the local Presbyterian Church , as shown in the episode Sunday . Her neighbours Angie Bolen , Gabrielle Solis and Renee Perry have nicknamed her 'Nancy Reagan ' on occasions . She has lived at 4354 Wisteria Lane in Fairview since 1994 and is also said to have a timeshare residence in Aspen that she never uses . \n Bree is based on creator Marc Cherry 's own mother , and the Van de Kamp family is based on the family in which he grew up . Bree 's family was based on Marc Cherry 's teen years , while Lynette Scavo 's family is based on Marc Cherry 's childhood years . Bree and her first husband , Rex , were both named after the overtly vain characters on two of Marc Cherry 's previous failed sitcoms , The 5 Mrs. Buchanans ( Bree ) and The Crew ( Rex ) . \n \n Both of Bree 's marriages have broken down and ended in divorce ( Rex , however , died before their divorce was finalized ) . Following the request for divorce , both of Bree 's former husbands attempted reconciliation with her . Rex succeeded , whereas her second husband Orson Hodge did not . During the breakdown of her second marriage , Bree had an affair with Karl Mayer , her divorce lawyer and ex-husband of her friend , Susan Delfino . Bree , however , did remarry in the series finale to her lawyer , Trip Weston , making him her third husband . \n \n Bree is the only one of the main four housewives not to appear in every", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 211, "text": "marcia cross" } ], "id": "qw_11124--Bree_Van_de_Kamp.txt", "qid": "qw_11124", "question": "\"Who plays Bree Van De Kamp in the US TV series \"\"Desperate Housewives\"\"?\"" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Sun Myung Moon ( Korean 문선명 Mun Seon-myeong ; born Mun Yong-myeong ; 25 February 1920 – 3 September 2012 ) was a Korean religious leader , businessman , political activist , and media mogul . A messiah claimant , he was the founder of the Unification Church ( members of which called him their True Father , and have themselves sometimes been called `` Moonies '' ) , and of its widely noted `` Blessing '' or mass wedding ceremony , and the author of its unique theology the Divine Principle . [ http : //religion.blogs.cnn.com/2012/09/03/my-take-moons-death-marks-end-of-an-era/ Moon ’ s death marks end of an era ] , Eileen Barker , CNN , 2012-9-3 , Although Moon is likely to be remembered for all these things – mass weddings , accusations of brainwashing , political intrigue and enormous wealth – he should also be remembered as creating what was arguably one of the most comprehensive and innovative theologies embraced by a new religion of the period . He was an ardent anti-communist and advocate for Korean reunification , for which he was recognized by the governments of both South and North Korea . His business interests included News World Communications , an international news media corporation known for its American subsidiary The Washington Times , News World Communications is the media arm of Reverend Sun Myung Moon ’ s Unification Church . \n Holdings \n Newspapers and Magazines \n GolfStyles Magazine \n Middle Eastern Times \n The Segye Ilbo ( South Korea ) \n The Sekai Nippo ( Tokyo ) \n Tiempos del Mundo ( Online Only ) \n The World and I \n Wire Service \n United Press International ( UPI ) and Tongil Group , a South Korean business group ( chaebol ) , as well as various affiliated organizations . \n \n Moon was born in what is now North Korea . When he was a child , his family converted to Christianity . In 1947 he was convicted by the North Korean government of spying for South Korea and given a five-year sentence to the Hŭngnam labor camp . In 1954 , he founded the Unification Church in Seoul , South Korea based on conservative , family-oriented teachings from new interpretations of the Bible . In 1971 , he moved to the United States and became well-known after giving a series of public speeches on his beliefs . In the 1982 case United States v. Sun Myung Moon he was charged by the United States government with willfully filing false federal income tax returns , found guilty in a jury trial , and sentenced to 18 months in federal prison . His case generated protests from clergy and civil libertarians . \n \n Critics labeled Moon a cult leader , who made high demands on his followers . His wedding ceremonies also drew criticism , especially after they involved members of other churches , including Roman Catholic archbishop Emmanuel Milingo . He was also criticized for his relationships with political and religious figures , including Presidents of the United States Richard Nixon , George H. W. Bush and George W. Bush , Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev , North Korean President Kim Il Sung , and Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan . \n \n Early life \n \n Sun Myung Moon was born Mun Yong-myeong on 25 February 1920 , in modern-day North P'yŏng'an Province , North Korea , at a time when Korea was under Japanese rule . He was the younger of two sons in a farming family of eight children . Moon 's family rejected the Shinto faith pushed by the country ’ s Japanese rulers and followed Confucianist beliefs until he was around 10 years old , when they converted to Christianity and joined the Presbyterian Church . \n \n In 1941 , Moon began studying electrical engineering at Waseda University in Japan . During this time he cooperated with Communist Party members in the Korean independence movement against Imperial Japan . In 1943 , he returned to Seoul and married Sun Kil Choi on 28 April 1945 . On 2 April 1946 their son , Sung Jin Moon was born . Around this time he changed his given name to Seon-myeong . \n \n Following World War II , Korea was divided along the 38th parallel into two trusteeships : the United States and the Soviet Union . Pyongyang was the center of Christian activity in Korea until 1945 . From the late forties 166 priests and other religious figures were killed or disappeared in concentration camps , including Francis Hong Yong-ho , bishop of Pyongyang and all monks of Tokwon abbey . In 1947 Moon was convicted by the North Korean government of spying for South Korea and given a", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 1636, "text": "south korean" } ], "id": "dpql_5155--Sun_Myung_Moon.txt", "qid": "dpql_5155", "question": "In 1954, Sun Myung Moon founded the Unification Church in which country?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Opera ( ; English plural : operas ; Italian plural : opere ) is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text ( libretto ) and musical score , usually in a theatrical setting . In traditional opera , singers do two types of singing : recitative , a speech-inflected style and arias , a more melodic style . Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre , such as acting , scenery , and costumes and sometimes includes dance . The performance is typically given in an opera house , accompanied by an orchestra or smaller musical ensemble , which since the early 19th century has been led by a conductor . \n \n Opera is part of the Western classical music tradition . It started in Italy at the end of the 16th century ( with Jacopo Peri 's lost Dafne , produced in Florence in 1598 ) and soon spread through the rest of Europe : Schütz in Germany , Lully in France , and Purcell in England all helped to establish their national traditions in the 17th century . In the 18th century , Italian opera continued to dominate most of Europe ( except France ) , attracting foreign composers such as Handel . Opera seria was the most prestigious form of Italian opera , until Gluck reacted against its artificiality with his `` reform '' operas in the 1760s . In the 2000s , the most renowned figure of late 18th-century opera is Mozart , who began with opera seria but is most famous for his Italian comic operas , especially The Marriage of Figaro ( Le Nozze Di Figaro ) , Don Giovanni , and Così fan tutte , as well as The Magic Flute ( Die Zauberflöte ) , a landmark in the German tradition . \n \n The first third of the 19th century saw the high point of the bel canto style , with Rossini , Donizetti and Bellini all creating works that are still performed in the 2000s It also saw the advent of Grand Opera typified by the works of Auber and Meyerbeer . The mid-to-late 19th century was a `` golden age '' of opera , led and dominated by Wagner in Germany and Verdi in Italy . The popularity of opera continued through the verismo era in Italy and contemporary French opera through to Puccini and Strauss in the early 20th century . During the 19th century , parallel operatic traditions emerged in central and eastern Europe , particularly in Russia and Bohemia . The 20th century saw many experiments with modern styles , such as atonality and serialism ( Schoenberg and Berg ) , Neoclassicism ( Stravinsky ) , and Minimalism ( Philip Glass and John Adams ) . With the rise of recording technology , singers such as Enrico Caruso and Maria Callas became known to much wider audiences that went beyond the circle of opera fans . Since the invention of radio and television , operas were also performed on ( and written for ) these mediums . Beginning in 2006 , a number of major opera houses began to present live high-definition video transmissions of their performances in cinemas around the world . In 2009 , an opera company offered an online download of a complete performance . \n \n Operatic terminology \n \n The words of an opera are known as the libretto ( literally `` small book '' ) . Some composers , notably Richard Wagner , have written their own libretti ; others have worked in close collaboration with their librettists , e.g . Mozart with Lorenzo Da Ponte . Traditional opera , often referred to as `` number opera '' , consists of two modes of singing : recitative , the plot-driving passages sung in a style designed to imitate and emphasize the inflections of speech , and aria ( an `` air '' or formal song ) in which the characters express their emotions in a more structured melodic style . Vocal duets , trios and other ensembles often occur , and choruses are used to comment on the action . In some forms of opera , such as singspiel , opéra comique , operetta , and semi-opera , the recitative is mostly replaced by spoken dialogue . Melodic or semi-melodic passages occurring in the midst of , or instead of , recitative , are also referred to as arioso . The terminology of the various kinds of operatic voices is described in detail below . During both the Baroque and Classical periods , recitative could appear in two basic forms , each of which was accompanied by a different instrumental ensemble : secco ( dry ) recitative , sung with", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "odql_10172--Opera.txt", "qid": "odql_10172", "question": "\"The aria \"\"Vesti La Giubba\"\" (on with the Motley) comes from which Opera?\"" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Breach of promise is a common law tort , abolished in many jurisdictions . It was also called breach of contract to marry , N.Y . Civil Rights Act article 8 , §§ 80-A to 84. and the remedy awarded was known as heart balm . \n \n From at least medieval times until the early 20th century , a man 's promise of engagement to marry a woman was considered , in many jurisdictions , a legally binding contract . If the man were to subsequently change his mind , he would be said to be in `` breach '' of this promise and subject to litigation for damages . \n \n The converse of this was seldom true ; the concept that `` it 's a woman 's prerogative to change her mind '' had at least some basis in law ( though a woman might pay a high social price for exercising this privilege , as explained below ) —and unless an actual dowry of money or property had changed hands , a man was only rarely able to recover in a `` breach of promise '' suit against a woman , were he even allowed to file one . \n \n Changing social attitudes toward morals have led to the decline of this sort of action . Most jurisdictions , at least in the English-speaking , common law world , have become increasingly reluctant to intervene in cases of personal relationships not involving the welfare of children or actual violence . Many have repealed all laws regarding such eventualities ; whereas in others the statute allowing such an action may technically remain on the books but the action has become very rare and unlikely to be pursued with any probability of success . What is arising in its stead are judicial opinions and/or statutes permitting a breach of contract action for wedding expenses incurred when the nuptials are called off ( see the Leighton settlement below ) , or for loss of employment , moving and living expenses incurred by one party as a result of an engagement which is later broken ( see the Shell case below ) . \n \n However about one-half of U.S. states still permit such lawsuits , according to the National Paralegal College . Recent examples of suits include the jury award of $ 150,000 in the 2008 Shell case in Georgia , and $ 130,000 in the North Carolina jury trial December 17 , 2010 in the case of Dellinger v. Barnes ( No . 08 CVS 1006 ) . Recent settlement actions include 2011 's Serafin v. Leighton in Chicago , Illinois , which proved favorable to the female plaintiff . \n \n Cause of action \n \n A breach of promise suit required a legally valid marriage engagement . Under Nevada law , this need not be in writing ( as a prenuptial agreement is required to be ) , but may have been made verbally by both parties . All that is required is that each have promised the other to marry the other at some future time ( no date certain is required ) . Generally , promises made by—but not to—people who had not reached the age of majority could be broken at any time , without penalty , as could the promise made by a married person ( e.g. , conditional upon the death of the current spouse ) , so long as the other party knew that the person was married at the time . Similarly , an engagement between people who were not legally permitted to marry ( e.g. , because of consanguinity laws ) was invalid . \n \n Valid engagements could be broken without penalty by either party upon discovery of significant and material facts , such as previously unknown financial state ( if completely concealed , rather than partially revealed : the Shell case in Georgia in 2008 permitted a jury award to the woman of $ 150,000 although the man breaking the engagement stated that he did so after paying $ 30,000 of her debts when he discovered she still owed more ) , bad character , fraud , too-close blood relations , or the absolute physical or mental incapacity of the betrothed . In South Africa , engagements could be dissolved by mutual agreement . Impotence , sterility , criminality , and alcoholism also formed valid reasons to end an engagement . Additionally , the person refusing to marry was unable to sue for breach of promise . \n \n Some of the original theory behind this tort was based on the idea that a woman would be more likely to give up her virginity to a man if she had his promise to marry her", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "sfq_16649--Breach_of_promise.txt", "qid": "sfq_16649", "question": "In The Pickwick Papers, what is the name of Pickwick's landlady who sues him for breach of promise?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Panama ( ; ) , officially called the Republic of Panama ( ) , is a transcontinental country situated between North and South America . It is bordered by Costa Rica to the west , Colombia to the southeast , the Caribbean to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south . The capital and largest city is Panama City , whose metropolitan area is home to nearly half of the country 's 3.9 million people . \n \n Panama was inhabited by several indigenous tribes prior to settlement by the Spanish in the 16th century . Panama broke away from Spain in 1821 and joined a union of Nueva Granada , Ecuador , and Venezuela named the Republic of Gran Colombia . When Gran Colombia dissolved in 1831 , Panama and Nueva Granada remained joined , eventually becoming the Republic of Colombia . With the backing of the United States , Panama seceded from Colombia in 1903 , allowing the Panama Canal to be built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers between 1904 and 1914 . In 1977 , an agreement was signed for the total transfer of the Canal from the United States to Panama by the end of the 20th century , which culminated on 31 December 1999 . \n \n Revenue from canal tolls continues to represent a significant portion of Panama 's GDP , although commerce , banking , and tourism are major and growing sectors . In 2015 , Panama ranked 60th in the world in terms of the Human Development Index . Since 2010 , Panama remains the second most competitive economy in Latin America , according to the World Economic Forum 's Global Competitiveness Index . Covering around 40 percent of its land area , Panama 's jungles are home to an abundance of tropical plants and animals – some of them to be found nowhere else on the planet . \n \n Etymology \n \n There are several theories about the origin of the name `` Panama '' . Some believe that the country was named after a commonly found species of tree ( Sterculia apetala , the Panama tree ) . Others believe that the first settlers arrived in Panama in August , when butterflies abound , and that the name means `` many butterflies '' in an indigenous language . \n \n The best-known version is that a fishing village and its nearby beach bore the name `` Panamá '' , which meant `` an abundance of fish '' . Captain Antonio Tello de Guzmán , while exploring the Pacific side in 1515 , stopped in the small indigenous fishing town . In 1517 Don Gaspar De Espinosa , a Spanish lieutenant , decided to settle a post there . In 1519 , Pedrarias Dávila decided to establish the Empire 's Pacific city in this site . The new settlement replaced Santa María La Antigua del Darién , which had lost its function within the Crown 's global plan after the beginning of the Spanish exploitation of the riches in the Pacific . \n \n Blending all of the above together , Panamanians believe in general that the word Panama means `` abundance of fish , trees and butterflies '' . This is the official definition given in social studies textbooks approved by the Ministry of Education in Panama . However , others believe the word Panama comes from the Kuna word `` bannaba '' which means `` distant '' or `` far away '' . \n \n History \n \n At the time of the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century , the known inhabitants of Panama included the Cuevas and the Coclé tribes . These people have nearly disappeared , as they had no immunity from European infectious diseases . \n \n Pre-Columbian period \n \n The Isthmus of Panama was formed about 3 million years ago when the land bridge between North and South America finally closed and plants and animals gradually crossed it in both directions . The existence of the isthmus affected the dispersal of people , agriculture and technology throughout the American continent from the appearance of the first hunters and collectors to the era of villages and cities . \n \n The earliest discovered artifacts of indigenous peoples in Panama include Paleo-Indians projectile points . Later central Panama was home to some of the first pottery-making in the Americas , for example the cultures at Monagrillo , which date back to 2500–1700 BC . These evolved into significant populations best known through their spectacular burials ( dating to c. 500–900 AD ) at the Monagrillo archaeological site , and their beautiful Gran Coclé style polychrome pottery . The monumental monolithic sculptures at the Barriles ( Chiriqui ) site", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 178, "text": "colombia" } ], "id": "jp_1894--Panama.txt", "qid": "jp_1894", "question": "What country lies directly south of Panama?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Prince Lev Nikolaevich Myshkin ( Князь Лев Никола́евич Мы́шкин ) is the protagonist of Fyodor Dostoyevsky 's novel The Idiot . Dostoyevsky wanted to create a character that was `` entirely positive ... with an absolutely beautiful nature '' , someone who was like Christ . According to Joseph Frank , the character of Prince Myshkin approaches `` the extremest incarnation of the Christian ideal of love that humanity can reach in its present form , but he is torn apart by the conflict between the contradictory imperatives of his apocalyptic aspirations and his earthly limitations . '' \n \n Prince Myshkin has been in Switzerland for the last four years , at a sanatorium for treatment of his epilepsy . At age 26 , having recovered his health , and in possession of a legal document suggesting entitlement to a significant inheritance , he returns to Russia . In St. Petersburg , his purity and guilelessness lead many to the false conclusion that he is an `` idiot '' . In fact he possesses an incisive intellect , deep emotional intelligence , and a wisdom that surpasses all the other characters in the novel .", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 94, "text": "dostoyevsky" } ], "id": "qb_2643--Prince_Myshkin.txt", "qid": "qb_2643", "question": "Prince Lev Nikolaevich Myshkin was created by which author?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Illinois ( ) is a state in the midwestern region of the United States . It is the 5th most populous state and 25th largest state in terms of land area , and is often noted as a microcosm of the entire country . With Chicago in the northeast , small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois , and natural resources like coal , timber , and petroleum in the south , Illinois has a diverse economic base and is a major transportation hub . The Port of Chicago connects the state to other global ports from the Great Lakes , via the Saint Lawrence Seaway , to the Atlantic Ocean , as well as the Great Lakes to the Mississippi River , via the Illinois River . For decades , O'Hare International Airport has been ranked as one of the world 's busiest airports . Illinois has long had a reputation as a bellwether both in social and cultural terms and politics . \n \n Although today the state 's largest population center is around Chicago in the northern part of the state , the state 's European population grew first in the west , with French Canadians who settled along the Mississippi River , and gave the area the name , Illinois . After the American Revolutionary War established the United States , American settlers began arriving from Kentucky in the 1810s via the Ohio River , and the population grew from south to north . In 1818 , Illinois achieved statehood . After construction of the Erie Canal increased traffic and trade through the Great Lakes , Chicago was founded in the 1830s on the banks of the Chicago River , at one of the few natural harbors on southern Lake Michigan . John Deere 's invention of the self-scouring steel plow turned Illinois ' rich prairie into some of the world 's most productive and valuable farmlands , attracting immigrant farmers from Germany and Sweden . Railroads carried immigrants to new homes , as well as being used to ship their commodity crops out to markets . \n \n By 1900 , the growth of industrial jobs in the northern cities and coal mining in the central and southern areas attracted immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe . Illinois was an important manufacturing center during both world wars . The Great Migration from the South established a large community of African Americans in Chicago , who created the city 's famous jazz and blues cultures . \n \n Three U.S. presidents have been elected while living in Illinois : Abraham Lincoln , Ulysses S. Grant , and Barack Obama . Additionally , Ronald Reagan , whose political career was based in California , was the only U.S. president born and raised in Illinois . Today , Illinois honors Lincoln with its official state slogan , Land of Lincoln , which has been displayed on its license plates since 1954 . The Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum is located in the state capital of Springfield . \n \n Etymology \n \n `` Illinois '' is the modern spelling for the early French Catholic missionaries and explorers ' name for the Illinois Native Americans , a name that was spelled in many different ways in the early records . \n \n American scholars previously thought the name `` Illinois '' meant `` man '' or `` men '' in the Miami-Illinois language , with the original iliniwek transformed via French into Illinois . This etymology is not supported by the Illinois language , as the word for 'man ' is ireniwa and plural 'men ' is ireniwaki . The name Illiniwek has also been said to mean `` tribe of superior men '' , which is a false etymology . The name `` Illinois '' derives from the Miami-Illinois verb irenwe·wa `` he speaks the regular way '' . This was taken into the Ojibwe language , perhaps in the Ottawa dialect , and modified into ilinwe· ( pluralized as ilinwe·k ) . The French borrowed these forms , changing the /we/ ending to spell it as -ois , a transliteration for its pronunciation in French of that time . The current spelling form , Illinois , began to appear in the early 1670s , when French colonists had settled in the western area . The Illinois ' name for themselves , as attested in all three of the French missionary-period dictionaries of Illinois , was Inoka , of unknown meaning and unrelated to the other terms . \n \n History \n \n Pre-European \n \n American Indians of successive cultures lived along the waterways of the Illinois area for thousands of years before the arrival of Europeans . The Koster Site", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 2853, "text": "springfield" } ], "id": "bt_3833--Illinois.txt", "qid": "bt_3833", "question": "What is the state capital of Illinois" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Uruguay ( ; ) , officially the Oriental Republic of the Uruguay ( ) , is a country in the southeastern region of South America . It is bordered by Argentina to its west and Brazil to its north and east , with the Río de la Plata ( River of Silver ) to the south and with the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast . Uruguay is home to an estimated 3.42 million people , of whom 1.8 million live in the metropolitan area of its capital and largest city , Montevideo . With an area of approximately 176000 km2 , Uruguay is geographically the second-smallest nation in South America after Suriname . \n \n Uruguay was inhabited by the Charrúa people for approximately 4000 years before the Portuguese established Colonia del Sacramento , one of the oldest European settlements in the country , in 1680 . Montevideo was founded as a military stronghold by the Spanish in the early 18th century , signifying the competing claims over the region . Uruguay won its independence between 1811 and 1828 , following a four-way struggle between Spain , Portugal , Argentina and Brazil . It remained subject to foreign influence and intervention throughout the 19th century , with the military playing a recurring role in domestic politics until the late 20th century . Modern Uruguay is a democratic constitutional republic , with a president who serves as both head of state and head of government . \n \n Uruguay is ranked first in Latin America in democracy , peace , lack of corruption , e-government , [ http : //unpan3.un.org/egovkb/Data-Center Data Center ] and is first in South America when it comes to press freedom , size of the middle class and prosperity . On a per-capita basis , Uruguay contributes more troops to United Nations peace-keeping missions than any other country . It ranks second in the region on economic freedom , income equality , per-capita income and inflows of FDI . Uruguay is the third-best country on the continent in terms of HDI , GDP growth , innovation and infrastructure . It is regarded as a high-income country ( top group ) by the UN . Uruguay is also the third-best ranked in the world in e-Participation . \n Uruguay is an important global exporter of combed wool , rice , soybeans , frozen beef , malt and milk . \n \n The Economist named Uruguay `` country of the year '' in 2013 , acknowledging the innovative policy of legalizing the production , sale and consumption of cannabis . Same-sex marriage and abortion are also legal , leading Uruguay to be regarded as one of the most liberal nations in the world , and one of the most socially developed , outstanding regionally , and ranking highly on global measures of personal rights , tolerance , and inclusion issues . [ http : //www.socialprogressimperative.org/en/data/spi/components/com9 # performance/countries/com9/com11 The Social Progress Imperative ] \n \n Etymology \n \n The name of the namesake river comes from the Spanish pronunciation of the regional Guarani word for it . There are several interpretations , including `` bird-river '' ( `` the river of the ' '' , via Charruan , ' being a common noun of any wild fowl ) . \n The name could also refer a river snail called ' ( Pomella megastoma ) that was plentiful in the water . \n \n In Spanish colonial times , and for some time thereafter , Uruguay and some neighbouring territories were called the Cisplatina and ' ( `` East Bank [ of the river Uruguay ] '' ) , then for a few years the `` Eastern Province '' , and after independence ultimately became ' , translated either as the `` Oriental Republic of Uruguay '' or the `` Eastern Republic of Uruguay '' . \n \n History \n \n The only documented inhabitants of Uruguay before European colonization of the area were the Charrúa , a small tribe driven south by the Guarani of Paraguay . \n \n Early colonisation \n \n The Portuguese discovered the region of present-day Uruguay in 1512 . [ https : //books.google.com/books ? hl \n pt-PT & idJH9SIogNd3sC & q \n San+Matias # vsnippet & q \n San % 20Matias & ffalse ] The Spanish arrived in present-day Uruguay in 1516 . The indigenous peoples ' fierce resistance to conquest , combined with the absence of gold and silver , limited their settlement in the region during the 16th and 17th centuries . Uruguay then became a zone of contention between the Spanish and Portuguese empires . In 1603 , the Spanish began to introduce cattle , which became a source of wealth in the region . The first permanent Spanish settlement was founded", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "qw_16405--Uruguay.txt", "qid": "qw_16405", "question": "What is the prevailing climate in Uruguay?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Milwaukee ( , ) is the largest city in the State of Wisconsin and the fifth-largest city in the Midwestern United States . The county seat of Milwaukee County , it is on Lake Michigan 's western shore . According to the 2010 census , Milwaukee has a population of . Milwaukee is the main cultural and economic center of the Milwaukee–Racine–Waukesha Metropolitan Area with a population of as of an official 2014 estimate . \n \n The first Europeans to pass through the area were French Catholic missionaries and fur traders . In 1818 , the French Canadian explorer Solomon Juneau settled in the area , and in 1846 Juneau 's town combined with two neighboring towns to incorporate as the City of Milwaukee . Large numbers of German immigrants helped increase the city 's population during the 1840s , with Poles and other immigrants arriving in the following decades . \n \n Known for its brewing traditions , major new additions to the city include the Milwaukee Riverwalk , the Wisconsin Center , Miller Park , an expansion to the Milwaukee Art Museum , Milwaukee Repertory Theater , and Pier Wisconsin , as well as major renovations to the UW–Milwaukee Panther Arena . In addition , many new skyscrapers , condos , lofts and apartments have been built in neighborhoods on and near the lakefront and riverbanks . \n \n History \n \n American Indian Milwaukee \n \n The first recorded inhabitants of the Milwaukee area are the Menominee , Fox , Mascouten , Sauk , Potawatomi , Ojibwe ( all Algic/Algonquian peoples ) and Ho-Chunk ( Winnebago ) ( a Siouan people ) Native American tribes . Many of these people had lived around Green Bay before migrating to the Milwaukee area around the time of European contact . \n \n In the second half of the 18th century , the Indians at Milwaukee played a role in all the major wars on the American continent . During the French and Indian War , a group of `` Ojibwas and Pottawattamies from the far [ Lake ] Michigan '' ( i.e. , the area from Milwaukee to Green Bay ) joined the French-Canadian Daniel Liénard de Beaujeu at the Battle of the Monongahela . In the American Revolutionary War , the Indians around Milwaukee were some of the few Indians who remained loyal to the American cause throughout the Revolution . \n \n After American independence , the Indians fought the United States in the Northwest Indian War as part of the Council of Three Fires . During the War of 1812 , Indians held a council in Milwaukee in June 1812 , which resulted in their decision to attack Chicago . This resulted in the Battle of Fort Dearborn on August 15 , 1812 , the only known armed conflict in the Chicago area . The War of 1812 did not end well for the Indians , and after the Black Hawk War in 1832 , the Indians in Milwaukee signed their final treaty with the United States in Chicago in 1833 . This paved the way for American settlement . \n \n Milwaukee since European settlement \n \n Europeans had arrived in the Milwaukee area prior to the 1833 Treaty of Chicago . French missionaries and traders first passed through the area in the late 17th and 18th centuries . Alexis Laframboise , in 1785 , coming from Michilimackinac ( now in Michigan ) settled a trading post ; therefore , he is the first European descent resident of the Milwaukee region . The word `` Milwaukee '' may come from the Potawatomi language minwaking , or Ojibwe language ominowakiing , `` Gathering place [ by the water ] '' . Early explorers called the Milwaukee River and surrounding lands various names : Melleorki , Milwacky , Mahn-a-waukie , Milwarck , and Milwaucki . For many years , printed records gave the name as `` Milwaukie '' . One story of Milwaukee 's name says , \n \n The spelling `` Milwaukie '' lives on in Milwaukie , Oregon , named after the Wisconsin city in 1847 , before the current spelling was universally accepted . \n \n Milwaukee has three `` founding fathers '' : Solomon Juneau , Byron Kilbourn , and George H. Walker . Solomon Juneau was the first of the three to come to the area , in 1818 . He was not the first European settler ( Alexis Laframboise settled a trading post in 1785 ) but founded a town called Juneau 's Side , or Juneautown , that began attracting more settlers . In competition with Juneau , Byron Kilbourn established Kilbourntown west of the Milwaukee River , and made sure the streets running toward the river did not", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 52, "text": "wisconsin" } ], "id": "qf_2082--Milwaukee.txt", "qid": "qf_2082", "question": "Milwaukee is in which US state?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "A cameo role or cameo appearance ( ; often shortened to just cameo ) is a brief appearance or voice part of a known person in a work of the performing arts , typically unnamed or appearing as themselves . These roles are generally small , many of them non-speaking ones , and are commonly either appearances in a work in which they hold some special significance ( such as actors from an original movie appearing in its remake ) , or renowned people making uncredited appearances . Short appearances by celebrities , film directors , politicians , athletes or musicians are common . A crew member of the show or movie playing a minor role can be referred to as a cameo as well , such as Alfred Hitchcock 's frequently performed cameos . Stan Lee is also well-known for his cameo appearances in the Marvel Cinematic Universe . \n \n History , uses and examples \n \n Originally `` cameo role '' meant `` a small character part that stands out from the other minor parts '' . The Oxford English Dictionary connects this with the meaning `` a short literary sketch or portrait '' , which is based on the literal meaning of `` cameo '' . More recently , `` cameo '' has come to refer to any short appearances , whether as a character or as oneself , such as the examples below . \n \n Cameos are generally not credited because of their brevity , or a perceived mismatch between the celebrity 's stature and the film or TV show in which he or she is appearing . Many are publicity stunts . Others are acknowledgments of an actor 's contribution to an earlier work , as in the case of many film adaptations of TV series , or of remakes of earlier films . Others honour artists or celebrities known for work in a particular field . An example of a cameo appearance in Disney movies are the 2010 film Tangled and the 2013 film Frozen where Rapunzel and Eugene are among the guests coming to the palace for Elsa 's coronation . \n \n Possibly the best-known series of cameos was by the director Alfred Hitchcock , who made very brief appearances in most of his films . \n \n Cameos also occur in novels and other literary works . “ Literary cameos ” usually involve an established character from another work who makes a brief appearance to establish a shared universe setting , to make a point , or to offer homage . Balzac often employed this practice , as in his Comédie humaine . Sometimes a cameo features a historical person who `` drops in '' on fictional characters in a historical novel , as when Benjamin Franklin shares a beer with Phillipe Charboneau in The Bastard by John Jakes . \n \n A cameo appearance can be made by the author of a work to put a sort of personal `` signature '' on a story . Clive Cussler made appearances in his own thriller novels as a `` rough old man '' who advised action hero Dirk Pitt . Vladimir Nabokov often put himself in his novels ; for instance , the very minor character Vivian Darkbloom ( an anagram of the author 's name ) in Lolita . An example in comics is John Byrne 's Iron Fist # 8 , which features appearances by Byrne himself , Howard the Duck ( on a poster ) , Peter Parker and Mary Jane Watson , Sam McCloud , Fu Manchu , and Wolverine . \n \n Early appearances are often mistakenly considered as cameos . Sylvester Stallone appears in Woody Allen 's Bananas credited only as `` Subway Thug # 1 , '' five years before his breakout role in 1976 's Rocky . Other examples would be Elijah Wood in Back to the Future Part II and Samuel L. Jackson in The Exorcist III . These are early appearances of non-established actors . \n \n Film directors \n \n Quentin Tarantino provides cameos or small roles in some of his movies . \n \n Likewise , Peter Jackson has made brief cameos in all of his movies , except for his first feature-length movie Bad Taste in which he plays a main character , as well as The Battle of the Five Armies . For example , he plays a peasant eating a carrot in The Fellowship of the Ring and The Desolation of Smaug ; a Rohan warrior in The Two Towers and a pirate boatswain in The Return of the King . All four were non-speaking `` blink and you miss him '' appearances , although in the Extended Release of The Return of the", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 687, "text": "alfred hitchcock" } ], "id": "jp_1599--Cameo_appearance.txt", "qid": "jp_1599", "question": "Who made a cameo appearance in 39 movies directed by Alfred Hitchcock?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The metical ( plural : meticais ) is the currency of Mozambique , abbreviated with the symbol MZN or MTn . It is nominally divided into 100 centavos . \n The name metical comes from Arabic ( mithqāl ) , a unit of weight and an alternative name for the gold dinar coin that was used throughout much of Africa until the 19th century . \n \n History \n \n First metical ( MZM ) \n \n The metical ( MZM ) replaced the escudo at par on 16 June 1980 . It was divided into 100 centavos . The metical underwent severe inflation . After the revaluation of the Romanian leu , the metical briefly became the least valued currency unit , at a value of about 24,500 meticais per USD , until the Zimbabwean dollar took the title in late August 2005 . \n \n Second metical ( MZN ) \n \n On July 1 , 2006 , Mozambique redenominated the metical at a rate of 1000:1 . The new ISO 4217 code is MZN . New coins and banknotes were introduced on July 1 , 2006 , and the transitional period during which both old and new meticais could be used lasted until December 31 , 2006 . During the conversion , the new currency was locally abbreviated as MTn , but has since largely returned to MT . \n \n Old meticais were redeemed by the Bank of Mozambique for a period of six years , until December 31 , 2012 . \n \n Coins \n \n First metical \n \n In 1980 , coins were introduced in denominations of 50 centavos , 1 , 2½ , 5 , 10 and 20 meticais . The 50 centavos , 2½ and 5 meticais were minted in aluminium , with the 1 metical in brass and the 10 and 20 meticais in cupro-nickel . In 1986 , aluminium 1 , 10 , 20 and 50 meticais were introduced . A new coinage issued in 1994 was composed of 1 , 5 , 10 , 20 , 50 , 100 , 500 and 1000 meticais , with the lower four denominations in brass clad steel and the higher denominations in nickel clad steel . 5000 meticais coins were introduced in 1998 , followed by 10,000 meticais in 2003 . \n \n Second metical \n \n From July 1 , 2006 , coins were issued in denominations of 1 , 5 , 10 , 20 , 50 centavos and 1 , 2 , 5 , 10 meticais . [ http : //worldcoinnews.blogspot.com/2006/06/mozambique-2006-new-coins.html ] \n \n Banknotes \n \n First metical \n \n The First Metical had three issues of notes as follows : \n i . In 1980 ( 16 June 1980 ) , notes were introduced in denominations of 50 , 100 , 500 and 1,000 meticais . \n ii The same notes and denominations were reissued in 1983 ( 16 June 1983 ) with the new state logo , 5,000 meticais notes were introduced in 1989 ( 3 February 1989 ) . \n iii . In 1991 ( 16 June 1991 ) 500 , 1,000 , 5,000 , and 10,000 notes were issued followed by 50,000 and 100,000 meticais in 1993 ( 16 June 1993 ) , 20,000 meticais in 1999 ( 16 June 1999 ) and 200,000 and 500,000 meticais in 2003 ( 16 June 2003 ) . \n \n Second metical \n \n From July 1 , 2006 , new banknotes were issued in denominations of 20 , 50 , 100 , 200 , 500 , and 1000 meticais . On October 1 , 2011 , Banco de Moçambique has issued a new family of banknotes that are similar to the 2006 series , but with enhanced security features . The three smaller denominations are now printed on polymer while the higher denominations remain printed on paper . The higher denominated metical banknotes are printed by De La Rue .", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 53, "text": "mozambique" } ], "id": "qb_1182--Metical.txt", "qid": "qb_1182", "question": "The metical is the basic monetary unit of which African country?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Julia Bradbury ( born 24 July 1970 ) is an English television presenter , employed by the BBC and ITV , specialising in documentaries and consumer affairs . \n \n She is most recognised for co-presenting the BBC One programme Countryfile with Matt Baker from 2004 until 2014 . \n \n Early life \n \n Bradbury 's English Derbyshire-born , steel-industry father Michael Bradbury and Greek mother were in the Republic of Ireland when Bradbury was born . The family returned to Britain , where she attended primary school in Edith Weston , Rutland , followed by King Edward VII School in Sheffield , where her father worked for British Steel Corporation and her mother ran a fashion business . Bradbury attended acting classes , and took part as a child in the Crucible Theatre 's stage production of Peter Pan , starring Joanne Whalley and Paula Wilcox . \n \n Bradbury left school at 16 after completing her O-levels . \n \n Career \n \n Television \n \n Bradbury started as a television presenter with Chrysalis TV , followed by L ! VE TV , before making the transition in 1996 from cable TV to terrestrial with GMTV as its Los Angeles correspondent . She has since presented Watchdog , Top Gear , [ http : //www.talktalk.co.uk/tv/switched-on/5-minutes-with/interview/julia-bradbury.html 5 minutes with ... Julia Bradbury ] TalkTalk Accidental Heroes , Wainwright Walks and Railway Walks for the BBC , as well as Rough Guide for Channel 5 . She has also presented Wish You Were Here ... ? for ITV [ http : //www.womenspeakers.co.uk/speakerdetail.asp ? speakerid415 Julia Bradbury ] womenspeakers.co.uk and anchored Exclusive ! for Five . [ http : //www.independent.co.uk/news/media/my-life-in-media-presenter-julia-bradbury-398186.html My Life In Media : Presenter Julia Bradbury ] The Independent , 29 October 2007 With Tim Vine , she presented the launch of Channel 5 in 1997 . \n \n Bradbury and co-host Arkin Salih hosted the BBC 's Are We Being Served ? , which examined customer service in the UK and ran for six programmes in the summer of 2006 . The show later received strong criticism from comedian Lee Mack when he named it as 'the most evil programme ever made ' during his appearance on TV Heaven , Telly Hell . \n \n From 2008 to 2011 , Bradbury presented four series of Kill It , Cook It , Eat It on BBC Three . The first series concentrated on commercially farmed animals such as chickens , pigs , sheep and cattle . The second series featured hunted wild game such as ducks , rabbits , deer and grouse . The third series focused on fast food ; a group of six people went through the process of killing , cooking and eating animals . The fourth series focused on how animal products from the first series are used outside of the meat trade . Bradbury was joined by young consumers to uncover the animal origins of many of western society 's favourite things as body parts were transformed from abattoir to shop display . \n \n From 2 March 2009 , Bradbury temporarily stepped down from BBC One 's Watchdog following allegations in the press concerning irregularities in her Virgin Atlantic frequent flyer account . Anita Rani stepped in to co-present the show with Nicky Campbell . On 15 April 2009 , Bradbury was cleared of any wrongdoing in the investigation , and it was confirmed that she would return to present Watchdog , which she did on 20 April 2009 . \n \n She did not have to repay £20,000 worth of Air Miles , as was incorrectly reported in several papers – her account ( and several others ) had been tampered with by an employee who was later arrested and charged . In April 2009 it was announced that Bradbury would present the relaunched primetime Countryfile with Matt Baker . Anne Robinson returned to Watchdog after an eight-year absence . \n \n In August 2007 , Bradbury presented Ultimate Britain – Climbing on BBC One , with rock climber Tim Emmett . Bradbury 's lifetime ambition to be a 'real ' rock climber was achieved when the pair successfully ascended Cornwall 's Commando Ridge , Crackstone Rib in the Llanberis Pass , and the Old Man of Stoer . \n \n That year , Bradbury also presented Wainwright Walks on BBC Four , in which she followed the mountain routes of the renowned fell walker and guidebook author Alfred Wainwright . The series was later repeated on BBC Two and ran for two series . Her appearance in this and the Railway Walks series earned her the title of `` Walking Man 's Totty '' . On 20 July 2009 her series Coast to Coast started on BBC Two . \n \n In", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 224, "text": "countryfile" } ], "id": "sfq_7208--Julia_Bradbury.txt", "qid": "sfq_7208", "question": "In which BBC magazine style TV programme do John Craven, Julia Bradbury and Matt Baker take part?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "John Stith Pemberton ( July 8 , 1831 – August 16 , 1888 ) was an American pharmacist , and is best known for being the inventor of Coca-Cola . \n \n Background \n \n Pemberton was born July 8 , 1831 , in Knoxville , Georgia , and spent most of his childhood in Rome , Georgia . His parents were James C. Pemberton and Martha L. Gant . He entered the Reform Medical College of Georgia in Macon , and in 1850 , at the age of nineteen , he was licensed to practice pharmacy . Shortly thereafter , he met Ann Eliza Clifford Lewis of Columbus , Georgia , known to her friends as `` Cliff '' , who had been a student at the Wesleyan College in Macon . They were married in Columbus in 1853 . Their only child , Charles Ney Pemberton , was born in 1854 . They lived in the Pemberton House in Columbus . \n \n During the American Civil War , Pemberton served in the Third Cavalry Battalion of the Georgia State Guard , which was at that time a component of the Confederate States Army . He achieved the rank of lieutenant colonel . \n \n Invention of Coca-Cola \n \n In April 1865 , Pemberton sustained a saber wound to the chest during the Battle of Columbus . He soon became addicted to the morphine used to ease his pain . \n \n In 1866 , seeking a cure for his addiction , he began to experiment with painkillers that would serve as opium-free alternatives to morphine . His first recipe was `` Dr. Tuggle 's Compound Syrup of Globe Flower '' , in which the active ingredient was derived from the buttonbush ( Cephalanthus occidentalis ) '' , a toxic plant which is common in Georgia . He next began experimenting with coca and coca wines , eventually creating a recipe which contained extracts of kola nut and damiana , which he called Pemberton 's French Wine Coca . \n \n According to Coca-Cola historian , Phil Mooney , Pemberton 's world-famous soda was `` created in Columbus , Georgia and carried to Atlanta '' . With public concern about the drug addiction , depression , and alcoholism among war veterans , and `` neurasthenia '' , as well as among `` highly-strung '' Southern women , Pemberton 's medicine was advertised as particularly beneficial for `` ladies , and all those whose sedentary employment causes nervous prostration '' . \n \n In 1886 , when Atlanta and Fulton County enacted temperance legislation , Pemberton found himself forced to produce a non-alcoholic alternative to his French Wine Coca . Pemberton relied on Atlanta drugstore owner-proprietor Willis E. Venable to test , and help him perfect , the recipe for the beverage , which he formulated by trial and error . With Venable 's assistance , Pemberton worked out a set of directions for its preparation that eventually included blending the base syrup with carbonated water by accident when trying to make another glass . Pemberton decided then to sell it as a fountain drink rather than a medicine . Frank Mason Robinson came up with the name `` Coca-Cola '' for the alliterative sound , which was popular among other wine medicines of the time . Although the name quite clearly refers to the two main ingredients , the controversy over its cocaine content would later prompt The Coca-Cola Company to state that the name was `` meaningless but fanciful '' . Robinson also hand wrote the Spencerian script on the bottles and ads . Pemberton made many health claims for his product , touting it as a `` valuable brain tonic '' that would cure headaches , relieve exhaustion and calm nerves , and marketed it as `` delicious , refreshing , pure joy , exhilarating '' , and `` invigorating '' . \n \n Pemberton sells the business \n \n Soon after Coca-Cola hit the market , Pemberton fell ill and nearly bankrupt . Sick and desperate , he began selling rights to his formula to his business partners in Atlanta . Part of his motivation to sell actually derived from his expensive continuing morphine addiction . Pemberton had a hunch that his formula `` some day will be a national drink '' , so he attempted to retain a share of the ownership to leave to his son . However , Pemberton 's son wanted the money , so in 1888 Pemberton and his son sold the remaining portion of the patent to Asa Candler . \n \n Death \n \n John Pemberton died from stomach cancer at age 57 in August 1888 . At the time of his death , he also suffered", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "jp_57--John_Pemberton.txt", "qid": "jp_57", "question": "\"What \"\"nerve tonic\"\" was created by John Pemberton of Atlanta, Georgia?\"" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "James Edmund Caan ( born March 26 , 1940 ) is an American actor . After early roles in The Glory Guys ( 1965 ) and El Dorado ( 1966 ) , he came to prominence in the 1970s with significant roles in films such as Brian 's Song ( 1971 ) , The Gambler ( 1974 ) , Funny Lady ( 1975 ) and A Bridge Too Far ( 1977 ) . For his signature role in The Godfather ( 1972 ) , that of hot-tempered Sonny Corleone , Caan was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the corresponding Golden Globe . \n \n Caan 's subsequent notable performances include roles in Thief ( 1981 ) , Misery ( 1990 ) , For the Boys ( 1991 ) , Bottle Rocket ( 1996 ) and Elf ( 2003 ) , as well as the role of `` Big Ed '' Deline in the television series Las Vegas ( 2003-08 ) . He also prominently lent his voice to Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs ( 2009 ) and Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 ( 2013 ) as Tim Lockwood , father of Bill Hader 's protagonist Flint Lockwood . \n \n Early life \n \n Caan was born on March 26 , 1940 in the Bronx , New York , the son of Sophie ( née Falkenstein ) and Arthur Caan , Jewish immigrants from Germany . His father was a meat dealer and butcher . Stated on Inside the Actors Studio , 2000 One of three siblings , Caan grew up in Sunnyside , Queens , New York City . He was educated in New York City , and later attended Michigan State University . He later transferred to Hofstra University in Hempstead , New York , but did not graduate . His classmates at Hofstra included Lainie Kazan and Francis Ford Coppola . \n \n While studying at Hofstra University , however , he became intrigued by acting and was interviewed for , accepted to , and graduated from , New York City 's Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre . There , one of his instructors was Sanford Meisner . He studied at the school for five years . \n \n Career \n \n 1961–1969 \n \n Caan began appearing on Off-Broadway before making his Broadway debut with Blood , Sweat and Stanley Poole . \n \n He began appearing in such television series as The Untouchables , The Alfred Hitchcock Hour , Kraft Suspense Theatre , Combat ! , Ben Casey , Dr. Kildare , The Wide Country , Alcoa Premiere , Route 66 , and Naked City . For example , in `` The Hunt '' on episode 9 , season 1 for Suspense Theater , he was the young surfer being hunted by the sadistic sheriff played by Mickey Rooney . \n \n In 1964 , he starred as Jewish athlete Jeff Brubaker in the episode `` My Son , the All-American '' of Channing , a drama about college life . His first substantial film role was as a punk hoodlum in the 1964 thriller Lady in a Cage , which starred Olivia de Havilland . In 1965 , he landed his first starring role , in Howard Hawks ' auto-racing drama Red Line 7000 . \n \n In 1966 , Caan appeared as Alan Bourdillion Traherne , aka Mississippi , in El Dorado , with John Wayne and Robert Mitchum . He had a starring role in Robert Altman 's second feature film , Countdown , in 1968 . In 1969 , he had an uncredited role as `` Rupert of Rathskeller '' on the spy sitcom Get Smart . That same year he won praise for his role as a brain-damaged football player in The Rain People ( 1969 ) directed by Francis Ford Coppola . \n \n 1970–1981 \n \n In 1971 , Caan won more acclaim , as dying football player Brian Piccolo , opposite Billy Dee Williams , in the television movie Brian 's Song , which was later released theatrically . \n \n The following year , Coppola cast him as the short-tempered Sonny Corleone in The Godfather . Originally , Caan was cast as Michael Corleone ( Sonny 's youngest brother ) ; both Coppola and Caan demanded that this role be played by Al Pacino , so Caan could play Sonny instead . Although another actor was already signed to play Sonny , the studio insisted on having Caan , so he remained in the production . \n \n Caan was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the film , competing with co-stars Robert Duvall and Pacino . Caan was closely", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "tc_508--James_Caan.txt", "qid": "tc_508", "question": "Who was born first, James Caan or Michael Douglas?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom . The force was initially administered by the War Office from London , which in 1964 was subsumed into the Ministry of Defence . The professional head of the British Army is the Chief of the General Staff . \n \n The full-time element of the British Army is referred to as the Regular Army and has been since the creation of the reservist Territorial Force in 1908 . All members of the British Army swear ( or affirm ) allegiance to the monarch as commander-in-chief . However , the Bill of Rights of 1689 requires Parliamentary consent for the Crown to maintain a standing army in peacetime . The UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years . \n \n Throughout its history , the British Army has seen action in a number of major wars involving the world 's great powers , including the Seven Years ' War , the Napoleonic Wars , the Crimean War , the First World War and Second World War . Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the world 's leading military and economic powers . Since the end of the Cold war , the British Army has been deployed to many conflict zones , often as part of an expeditionary force or a United Nations peacekeeping operation . Additionally , the British Army maintains several permanent overseas postings . \n \n History \n \n The English Army was first established as a standing military force in 1660 . In 1707 many regiments of the English and Scottish armies were already combined under one operational command and stationed in the Netherlands fighting in the War of Spanish Succession . Consequently , although the regiments were now part of the new British military establishment , they remained under the same operational command , and so not only were the regiments of the old armies transferred in situ to the new army so too was the institutional ethos , customs , and traditions , of the old standing armies that had been created shortly after the restoration of the monarchy 66 years earlier . The order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army . Scottish and Irish regiments were only allowed to take a rank in the English army from the date of their arrival in England or the date when they were first placed on the English establishment . For example , in 1694 a board of general officers was convened to decide the rank of English , Irish and Scots regiments serving in the Netherlands ; the regiment that became known as the Scots Greys were designated as the 4th Dragoons because there were three English regiments raised prior to 1688 when the Scots Greys were first placed on the English establishment . In 1713 , when a new board of general officers was convened to decide upon the rank of several regiments , the seniority of the Scots Greys was reassessed and based on their entry into England in June 1685 . At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons , and so after some delay the Scots Greys obtained the rank of 2nd Dragoons in the British Army . \n \n Following William and Mary 's accession to the throne , England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance , primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Mary 's father , James II . Following the union of England and Scotland in 1707 , and the creation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in 1801 , British foreign policy on the continent was to contain expansion by its competitor powers such as France and Spain . Spain , in the previous two centuries , had been the dominant global power , and the chief threat to England 's early transatlantic ambitions , but was now waning . The territorial ambitions of the French , however , led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars . Russian activity led to the Crimean War . After 1745 , recruits were increasingly drawn from Scotland ; by the mid-1760s between one fifth and one third of officers were from Scotland . \n \n From the time of the end of the Seven Years ' War in 1763 , Great Britain was the leading naval power and with France one of the two economic powers of the world . \n \n Early British Empire \n \n The", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "qb_8966--British_Army.txt", "qid": "qb_8966", "question": "‘Squaddie’ is an informal term for which rank in the British Army?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "A dictator is a ruler who wields absolute authority . A state ruled by a dictator is called a dictatorship . The word originated as the title of a magistrate in the Roman Republic appointed by the Senate to rule the republic in times of emergency ( see Roman dictator and justitium ) . \n \n Like the term `` tyrant '' ( which was originally a respectable Ancient Greek title ) , and to a lesser degree `` autocrat '' , `` dictator '' came to be used almost exclusively as a non-titular term for oppressive , even abusive rule , yet had rare modern titular use . \n \n In modern usage , the term `` dictator '' is generally used to describe a leader who holds and/or abuses an extraordinary amount of personal power , especially the power to make laws without effective restraint by a legislative assembly . Dictatorships are often characterised by some of the following traits : suspension of elections and of civil liberties ; proclamation of a state of emergency ; rule by decree ; repression of political opponents without abiding by rule of law procedures ; these include one-party state , and cult of personality . \n \n The term `` dictator '' is comparable to but not synonymous with the ancient concept of a tyrant ; initially `` tyrant '' , like `` dictator '' , did not carry negative connotations . A wide variety of leaders coming to power in a number of different kinds of regimes , such as military juntas , one-party states and civilian governments under personal rule , have been described as dictators . They may hold left or right-wing views , or may be apolitical . \n \n Etymology \n \n Originally an emergency legal appointment in the Roman Republic , the term `` Dictator '' did not have the negative meaning it has now . A Dictator was a magistrate given sole power for a limited duration . At the end of the term , the Dictator 's power returned to normal Consular rule whereupon a dictator provided accountability , though not all dictators accepted a return to power sharing . \n \n The term started to get its modern negative meaning with Cornelius Sulla 's ascension to the dictatorship following Sulla 's second civil war , making himself the first Dictator in more than a century ( during which the office was ostensibly abolished ) as well as de facto eliminating the time limit and need of senatorial acclamation , although he avoided a major constitutional crisis by resigning the office after about one year , dying a few years later . Julius Caesar followed Sulla 's example in 49 BC and in February 44 BC was proclaimed Dictator perpetuo , `` Dictator in perpetuity '' , officially doing away with any limitations on his power , which he kept until his assassination the following month . \n \n Modern era \n \n As late as the second half of the 19th Century , the term `` Dictator '' had occasional positive implications . For example , when creating a provisional executive in Sicily during the Expedition of the Thousand in 1860 , Giuseppe Garibaldi officially assumed the title of `` Dictator '' ( see Dictatorship of Garibaldi ) . Shortly afterwards , during the 1863 January Uprising in Poland , `` Dictator '' was also the official title of four leaders , the first being Ludwik Mierosławski . \n \n Past that time , however , `` Dictator '' assumed an invariably negative connotation . In popular usage , `` dictatorship '' is often associated with brutality and oppression . As a result , it is often also used as a term of abuse for political opponents . The term has also come to be associated with megalomania . Many dictators create a cult of personality and have come to favor increasingly grandiloquent titles and honours for themselves . For instance , Idi Amin Dada , who had been a British army lieutenant prior to Uganda 's independence from Britain in October 1962 , subsequently styled himself as `` His Excellency , President for Life , Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin Dada , VC , DSO , MC , Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular '' . In the movie The Great Dictator ( 1940 ) , Charlie Chaplin satirized not only Adolf Hitler but the institution of dictatorship itself . \n \n The association between the dictator and the military is a common one ; many dictators take great pains to emphasize their connections with the military and often wear military uniforms . In some cases , this is perfectly legitimate ;", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 3688, "text": "idi amin" } ], "id": "wh_2328--Dictator.txt", "qid": "wh_2328", "question": "\"\"\"Lord of all beasts of the Earth\"\", \"\"Conqueror of the British Empire\"\" and \"\"King of Scotland\"\" are all self-given titles to which despotic 20th century African dictator?\"" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The 2010 Formula One season was the 61st season of FIA Formula One motor racing competition . Red Bull Racing won its maiden Constructors ' Championship with a one-two finish in Brazil , while Red Bull Racing 's Sebastian Vettel won the Drivers ' Championship after winning the final race of the season . In doing so , Vettel became the youngest World Drivers ' Champion in the sport 's sixty-year history . Vettel 's victory in the championship came after a dramatic season finale at Abu Dhabi where three other drivers could also have won the championship – Vettel 's Red Bull Racing team mate Mark Webber , Ferrari 's Fernando Alonso and McLaren 's Lewis Hamilton . \n \n This was Bridgestone 's final season as the sole tyre supplier in Formula One as the company announced that it would not renew its contract at the end of the season . After several months of deliberation , Pirelli was chosen as the tyre supplier for the 2011 season at the FIA World Motor Sport Council meeting in Geneva , in June 2010 . \n \n The points system was changed , with 25 points being awarded for first place , 18 for second , 15 for third , then 12 , 10 , 8 , 6 , 4 , 2 and 1 for fourth to tenth . The technical and sporting regulations applicable for the season were the subject of much debate . \n \n Before the start of the season , 2009 Drivers ' Champion Jenson Button joined McLaren , while the 2009 Constructors ' Champion , Brawn GP , was bought by German motor vehicle manufacturer Mercedes-Benz and was renamed as Mercedes GP . The 2010 season saw the return of the most successful driver in Formula One history , with seven-time World Champion Michael Schumacher coming out of retirement after a three-year absence . \n \n The season 's first race was held on 14 March in Bahrain and the season concluded on 14 November in the United Arab Emirates after 19 motor races held in 18 countries on five continents . \n \n Teams and drivers \n \n The following teams and drivers competed in the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship . With the withdrawal of BMW and Toyota , engine diversity in Formula One dropped to a 30-year low , with just four engine producers powering the entire grid ( Ferrari , Mercedes , Renault and Cosworth ) , the lowest since . Four new teams joined the grid : Mercedes , Lotus Racing , Virgin Racing and HRT . \n \n New entries process \n \n The FIA announced its intention to open up the grid , aiming for a total of 13 teams , and in July 2009 selected three new teams from 15 new applicants , as well as confirming the entry of all 10 existing teams . The existing F1 teams , under the FOTA organisation , are understood to have agreed a system of technical support to assist new teams . This compromise proposal would involve the supply of parts and design knowledge to the new entrants , but not full customer cars , in return for which the budget cap idea was dropped . \n \n The three teams on the entry list released in July 2009 included Campos Meta , a Spanish team led by former driver and GP2 team owner Adrian Campos and Madrid-based sports advertising agency Meta Image ; Manor Grand Prix , an F3 team run by John Booth and designer Nick Wirth ( who was formerly involved in the Simtek Ford team who competed in 1994 and 1995 ) ; and USF1 , a team created by former designer Ken Anderson and journalist Peter Windsor . Following the withdrawal of BMW Sauber , Lotus Racing was accepted to the grid . Manor became known as Virgin Racing after Richard Branson 's Virgin Group purchased naming rights to the team , while Campos-Meta was reimagined as Hispania Racing after investor José Ramón Carabante purchased the team from Adrian Campos shortly before the first race of the season . USF1 officially withdrew from the championship in early March , following months of speculation and accusations from whistleblowers that the team had been crippled by mismanagement for months . \n \n The FIA also had several entry bids from other racing teams including World Series by Renault and Le Mans entrant Epsilon Euskadi , Dave Richards 's highly successful Prodrive outfit and Italian touring car team N.Technology as well as re-imaginings of former teams March , Brabham , Lola Cars and Team Lotus ( not to be confused with Lotus Racing ) . Other expressions of interest came from Team Superfund , an Austrian", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 222, "text": "vettel" } ], "id": "qz_4238--2010_Formula_One_season.txt", "qid": "qz_4238", "question": "Which Red Bull driver was Formula One 2010 World Champion?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Rob Roy is a 1995 adventure film directed by Michael Caton-Jones . Liam Neeson stars as Rob Roy MacGregor , an 18th-century Scottish clan chief who battles with an unscrupulous nobleman in the Scottish Highlands . Jessica Lange , John Hurt , Tim Roth , Eric Stoltz , Brian Cox , and Jason Flemyng also star . Roth won the BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of the treacherous aristrocrat Archibald Cunningham . \n \n Plot \n \n In Scotland , 1713 , Robert Roy MacGregor ( Liam Neeson ) is the Chief of Clan MacGregor . Providing the Lowland gentry with protection against cattle rustling , he barely manages to feed his people . Hoping to alleviate their poverty , MacGregor borrows £1,000 from James Graham , Marquess of Montrose ( John Hurt ) in order to trade cattle . \n \n Impoverished London aristocrat Archibald Cunningham ( Tim Roth ) has been sent to stay with Montrose , who it is implied is related to him , as his debaucheries have become a problem back in England . Cunningham learns about MacGregor 's loan from Montrose 's factor , Killearn ( Brian Cox ) and murders MacGregor 's retainer Alan MacDonald ( Eric Stoltz ) to steal the money . MacGregor requests time from Montrose to find MacDonald and the money . Montrose offers to waive the debt if MacGregor will testify falsely that Montrose 's rival John Campbell , 2nd Duke of Argyll ( Andrew Keir ) is a Jacobite . MacGregor refuses and Montrose vows to imprison him in the tolbooth until the debt is repaid , but MacGregor flees , briefly taking Cunningham hostage . Montrose seizes MacGregor 's land , declares him an outlaw , and orders Cunningham to bring him in `` broken , but alive '' . With MacGregor in hiding , redcoats slaughter MacGregor 's cattle , burn his croft , and Cunningham brutally rapes his wife Mary ( Jessica Lange ) . Mary is horrified to realize that Cunningham 's intent is to flush MacGregor out of hiding . Unaware of the assault on his wife , MacGregor refuses to permit his outraged clan to wage war on Montrose . Instead , he decrees , `` The best place to hurt the Marquess is in his purse . Steal his cattle , rob his rents . '' \n \n Betty ( Vicki Masson ) , a maidservant at Montrose 's estate , has become pregnant with Cunningham 's child . When Killearn tells Montrose , Betty is dismissed from service and contemptuously rejected by Cunningham . A heartbroken Betty seeks refuge with the MacGregors , and reveals that she had overheard Killearn and Cunningham plot to steal the money . To build a case against Cunningham , MacGregor abducts Killearn and imprisons him on Factor 's Island . Mary promises Killearn that he will be spared if he testifies against Cunningham , but Killearn taunts her with her rape . Realizing that Mary is pregnant , he threatens to tell MacGregor that Cunningham may be the father . Enraged , Mary draws a sgian dubh and stabs Killearn in the neck . \n \n Montrose tells Cunningham that he knows who really stole the money and that he does n't care . Complaining that the ongoing thefts of his cattle and rents will impoverish him , he orders Cunningham to leave Clan MacGregor so as to never humiliate him again . Cunningham and the redcoats systematically burn the Clan 's crofts . MacGregor refuses to take the bait , but Alasdair attempts to snipe Cunningham , revealing their hiding place . The redcoats attack , and with his dying breath , Alasdair tells MacGregor about Mary 's violation by Cunningham . Taken prisoner , MacGregor accuses Cunningham of murder , robbery and rape . Cunningham confirms the charges , taunting him that he enjoyed Mary far more than the women who slept with him willingly . Montrose orders MacGregor to be summarily executed by hanging from a nearby bridge . MacGregor manages to loop the rope binding his hands around Cunningham 's throat and then jumps off the bridge . To save Cunningham , Montrose orders the rope to be cut , freeing MacGregor . MacGregor is chased downstream by the redcoats , but he evades them by hiding inside a rotting animal corpse . \n \n Mary gains an audience with the Duke of Argyll and exposes Montrose 's plan to frame him . Moved by MacGregor 's integrity , he grants the whole family asylum at Glen Shira , on his estates . MacGregor arrives at Glen Shira , at first", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 242, "text": "tim roth" } ], "id": "odql_1807--Rob_Roy_(1995_film).txt", "qid": "odql_1807", "question": "Which actor played the villainous swordsman Archie Cunningham in the 1995 film “Rob Roy”?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The North Atlantic Current ( also known as North Atlantic Drift and North Atlantic Sea Movement ) is a powerful warm ocean current that continues the Gulf Stream northeast . West of Continental Europe , it splits into two major branches . One branch goes southeast , later to become the Canary Current as it passes northwest Africa and turns southwest . The other major branch continues north along the coast of Northwestern Europe . It is thought to have a considerable warming influence on the climate , but there is a minority view . Other branches include the Irminger Current and the Norwegian Current . Driven by the global thermohaline circulation ( THC ) , the North Atlantic Current is part of the wind-driven Gulf Stream , which goes further east and north from the North American coast across the Atlantic and into the Arctic Ocean .", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 150, "text": "gulf stream" } ], "id": "bb_3819--North_Atlantic_Current.txt", "qid": "bb_3819", "question": "The North Atlantic Drift ocean current over NW Europe starts as what at the US Florida Strait?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Balmoral Castle is a large estate house in Royal Deeside , Aberdeenshire , Scotland , near the village of Crathie , west of Ballater and east of Braemar . \n \n Balmoral has been one of the residences for members of the British Royal Family since 1852 , when the estate and its original castle were purchased privately by Prince Albert , consort to Queen Victoria . They remain as the private property of the royal family and are not the property of the Crown . \n \n Soon after the estate was purchased by the royal family , the existing house was found to be too small and the current Balmoral Castle was commissioned . The architect was William Smith of Aberdeen , although his designs were amended by Prince Albert . \n \n The castle is an example of Scots Baronial architecture , and is classified by Historic Scotland as a category A listed building . The new castle was completed in 1856 and the old castle demolished shortly thereafter . \n \n The Balmoral Estate has been added to by successive members of the royal family , and now covers an area of approximately . It is a working estate , including grouse moors , forestry , and farmland , as well as managed herds of deer , Highland cattle , and ponies . \n \n History \n \n King Robert II of Scotland ( 1316–1390 ) had a hunting lodge in the area . Historical records also indicate that a house at Balmoral was built by Sir William Drummond in 1390 . \n \n The estate is recorded in 1451 as `` Bouchmorale '' , and later was tenanted by Alexander Gordon , second son of the 1st Earl of Huntly . A tower house was built on the estate by the Gordons . Tower houses often are referred to as castles because of their formidable construction . \n \n In 1662 the estate passed to Charles Farquharson of Inverey , brother of John Farquharson , the `` Black Colonel '' . The Farquharsons were Jacobite sympathisers , and James Farquharson of Balmoral was involved in both the 1715 and 1745 rebellions . He was wounded at the Battle of Falkirk in 1746 . \n \n The Farquharson estates were forfeit , and passed to the Farquharsons of Auchendryne . In 1798 , James Duff , 2nd Earl Fife , acquired Balmoral and leased the castle . \n \n Sir Robert Gordon , a younger brother of the 4th Earl of Aberdeen , acquired the lease in 1830 . He made major alterations to the original castle at Balmoral , including baronial-style extensions that were designed by John Smith of Aberdeen . \n \n Royal acquisition \n \n Queen Victoria and Prince Albert first visited Scotland in 1842 , five years after her accession to the throne and two years after their marriage . During this first visit they stayed at Edinburgh , and at Taymouth Castle in Perthshire , the home of the Marquess of Breadalbane . They returned in 1844 to stay at Blair Castle and , in 1847 , when they rented Ardverikie by Loch Laggan . During the latter trip they encountered weather that was extremely rainy , which led Sir James Clark , the queen 's physician , to recommend Deeside instead , for its more healthy climate . \n \n Sir Robert Gordon died in 1847 and his lease on Balmoral reverted to Lord Aberdeen . In February 1848 an arrangement was made—that Prince Albert would acquire the remaining part of the lease on Balmoral , together with its furniture and staff—without having seen the property first . \n \n The royal couple arrived for their first visit on 8 September 1848 . Victoria found the house `` small but pretty '' , and recorded in her diary that : `` All seemed to breathe freedom and peace , and to make one forget the world and its sad turmoils '' . The surrounding hilly landscape reminded them of Thuringia , Albert 's homeland in Germany . \n \n Quickly , the house was confirmed to be too small and , in 1848 , John and William Smith were commissioned to design new offices , cottages , and other ancillary buildings . Improvements to the woodlands , gardens , and estate buildings also were being made , with the assistance of the landscape gardener , James Beattie , and possibly by the painter , James Giles . \n \n Major additions to the old house were considered in 1849 , Millar , p.55 but by then negotiations were under way to purchase the estate from the trustees of the deceased Earl Fife . After seeing a corrugated iron cottage at", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 353, "text": "victoria" } ], "id": "qw_14358--Balmoral_Castle.txt", "qid": "qw_14358", "question": "Who was on the British throne when Balmoral Castle was bought for their use?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Barabbas or Jesus Barabbas ( a Hellenization of the Aramaic bar abba בר אבא , literally `` son of the father '' or `` Jesus , son of the Father '' respectively ) is a figure mentioned in the accounts of the Passion of Christ , in which he is an insurrectionary whom Pontius Pilate freed at the Passover feast in Jerusalem , instead of releasing Jesus . \n \n Biblical account \n \n According to all four canonical gospels there was a prevailing Passover custom in Jerusalem that allowed or required Pilate , the praefectus or governor of Judea , to commute one prisoner 's death sentence by popular acclaim , and the `` crowd '' ( ochlos ) , `` the Jews '' and `` the multitude '' in some sources , were offered a choice of whether to have either Barabbas or Jesus released from Roman custody . According to the Synoptic Gospels of Matthew , \n Mark , \n and Luke , \n and the account in John , the crowd chose Barabbas to be released and Jesus of Nazareth to be crucified . Pilate is portrayed as reluctantly yielding to the insistence of the crowd . A passage found only in the Gospel of Matthew has the crowd saying ( of Jesus ) , `` Let his blood be upon us and upon our children . '' \n \n Matthew refers to Barabbas only as a `` notorious prisoner '' . Mark and Luke further refer to Barabbas as one involved in a stasis , a riot . Robert Eisenman states that John 18:40 refers to Barabbas as a lēstēs ( `` bandit '' ) , `` the word Josephus always employs when talking about Revolutionaries '' .Contemporaries combining insurrection and murder in this way were sicarii , members of a militant Jewish movement that sought to overthrow the Roman occupiers of their land by force ( Eisenman 177-84 , et passim ) . \n \n Three gospels state that there was a custom at Passover during which the Roman governor would release a prisoner of the crowd 's choice ; , , and . Later copies of Luke contain a corresponding verse ( ) , although this is not present in the earliest manuscripts , and may be a later gloss to bring Luke into conformity . \n \n The custom of releasing prisoners in Jerusalem at Passover is known as the Paschal Pardon , but this custom ( whether at Passover or any other time ) is not recorded in any historical document other than the gospels . \n \n Etymology \n \n Barabbas 's name appears as bar-Abbas in the Greek texts of the gospels . It is derived ultimately from the Aramaic בר-אבא , Bar-abbâ , `` son of the father '' . Some ancient manuscripts of Matthew 27:16–17 have the full name of Barabbas as `` Jesus Barabbas '' and this was probably the name as originally written in the text . Early church father Origen was troubled by the fact that his copies of the gospels gave Barabbas ' name as `` Jesus Barabbas '' and declared that since it was impossible he could have had such a holy name , `` Jesus '' must have been added to Barabbas ' name by a heretic . It is possible that later scribes , copying the passage , removed the name `` Jesus '' from `` Jesus Barabbas '' to avoid dishonour to the name of Jesus the Messiah . \n \n Abba has been found as a personal name in a 1st-century burial at Giv'at ha-Mivtar , and Abba also appears as a personal name frequently in the Gemara section of the Talmud , dating from AD 200–400 . It could be argued that these findings support `` Barabbas '' being used to indicate the son of a person named Abba or Abbas ( a patronymic ) . \n \n Antisemitism \n \n The story of Barabbas has special social significance because it has historically been used to lay the blame for the crucifixion of Jesus on the Jews , and to justify antisemitism—an interpretation , known as Jewish deicide , dismissed by Pope Benedict XVI in his 2011 book Jesus of Nazareth , in which he translates `` ochlos '' in Matthew as `` crowd '' , rather than to mean the Jewish people . \n \n \n \n Possible parable \n \n This practice of releasing a prisoner is said by Magee and others to be a literary creation of Mark , who needed to have a contrast to the true `` son of the father '' in order to set up an edifying contest , in a form of parable . \n \n Dennis MacDonald ,", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 60, "text": "bar abba" } ], "id": "tb_24--Barabbas.txt", "qid": "tb_24", "question": "Who is the person of religious history whose pardon was the subject of a 1950 novel by Pär Lagerkvist as well as a 1961 portrayal by Anthony Quinn?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "David Martin Vine ( 3 January 1935 – 11 January 2009 ) was a British television sports presenter . He presented a wide variety of shows from the 1960s onwards . \n \n Early life \n \n Born in Newton Abbot , Devon , he grew up in the north-west of the county , attending Barnstaple Grammar School on Park Lane in Barnstaple . His father was a carpenter . \n \n Career \n \n He worked for the North Devon Journal Herald from the age of 17 and various newspapers , becoming the Sports Editor of the Western Morning News in Plymouth . He joined Westward Television in 1961 , though he worked for the BBC for the majority of his broadcasting career . He joined the BBC , to work on BBC2 in 1966 . He was working at BBC2 even though Westward Television were not aware of this because at the time BBC2 could not be received in the South West . An article in the Daily Mail led to Westward TV learning about his BBC work and he had to resign from Westward TV . \n \n Programmes he hosted include Sportscene , It 's a Knockout ( 1967–1971 ) , Jeux Sans Frontieres , Miss UK , Miss World , Quiz Ball , Rugby Special , Match of the Day , A Question of Sport ( 1970–1977 AND 1989 ) , Grandstand , Superstars , Starshot , Ski Sunday ( 1978–1996 ) and the BBC 's Winter and Summer Olympic Games coverage . \n \n He provided the BBC TV commentary for the Eurovision Song Contest 1974 , also hosting the preview shows of the international entries , and compèred the 1975 Miss World broadcast , the latter resulting in some embarrassment because he found it difficult to understand what many of the contestants were saying . He was the first presenter to introduce the tennis championships at Wimbledon ( 1967 ) in colour . He presented Wimbledon highlights until 1982 and also BBC 's Show Jumping coverage . \n \n He was the anchorman at the World Snooker Championships at the Crucible Theatre , Sheffield , from 1978 – the first year the BBC covered the championships daily – until his retirement in 2000 as well as the Grand Prix , UK Championship and the Masters . Vine 's supposed friendship with Steve Davis was parodied in a Spitting Image sketch in which Davis boasted , `` I 'm a mate of David Vine '' . \n \n His final work for the BBC was covering the weightlifting at the 2000 Sydney Olympics which he had done since the 1970s , after which he retired owing to a heart condition . He had contributed to programmes on the ESPN Classic channel . He had a coronary artery triple bypass operation in 2001 , and he died of a heart attack on 11 January 2009 aged 74 at his home near Henley-on-Thames , Oxfordshire . \n \n Personal life \n \n He married his first wife , Shirley , in 1958 . They had met through amateur dramatics and had three children - Kim , Catherine and Martin ; who lived together in Castleton Close , Mannamead , Plymouth ; she died in 1970 . He married his second wife , Mandy , in 1972 in Wokingham . They had a son . \n \n He also had 4 grandchildren : Ben , Georgia , Oliver and Emily .", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 1119, "text": "question of sport" } ], "id": "qb_4762--David_Vine.txt", "qid": "qb_4762", "question": "David Vine, David Coleman and Sue Barker have all hosted which BBC television quiz show?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "In both astrology and historical astronomy , the zodiac ( Greek : ζῳδιακός , zōidiakos ) is a circle of twelve 30° divisions of celestial longitude that are centered upon the ecliptic , the apparent path of the Sun across the celestial sphere over the course of the year . The paths of the Moon and visible planets also remain close to the ecliptic , within the belt of the zodiac , which extends 8-9° north or south of the ecliptic , as measured in celestial latitude . Because the divisions are regular , they do not correspond exactly to the boundaries of the twelve constellations after which they are named . \n \n Historically , these twelve divisions are called signs . Essentially , the zodiac is a celestial coordinate system , or more specifically an ecliptic coordinate system , which takes the ecliptic as the origin of latitude , and the position of the Sun at vernal equinox as the origin of longitude . \n \n Usage \n \n The zodiac was in use by the Roman era , based on concepts inherited by Hellenistic astronomy from Babylonian astronomy of the Chaldean period ( mid-1st millennium BC ) , which , in turn , derived from an earlier system of lists of stars along the ecliptic . The construction of the zodiac is described in Ptolemy 's vast 2nd century AD work , the Almagest . \n \n The term zodiac derives from Latin zōdiacus , which in its turn comes from the Greek ( zōdiakos kyklos ) , meaning `` circle of animals '' , derived from ( zōdion ) , the diminutive of ( zōon ) `` animal '' . The name is motivated by the fact that half of the signs of the classical Greek zodiac are represented as animals ( besides two mythological hybrids ) . \n \n Although the zodiac remains the basis of the ecliptic coordinate system in use in astronomy besides the equatorial one , the term and the names of the twelve signs are today mostly associated with horoscopic astrology . The term `` zodiac '' may also refer to the region of the celestial sphere encompassing the paths of the planets corresponding to the band of about eight arc degrees above and below the ecliptic . The zodiac of a given planet is the band that contains the path of that particular body ; e.g. , the `` zodiac of the Moon '' is the band of five degrees above and below the ecliptic . By extension , the `` zodiac of the comets '' may refer to the band encompassing most short-period comets . \n \n History \n \n Early history \n \n The division of the ecliptic into the zodiacal signs originates in Babylonian ( `` Chaldean '' ) astronomy during the first half of the 1st millennium BC , likely during Median/ '' Neo-Babylonian '' times ( 7th century BC ) . \n The classical zodiac is a modification of the MUL.APIN catalogue , which was compiled around 1000 BC . \n Some of the constellations can be traced even further back , to Bronze Age ( Old Babylonian ) sources , including Gemini `` The Twins '' , from MAŠ.TAB.BA.GAL.GAL `` The Great Twins '' , and Cancer `` The Crab '' , from AL.LUL `` The Crayfish '' , among others . \n \n Babylonian astronomers at some stage during the early 1st millennium BC divided the ecliptic into twelve equal zones of celestial longitude to create the first known celestial coordinate system : a coordinate system that boasts some advantages over modern systems ( such as the equatorial coordinate system ) . The Babylonian calendar as it stood in the 7th century BC assigned each month to a sign , beginning with the position of the Sun at vernal equinox , which , at the time , was depicted as the Aries constellation ( `` Age of Aries '' ) , for which reason the first sign is still called `` Aries '' even after the vernal equinox has moved away from the Aries constellation due to the slow precession of the Earth 's axis of rotation . \n \n Because the division was made into equal arcs , 30° each , they constituted an ideal system of reference for making predictions about a planet 's longitude . However , Babylonian techniques of observational measurements were in a rudimentary stage of evolution and it is unclear whether they had techniques to define in a precise way the boundary lines between the zodiacal signs in the sky . Thus , the need to use stars close to the ecliptic ( ±9° of latitude ) as a set of observational reference points to help positioning", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "qb_3072--Zodiac.txt", "qid": "qb_3072", "question": "The bull represents which sign of the Zodiac?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Caribbean ( or ; ; ; Caribbean Hindustani : कैरिबियन ( Kairibiyana ) ; or more commonly Antilles ) is a region that consists of the Caribbean Sea , its islands ( some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean ) , and the surrounding coasts . The region is southeast of the Gulf of Mexico and the North American mainland , east of Central America , and north of South America . \n \n Situated largely on the Caribbean Plate , the region comprises more than 700 islands , islets , reefs , and cays . ( See the list . ) These islands generally form island arcs that delineate the eastern and northern edges of the Caribbean Sea . The Caribbean islands , consisting of the Greater Antilles on the north and the Lesser Antilles on the south and east ( including the Leeward Antilles ) , are part of the somewhat larger West Indies grouping , which also includes the Lucayan Archipelago ( comprising The Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands ) north of the Greater Antilles and Caribbean Sea . In a wider sense , the mainland countries of Belize , Venezuela , Guyana , Suriname , and French Guiana are also included . \n \n Geopolitically , the Caribbean islands are usually regarded as a subregion of North America and are organized into 30 territories including sovereign states , overseas departments , and dependencies . From December 15 , 1954 , to October 10 , 2010 there was a country known as the Netherlands Antilles composed of five states , all of which were Dutch dependencies . While from January 3 , 1958 , to May 31 , 1962 , there was also a short-lived country called the Federation of the West Indies composed of ten English-speaking Caribbean territories , all of which were then British dependencies . The West Indies cricket team continues to represent many of those nations . \n \n Etymology and pronunciation \n \n The region takes its name from that of the Caribs , an ethnic group present in the Lesser Antilles and parts of adjacent South America at the time of the Spanish conquest . \n \n The two most prevalent pronunciations of `` Caribbean '' are , with the primary accent on the third syllable , and , with the accent on the second . The former pronunciation is the older of the two , although the stressed-second-syllable variant has been established for over 75 years . It has been suggested that speakers of British English prefer while North American speakers more typically use , although not all sources agree . Usage is split within Caribbean English itself . \n \n Definition \n \n The word `` Caribbean '' has multiple uses . Its principal ones are geographical and political . The Caribbean can also be expanded to include territories with strong cultural and historical connections to slavery , European colonisation , and the plantation system . \n * The United Nations geoscheme for the Americas accords the Caribbean as a distinct region within The Americas . \n * Physiographically , the Caribbean region is mainly a chain of islands surrounding the Caribbean Sea . To the north , the region is bordered by the Gulf of Mexico , the Straits of Florida , and the Northern Atlantic Ocean , which lies to the east and northeast . To the south lies the coastline of the continent of South America . \n * Politically , the `` Caribbean '' may be centred on socio-economic groupings found in the region . For example , the bloc known as the Caribbean Community ( CARICOM ) contains the Co-operative Republic of Guyana , the Republic of Suriname in South America , and Belize in Central America as full members . Bermuda and the Turks and Caicos Islands , which are in the Atlantic Ocean , are associate members of the Caribbean Community . The Commonwealth of the Bahamas is also in the Atlantic and is a full member of the Caribbean Community . \n * Alternatively , the organisation called the Association of Caribbean States ( ACS ) consists of almost every nation in the surrounding regions that lie on the Caribbean , plus El Salvador , which lies solely on the Pacific Ocean . According to the ACS , the total population of its member states is 227 million people . \n \n Geography and geology \n \n The geography and climate in the Caribbean region varies : Some islands in the region have relatively flat terrain of non-volcanic origin . These islands include Aruba ( possessing only minor volcanic features ) , Barbados , Bonaire , the Cayman", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "bb_3338--Caribbean.txt", "qid": "bb_3338", "question": "Among Time magazine's 2012 100 Most Influential Persons in the World, Portia Lucretia Simpson-Miller was elected leader for the second time of what Caribbean island?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Chief Clarence `` Clancy '' Wiggum is a fictional character from the animated television series The Simpsons , voiced by Hank Azaria . He is the chief of police in the show 's setting of Springfield . He is the father of Ralph Wiggum and the husband of Sarah Wiggum . \n \n The character 's comedic value relies heavily on his incompetence and irresponsibility as a police officer , and his laziness and gluttony . Chief Wiggum 's more responsible fellow officers Eddie and Lou play the straight men to his shenanigans . \n \n Biography \n \n Chief Wiggum was born in Ireland and moved to Springfield at an early age . Per the episode Raging Abe Simpson and His Grumbling Grandson in `` The Curse of the Flying Hellfish '' , Wiggum 's father , Iggy , served in Abe Simpson 's infantry squad , implying the Wiggums emigrated to America by the early 1940s at the latest . In the episode `` Mother Simpson '' , a teenaged Wiggum was a trainee security guard at Springfield University when Homer 's mother Mona sabotaged the University 's laboratory , which Mr. Burns was using for biological weapons . Antibiotics used to kill the weapons cured Wiggum 's asthma , allowing him to join the police force . \n \n Many episodes have dealt with the back story of how Wiggum , despite his incompetences , occupies such a high role in the police force . As with those of most supporting characters on the show , they are jokes for one episode and contradict each other . Wiggum was temporarily promoted to Commissioner of Police for Springfield 's state in the 2005 episode `` Pranksta Rap '' . \n \n Chief Wiggum is the father of Ralph Wiggum , whom he loves and is patient of , but he sometimes does not understand his son 's eccentricities . \n \n Incompetence \n \n Wiggum 's descriptions of suspects , evidence and location is often very poor . He also has been known to arrest people impulsively , disregarding their involvement of a determined situation or crime , evident in `` Brother from Another Series '' where he arrested Sideshow Bob by the incidents of the episode , despite Bart and Lisa ( the main witnesses ) confirming his innocence , and in `` The Frying Game '' where he gleefully condemns Homer and Marge to death for murder without using a lie detector or making a DNA examination . He has also , on occasions had people arrested or put in a jail cell for an invalid reason . For example in `` Midnight Rx '' , he attempts to arrest Grandpa on a charge of startling a police officer rather than for the drug smuggling he had been involved in with Homer during the episode . in `` Much Apu About Nothing '' , he orders Barney to be booked on one count of being an accessory to being a bear , in `` Homer 's Barbershop Quartet '' , it is implied that he arrests Homer , Principal Skinner , Barney and Apu for rejecting him from their group The B-Sharps and in `` On a Clear Day I Ca n't See My Sister '' he puts Lou in a police cell because his coffee came back cold ( despite Lou insisting that Wiggum ordered `` an iced coffee ) . Furthermore in `` The Seven-Beer Snitch '' , he assists Mr Burns in filling up his newly opened prison with convicts by reinstating old and forgotten laws- which subsequently results in Homer being arrested for `` Illegally transporting litter '' ( five kicks of the same can ) . \n \n Wiggum also often fails to comply with his police duties in a real emergency , and sometimes does not take emergency calls seriously . Occasionally , he turns off his receiver when he is not in the mood to fight crime , or makes an excuse that he is too busy to help and it is then shown that the police are taking part in a trivial activity . He has demonstrated a lack of respect for firearms safety , having sold parts of his service pistol after losing his job ( `` Homer vs. the Eighteenth Amendment '' ) , used it to crack walnuts ( `` I Love Lisa '' ) and eaten donuts off its barrel , nearly killing himself as a result when it goes off ( The Simpsons Movie ) . \n \n It is also frequently implied that Chief Wiggum is corrupt . He has been seen asking both Homer and Troy McLure for bribes and on his badge , it states `` Cash Bribes only ''", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 221, "text": "ralph" } ], "id": "sfq_5994--Chief_Wiggum.txt", "qid": "sfq_5994", "question": "In the Simpsons cartoon series what is the name of Police Chief Wiggum's son?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Laos , ( , Pa Thēt Lāo ) officially the Lao People 's Democratic Republic , ( Lao : ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ , Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao ) or commonly referred to its colloquial name of Muang Lao ( Lao : ເມືອງລາວ , Muang Lao ) is a landlocked country in the heart of the Indochinese peninsula of Mainland Southeast Asia , bordered by Myanmar ( Burma ) and China to the northwest , Vietnam to the east , Cambodia to the south , and Thailand to the west . \n \n Present day Laos traces its historic and cultural identity to the kingdom of Lan Xang Hom Khao ( Kingdom of a Million Elephants Under the White Parasol ) , which existed for four centuries as one of the largest kingdoms in Southeast Asia . Due to Lan Xang 's central geographical location in Southeast Asia , the kingdom was able to become a popular hub for overland trade , becoming wealthy economically as well as culturally . \n \n After a period of internal conflict , Lan Xang broke off into three separate kingdoms— Luang Phabang , Vientiane and Champasak . In 1893 , it became a French protectorate , with the three territories uniting to form what is now known as Laos . It briefly gained independence in 1945 after Japanese occupation , but returned to French rule until it was granted autonomy in 1949 . Laos became independent in 1953 , with a constitutional monarchy under Sisavang Vong . Shortly after independence , a long civil war ended the monarchy , when the Communist Pathet Lao movement came to power in 1975 . \n \n Laos is a one-party socialist republic . It espouses Marxism and is governed by a single party communist politburo dominated by military generals . The Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Vietnam People 's Army continue to have significant influence in Laos . The capital city is Vientiane . Other large cities include Luang Prabang , Savannakhet , and Pakse . The official language is Lao . Laos is a multi-ethnic country with the politically and culturally dominant Lao people making up approximately 60 percent of the population , mostly in the lowlands . Mon-Khmer groups , the Hmong , and other indigenous hill tribes , accounting for 40 percent of the population , live in the foothills and mountains . \n \n Laos ' ambitious strategies for development is based on generating electricity from its rivers and selling the power to its neighbors , namely Thailand , China , and Vietnam , as well as its initiative to become a 'land-linked ' nation , shown by the planning of four new railways connecting Laos to those same countries . This , along with growth of the mining sector , Laos has been referred to as one of [ http : //www.worldbank.org/en/country/lao/overview East Asia and Pacific 's fastest growing economies ] by the World Bank , with annual GDP growth averaging 7 % for the past decade . \n \n It is a member of the Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement ( APTA ) , Association of Southeast Asian Nations ( ASEAN ) , East Asia Summit and La Francophonie . Laos applied for membership of the World Trade Organization ( WTO ) in 1997 ; on 2 February 2013 , it was granted full membership . \n \n According to the anti-corruption non-governmental organisation Transparency International , Laos remains one of the most corrupt countries in the world . This has deterred foreign investment and created major problems with the rule of law , including the nation 's ability to enforce contract and business regulation . This has contributed to a third of the population of Laos currently living below the international poverty line ( living on less than US $ 1.25 per day ) . Laos has a low-income economy , with one of the lowest annual incomes in the world . In 2014 , the country ranked 141st on the Human Development Index ( HDI ) , indicating lower medium development . According to the Global Hunger Index ( 2015 ) , Laos ranks as the 29th hungriest nation in the world out of the list of the 52 nations with the worst hunger situation ( s ) . Laos has also had a poor human rights record . \n \n Etymology \n \n The English word Laos was coined by the French , who united the three Lao kingdoms in French Indochina in 1893 , and named the country as the plural of the dominant and most common ethnic group , which are the Lao people . ( In French , the final `` s '' at the end of a word is usually silent , thus it would", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "sfq_10064--Laos.txt", "qid": "sfq_10064", "question": "Which river forms most of the border between Laos and Thailand?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "An Endangered ( EN ) species is a species which has been categorized by the International Union for Conservation of Nature ( IUCN ) Red List as likely to become extinct . `` Endangered '' is the second most severe conservation status for wild populations in the IUCN 's schema after Critically endangered| ( CR ) . \n \n In 2012 , the IUCN Red List featured 3079 animal and 2655 plant species as endangered ( EN ) worldwide . The figures for 1998 were , respectively , 1102 and 1197 \n \n Many nations have laws that protect conservation-reliant species : for example , forbidding hunting , restricting land development or creating preserves . Population numbers , trends and species ' conservation status can be found in the lists of organisms by population . \n \n Conservation status \n \n The conservation status of a species indicates the likelihood that it will become extinct . Many factors are considered when assessing the conservation status of a species ; e.g. , such statistics as the number remaining , the overall increase or decrease in the population over time , breeding success rates , or known threats . The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species is the best-known worldwide conservation status listing and ranking system . \n \n Over 40 % of the world 's species are estimated to be at risk of extinction . Internationally , 199 countries have signed an accord to create Biodiversity Action Plans that will protect endangered and other threatened species . In the United States , such plans are usually called Species Recovery Plans . \n \n IUCN Red List \n \n Though labelled a list , the IUCN Red List is a system of assessing the global conservation status of species that includes `` Data Deficient '' ( DD ) species – species for which more data and assessment is required before their status may be determined – as well species comprehensively assessed by the IUCN 's species assessment process . Those species of `` Near Threatened '' ( NT ) and `` Least Concern '' ( LC ) status have been assessed and found to have relatively robust and healthy populations , though these may be in decline . Unlike their more general use elsewhere , the List uses the terms `` endangered species '' and `` threatened species '' with particular meanings : `` Endangered '' ( EN ) species lie between `` Vulnerable '' ( VU ) and `` Critically Endangered '' ( CR ) species , while `` Threatened '' species are those species determined to be Vulnerable , Endangered or Critically Endangered . \n \n The IUCN categories , with examples of animals classified by them , include : \n \n ; Extinct : \n \n ; Extinct in the wild : Captive individuals survive , but there is no free-living , natural population . \n \n ; Critically endangered : Faces an extremely high risk of extinction in the immediate future . \n \n ; Endangered : Faces a high risk of extinction in the near future . \n \n ; Vulnerable : Faces a high risk of endangerment in the medium term . \n \n ; Near-threatened : May be considered threatened in the near future . \n \n ; Least concern : No immediate threat to species ' survival . \n \n Criteria for 'Endangered ( EN ) ' \n \n A ) Reduction in population size based on any of the following : \n \n # An observed , estimated , inferred or suspected population size reduction of ≥ 70 % over the last 10 years or three generations , whichever is the longer , where the causes of the reduction are clearly reversible AND understood AND ceased , based on ( and specifying ) any of the following : \n # # direct observation \n # # an index of abundance appropriate for the taxon \n # # a decline in area of occupancy , extent of occurrence and/or quality of habitat \n # # actual or potential levels of exploitation \n # # the effects of introduced taxa , hybridisation , pathogens , pollutants , competitors or parasites . \n # An observed , estimated , inferred or suspected population size reduction of ≥ 50 % over the last 10 years or three generations , whichever is the longer , where the reduction or its causes may not have ceased OR may not be understood OR may not be reversible , based on ( and specifying ) any of ( a ) to ( e ) under A1 . \n # A population size reduction of ≥ 50 % , projected or suspected to be met within the next 10 years or three", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "sfq_25282--Endangered_species.txt", "qid": "sfq_25282", "question": "Black, White, Sumatran and Javan are varieties of which endangered species of animal?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Cavan County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association ( GAA ) or Cavan GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA in Ireland , and is responsible for Gaelic games in Cavan and the Cavan inter-county teams . \n \n Governance \n \n Cavan GAA has jurisdiction over the area that is associated with the traditional county of County Cavan . There are 8 officers on the Board . For details on the Board 's clubs , see Gaelic Athletic Association clubs in County Cavan and List of Gaelic games clubs in Ireland # Cavan . \n The Board is subject to the Ulster GAA Provincial Council . \n \n The teams of Cavan GAA play home games at Kingspan Breffni Park , Cavan . The current football manager is Terry Hyland who has led the u21 ’ s to 3 successive Ulster titles in 2011 and 2012 . He also led the u21 ’ s to the All Ireland Under 21 Championship final in 2012 where they lost out to Galway . \n \n Sponsorship \n \n The following is a list of sponsors of the Cavan Senior Football team \n * 1992 : Holybrook Construction \n * 1993 : Atlanta Conservatories \n * 1994 : Cavan Co-op Mart \n * 1995 – present : Kingspan Group \n Cavan have had only 4 sponsorship deals since sponsors on jerseys were permitted by the GAA in 1991 . There was no sponsorship on GAA jerseys until the 2nd game of the Meath V Dublin 4 in a row in 1991 so only a handful of teams had sponsorship in 1991 . In 1992 Holybrook Construction sponsored the jerseys although it was only for 1 game . For the 1993-94 seasons Cavan Co-op Mart took over sponsorship . Kingspan has continuously sponsored Cavan since 1995 . \n \n Crest and symbols \n \n The first crest that adorned the Cavan jerseys was the Coat of Arms for County Cavan . The crest was split into four quadrants and included \n * the red hand of Ulster encased in an outline of the Franciscan Abbey which is situated in Cavan town and where the O'Reilly chieftains are buried . Here also lies the remains of an Ulster leader , Eoghan Rua O'Neill . \n * The Rampant Lion from the coat of arms of the O ’ Reilly clans , who were the local lords . \n In 2004 Cavan released a new crest for the Breifne County . The crest was designed by the 38th President of the Gaelic Athletic Association Aogán Farrell and Cavan Central Council rep. George Cartwright . The crest draws on cultural , physical and historical influences . The primary colours are blue and white with Ulster 's red hand and G.A.A . yellow also prominent . The designers wanted to reflect the following elements \n * Breifne : The ancient Gaelic territory . Modern Cavan was once `` O Reilly country '' and the ancient Gaelic kingdom of Breifne is preserved in the name of the home pitch in Cavan and now on its crest \n * Franciscan Abbey : The mediaeval tower from the Abbey in Cavan Town fills the lower quadrant . Here the O ' Reilly ’ s invited the Franciscans to establish a monastery . The O'Reilly chieftains are buried here . Here also lie the remains of Ulster 's great leader , Eoghan Rua O'Neill \n * GAA Logo : The GAA modern logo fills the right quadrant . The logo is representative of the Gaelic Athletic Association . \n * Red Hand 1886 : The first GAA club founded in the province of Ulster was formed in Cavan . Ballyconnell First Ulsters formed in 1885 and affiliated in 1886 . The date is preserved in the crest . A red hand has always appeared on Cavan crests . \n * Lakes and Hills : Our landscape is dominated by `` wee lakes and hills '' . The environment shapes us and this is reflected on the new crest . \n \n Gaelic football \n \n History \n \n One year after the GAA was founded in Hayes Hotel , Thurles , Co Tipperary , on 1 November 1884 , the game quickly spread throughout the country . The first club in Cavan and in Ulster came in late 1885 namely Ballyconnell Joe Biggars in honour of west Cavan Nationalist MP Joe Biggar . The first chairman of the club was Thomas O ’ Reilly and first secretary was John Alex Clancy . The name of the club was later changed to Ballyconnell First Ulsters . \n \n By 1886 other clubs quickly followed , Bailieboro Home Rulers being the second club to be affiliated and the", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 124, "text": "ireland" } ], "id": "bb_9223--Cavan_GAA.txt", "qid": "bb_9223", "question": "Offaly, Westmeath, Carlow and Cavan are counties of which country?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Wyatt Berry Stapp Earp ( March 19 , 1848 – January 13 , 1929 ) was an American Old West gambler , a deputy sheriff in Pima County , and deputy town marshal in Tombstone , Arizona Territory , who took part in the Gunfight at the O.K . Corral , during which lawmen killed three outlaw Cowboys . He is often regarded as the central figure in the shootout in Tombstone , although his brother Virgil was Tombstone city marshal and Deputy U.S . Marshal that day , and had far more experience as a sheriff , constable , marshal , and soldier in combat . \n \n Earp lived a restless life . He was at different times a constable , city policeman , county sheriff , Deputy U.S . Marshal , teamster , buffalo hunter , bouncer , saloon-keeper , gambler , Brothel keeper , miner , and boxing referee . Earp spent his early life in Iowa . In 1870 , Earp married his first wife , Urilla Sutherland Earp , who contracted typhoid fever and died shortly before their first child was to be born . Within the next two years Earp was arrested , sued twice , escaped from jail , then was arrested three more times for `` keeping and being found in a house of ill-fame '' . He landed in the cattle boomtown of Wichita , Kansas , where he became a deputy city marshal for one year and developed a solid reputation as a lawman . In 1876 , he followed his brother James to Dodge City , Kansas , where he became an assistant city marshal . In winter 1878 , he went to Texas to track down an outlaw and met John `` Doc '' Holliday , whom Earp later credited with saving his life . \n \n Earp moved constantly throughout his life from one boomtown to another . He left Dodge City in 1879 and moved to Tombstone with his brothers James and Virgil , where a silver boom was underway . There , the Earps clashed with a loose federation of outlaws known as the Cowboys . Wyatt , Virgil , and their younger brother Morgan held various law enforcement positions that put them in conflict with Tom and Frank McLaury , and Ike and Billy Clanton , who threatened on several occasions to kill the Earps . The conflict escalated over the next year , culminating on October 26 , 1881 in the Gunfight at the O.K . Corral , in which the Earps and Holliday killed three of the Cowboys . In the next five months , Virgil was ambushed and maimed , and Morgan was assassinated . Pursuing a vendetta , Wyatt , his brother Warren , Holliday , and others formed a federal posse that killed three of the Cowboys whom they thought responsible . Wyatt was never wounded in any of the gunfights , unlike his brothers Virgil and James or Doc Holliday , which only added to his mystique after his death . \n \n Earp was a lifelong gambler and was always looking for a quick way to make money . After leaving Tombstone , Earp went to San Francisco where he reunited with Josephine Earp . She became his common-law wife . They joined a gold rush to Eagle City , Idaho , where they owned mining interests and a saloon . They left there to race horses and open a saloon during a real estate boom in San Diego , California . Back in San Francisco , Wyatt raced horses again , but his reputation suffered irreparably when he refereed the Fitzsimmons-Sharkey boxing match and called a foul that led many to believe that he fixed the fight . They moved briefly to Yuma , Arizona before they joined the Alaskan Gold Rush to Nome , Alaska . They opened the biggest saloon in town and made a large sum of money . Returning to the lower 48 , they opened another saloon in Tonopah , Nevada , the site of a new gold find . In about 1911 , Earp began working several mining claims in Vidal , California , retiring in the hot summers with Josephine to Los Angeles . \n \n When Earp died in 1929 , he was well known for his notorious handling of the Fitzsimmons-Sharkey fight along with the O.K . Corral gun fight . An extremely flattering , largely fictionalized biography was published in 1931 after his death , becoming a bestseller and creating his reputation as a fearless lawman . Since then , Wyatt Earp has been the subject of and model for numerous films , TV shows , biographies , and works of fiction that have increased", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "qg_448--Wyatt_Earp.txt", "qid": "qg_448", "question": "Who's missing: Virgil Earp, Wyatt Earp, John Holliday" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Tropic of Capricorn is a semi-autobiographical novel by Henry Miller , first published in Paris in 1938 . The novel was banned in the United States until a 1961 Justice Department ruling declared that its contents were not obscene . It was also banned in Turkey . It is a prequel to Miller 's 1934 work , the Tropic of Cancer . \n \n The novel is set in 1920s New York , where the narrator 'Henry V. Miller ' works in the personnel division of the 'Cosmodemonic ' telegraph company . Although the narrator 's experiences closely parallel Miller 's own time in New York working for the Western Union Telegraph Company , and though he shares the author 's name , the novel is considered a work of fiction . \n \n Much of the story surrounds his New York years of struggle with his first wife Beatrice , before meeting , and eventually marrying , June ( aka Mara ) . The first volume of his Rosy Crucifixion trilogy , Sexus , begins where he leaves off and describes the process of finding his voice as a writer , until eventually , at the end of the last volume , Nexus , he sets off for Paris ( described in Tropic of Cancer , which was actually written first ) .", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 309, "text": "tropic of cancer" } ], "id": "tc_3045--Tropic_of_Capricorn_(novel).txt", "qid": "tc_3045", "question": "Which is further north, the tropic of cancer or the tropic of Capricorn?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The 1976 Summer Olympics , officially called the Games of the XXI Olympiad ( French : Les XXIes olympiques d'été ) , was an international multi-sport event in Montreal , Quebec , in 1976 , and the first Olympic Games held in Canada . Montreal was awarded the rights to the 1976 Games on May 12 , 1970 , at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam , over the bids of Moscow and Los Angeles . It is so far the only Summer Olympic Games to be held in Canada . Calgary and Vancouver later hosted the Olympic Winter Games in in 1988 and 2010 , respectively . \n \n Most sovereign African , and a few other , nations boycotted the Montreal Games when the International Olympic Committee ( IOC ) would not support , as had other international sporting organizations , the banning from competition of those countries whose athletes had participated in sporting events in South Africa as long as apartheid continued . The New Zealand rugby team had been touring South Africa during apartheid and were excluded from international sporting events due to implementation of the anti-apartheid policy . \n \n Host city selection \n \n The vote occurred on May 12 , 1970 , at the 69th IOC Session in Amsterdam , Netherlands . While Los Angeles and Moscow were viewed as the favorites given that they represented the world 's two main powers , many of the smaller countries supported Montreal as an underdog and as a politically neutral site for the games . Los Angeles was eliminated after the first round and Montreal won in the second round . Moscow would go on to host the 1980 Summer Olympics and Los Angeles the 1984 Summer Olympics . One blank vote was cast in the second and final round . \n \n Toronto had made its third attempt for the Olympics but failed to get the support of the Canadian Olympic Committee , which selected Montreal instead . \n \n Organization \n \n Robert Bourassa , then the Premier of Quebec , first asked Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau to advise Canada 's monarch , Elizabeth II , to attend the opening of the games . However , Bourassa later became unsettled about how unpopular the move might be with sovereigntists in the province , annoying Trudeau , who had already made arrangements . The leader of the Parti Québécois at the time , René Lévesque , sent his own letter to Buckingham Palace , asking the Queen to refuse her prime minister 's request , though she did not oblige Lévesque as he was out of his jurisdiction in offering advice to the Sovereign . \n \n Opening Ceremony \n \n The Opening Ceremony of the 1976 Summer Olympic Games was held on Saturday , July 17 , 1976 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal , Quebec , in front of an audience of some 73,000 in the stadium , and an estimated half billion watching on television . \n \n The ceremony marked the opening of the Games of the XXI Olympiad , the first Olympics held in Canada ( Calgary would later host the 1988 Olympic Winter Games , and Vancouver the 2010 Olympic Winter Games ) . \n \n Following an air show by the Canadian Forces Air Command 's Snowbirds flying squad in the sunny skies above the stadium , the ceremony officially began at 3:00 pm with a trumpet fanfare and the arrival of Elizabeth II , as Queen of Canada . The queen was accompanied by Michael Morris , Lord Killanin , President of the International Olympic Committee , and was greeted to an orchestral rendition of ‘ O Canada ’ , an arrangement that for many years later would be used in schools across the country as well as in the daily sign off of CBC ’ s broadcast . \n \n The queen entered the Royal Box with her consort , Prince Philip , Duke of Edinburgh , and her son , Prince Andrew ( her daughter , Princess Anne , was a competitor for the team from Great Britain ) . She joined a number of Canadian and Olympic dignitaries , including : Jules Léger , Governor General of Canada , and his wife , Gabrielle ; Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and wife , Margaret ; Robert Bourassa , Premier of the Province of Quebec ; Roger Rousseau , chief of the Montreal Olympic Organizing Committee ( COJO ) ; Sheila Dunlop , Lady Killanin , wife of the IOC President ; Mayor of Montreal , Jean Drapeau , and his wife , Marie-Claire . \n \n The parade of athletes began moments later with the arrival of the Greek team and concluded with the", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 3644, "text": "princess anne" } ], "id": "dpql_1725--1976_Summer_Olympics.txt", "qid": "dpql_1725", "question": "Who was the only female competitor not to be given a sex test at the 1976 Olympics?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom . It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west . The Irish Sea lies northwest of England and the Celtic Sea lies to the southwest . England is separated from continental Europe by the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south . The country covers much of the central and southern part of the island of Great Britain , which lies in the North Atlantic ; and includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly , and the Isle of Wight . \n \n The area now called England was first inhabited by modern humans during the Upper Palaeolithic period , but takes its name from the Angles , one of the Germanic tribes who settled during the 5th and 6th centuries . England became a unified state in the 10th century , and since the Age of Discovery , which began during the 15th century , has had a significant cultural and legal impact on the wider world . The English language , the Anglican Church , and English law – the basis for the common law legal systems of many other countries around the world – developed in England , and the country 's parliamentary system of government has been widely adopted by other nations . The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England , transforming its society into the world 's first industrialised nation . \n \n England 's terrain mostly comprises low hills and plains , especially in central and southern England . However , there are uplands in the north ( for example , the mountainous Lake District , Pennines , and Yorkshire Dales ) and in the south west ( for example , Dartmoor and the Cotswolds ) . The capital is London , which is the largest metropolitan area in both the United Kingdom and the European Union.According to the European Statistical Agency , London is the largest Larger Urban Zone in the EU , a measure of metropolitan area which comprises a city 's urban core as well as its surrounding commuting zone . London 's municipal population is also the largest in the EU . England 's population of over 53 million comprises 84 % of the population of the United Kingdom , largely concentrated around London , the South East , and conurbations in the Midlands , the North West , the North East , and Yorkshire , which each developed as major industrial regions during the 19th century . [ http : //www.ons.gov.uk/ons/dcp171778_270487.pdf 2011 Census – Population and household estimates for England and Wales , March 2011 ] . Accessed 31 May 2013 . \n \n The Kingdom of England—which after 1535 included Wales—ceased being a separate sovereign state on 1 May 1707 , when the Acts of Union put into effect the terms agreed in the Treaty of Union the previous year , resulting in a political union with the Kingdom of Scotland to create the Kingdom of Great Britain . In 1801 , Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland through another Act of Union to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland . In 1922 the Irish Free State seceded from the United Kingdom , leading to the latter being renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland . \n \n Toponymy \n \n The name `` England '' is derived from the Old English name Englaland , which means `` land of the Angles '' . The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages . The Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea . The earliest recorded use of the term , as `` Engla londe '' , is in the late ninth century translation into Old English of Bede 's Ecclesiastical History of the English People . The term was then used in a different sense to the modern one , meaning `` the land inhabited by the English '' , and it included English people in what is now south-east Scotland but was then part of the English kingdom of Northumbria . The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle recorded that the Domesday Book of 1086 covered the whole of England , meaning the English kingdom , but a few years later the Chronicle stated that King Malcolm III went `` out of Scotlande into Lothian in Englaland '' , thus using it in the more ancient sense . According to the Oxford English Dictionary , its modern spelling was first used in 1538 . \n \n The earliest attested reference to the Angles occurs in the 1st-century", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 503, "text": "isles of scilly" } ], "id": "qw_3414--England.txt", "qid": "qw_3414", "question": "What is the name of the group of 140 islands 25 miles south west of Lands End, Cornwall, England?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Michael Brandon ( born as Michael Feldman ) is an American actor and voice actor who resides in London and Los Angeles . \n \n Life and career \n \n Brandon was born Michael Feldman in Brooklyn , New York to Miriam ( née Tumen ) and Sol Feldman . At age nine , he and his family ( brother Elliot and sister Debra Lynne ) moved to Valley Stream , New York where he attended Memorial Junior High and then Valley Stream Central High School . \n \n Brandon starred in the TV series Dempsey and Makepeace and Dinotopia , the movies Quattro mosche di velluto grigio ( 1971 ) , F.M . ( 1978 ) , A Vacation In Hell ( 1979 ) and A Change of Seasons ( 1980 ) , and the plays Does a Tiger Wear a Necktie ? and Jerry Springer - The Opera . \n Since moving to the UK , Brandon has worked in TV on such shows as The Bill , Trial and Retribution , and Dead Man Weds . He also played the title role in the musical Jerry Springer : The Opera for over a year in the National Theatre and after its transfer into the West End . Brandon starred in Singin ' in the Rain in the summer of 2012 . In 2004 , he portrayed Nobel Prize winner Arno Penzias in the BBC TV movie Hawking about physicist Stephen Hawking 's early career at the University of Cambridge and was the US narrator of Thomas & Friends and Abe and the Amazing Promise of Veggie Tales . In February 2008 he began his talk radio show on City Talk , a new local radio station in Liverpool . [ http : //www.citytalk.fm/showdj.asp ? DJID42348 City Talk 105.9 – The Voice of Liverpool ] In 2008 he appeared in the Series 4 finale of the BBC 's Doctor Who , as General Sanchez , a UNIT officer . [ http : //www.bbc.co.uk/bbcone/listings/programme.shtml ? day \n saturday & service_id4223 & filename \n 20080628/20080628_1910_4223_8739_50 BBC – BBC ONE – Listings ] Also in 2008 he appeared in the television series Bones , as Roger Frampton , an American millionaire . \n \n In the early 1970s Brandon was in a relationship with the actress Kim Novak . From 1976 to 1979 , Brandon was married to actress Lindsay Wagner . He is now married to actress Glynis Barber , with whom he co-starred in Dempsey & Makepeace , and the couple remain in the United Kingdom . Brandon and Barber have a son . \n \n In 2011 , Brandon guest-starred in an episode of the BBC1 con drama Hustle as Marcus Wendell ( series 7 , episode 3 ) . \n \n Also in 2011 he was seen in a supporting role in the film Captain America : The First Avenger as a politician who befriends the titular character . \n \n In September 2013 he appeared in the ITV dancing show Stepping Out with wife Glynis Barber . \n \n Filmography \n \n Films \n \n Television", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 472, "text": "dempsey and makepeace" } ], "id": "sfq_742--Michael_Brandon.txt", "qid": "sfq_742", "question": "Glynis Barber and her husband Michael Brandon starred together in which TV detective series?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "A triathlon is a multiple-stage competition involving the completion of three continuous and sequential endurance disciplines . While many variations of the sport exist , triathlon , in its most popular form , involves swimming , cycling , and running in immediate succession over various distances . Triathletes compete for fastest overall course completion time , including timed `` transitions '' between the individual swim , cycle , and run components . The word `` triathlon '' is of Greek origin from τρεῖς or treis ( `` three '' ) and ἆθλος or athlos ( `` sport '' ) . \n \n A transition area is set up where the athletes change gear for different segments of the race . This is where the switches from swimming to cycling and cycling to running occur . These areas are used to store bicycles , performance apparel , and any other accessories needed for the next stage of the race . The transition from swim and bike is referred to as T1 and that between the bike and run is referred to as T2 . The athlete 's overall time for the race includes time spent in T1 and T2 . Transition areas vary in size depending on the number of participants expected . In addition , these areas provide a social headquarters before the race . \n \n The nature of the sport focuses on persistent and often periodized training in each of the three disciplines , as well as combination workouts and general strength conditioning . \n \n History \n \n Triathlon is considered by some to have its beginnings in 1920s France . According to triathlon historian and author Scott Tinley ( and others ) , the origin of triathlon is attributed to a race during the 1920s–1930s that was called variously `` Les trois sports '' , `` La Course des Débrouillards '' , and `` La course des Touche à Tout . '' This race is held every year in France near Joinville-le-Pont , in Meulan and Poissy . \n \n An earlier tri-sport event in 1902 featured running , cycling , and canoeing . There are documented tri-sport events featuring running , swimming , & cycling ( not necessarily in that order ) in 1920 , 1921 , 1945 , and the 1960s . In 1920 , the French newspaper L´Auto reported on a competition called `` Les Trois Sports '' with a 3 km run , 12 km bike , and a swim across the channel Marne . Those three parts were done without any break . Another event was held in 1921 in Marseilles with the order of events bike-run-swim . French newspapers reported on a race in Marseille in 1927 , and in 1934 an article about `` Les Trois Sports '' ( the three sports ) in the city of La Rochelle was written about a race with : ( 1 ) a channel crossing ( c. 200 m ) , ( 2 ) a bike competition ( 10 km ) around the harbor of La Rochelle and the parc Laleu , and ( 3 ) a run ( 1200 m ) in the stadium André-Barbeau . \n \n Modern triathlon \n \n The first modern swim/bike/run event to be called a 'triathlon ' was held at Mission Bay , San Diego , California on September 25 , 1974 . The race was conceived and directed by Jack Johnstone and Don Shanahan , members of the San Diego Track Club , and was sponsored by the track club . 46 participants entered this event . It was reportedly not inspired by the French events , although a race the following year at Fiesta Island , San Diego , California , is sometimes called 'the first triathlon in America . ' \n \n Organizations \n \n The International Triathlon Union ( ITU ) was founded in 1989 as the international governing body of the sport , with the chief goal , at that time , of putting triathlon on the Olympic program . The ITU sanctions and organizes the World Cup and World Triathlon Series races each year , with annual world champions crowned each year for elite pro-triathletes , junior pro-triathletes , and age-group athletes ( in 5-year age-groups . ) ITU races are conducted in a draft legal format for the bike leg , whereas drafting is not permitted at the amateur level . In addition , the ITU has a Long Distance Triathlon series . \n \n The World Triathlon Corporation ( WTC ) is a private company that sanctions and organizes the Ironman and Ironman 70.3 races each year . These races serve as qualifying events for their own annual World Championships . The Ironman World Championship is held", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 385, "text": "transitions" } ], "id": "dpql_4630--Triathlon.txt", "qid": "dpql_4630", "question": "In triathlon, what is the term for the transfer between disciplines?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Tennis is a racket sport that can be played individually against a single opponent ( singles ) or between two teams of two players each ( doubles ) . Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over or around a net and into the opponent 's court . The object of the game is to play the ball in such a way that the opponent is not able to play a valid return . The player who is unable to return the ball will not gain a point , while the opposite player will . \n \n Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society and at all ages . The sport can be played by anyone who can hold a racket , including wheelchair users . The modern game of tennis originated in Birmingham , England , in the late 19th century as `` lawn tennis '' . It had close connections both to various field ( `` lawn '' ) games such as croquet and bowls as well as to the older racket sport of real tennis . During most of the 19th century , in fact , the term `` tennis '' referred to real tennis , not lawn tennis : for example , in Disraeli 's novel Sybil ( 1845 ) , Lord Eugene De Vere announces that he will `` go down to Hampton Court and play tennis . '' \n \n The rules of tennis have changed little since the 1890s . Two exceptions are that from 1908 to 1961 the server had to keep one foot on the ground at all times , and the adoption of the tiebreak in the 1970s . A recent addition to professional tennis has been the adoption of electronic review technology coupled with a point challenge system , which allows a player to contest the line call of a point . \n \n Tennis is played by millions of recreational players and is also a popular worldwide spectator sport . The four Grand Slam tournaments ( also referred to as the `` Majors '' ) are especially popular : the Australian Open played on hard courts , the French Open played on red clay courts , Wimbledon played on grass courts , and the US Open played also on hard courts . \n \n History \n \n Predecessors \n \n Historians believe that the game 's ancient origin lay in 12th century northern France , where a ball was struck with the palm of the hand . Louis X of France was a keen player of jeu de paume ( `` game of the palm '' ) , which evolved into real tennis , and became notable as the first person to construct indoor tennis courts in the modern style . Louis was unhappy with playing tennis outdoors and accordingly had indoor , enclosed courts made in Paris `` around the end of the 13th century '' . In due course this design spread across royal palaces all over Europe . In June 1316 at Vincennes , Val-de-Marne and following a particularly exhausting game , Louis drank a large quantity of cooled wine and subsequently died of either pneumonia or pleurisy , although there was also suspicion of poisoning . Because of the contemporary accounts of his death , Louis X is history 's first tennis player known by name . Another of the early enthusiasts of the game was King Charles V of France , who had a court set up at the Louvre Palace . \n \n It was n't until the 16th century that rackets came into use , and the game began to be called `` tennis '' , from the Old French term tenez , which can be translated as `` hold ! `` , `` receive ! '' or `` take ! `` , an interjection used as a call from the server to his opponent . It was popular in England and France , although the game was only played indoors where the ball could be hit off the wall . Henry VIII of England was a big fan of this game , which is now known as real tennis . During the 18th century and early 19th century , as real tennis declined , new racket sports emerged in England . \n \n Further , the patenting of the first lawn mower in 1830 , in Britain , is strongly believed to have been the catalyst , world-wide , for the preparation of modern-style grass courts , sporting ovals , playing fields , pitches , greens , etc . This in turn led to the codification of modern rules for many", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "bb_1246--Tennis.txt", "qid": "bb_1246", "question": "Who beat Andy Murray in final of the Australian Open tennis championship in January 2011?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The World Series is the annual championship series of Major League Baseball ( MLB ) in North America , contested since 1903 between the American League ( AL ) champion team and the National League ( NL ) champion team . Prior to 1969 , the team with the best regular season win-loss record in each league automatically advanced to the World Series ; since then each league has conducted a championship series ( ALCS and NLCS ) preceding the World Series to determine which teams will advance . As of 2015 , the World Series has been contested 111 times , with the AL winning 64 and the NL winning 47 . The winner of the World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff , and the winning team is awarded the Commissioner 's Trophy . As the series is played in October ( and occasionally November ) , during the autumn season in North America , it is often referred to as the Fall Classic . \n \n The 2015 World Series took place between the New York Mets and the victorious Kansas City Royals . Five games were played , with the Royals victorious after game five , played in New York . The final score was 7-2 ; the game went into extra innings after a tied score of 2-2 . This was the second World Series won by the franchise and the first in 30 years . \n \n In the American League , the New York Yankees have played in 40 World Series and won 27 , the Philadelphia/Kansas City/Oakland Athletics have played in 14 and won 9 , and the Boston Red Sox have played in 12 and won 8 , including the first World Series . In the National League , the St. Louis Cardinals have appeared in 19 and won 11 , the New York/San Francisco Giants have played in 20 and won 8 , the Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers have appeared in 18 and won 6 , and the Cincinnati Reds have appeared in 9 and won 5 . \n \n As of 2015 , no team has won consecutive World Series championships since the New York Yankees in 1999 and 2000 , the longest such duration in Major League Baseball history . \n \n Precursors to the modern World Series ( 1857–1902 ) \n \n The original World Series \n \n Until the formation of the American Association in 1882 as a second major league , the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players ( 1871–1875 ) and then the National League ( founded 1876 ) represented the top level of organized baseball in the United States . All championships were awarded to the team with the best record at the end of the season , without a postseason series being played . From 1884 to 1890 , the National League and the American Association faced each other in a series of games at the end of the season to determine an overall champion . These series were disorganized in comparison to the modern Series : games played ranged from as few as three in 1884 ( Providence defeated New York three games to zero ) , to a high of fifteen in 1887 ( Detroit beat St. Louis ten games to five ) , and both the 1885 and 1890 Series ended in ties , each team having won three games with one tie game . \n \n The series was promoted and referred to as `` The Championship of the United States '' , `` World 's Championship Series '' , or `` World 's Series '' for short . \n In his book Krakatoa : The Day the World Exploded : August 27 , 1883 , Simon Winchester mentions in passing that the World Series was named for the New York World newspaper , but this view is disputed . \n \n The 19th-century competitions are , however , not officially recognized as part of World Series history by Major League Baseball , as it considers 19th-century baseball to be a prologue to the modern baseball era . Until about 1960 , some sources treated the 19th-century Series on an equal basis with the post-19th-century series . After about 1930 , however , many authorities list the start of the World Series in 1903 and discuss the earlier contests separately . \n ( For example , the 1929 World Almanac and Book of Facts lists `` Baseball 's World Championships 1884–1928 '' in a single table , but the 1943 edition lists `` Baseball World Championships 1903–1942 '' . ) \n \n 1892–1900 : `` The Monopoly Years '' \n \n Following the collapse of the American Association after the 1891 season , the National League", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "qb_9975--World_Series.txt", "qid": "qb_9975", "question": "In October 1992, which baseball team became the first non-USA team to win the World Series?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Hegira or Hijrah ( ) , also romanized as Hijra and Hejira , is the migration or journey of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to Yathrib , later renamed by him to Medina , in 622 CE . In May 622 CE , after being warned of a plot to assassinate him , Muhammad secretly left his home in Mecca to emigrate to Yathrib , 320 km north of Mecca , along with his companion Abu Bakr . Yathrib was soon renamed Madīnat an-Nabī , literally `` the City of the Prophet '' , but an-Nabī was soon dropped , so its name is `` Medina '' , meaning `` the city '' .F . A. Shamsi , `` The Date of Hijrah '' , Islamic Studies 23 ( 1984 ) : 189-224 , 289-323 ( [ http : //www.jstor.org/stable/20847270 JSTOR link 1 ] + [ http : //www.jstor.org/stable/20847277 JSTOR link 2 ] ) . \n \n The Hijrah is also often identified erroneously with the start of the Islamic calendar , which was set to Julian 16 July 622 . \n \n First Hijrah \n \n The first Hijrah is dated to 615 or Rajab ( September-October ) 613 when a group of Muslims counseled by Muhammad to escape persecution in Mecca arrived at the court of the Christian monarch ( Negus ) of the Ethiopian Empire , Ashama ibn-Abjar . Muhammad himself did not join this emigration . In that year , his followers fled Mecca 's leading tribe , the Quraysh , who sent emissaries to Ethiopia to bring them back to the Arabian Peninsula . However , the Negus refused to send them back . \n \n Muhammad 's Hijrah \n \n Context \n \n In Mecca , at the pilgrimage season of 620 , Muhammad met six men of the Banu Khazraj from Medina , propounded to them the doctrines of Islam , and recited portions of the Quran . Impressed by this , the six embraced Islam , and at the Pilgrimage of 621 , five of them brought seven others with them . These twelve informed Muhammad of the beginning of gradual development of Islam in Medina , and took a formal pledge of allegiance at Muhammad 's hand , promising to accept him as a prophet , to worship none but one God , and to renounce certain sins such as theft , adultery , and murder . This is known as the `` First Pledge of al-Aqaba '' . At their request , Muhammad sent with them Mus ‘ ab ibn 'Umair to teach them the instructions of Islam . Biographers have recorded the considerable success of Mus ` ab ibn ` Umair in preaching the message of Islam and bringing people under the umbrella of Islam in Medina . \n \n The next year , at the pilgrimage of 622 , a delegation of around 75 Muslims of the Banu Aws and Khazraj from Medina came , and in addition to restating the formal promises , they also assured Muhammad of their full support and protection if the latter would migrate to their land . They invited him to come to Medina as an arbitrator to reconcile among the hostile tribes . This is known as the `` second pledge at al-Aqabah '' , and was a 'politico-religious ' success that paved the way for his and his followers ' immigration to Medina . Following the pledges , Muhammad encouraged his followers to migrate to Medina , and in a span of two months , nearly all the Muslims of Mecca migrated to Medina . \n \n During the early seventh century , Medina was inhabited by two types of population : Jewish and pagan Arabs . The Jews there had three principal clans – Banu Qaynuqa , Banu Nadir , and Banu Qurayza . The Arab pagans had two tribes – the Banu Aws and Khazraj . At that time , the Jews there had the upper hand with their large settlement and huge property . Before the encounter between Muhammad and the six men from Medina in 620 , there ensued a terrible battle between Aws and Khazraj , known as the Battle of Buath , in which many leading personalities of both the sides died and left Yathrib in a disordered state . Traditional rules for maintaining law and order became dysfunctional , and , without a neutral man with considerable authority over things , stability seemed unlikely . As the pagan Arabs of Medina lived in close proximity to the Jews , they had gained some knowledge about their scriptures , and had heard the Jews awaiting the arrival of a future prophet . It is because of this knowledge ,", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 4, "text": "hegira" } ], "id": "qw_9150--Hegira.txt", "qid": "qw_9150", "question": "The migration of the Islamic prophet Muhammad and his followers from Mecca to the city of Medina in 622, which marked year one of the Islamic calendar, was known as what?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "An alphabet is a standard set of letters ( basic written symbols or graphemes ) that is used to write one or more languages based on the general principle that the letters represent phonemes ( basic significant sounds ) of the spoken language . This is in contrast to other types of writing systems , such as syllabaries ( in which each character represents a syllable ) and logographies ( in which each character represents a word , morpheme , or semantic unit ) . \n \n The Proto-Canaanite script , later known as the Phoenician alphabet , is the first fully phonemic script . Thus the Phoenician alphabet is considered to be the first alphabet . The Phoenician alphabet is the ancestor of most modern alphabets , including Arabic , Greek , Latin , Cyrillic , Hebrew , and possibly Brahmic . According to terminology introduced by Peter T. Daniels , an `` alphabet '' is a script that represents both vowels and consonants as letters equally . In this narrow sense of the word the first `` true '' alphabet was the Greek alphabet , which was developed on the basis of the earlier Phoenician alphabet . In other alphabetic scripts such as the original Phoenician , Hebrew or Arabic , letters predominantly or exclusively represent consonants ; such a script is also called an abjad . A third type , called abugida or alphasyllabary , is one where vowels are shown by diacritics or modifications of consonantal base letters , as in Devanagari and other South Asian scripts . \n \n There are dozens of alphabets in use today , the most popular being the Latin alphabet ( which was derived from the Greek ) . Many languages use modified forms of the Latin alphabet , with additional letters formed using diacritical marks . While most alphabets have letters composed of lines ( linear writing ) , there are also exceptions such as the alphabets used in Braille . \n \n Alphabets are usually associated with a standard ordering of letters . This makes them useful for purposes of collation , specifically by allowing words to be sorted in alphabetical order . It also means that their letters can be used as an alternative method of `` numbering '' ordered items , in such contexts as numbered lists and number placements . \n \n Etymology \n \n The English word alphabet came into Middle English from the Late Latin word alphabetum , which in turn originated in the Greek ἀλφάβητος ( alphabētos ) , from alpha and beta , the first two letters of the Greek alphabet . Alpha and beta in turn came from the first two letters of the Phoenician alphabet , and originally meant ox and house respectively . \n \n Informally the term `` ABCs '' is sometimes used for the alphabet as in the alphabet song ( Now I know my ABCs ... ) , and knowing one 's ABCs for literacy , or as a metaphor for knowing the basics about anything . \n \n History \n \n Ancient Northeast African and Middle Eastern scripts \n \n The history of the alphabet started in ancient Egypt . By the 27th century BC Egyptian writing had a set of some 24 hieroglyphs that are called uniliterals , to represent syllables that begin with a single consonant of their language , plus a vowel ( or no vowel ) to be supplied by the native speaker . These glyphs were used as pronunciation guides for logograms , to write grammatical inflections , and , later , to transcribe loan words and foreign names.Daniels and Bright ( 1996 ) , pp . 74–75 \n \n In the Middle Bronze Age an apparently `` alphabetic '' system known as the Proto-Sinaitic script appears in Egyptian turquoise mines in the Sinai peninsula dated to circa the 15th century BC , apparently left by Canaanite workers . In 1999 , John and Deborah Darnell discovered an even earlier version of this first alphabet at Wadi el-Hol dated to circa 1800 BC and showing evidence of having been adapted from specific forms of Egyptian hieroglyphs that could be dated to circa 2000 BC , strongly suggesting that the first alphabet had been developed about that time . Based on letter appearances and names , it is believed to be based on Egyptian hieroglyphs . This script had no characters representing vowels , although originally it probably was a syllabary , but unneeded symbols were discarded . An alphabetic cuneiform script with 30 signs including three that indicate the following vowel was invented in Ugarit before the 15th century BC . This script was not used after the destruction of Ugarit . \n \n The Proto-Sinaitic script eventually developed", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "wh_1693--Alphabet.txt", "qid": "wh_1693", "question": "Four letters of the Greek alphabet have a two letter name, Mu, Nu, Xi and which other, the 16th?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Paul the Apostle ( ; ; c. 5 – c. 67 ) , commonly known as Saint Paul , and also known by his native name Saul of Tarsus ( ; ) was an apostle ( though not one of the Twelve Apostles ) who taught the gospel of the Christ to the 1st-century world . He is generally considered one of the most important figures of the Apostolic Age . In the mid-30s to the mid-50s AD , he founded several churches in Asia Minor and Europe . Paul took advantage of his status as both a Jew and a Roman citizen to minister to both Jewish and Roman audiences . \n \n According to writings in the New Testament , Paul was dedicated to the persecution of the early disciples of Jesus in the area of Jerusalem . In the narrative of the book of Acts of the Apostles ( often referred to simply as Acts ) , Paul was traveling on the road from Jerusalem to Damascus on a mission to `` bring them which were there bound unto Jerusalem '' when the resurrected Jesus appeared to him in a great light . He was struck blind but , after three days , his sight was restored by Ananias of Damascus , and Paul began to preach that Jesus of Nazareth is the Jewish Messiah and the Son of God.Acts 9:20 And straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues , that he is the Son of God.Acts 9:21 But all that heard him were amazed , and said ; Is not this he that destroyed them which called on this name in Jerusalem , and came hither for that intent , that he might bring them bound unto the chief priests ? Approximately half of the book of Acts deals with Paul 's life and works . \n \n Fourteen of the twenty-seven books in the New Testament have traditionally been attributed to Paul . Seven of the epistles are undisputed by scholars as being authentic , with varying degrees of argument about the remainder . Pauline authorship of the Epistle to the Hebrews is not asserted in the Epistle itself and was already doubted in the 2nd and 3rd centuries . It was almost unquestioningly accepted from the 5th to the 16th centuries that Paul was the author of Hebrews , but that view is now almost universally rejected by scholars . The other six are believed by some scholars to have come from followers writing in his name , using material from Paul 's surviving letters and letters written by him that no longer survive . Other scholars argue that the idea of a pseudonymous author for the disputed epistles raises many problems . \n \n Today , Paul 's epistles continue to be vital roots of the theology , worship , and pastoral life in the Catholic and Protestant traditions of the West , and the Orthodox traditions of the East.Aageson , James W. Paul , the Pastoral Epistles , and the Early Church . Hendrickson Publishers , 2008 . ISBN 978-1-59856-041-1 p.1 Paul 's influence on Christian thought and practice has been characterized as being as `` profound as it is pervasive '' , among that of many other apostles and missionaries involved in the spread of the Christian faith . Augustine of Hippo developed Paul 's idea that salvation is based on faith and not `` works of the law '' . Martin Luther 's interpretation of Paul 's writings influenced Luther 's doctrine of sola fide . \n \n Available sources \n \n The main source for information about Paul 's life is the material found in his epistles and in Acts . However , the epistles contain little information about Paul 's past . The book of Acts recounts more information but leaves several parts of Paul 's life out of its narrative , such as his probable but undocumented execution in Rome . Acts also contradicts Paul 's epistles on multiple accounts , in particular concerning the frequency of Paul 's visits to the church in Jerusalem . \n \n Sources outside the New Testament that mention Paul include : \n * Clement of Rome 's epistle to the Corinthians ( late 1st/early 2nd century ) ; \n * Ignatius of Antioch 's letter To the Romans ( early 2nd century ) ; \n * Polycarp 's letter to the Philippians ( early 2nd century ) ; \n * The 2nd-century document Martyrdom of Polycarp . \n \n Names \n \n It has been popularly assumed that Saul 's name was changed when he converted from Judaism to Christianity , but that is not the case . His Jewish name was `` Saul '' ( ) , perhaps after", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 113, "text": "tarsus" } ], "id": "odql_7431--Paul_the_Apostle.txt", "qid": "odql_7431", "question": "According to the Bible, in which city in modern-day Turkey was Paul the Apostle born?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Vietnam War ( ) , also known as the Second Indochina War , and known in Vietnam as Resistance War Against America ( ) or simply the American War , was a Cold War-era proxy war that occurred in Vietnam , Laos , and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975 . This war followed the First Indochina War ( 1946–54 ) and was fought between North Vietnam—supported by the Soviet Union , China and other communist allies—and the government of South Vietnam—supported by the United States , Philippines and other anti-communist allies . The Viet Cong ( also known as the National Liberation Front , or NLF ) , a South Vietnamese communist common front aided by the North , fought a guerrilla war against anti-communist forces in the region . The People 's Army of Vietnam , also known as the North Vietnamese Army ( NVA ) , engaged in a more conventional war , at times committing large units to battle . \n \n As the war continued , the part of the Viet Cong in the fighting decreased as the role of the NVA grew . U.S. and South Vietnamese forces relied on air superiority and overwhelming firepower to conduct search and destroy operations , involving ground forces , artillery , and airstrikes . In the course of the war , the U.S. conducted a large-scale strategic bombing campaign against North Vietnam . \n \n The U.S. government viewed its involvement in the war as a way to prevent a Communist takeover of South Vietnam . This was part of a wider containment policy , with the stated aim of stopping the spread of communism . The North Vietnamese government and the Viet Cong were fighting to reunify Vietnam . They viewed the conflict as a colonial war , fought initially against forces from France and then the U.S. , and later against South Vietnam . \n \n Beginning in 1950 , American military advisors arrived in what was then French Indochina . The Military Assistance Advisory Group , Indochina ( with an authorized strength of 128 men ) was set up in September 1950 with a mission to oversee the use and distribution of US military equipment by the French and their allies . U.S. involvement escalated in the early 1960s , with troop levels tripling in 1961 and again in 1962 . U.S. involvement escalated further following the 1964 Gulf of Tonkin incident , in which a U.S. destroyer clashed with North Vietnamese fast attack craft , which was followed by the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution , which gave the U.S. president authorization to increase U.S. military presence . Regular U.S. combat units were deployed beginning in 1965 . Operations crossed international borders : bordering areas of Laos and Cambodia were heavily bombed by U.S. forces as American involvement in the war peaked in 1968 , the same year that the communist side launched the Tet Offensive . The Tet Offensive failed in its goal of overthrowing the South Vietnamese government , but became the turning point in the war , as it persuaded a large segment of the U.S. population that its government 's claims of progress toward winning the war were illusory despite many years of massive U.S. military aid to South Vietnam . \n \n Gradual withdrawal of U.S. ground forces began as part of `` Vietnamization '' , which aimed to end American involvement in the war while transferring the task of fighting the Communists to the South Vietnamese themselves . Despite the Paris Peace Accord , which was signed by all parties in January 1973 , the fighting continued . In the U.S. and the Western world , a large anti-Vietnam War movement developed as part of a larger counterculture . The war changed the dynamics between the Eastern and Western Blocs , and altered North–South relations . \n \n Direct U.S. military involvement ended on 15 August 1973 . The capture of Saigon by the North Vietnamese Army in April 1975 marked the end of the war , and North and South Vietnam were reunified the following year . The war exacted a huge human cost in terms of fatalities ( see Vietnam War casualties ) . Estimates of the number of Vietnamese soldiers and civilians killed vary from 800,000 to 3.1 million . Some 200,000–300,000 Cambodians , . 20,000–200,000 Laotians , , which estimates 200,000 by 1973. and 58,220 U.S. service members also died in the conflict , with a further 1,626 missing in action . \n \n Names for the war \n \n Various names have been applied to the conflict . Vietnam War is the most commonly used name in English . It has also been called", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 4, "text": "vietnam" } ], "id": "wh_1564--Vietnam_War.txt", "qid": "wh_1564", "question": "In which war did the Battle of Hamburger Hill take place?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Qualcomm Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in San Diego , California , United States . The stadium opened in 1967 as San Diego Stadium and was later known for many years as Jack Murphy Stadium . Since 1997 , the stadium 's naming rights are owned by Qualcomm , a San Diego-based telecommunications equipment company . \n \n It is the current home of the San Diego Chargers of the National Football League ( NFL ) and the San Diego State Aztecs football team from San Diego State University . Two college football bowl games , the Holiday Bowl and Poinsettia Bowl , are held in the stadium every December . The San Diego Padres of Major League Baseball ( MLB ) played home games at the stadium from their founding in 1969 through the 2003 season , after which they moved to Petco Park . \n \n The stadium has hosted three Super Bowl games : Super Bowl XXII in 1988 , Super Bowl XXXII in 1998 , and Super Bowl XXXVII in 2003 . It has also hosted the 1978 and 1992 Major League Baseball All-Star Games , as well as games of the 1996 and 1998 National League Division Series , the 1984 and 1998 National League Championship Series , and the 1984 and 1998 World Series . It is the only stadium ever to host both the Super Bowl and the World Series in the same year ( 1998 ) and is one of three stadiums to host the World Series , MLB All-Star Game , and Super Bowl , along with the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome in Minneapolis and Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum . \n \n Qualcomm Stadium is located immediately northwest of the interchange of Interstate 8 and Interstate 15 . The neighborhood surrounding the stadium is known as Mission Valley , in reference to the Mission San Diego de Alcalá , which is located to the east , and its placement in the valley of the San Diego River . The stadium is served by the Qualcomm Stadium station of the San Diego Trolley , accessible via the Green Line running toward Downtown San Diego to the west , and Santee to the east . \n \n History \n \n In the early 1960s , local sportswriter Jack Murphy , the brother of New York Mets broadcaster Bob Murphy , began to build up support for a multi-purpose stadium for San Diego . In November 1965 , a $ 27 million bond was passed allowing construction to begin on a stadium , which was designed in the Brutalist style . Construction on the stadium began one month later . When completed , the facility was named San Diego Stadium . \n \n The Chargers ( then a member of the American Football League ) played the first game ever at the stadium on August 20 , 1967 . San Diego Stadium had a capacity of around 50,000 ; the three-tier grandstand was in the shape of a horseshoe , with the east end low ( consisting of only one tier , partially topped by a large scoreboard ) . The Chargers were the main tenant of the stadium until 1968 , when the AAA Pacific Coast League San Diego Padres baseball team played its last season in the stadium , following their move from the minor league sized Westgate Park . Due to expansion of Major League Baseball , this team was replaced by the current San Diego Padres major-league team beginning in the 1969 season . ( The Padres moved out of Qualcomm Stadium following the 2003 season . ) The original scoreboard , a black-and-white scoreboard created by All American Scoreboards , was replaced in 1978 by one manufactured by American Sign and Indicator , which was the first full-color outdoor scoreboard ever built . This was replaced in 1987 by a White Way Sign scoreboard , in which the video screen is surrounded almost entirely by three messageboards . The original video board was replaced in 1996 by a Sony JumboTron , with a second JumboTron installed behind the opposite end zone ( home plate in the stadium 's baseball configuration ) . \n \n After Jack Murphy 's passing in September 1980 , San Diego Stadium was renamed San Diego–Jack Murphy Stadium by a 6–2 vote of the San Diego City Council on January 6 , 1981 . In 1983 , over 9,000 bleachers were added to the lower deck on the open end of the stadium raising the capacity to 59,022 . The most substantial addition was completed in 1997 , when the stadium was fully enclosed , with the exception of where the scoreboard is located . Nearly 11,000 seats were added in readiness for Super Bowl", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 353, "text": "san diego chargers" } ], "id": "qg_4411--Qualcomm_Stadium.txt", "qid": "qg_4411", "question": "Qualcomm stadium is the home to what NFL team?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Opera ( ; English plural : operas ; Italian plural : opere ) is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text ( libretto ) and musical score , usually in a theatrical setting . In traditional opera , singers do two types of singing : recitative , a speech-inflected style and arias , a more melodic style . Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre , such as acting , scenery , and costumes and sometimes includes dance . The performance is typically given in an opera house , accompanied by an orchestra or smaller musical ensemble , which since the early 19th century has been led by a conductor . \n \n Opera is part of the Western classical music tradition . It started in Italy at the end of the 16th century ( with Jacopo Peri 's lost Dafne , produced in Florence in 1598 ) and soon spread through the rest of Europe : Schütz in Germany , Lully in France , and Purcell in England all helped to establish their national traditions in the 17th century . In the 18th century , Italian opera continued to dominate most of Europe ( except France ) , attracting foreign composers such as Handel . Opera seria was the most prestigious form of Italian opera , until Gluck reacted against its artificiality with his `` reform '' operas in the 1760s . In the 2000s , the most renowned figure of late 18th-century opera is Mozart , who began with opera seria but is most famous for his Italian comic operas , especially The Marriage of Figaro ( Le Nozze Di Figaro ) , Don Giovanni , and Così fan tutte , as well as The Magic Flute ( Die Zauberflöte ) , a landmark in the German tradition . \n \n The first third of the 19th century saw the high point of the bel canto style , with Rossini , Donizetti and Bellini all creating works that are still performed in the 2000s It also saw the advent of Grand Opera typified by the works of Auber and Meyerbeer . The mid-to-late 19th century was a `` golden age '' of opera , led and dominated by Wagner in Germany and Verdi in Italy . The popularity of opera continued through the verismo era in Italy and contemporary French opera through to Puccini and Strauss in the early 20th century . During the 19th century , parallel operatic traditions emerged in central and eastern Europe , particularly in Russia and Bohemia . The 20th century saw many experiments with modern styles , such as atonality and serialism ( Schoenberg and Berg ) , Neoclassicism ( Stravinsky ) , and Minimalism ( Philip Glass and John Adams ) . With the rise of recording technology , singers such as Enrico Caruso and Maria Callas became known to much wider audiences that went beyond the circle of opera fans . Since the invention of radio and television , operas were also performed on ( and written for ) these mediums . Beginning in 2006 , a number of major opera houses began to present live high-definition video transmissions of their performances in cinemas around the world . In 2009 , an opera company offered an online download of a complete performance . \n \n Operatic terminology \n \n The words of an opera are known as the libretto ( literally `` small book '' ) . Some composers , notably Richard Wagner , have written their own libretti ; others have worked in close collaboration with their librettists , e.g . Mozart with Lorenzo Da Ponte . Traditional opera , often referred to as `` number opera '' , consists of two modes of singing : recitative , the plot-driving passages sung in a style designed to imitate and emphasize the inflections of speech , and aria ( an `` air '' or formal song ) in which the characters express their emotions in a more structured melodic style . Vocal duets , trios and other ensembles often occur , and choruses are used to comment on the action . In some forms of opera , such as singspiel , opéra comique , operetta , and semi-opera , the recitative is mostly replaced by spoken dialogue . Melodic or semi-melodic passages occurring in the midst of , or instead of , recitative , are also referred to as arioso . The terminology of the various kinds of operatic voices is described in detail below . During both the Baroque and Classical periods , recitative could appear in two basic forms , each of which was accompanied by a different instrumental ensemble : secco ( dry ) recitative , sung with", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 2442, "text": "stravinsky" } ], "id": "sfq_5294--Opera.txt", "qid": "sfq_5294", "question": "Who wrote and composed the opera Oedipus Rex in 1927?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The following is a list of sovereign states and territories where Portuguese is an official or de facto language . \n \n Countries and territories where Portuguese is official \n \n Countries and territories where Portuguese has a significant/cultural presence \n \n Spread of Portuguese \n \n During a period of Portuguese discoveries and through a large colonial empire , the language was spread to areas in Africa , Asia and the Americas . Portuguese-based creole languages also developed during this era . \n \n Today , Portuguese continues to thrive outside the Lusophone world through the presence of large expat communities of Brazilians , Portuguese , Cape Verdeans , and Angolans found throughout the world . \n \n Europe \n \n Portugal \n \n Portuguese is spoken as a first language in Portugal by nearly all of the nation 's 10.6 million people . The ancestor of modern Portuguese , Galician-Portuguese , began developing in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula , in an area encompassing present-day northern-Portugal and Galicia , at around the 9th century . Modern Portuguese started developing in the early 16th century . \n \n Rest of Europe \n \n The Galician language spoken natively in Galicia , Spain is the closest related language to Portuguese and is co-official with Spanish in the region . Portuguese-speaking immigrants from Portugal , Brazil , Portuguese-speaking Africa and Macau have also settled in Andorra ( around 15 000 speakers ) , Belgium , France ( around 500 000 speakers ) , Germany , Luxembourg , Spain , Switzerland , and the United Kingdom . \n \n The Americas \n \n Brazil \n \n With a population of over 205 million , Brazil is by far the world 's largest Portuguese-speaking nation and the only one in the Americas . Portuguese was introduced during the Portuguese colonial period . Portuguese has also served as a lingua franca between the various ethnic groups in Brazil and the native Amerindian population after the Jesuits were expelled from every Portuguese territory and the languages associated with them prohibited . \n \n Portuguese is the first language of the overwhelming majority of Brazilians , at 99.5 % . It is followed by various German dialects , such as Riograndenser Hunsrückisch , at a distant 1.94 % ( co-official status ) . \n \n \n The form of Portuguese spoken in Brazil is a little different from that spoken in Europe , with differences in vocabulary and grammar that can be compared to the differences between American and British English , but with the phonology and prosody more distinct to each other ( on a slightly larger scale than that of the Metropolitan and Québécois varieties of French ) ; nevertheless , European and Brazilian Portuguese are completely mutually intelligible . The vast majority of Brazilian characteristics are also found in some rural , remote Portuguese registers ( or the African and Asian ones , indicating an Old Portuguese feature lost in Europe ) , while nearly all distinctive European characteristics can be found in any major dialect of Brazil ( such as fluminense , specially its carioca sociolect , and florianopolitano ) , due to a stronger or more recent Portuguese and other European immigration . \n \n Migration from Brazil also led to the vast majority of Portuguese speakers in the Southern Cone ( especially Uruguay with portunhol da pampa ) , Paraguay ( see brasiguayos ) , other regions of South America ( especially Bolivia ) except Venezuela , Japan ( see Brazilians in Japan 400,000 and dekasegi , official numbers do not include second generation Portuguese speakers and naturalized citizens ) , South Korea , the Philippines ( see Brazilians in the Philippines ) , and Israel ( see Aliyah from Latin America in the 2000s ) . \n \n Rest of South America \n \n Although Brazil is the only Portuguese-speaking nation in South America , it has the largest population , area and economy on the continent . Thus , the South American trading bloc Mercosul uses Portuguese alongside Spanish as its working languages . A Spanish influenced Portuguese dialect is spoken in the northern Uruguayan border area with Brazil and is a hybrid dialect of Spanish and Portuguese . Given the proximity and trading relations between Portuguese speaking Brazil , and its respective Spanish speaking nations , Portuguese is offered as a foreign ( or obligatory ) 2nd language course at most schools in Uruguay , Argentina , Paraguay , Venezuela and Bolivia . \n \n In Venezuela and Guyana , there are communities of Portuguese immigrants ( mostly Madeirans ) and their descendants who speak Portuguese as their native language . \n \n North America \n \n There are a little under 1.5 million Portuguese Americans", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 624, "text": "brazil" } ], "id": "bb_1416--List_of_territorial_entities_where_Portuguese_is_an_official_language.txt", "qid": "bb_1416", "question": "Which is the only Portuguese-speaking country in the Americas?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "A touchdown is a means of scoring in both American and Canadian football . Whether running , passing , returning a kickoff or punt , or recovering a turnover , a team scores a touchdown by advancing the ball into the opponent 's end zone . \n \n Description \n \n To score a touchdown , one team must take the football into the opposite end zone . The touchdown is scored the instant the ball crosses the plane of the goal line—that is if any part of the ball is in the space on , above , or across the goal line—while in possession of a player whose team is trying to score in that end zone . The play is dead and the touchdown scores the moment the ball crosses the goal line in possession of a player , or the moment the ball comes into possession of an offensive player in the end zone ( having established possession by controlling the ball and having one or both feet or another part of the body on the ground ) . The slightest part of the ball being over the goal line is sufficient for a touchdown to score . However , only the ball—not a player 's helmet , foot , or other part of the body—counts . Touching one of the pylons at either end of the goal line with the ball constitutes `` breaking the plane '' as well . \n \n Touchdowns are usually scored by the offense by running or passing the ball . However , the defense can also score a touchdown if they have recovered a fumble or made an interception and return it to the opposing end zone . Special teams can score a touchdown on a kickoff or punt return , or on a return after a missed or blocked field goal attempt or blocked punt . In short , any play in which a player legally carries the ball across the goal line scores a touchdown , the manner in which he gained possession is inconsequential . In the NFL , a touchdown may be awarded by the referee as a penalty for a `` Palpably Unfair Act '' such as a player coming off the bench during a play and tackling the runner who would otherwise have scored . \n \n A touchdown is worth six points . The scoring team is also awarded the opportunity for an extra point or a two-point conversion . Afterwards , the team that scored the touchdown kicks off to the opposing team , if there is any time left . \n \n Unlike a try scored in rugby , and contrary to the event 's name , the ball does not need to touch the ground when the player and the ball is inside the end zone , although in gridiron 's early days the ball was required to be touched to the ground as in rugby , as rugby and gridiron were extremely similar sports at this point . This rule was changed to the modern-day iteration in 1889 . \n \n History \n \n When the first uniform rules for American football were enacted by the newly formed Intercollegiate Football Association just following the 1876 Rugby season , a touchdown counted for 1/4 of a kicked goal ( except in the case of a tie ) plus it allowed the offense the chance to kick for goal by placekick or dropkick from a spot along a line perpendicular to the goal line and passing through the point where the ball was touched down , or through a process known as a `` punt-out '' , where the attacking team would kick the ball from the point where it was touched down to a teammate . If the teammate could fair catch the ball , he could follow with a try for goal from the spot of the catch , or resume play as normal ( in an attempt to touch down the ball in a spot more advantageous for kicking ) . The governing rule at the time read : `` A match shall be decided by a majority of touchdowns . A goal shall be equal to four touchdowns , but in the case of a tie , a goal kicked from [ after ] a touchdown shall take precedence over four touchdowns . '' \n \n In 1881 , the rules were modified so that a goal kicked from a touchdown took precedence over a goal kicked from the field in breaking ties . \n \n In 1882 , four touchdowns were determined to take precedence over a goal kicked from the field . Two safeties were equivalent to a touchdown . \n \n In 1883 ,", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 1997, "text": "six" } ], "id": "odql_860--Touchdown.txt", "qid": "odql_860", "question": "In American Football, how many points does a touchdown score?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "In science fiction , a shrink ray is any device which uses energy to reduce the physical size of matter . Many are also capable of enlarging items as well . \n \n Scientific angle \n \n Science fiction writer and polymath Isaac Asimov wrote Miniaturization does n't actually make sense unless you miniaturize the very atoms of which matter is composed . Otherwise a tiny brain in a man the size of an insect , composed of normal atoms , is composed of too few atoms for the miniaturized man to be any more intelligent than the ant . Also , miniaturizing atoms is impossible according to the rules of quantum mechanics . \n \n Depending on how those atoms were supposed to have been miniaturized , the man might or might not also weigh as much as he originally had ; an observation that has been used to various effect over the years that Henry Pym has been featuring in comic books . \n \n The problems of the miniaturized human do not stop there , however . Basic geometry governs such things as the relationship between cross-section , volume , and surface area . The miniature human being may be able to leap several times his own height , but he will also be shivering like a toy dog or a hairless cat outside in the middle of the night ; and for much the same reason . It may be impossible for a one-inch high human to kill themselves in a fall of any conceivable height , but they may be able to drown themselves with a single drop of water . \n \n Appearances in popular culture \n \n Films and television \n \n * The eponymous Doctor Cyclops in the 1940 horror film of that name shrank his victims by locking them inside an `` Atomic Generator . '' \n * In the 1958 movie Attack of the Puppet People , a scientist captures people and shrinks them to 6 inches in height with an ultrasonic wave device , so he can keep them as company . ( He keeps them sealed inside special suspended animation canisters between `` puppet shows '' . ) \n * The 1966 science-fiction film Fantastic Voyage ( written by Harry Kleiner , novelization by Isaac Asimov ) is plotted around such a device , allowing the miniaturized submarine Proteus to carry a crew inside a stricken scientist in an attempt to save his life . they have 1 hour to cure him before they re-expand to human size again \n * In the episode `` The Big Break-In '' of the 1987 Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated TV series , Krang uses a remote-controlled minimizer device with a shrink ray to shrink down US Army bases , preventing them from attacking the Technodrome . In the episode `` Funny , They Shrunk Michelangelo '' of the same TV series captain Talbot Breech uses a miniaturizing ray to shrink US naval ships and put them into bottles as revenge on those who turned him down for the US Naval Academy . The same show also features the episode `` Poor Little Rich Turtle '' features Shredder using a shrink ray on the girl Buffy Shellhammer , who despite her young age runs a company , to force her telling a super rockt fuel formula her grandfather told her before he died . \n * In The Penguins of Madagascar episode `` Jiggles '' , Kowalski uses his shrink ray to shrink Jiggles to normal size . \n * In an episode `` Getting Antsy '' of the 1991 Darkwing Duck cartoon , a villain Lilliput uses the ray to shrink buildings and landmarks of the fictional city St. Canard . He then employs ants to haul the shrunken buildings to a miniature golf , where they become part of the course . Eventually , Lilliput also shrinks the hero Darkwing Duck to an even tinier size . \n * In an episode of Codename : Kids Next Door , titled Operation : M.I.N.I.G.O.L.F. , after Numbuh 2 bests champion golfer , Rupert Putkin , in a game of mini-golf , Rupert seeks revenge . He builds a shrink ray to shrink down the world 's greatest monuments and uses them in his own miniature-golf course . Afterwards , he shrinks Numbuh 2 and forces him to play a rematch in his smaller height . Later , Rupert plans to use Numbuh 2 as the golfball as he hits him into a hole that will activate his shrink ray to shrink the world . His plan fails when he misses and Numbuh 2 hits the reverse setting on the shrink ray , which zaps Rupert and makes him grow bigger", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "dpql_1364--Shrink_ray.txt", "qid": "dpql_1364", "question": "What did scientist Wayne Szalinski do in a 1989 Disney movie?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "American Gothic is a painting by Grant Wood in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago . Wood 's inspiration came from what is now known as the American Gothic House , and his decision to paint the house along with `` the kind of people I fancied should live in that house . '' The painting shows a farmer standing beside a woman that has been interpreted to be either his wife or his daughter.Fineman , Mia ( June 8 , 2005 ) . [ http : //www.slate.com/articles/arts/art/2005/06/the_most_famous_farm_couple_in_the_world.html `` The Most Famous Farm Couple in the World : Why American Gothic still fascinates . `` ] . Slate . The figures were modeled by Wood 's sister , Nan Wood Graham , and Wood and Graham 's dentist . The woman is dressed in a colonial print apron evoking 19th-century Americana , and the man is holding a pitchfork . The plants on the porch of the house are mother-in-law 's tongue and geranium , which are the same plants as in Wood 's 1929 portrait of his mother , Woman with Plants . \n \n It is one of the most familiar images in 20th-century American art , and has been widely parodied in American popular culture . \n \n Creation \n \n In August 1930 , Grant Wood , an American painter with European training , was driven around Eldon , Iowa , by a young painter from Eldon , John Sharp . Looking for inspiration , Wood noticed the Dibble House , a small white house built in the Carpenter Gothic architectural style . Sharp 's brother suggested in 1973 that it was on this drive that Wood first sketched the house on the back of an envelope . Wood 's earliest biographer , Darrell Garwood , noted that Wood `` thought it a form of borrowed pretentiousness , a structural absurdity , to put a Gothic-style window in such a flimsy frame house . '' At the time , Wood classified it as one of the `` cardboardy frame houses on Iowa farms '' and considered it `` very paintable '' . After obtaining permission from the Jones family , the house 's owners , Wood made a sketch the next day in oil on paperboard from the house 's front yard . This sketch displayed a steeper roof and a longer window with a more pronounced ogive than on the actual house , features which eventually adorned the final work . \n \n Wood decided to paint the house along with `` the kind of people I fancied should live in that house . '' He recruited his sister Nan ( 1899–1990 ) to model the woman , dressing her in a colonial print apron mimicking 19th-century Americana . The man is modeled on Wood 's dentist , Dr. Byron McKeeby ( 1867–1950 ) from Cedar Rapids , Iowa . Nan , perhaps embarrassed about being depicted as the wife of a man twice her age , told people that her brother had envisioned the couple as father and daughter , rather than husband and wife , which Grant seems to confirm in his letter to a Mrs. Nellie Sudduth in 1941 . \n \n The three-pronged hay fork is echoed in the stitching of the man 's overalls , the Gothic window of the house , and the structure of the man 's face . However , Wood did not add figures to his sketch until he returned to his studio in Cedar Rapids . He would not return to Eldon again before his death in 1942 , although he did request a photograph of the home to complete his painting . \n \n Reception \n \n Wood entered the painting in a competition at the Art Institute of Chicago . The judges deemed it a `` comic valentine '' , but a museum patron persuaded them to award the painting the bronze medal and $ 300 cash prize . The patron also persuaded the Art Institute to buy the painting , which remains there today . The image soon began to be reproduced in newspapers , first by the Chicago Evening Post and then in New York , Boston , Kansas City , and Indianapolis . However , Wood received a backlash when the image finally appeared in the Cedar Rapids Gazette . Iowans were furious at their depiction as `` pinched , grim-faced , puritanical Bible-thumpers . '' Wood protested that he had not painted a caricature of Iowans but a depiction of his appreciation , stating `` I had to go to France to appreciate Iowa . '' \n \n Art critics who had favorable opinions about the painting , such as Gertrude Stein and Christopher Morley , also", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 33, "text": "grant wood" } ], "id": "tc_654--American_Gothic.txt", "qid": "tc_654", "question": "Which Iowa-born artist painted American Gothic and Spring Turning?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The Vulcan salute is a hand gesture popularized by the 1960s television series Star Trek . It consists of a raised hand with the palm forward and the thumb extended , while the fingers are parted between the middle and ring finger . \n \n Background \n \n The Vulcan salute was devised by Leonard Nimoy , who portrayed the half-Vulcan character Mr. Spock on the original Star Trek television series . A 1968 New York Times interview described the salute or greeting gesture as a `` double-fingered version of Churchill 's victory sign '' . Nimoy said in that interview that he `` decided that the Vulcans were a 'hand-oriented ' people '' . \n \n The salute first appeared in 1967 on the Star Trek second season opening episode , `` Amok Time '' . Among other things , the gesture is known for being difficult for certain people to do properly without practice or the covert pre-positioning of the fingers , and actors on the original show reportedly had to position their fingers off-screen with the other hand before raising their hand into frame . This difficulty may stem from variations in individuals ' manual dexterity . Its reputation is parodied in the motion picture Star Trek : First Contact when Zefram Cochrane , upon meeting a Vulcan for the first time in human history , is unable to return the Vulcan salute gesture and instead shakes the Vulcan 's hand . \n \n In his autobiography I Am Not Spock , Nimoy wrote that he based it on the Priestly Blessing performed by Jewish Kohanim with both hands , thumb to thumb in this same position , representing the Hebrew letter Shin ( ש ) , which has three upward strokes similar to the position of the thumb and fingers in the salute . The letter Shin here stands for El Shaddai , meaning `` Almighty ( God ) '' , as well as for Shekinah and Shalom . Nimoy wrote that when he was a child , his grandfather took him to an Orthodox synagogue , where he saw the blessing performed and was impressed by it . \n \n Others often greeted Nimoy with the salute , which became so well-known that in June 2014 it was added to version 7 of the Unicode standard as . \n \n The White House referenced the salute in its statement on Leonard Nimoy 's death , calling it `` the universal sign for 'Live long and prosper ' . '' The following day , NASA astronaut Terry W. Virts posted a photo on his Twitter feed from the International Space Station showing the hand gesture ( with the Earth in the background ) as the ISS passed over Nimoy 's birthplace of Boston , Massachusetts . \n \n Gallery \n \n File : Astronaut Salutes Nimoy From Orbit.jpg|NASA astronaut Terry W. Virts performs the Vulcan salute in an homage to Leonard Nimoy from the International Space Station on February 27 , 2015 , shortly after hearing of Nimoy 's passing ; Nimoy 's home town of Boston is seen directly below . \n File : ISS-42_Samantha_Cristoforetti_Leonard_Nimoy_tribute.jpg|ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti on Feb. 28 , 2015 tweeted this photo in a final salute to Leonard Nimoy . \n File : George_Takei_by_Gage_Skidmore.jpg|George Takei , a colleague of Nimoy who portrayed the Star Trek character Hikaru Sulu in the original series , salutes a crowd in 2011 . \n File : Vulcan_cosplayer.jpg|A cosplayer gives the Vulcan salute \n \n `` Live long and prosper '' \n \n The accompanying spoken blessing , `` live long and prosper '' – `` dif-tor heh smusma '' in the Vulcan language ( as spoken in Star Trek : The Motion Picture ) – also appeared for the first time in `` Amok Time '' , scripted by Theodore Sturgeon . The less-well-known reply is `` peace and long life '' , though it is sometimes said first , with `` live long and prosper '' as the reply . In science fiction , the phrase 'live long ' first appeared in print in 1957 in Eric Frank Russell 's science fiction novel Wasp where it was used both as a greeting and as a farewell by a species of aliens called the Sirians . The phrase has been seen abbreviated `` LLAP '' . \n \n This format is similar to common Middle Eastern greetings ( Salaam alaykum in Arabic and Shalom aleichem in Hebrew ) , meaning `` peace be upon you '' , and its reply , `` upon you be peace '' . An ancient Egyptian blessing `` ankh wedja seneb '' , while its verbatim translation is uncertain , uses the three symbols `` life '' , `` prosperity", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 345, "text": "spock" } ], "id": "bb_7924--Vulcan_salute.txt", "qid": "bb_7924", "question": "Which TV character said, 'Live long and prosper'?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Shrewsbury ( or ) is the county town of Shropshire , England . It is on the River Severn and has a population of approximately 72,000 . \n \n Shrewsbury is a market town whose centre has a largely unaltered medieval street plan and over 660 listed buildings , including several examples of timber framing from the 15th and 16th centuries . Shrewsbury Castle , a red sandstone fortification , and Shrewsbury Abbey , a former Benedictine monastery , were founded in 1074 and 1083 respectively by the Norman Earl of Shrewsbury , Roger de Montgomery . The town has historically been a centre for the wool trade and brewing . Horticulture remains popular , and the Shrewsbury Flower Show is one of the largest horticultural events in England . \n \n Located 9 mi east of the Welsh border , Shrewsbury serves as the commercial centre for Shropshire and mid-Wales , with a retail output of over £299 million per year and light industry and distribution centres , such as Battlefield Enterprise Park , on the outskirts . The A5 and A49 trunk roads cross near to the town , and five railway lines meet at Shrewsbury railway station . \n \n History \n \n Early history \n \n The town was the early capital of the Kingdom of Powys , known to the ancient Britons as Pengwern , signifying `` the alder hill '' ; and in Old English as Scrobbesburh ( dative Scrobbesbyrig ) , which may mean either `` Scrobb 's fort '' or `` the fortified place in the bushes '' . This name gradually evolved in three directions , into Sciropscire , which became Shropshire ; into Sloppesberie , which became Salop/Salopia ( an alternative name for both town and county ) , and into Schrosberie , which eventually became the town 's name , Shrewsbury . Its later Welsh name Amwythig means `` fortified place '' . \n \n Over the ages , the geographically important town has been the site of many conflicts , particularly between the English and Welsh . The Angles , under King Offa of Mercia , took possession in 778 . \n \n Nearby is the village of Wroxeter , 5 mi to the south-east . This was once the site of Viroconium , the fourth largest cantonal capital in Roman Britain . As Caer Guricon it is a possible alternative for the Dark Age seat of the Kingdom of Powys . The importance of the Shrewsbury area in the Roman era was recently underlined with the discovery of the Shrewsbury Hoard in 2009 . \n \n Medieval \n \n Shrewsbury 's known history commences in the Early Middle Ages , having been founded c. 800 AD . It is believed that Anglo-Saxon Shrewsbury was most probably a settlement fortified through the use of earthworks comprising a ditch and rampart , which were then shored up with a wooden stockade . There is evidence to show that by the beginning of the 900s , Shrewsbury was home to a mint . \n \n The Welsh besieged it in 1069 , but were repelled by William the Conqueror . Roger de Montgomery was given the town as a gift from William , and built Shrewsbury Castle in 1074 , taking the title of Earl . He founded Shrewsbury Abbey as a Benedictine monastery in 1083 . The 3rd Earl , Robert of Bellême , was deposed in 1102 and the title forfeited , in consequence of rebelling against Henry I and joining the Duke of Normandy 's invasion of English in 1101 . In 1138 , King Stephen successfully besieged the castle held by William FitzAlan for the Empress Maud during the period known as the Anarchy . \n \n It was in the late Middle Ages ( 14th and 15th centuries ) when the town was at its height of commercial importance . This was mainly due to the wool trade , a major industry at the time , with the rest of Britain and Europe , especially with the River Severn and Watling Street as trading routes . \n The Shrewsbury Drapers Company dominated the trade in Welsh wool for many years . \n \n In 1403 the Battle of Shrewsbury was fought a few miles north of the town centre , at Battlefield ; it was fought between King Henry IV and Henry Hotspur Percy , with the King emerging victorious , an event celebrated in William Shakespeare 's Henry IV , Part 1 , Act 5 . \n \n Early Modern \n \n Shrewsbury 's monastic gathering was disbanded with the Dissolution of the Monasteries and as such the Abbey was closed in 1540 . However , it is believed that Henry VIII thereafter intended", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "qb_6435--Shrewsbury.txt", "qid": "qb_6435", "question": "The Mount in Shrewsbury, Shropshire was the birthplace of which 19th Century naturalist?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Robert Alan `` Bob '' Monkhouse , OBE ( 1 June 1928 – 29 December 2003 ) was an English entertainer . \n \n He was a comedy writer , comedian and actor and was also well known on television as a presenter and game show host . \n \n Early life and career \n \n Bob Monkhouse was born at 168 Bromley Road , Beckenham , Kent , the son of Wilfred Adrian Monkhouse ( 1894–1957 ) and Dorothy Muriel Monkhouse née Hansard ( 1895–1971 ) . Monkhouse had an elder brother , John , who was born in 1922 . Monkhouse 's grandfather John Monkhouse ( 1862–1938 ) was a prosperous Methodist businessman who co-founded Monk and Glass , which made custard powder and jelly . \n \n Bob Monkhouse was educated at Goring Hall School in Worthing , Sussex and Dulwich College in south London , from which he was expelled . While still at school , Monkhouse wrote for The Beano and The Dandy and drew for other comics including Hotspur , Wizard and Adventure . He established a comics writing and art partnership with Dulwich schoolmate Denis Gifford and the two formed their own publishing company in the early 1950s . Among other writing , Monkhouse wrote more than 100 Harlem Hotspots erotic novelettes . \n \n Monkhouse completed his National Service with the Royal Air Force in 1948 . He won a contract with the BBC after his unwitting RAF group captain signed a letter that Monkhouse had written telling the BBC he was a war hero and that the corporation should give him an audition . \n \n Before establishing himself as a successful writer and comedian , Monkhouse appeared on stage in London , first as Aladdin in a stage show of the same name ( Aladdin ) written by S. J. Perelman and Cole Porter . Then in the first London production of the musical The Boys from Syracuse ( Antipholus of Syracuse ) in 1963 at the Theatre Royal , Drury Lane , alongside Ronnie Corbett . \n \n Writing and acting success \n \n Monkhouse 's adult career began as a scriptwriter for radio comedy in partnership with Denis Goodwin , a fellow Old Alleynian with whom he also compèred Smash Hits on Radio Luxembourg . Aside from performing as a double act , Monkhouse and Goodwin wrote for comedians such as Arthur Askey , Jimmy Edwards , Ted Ray and Max Miller . In addition , they were also gag writers for American comedians including Bob Hope when they wanted jokes for British tours . Indeed , when Goodwin broke up the partnership in 1962 it was to go and work for Hope . \n \n In 1956 , Monkhouse was the host of Do You Trust Your Wife ? , the British version of an American game show . He went on to host more than 30 different quiz shows on British television . His public profile growing , Monkhouse also began appearing in comedy films including the first of the Carry On film series , Carry On Sergeant in 1958 . He appeared in Dentist in the Chair ( 1961 ) and later regretted not choosing the Carry Ons over the dental comedies . Other presenting jobs in the 1960s included hosting Candid Camera and compèring Sunday Night at the London Palladium . Around 1969 he was a partner , with Malcolm Mitchell , in the Mitchell Monkhouse Agency . In 1979 he starred in a US sketch comedy television series called Bonkers ! with the Hudson Brothers and Joan Rivers , a job he hated . In the early 1970s he appeared on BBC Radio in Mostly Monkhouse with Josephine Tewson and David Jason . \n \n Stand-up comedy \n \n A respected stand-up comedian , Monkhouse was known for his talent at ad-libbing . He became much in demand as an after-dinner speaker and wrote a book about the subject , Just Say a Few Words ( Lennard Publishing , 1988 , 1999 ) . \n \n He also became a favourite with impressionists , and , as his comedy style fell out of favour in the 1980s , he was mocked for his slickness and accused of insincerity . He came back into fashion during the 1990s , and an appearance on Have I Got News for You helped to restore his popularity . \n \n Game shows \n \n In his later years , Monkhouse was probably better known for hosting television quiz shows than for being a comedian . One of his biggest successes was The Golden Shot from 1967 until 1972 and again in 1974 . This was broadcast live for 52 weeks a year and drew up to 17", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "sfq_19081--Bob_Monkhouse.txt", "qid": "sfq_19081", "question": "Which TV show has been presented by Bob Monkhouse, Max Bygraves and Les Dennis?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Aden ( , ; ' Yemeni pronunciation : ) is a port city in Yemen , located by the eastern approach to the Red Sea ( the Gulf of Aden ) , some 170 km east of Bab-el-Mandeb . Its population is approximately 800,000 people . Aden 's ancient , natural harbour lies in the crater of a dormant volcano which now forms a peninsula , joined to the mainland by a low isthmus . This harbour , Front Bay , was first used by the ancient Kingdom of Awsan between the 5th and 7th centuries BC . The modern harbour is on the other side of the peninsula . Aden gives its name to the Gulf of Aden . \n \n Aden consists of a number of distinct sub-centres : Crater , the original port city ; Ma'alla , the modern port ; Tawahi , known as `` Steamer Point '' in the colonial period ; and the resorts of Gold Mohur . Khormaksar , located on the isthmus that connects Aden proper with the mainland , includes the city 's diplomatic missions , the main offices of Aden University , and Aden International Airport ( the former British Royal Air Force station RAF Khormaksar ) , Yemen 's second biggest airport . On the mainland are the sub-centres of Sheikh Othman , a former oasis area ; Al-Mansura , a town planned by the British ; and Madinat ash-Sha ' b ( formerly Madinat al-Itihad ) , the site designated as the capital of the South Arabian Federation and now home to a large power/desalinization facility and additional faculties of Aden University . \n \n Aden encloses the eastern side of a vast , natural harbour that comprises the modern port . The volcanic peninsula of Little Aden forms a near-mirror image , enclosing the harbour and port on the western side . Little Aden became the site of the oil refinery and tanker port . Both were established and operated by British Petroleum until they were turned over to Yemeni government ownership and control in 1978 . \n \n Aden was the capital of the People 's Democratic Republic of Yemen until that country 's unification with the Yemen Arab Republic in 1990 , and again briefly served as Yemen 's temporary capital during the aftermath of the 2014–15 Yemeni coup d'état , as declared by President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi after he fled the Houthi occupation of Sana ' a . From March to July 2015 , the Battle of Aden raged between Houthis and loyalists to President Hadi . Water , food , and medical supplies ran short in the city . On 14 July , the Saudi Army launched an offensive to retake Aden for Hadi 's government . Within three days the Houthis had been removed from the city . \n \n History \n \n Antiquity \n \n A local legend in Yemen states that Aden may be as old as human history itself . Some also believe that Cain and Abel are buried somewhere in the city . \n \n The port 's convenient position on the sea route between India and Europe has made Aden desirable to rulers who sought to possess it at various times throughout history . Known as Eudaemon ( , meaning “ blissful , prosperous , ” in Ancient Greek ) in the 1st century BC , it was a transshipping point for the Red Sea trade , but fell on hard times when new shipping practices by-passed it and made the daring direct crossing to India in the 1st century AD , according to the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea . The same work describes Aden as `` a village by the shore , '' which would well describe the town of Crater while it was still little-developed . There is no mention of fortification at this stage , Aden was more an island than a peninsula as the isthmus ( a tombolo ) was not then so developed as it is today . \n \n Medieval \n \n Although the pre-Islamic Himyar civilization was capable of building large structures , there seems to have been little fortification at this stage . Fortifications at Mareb and other places in Yemen and the Hadhramaut make it clear that both the Himyar and the Sabean cultures were well capable of it . Thus , watch towers , since destroyed , are possible . However , the Arab historians Ibn al Mojawir and Abu Makhramah attribute the first fortification of Aden to Beni Zuree ' a . Abu Makhramah has also included a detailed biography of Muhammad Azim Sultan Qamarbandi Naqsh in his work , Tarikh ul-Yemen . The aim seems to have been twofold : to keep hostile", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "sfq_16717--Aden.txt", "qid": "sfq_16717", "question": "In what year was the Russian submarine Kursk sunk and the USS Cole attacked in Aden?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The ICC Cricket World Cup is the international championship of One Day International ( ODI ) cricket . The event is organised by the sport 's governing body , the International Cricket Council ( ICC ) , every four years , with preliminary qualification rounds leading up to a finals tournament . The tournament is one of the world 's most viewed sporting events and is considered the `` flagship event of the international cricket calendar '' by the ICC . \n \n The first World Cup was organised in England in June 1975 , with the first ODI cricket match having been played only four years earlier . However , a separate Women 's Cricket World Cup had been held two years before the first men 's tournament , and a tournament involving multiple international teams had been held as early as 1912 , when a triangular tournament of Test matches was played between Australia , England and South Africa . The first three World Cups were held in England . From the 1987 tournament onwards , hosting has been shared between countries under an unofficial rotation system , with fourteen ICC members having hosted at least one match in the tournament . \n \n The finals of the World Cup are contested by the ten full members of the ICC ( all of which are Test-playing teams ) and a number of teams made up from associate and affiliate members of the ICC , selected via the World Cricket League and a later qualifying tournament . A total of twenty teams have competed in the eleven editions of the tournament , with fourteen competing in the 2015 tournament . Australia has won the tournament five times , with the West Indies , India ( twice each ) , Pakistan and Sri Lanka ( once each ) also having won the tournament . The best performance by a non-full-member team came when Kenya made the semi-finals of the 2003 tournament . \n \n History \n \n Before the first Cricket World Cup \n \n The first international cricket match was played between Canada and the United States , on 24 and 25 September 1844 . However , the first credited Test match was played in 1877 between Australia and England , and the two teams competed regularly for The Ashes in subsequent years . South Africa was admitted to Test status in 1889 . Representative cricket teams were selected to tour each other , resulting in bilateral competition . Cricket was also included as an Olympic sport at the 1900 Paris Games , where Great Britain defeated France to win the gold medal . This was the only appearance of cricket at the Summer Olympics . \n \n The first multilateral competition at international level was the 1912 Triangular Tournament , a Test cricket tournament played in England between all three Test-playing nations at the time : England , Australia and South Africa . The event was not a success : the summer was exceptionally wet , making play difficult on damp uncovered pitches , and attendances were poor , attributed to a `` surfeit of cricket '' . Since then , international Test cricket has generally been organised as bilateral series : a multilateral Test tournament was not organised again until the triangular Asian Test Championship in 1999 . \n \n The number of nations playing Test cricket increased gradually over time , with the addition of West Indies in 1928 , New Zealand in 1930 , India in 1932 , and Pakistan in 1952 . However , international cricket continued to be played as bilateral Test matches over three , four or five days . \n \n In the early 1960s , English county cricket teams began playing a shortened version of cricket which only lasted for one day . Starting in 1962 with a four-team knockout competition known as the Midlands Knock-Out Cup , and continuing with the inaugural Gillette Cup in 1963 , one-day cricket grew in popularity in England . A national Sunday League was formed in 1969 . The first One-Day International match was played on the fifth day of a rain-aborted Test match between England and Australia at Melbourne in 1971 , to fill the time available and as compensation for the frustrated crowd . It was a forty over game with eight balls per over . \n \n In the late 1970s , Kerry Packer established the rival World Series Cricket ( WSC ) competition . It introduced many of the now commonplace features of One Day International cricket , including coloured uniforms , matches played at night under floodlights with a white ball and dark sight screens , and , for television broadcasts , multiple camera angles , effects microphones", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 860, "text": "australia" } ], "id": "qb_9940--Cricket_World_Cup.txt", "qid": "qb_9940", "question": "Which country won the 2013 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The St. Johns River ( ) is the longest river in the U.S. state of Florida and its most significant for commercial and recreational use . At 310 mi long , it winds through or borders twelve counties , three of which are the state 's largest . The drop in elevation from headwaters to mouth is less than 30 ft ; like most Florida waterways , the St. Johns has a very low flow rate and is often described as `` lazy '' . It is believed to be one of the few rivers that flow north , although there are hundreds of the kind worldwide . Numerous lakes are formed by the river or flow into it , but as a river its widest point is nearly 3 mi across . The narrowest point is in the headwaters , an unnavigable marsh in Indian River County . The St. Johns drainage basin of 8840 sqmi includes some of Florida 's major wetlands . It is separated into three major basins and two associated watersheds for Lake George and the Ocklawaha River , all managed by the St. Johns River Water Management District . \n \n A variety of people have lived on or near the St. Johns , including Paleo-indians , Archaic people , Timucua , Mocama , French and Spanish settlers , Seminoles , slaves and freemen , Florida crackers , land developers , tourists and retirees . It has been the subject of William Bartram 's journals , Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings ' books , and Harriet Beecher Stowe 's letters home . Although Florida was the location of the first permanent European colony in what would become the United States , it was the last U.S. territory on the east coast to be developed ; it remained an undeveloped frontier into the 20th century . When attention was turned to the state , however , much of the land was rapidly overdeveloped in a national zeal for progress . The St. Johns , like many Florida rivers , was altered to make way for agricultural and residential centers . It suffered severe pollution and human interference that has diminished the natural order of life in and around the river . In all , 3.5 million people live within the various watersheds that feed into the St. Johns River . The St. Johns , named one of 14 American Heritage Rivers in 1998 , was included on a list of America 's Ten Most Endangered Rivers in 2008 . Restoration efforts are under way for the basins around the St. Johns as Florida continues to deal with population increases in the river 's vicinity . \n \n Geography and ecology \n \n Starting in Indian River County and meeting the Atlantic Ocean at Duval County , the St. Johns is Florida 's primary commercial and recreational waterway . It flows north from its headwaters , originating in the direction of the Lake Wales Ridge , which is only slightly elevated at 30 ft above sea level . Because of this low elevation drop , the river has a long backwater . It ebbs and flows with tides that pass through the barrier islands and up the channel . Uniquely , it shares the same regional terrain as the parallel Kissimmee River , although the Kissimmee flows south . \n \n Upper basin \n \n The St. Johns River is separated into three basins and two associated watersheds managed by the St. Johns River Water Management District . Because the river flows in a northerly direction , the upper basin is located in the headwaters of the river at its southernmost point . The St. Johns is frequently cited as being a rare north-flowing river in North America , ( Benke & Chusing , p. 100 ) ( Randazzo , p. 12 ) though in fact most rivers in Canada and in parts of the United States also drain north . ( Verdin , K.L . ( March 19 , 2010 ) . [ http : //proceedings.esri.com/library/userconf/proc97/proc97/to350/pap311/p311.htm `` A System for Topologically Coding Global Drainage Basins and Stream Networks '' ] , ESRI . ) ( Gonzalez , M.A . ( 2003 ) . [ http : //www.state.nd.us/ndgs/NEWSLETTER/NLS03/pdf/Divide.pdf `` Continental Divides in North Dakota and North America '' ] , North Dakota Geological Survey Newsletter North Dakota Geological Survey 30 ( 1 ) , pp . 1–7 . ) Indian River County is where the river begins as a network of marshes , at a point west of Vero Beach aptly named the St. Johns Marsh in central Florida . The St. Johns River is a blackwater stream , meaning that it is fed primarily by swamps and marshes lying beneath it ; water seeps through the sandy", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 66, "text": "florida" } ], "id": "qb_7575--St._Johns_River.txt", "qid": "qb_7575", "question": "The St John’s River is the longest river in which US state?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The alkaline earth metals are six chemical elements in column ( group ) 2 of the Periodic table . They are beryllium ( Be ) , magnesium ( Mg ) , calcium ( Ca ) , strontium ( Sr ) , barium ( Ba ) , and radium ( Ra ) . They have very similar properties : they are all shiny , silvery-white , somewhat reactive metals at standard temperature and pressure . \n \n Structurally , they have in common an outer s- electron shell which is full ; \n that is , this orbital contains its full complement of two electrons , which these elements readily lose to form cations with charge +2 , and an oxidation state ( oxidation number ) of +2 . \n \n All the discovered alkaline earth metals occur in nature . Experiments have been conducted to attempt the synthesis of element 120 , the next potential member of the group , but they have all met with failure . \n \n Characteristics \n \n Chemical \n \n As with other groups , the members of this family show patterns in their electronic configuration , especially the outermost shells , resulting in trends in chemical behavior : \n \n Most of the chemistry has been observed only for the first five members of the group . The chemistry of radium is not well-established due to its radioactivity ; thus , the presentation of its properties here is limited . \n \n The alkaline earth metals are all silver-colored and soft , and have relatively low densities , melting points , and boiling points . In chemical terms , all of the alkaline metals react with the halogens to form the alkaline earth metal halides , all of which are ionic crystalline compounds ( except for beryllium chloride , which is covalent ) . All the alkaline earth metals except beryllium also react with water to form strongly alkaline hydroxides and , thus , should be handled with great care . The heavier alkaline earth metals react more vigorously than the lighter ones . The alkaline metals have the second-lowest first ionization energies in their respective periods of the periodic table because of their somewhat low effective nuclear charges and the ability to attain a full outer shell configuration by losing just two electrons . The second ionization energy of all of the alkaline metals is also somewhat low . \n \n Beryllium is an exception : It does not react with water or steam , and its halides are covalent . If beryllium did form compounds with an ionization state of +2 , it would polarize electron clouds that are near it very strongly and would cause extensive orbital overlap , since beryllium has a high charge density . All compounds that include beryllium have a covalent bond . Even the compound beryllium fluoride , which is the most ionic beryllium compound , has a low melting point and a low electrical conductivity when melted . \n \n All the alkaline earth metals have two electrons in their valence shell , so the energetically preferred state of achieving a filled electron shell is to lose two electrons to form doubly charged positive ions . \n \n Compounds and reactions \n \n The alkaline earth metals all react with the halogens to form ionic halides , such as calcium chloride ( ) , as well as reacting with oxygen to form oxides such as strontium oxide ( ) . Calcium , strontium , and barium react with water to produce hydrogen gas and their respective hydroxides , and also undergo transmetalation reactions to exchange ligands . \n \n Physical and atomic \n \n The table below is a summary of the key physical and atomic properties of the alkaline earth metals . \n \n Nuclear stability \n \n All of the alkaline earth metals except magnesium and strontium have at least one naturally occurring radioisotope : beryllium-7 , beryllium-10 , and calcium-41 are trace radioisotopes , calcium-48 and barium-130 have very long half-lives and , thus , occur naturally , and all isotopes of radium are radioactive . Calcium-48 is the lightest nuclide to undergo double beta decay . \n \n The natural radioisotope of calcium , calcium-48 , makes up about 0.1874 % of natural calcium , and , thus , natural calcium is weakly radioactive . Barium-130 makes up approximately 0.1062 % of natural barium , and , thus , barium is weakly radioactive , as well . \n \n History \n \n Etymology \n \n The alkaline earth metals are named after their oxides , the alkaline earths , whose old-fashioned names were beryllia , magnesia , lime , strontia , and baryta . These oxides are basic ( alkaline", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "odql_6743--Alkaline_earth_metal.txt", "qid": "odql_6743", "question": "Which element-atomic number 14-is the second most abundant element in the earth's crust?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "`` The Birds '' is a novelette by British writer Daphne du Maurier , first published in her 1952 collection The Apple Tree . It is the story of a farmhand , his family , and his community that are attacked by flocks of birds and seabirds in kamikaze missions . The story is set in du Maurier 's native Cornwall shortly after the end of the Second World War . By the end of the story it has become clear that all of Britain is under aerial assault . \n \n The story was the inspiration for Alfred Hitchcock 's film The Birds , released in 1963 , the same year that The Apple Tree was reprinted as The Birds and Other Stories . In 2009 , Irish playwright Conor McPherson adapted the story for the stage at Dublin 's Gate Theatre . \n \n Background \n \n The author saw a man ploughing a field while seagulls were wheeling and diving above him and composed a story of these birds growing hostile and attacking . Inspired by her quiet , rural home town in Cornwall , the story is thought to be a metaphor for the attacks on London during World War II , or The Blitz in particular . \n \n Radio and TV dramatisations \n \n The story has been dramatised for radio and TV on several occasions , including : \n * Episode 838 of Lux Radio Theater on 20 July 1953 with Herbert Marshall \n * Episode 217 of Escape on 10 July 1954 with Ben Wright and Virginia Gregg \n * Episode 240 ( final show in the series ) of CBS-TV series Danger on 31 May 1955 with Michael Strong and Betty Lou Holland \n * BBC Afternoon Theatre on 20 November 1974 with Howard Goorney , Chris Harris , and Elizabeth Boxer \n * A three part BBC Radio 4 Extra adaptation , read by Charlie Barnecut , first broadcast 23 April 2008 \n * An adaptation by Melissa Murray , for BBC Radio 4 's The Friday Play , first broadcast on 30 April 2010 \n \n Plot summary \n \n In a small Cornish seaside town in early December , there is a sudden cold snap . A wounded war veteran on military pension , Nat Hocken , is working part-time for a farm owner when he notices a large number of birds behaving strangely along the peninsula where his family lives . He attributes this to the sudden arrival of winter . That night , he hears a tapping on his bedroom window and encounters a bird that pecks his hand , causing him to bleed . As the night progresses he encounters more birds , especially those flocking into his children 's room , but the birds leave at dawn . Nat reassures his wife that they were restless because of a sudden change in the weather . \n \n The next day , Nat tells his fellow workers about the night 's events , but they give his story no importance . As Nat later walks to the beach to dispose of dead birds , he notices what appear to be whitecaps on the sea , but it is actually a great line of seagulls waiting for the tide to rise . When Nat arrives home , he and his family hear over the radio that birds are attacking all over Britain , presumably because of the unnatural weather . Nat decides to board up the windows and chimneys of his house . He notices more birds , including the gulls , above the sea waiting for the tide . \n \n Nat rushes to pick up his daughter , Jill , from the school bus stop to keep her safe . On his way back Nat spots his boss , Mr. Trigg , who has a car , and persuades him to give Jill a lift home . Mr. Trigg cheerfully professes to be unfazed by the announcements and plans on shooting at the birds for fun . He invites Nat to come along , but Nat rejects Mr. Trigg 's offer and continues home , believing that hunting them would be futile . Just before he reaches home , the gulls descend , attacking him with their beaks . Luckily , Nat manages to reach the cottage door with only minor injuries . \n \n Soon , massive flocks of birds attack . A national emergency is declared on BBC Radio , and people are told not to leave their homes . Then , due to the `` unprecedented nature of the emergency '' , the BBC announces that is going silent for the night and will resume broadcasting the next morning . For", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 49, "text": "daphne du maurier" } ], "id": "odql_9084--The_Birds_(story).txt", "qid": "odql_9084", "question": "Who wrote the story on which the 1963 Alfred Hitchcock film 'The Birds' was based?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Animal Farm is an allegorical and dystopian novella by George Orwell , first published in England on 17 August 1945 . According to Orwell , the book reflects events leading up to the Russian Revolution of 1917 and then on into the Stalinist era of the Soviet Union . Orwell , a democratic socialist , was a critic of Joseph Stalin and hostile to Moscow-directed Stalinism , an attitude that was critically shaped by his experiences during the Spanish Civil War . The Soviet Union , he believed , had become a brutal dictatorship , built upon a cult of personality and enforced by a reign of terror . In a letter to Yvonne Davet , Orwell described Animal Farm as a satirical tale against Stalin ( `` un conte satirique contre Staline '' ) , and in his essay `` Why I Write '' ( 1946 ) , wrote that Animal Farm was the first book in which he tried , with full consciousness of what he was doing , `` to fuse political purpose and artistic purpose into one whole '' . \n \n The original title was Animal Farm : A Fairy Story ; U.S. publishers dropped the subtitle when it was published in 1946 , and only one of the translations during Orwell 's lifetime kept it . Other titular variations include subtitles like `` A Satire '' and `` A Contemporary Satire '' . Orwell suggested the title Union des républiques socialistes animales for the French translation , which abbreviates to URSA , the Latin for `` bear '' , a symbol of Russia , which also played on the French name of the Soviet Union , Union des républiques socialistes soviétiques . \n \n Orwell wrote the book between November 1943 and February 1944 , when the UK was in its wartime alliance with the Soviet Union and the British people and intelligentsia held Stalin in high esteem , a phenomenon Orwell hated . The manuscript was initially rejected by a number of British and American publishers , including one of Orwell 's own , Victor Gollancz , which delayed its publication . It became a great commercial success when it did appear partly because international relations were transformed as the wartime alliance gave way to the Cold War . \n \n Time magazine chose the book as one of the 100 best English-language novels ( 1923 to 2005 ) ; it also featured at number 31 on the Modern Library List of Best 20th-Century Novels . It won a Retrospective Hugo Award in 1996 , and is also included in the Great Books of the Western World selection . \n \n Plot summary \n \n Old Major , the old boar on the Manor Farm , summons the animals on the farm together for a meeting , during which he refers to humans as `` enemies '' and teaches the animals a revolutionary song called Beasts of England . When Major dies , two young pigs , Snowball and Napoleon , assume command and consider it a duty to prepare for the Rebellion . The animals revolt and drive the drunken and irresponsible farmer Mr. Jones from the farm , renaming it `` Animal Farm '' . They adopt Seven Commandments of Animalism , the most important of which is , `` All animals are equal . '' \n \n Snowball teaches the animals to read and write , while Napoleon educates young puppies on the principles of Animalism . Food is plentiful , and the farm runs smoothly . The pigs elevate themselves to positions of leadership and set aside special food items , ostensibly for their personal health . \n \n Some time later , several men attack Animal Farm . Jones and his men are making an attempt to recapture the farm , aided by several other farmers who are terrified of similar animal revolts . Snowball , who has been studying the battles of Julius Caesar in anticipation of such a fight , orders the animals to retreat , then attacks the men and beats them back . Snowball 's popularity soars and this event is proclaimed `` The Battle of the Cowshed '' and celebrated annually with the firing of a gun along with the anniversary of the Revolution . \n \n Napoleon and Snowball struggle for preeminence . When Snowball announces his plans to build a windmill , Napoleon has his dogs chase Snowball away and declares himself leader of Animal Farm . \n \n Napoleon enacts changes to the governance structure of the farm , replacing meetings with a committee of pigs who will run the farm . Through a young pig named Squealer , Napoleon claims credit for the windmill idea . The animals work", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 2912, "text": "seven commandments" } ], "id": "odql_12892--Animal_Farm.txt", "qid": "odql_12892", "question": "Which book features the battle of the cowshed?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Kupffer cells , also known as stellate macrophages and Kupffer-Browicz cells , are specialized macrophages located in the liver , lining the walls of the sinusoids that form part of the mononuclear phagocyte system . \n \n History \n \n The cells were first observed by Karl Wilhelm von Kupffer in 1876 . The scientist called them `` Sternzellen '' ( star cells or hepatic stellate cell ) but thought , inaccurately , that they were an integral part of the endothelium of the liver blood vessels and that they originated from it . In 1898 , after several years of research , Tadeusz Browicz identified them , correctly , as macrophages . \n \n Development \n \n Their development begins in the yolk sac where they differentiate into fetal macrophages . Once they enter the blood stream , they migrate to the fetal liver where they reside . There they complete their differentiation into Kupffer cells . \n \n Function \n \n Red blood cells are broken down by phagocytic action , where the hemoglobin molecule is split . The globin chains are re-utilized , while the iron-containing portion , heme , is further broken down into iron , which is re-utilized , and bilirubin , which is conjugated to glucuronic acid within hepatocytes and secreted into the bile . \n \n Helmy et al . identified a receptor present in Kupffer cells , the complement receptor of the immunoglobulin family ( CRIg ) . Mice without CRIg could not clear complement system-coated pathogens . CRIg is conserved in mice and humans and is a critical component of the innate immune system . \n \n Function in alcoholic liver disease \n \n Kupffer cell activation is responsible for early ethanol-induced liver injury , common in chronic alcoholics . Chronic alcoholism and liver injury deal with a two hit system . The second hit is characterized by an activation of the Toll-like receptor 4 ( TLR4 ) and CD14 , receptors on the Kupffer cell that internalize endotoxin ( lipopolysaccharide or LPS ) . This activates the transcription of pro-inflammatory cytokines ( Tumor necrosis factor-alpha or TNFα ) and production of superoxides ( a pro-oxidant ) . TNFα will then enter the stellate cell in the liver , leading to collagen synthesis and fibrosis . Fibrosis will eventually cause cirrhosis , or loss of function of the liver .", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 361, "text": "hepatic" } ], "id": "sfq_21332--Kupffer_cell.txt", "qid": "sfq_21332", "question": "Where in the human body are the Kupffer Cells to be found?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Cluedo — known as Clue in North America — is a murder mystery game for three to six players , devised by Anthony E. Pratt from Birmingham , England , and currently published by the American game and toy company Hasbro . The object of the game is to determine who murdered the game 's victim ( `` Dr. Black '' in the UK version and `` Mr. Boddy '' in North American versions ) , where the crime took place , and which weapon was used . Each player assumes the role of one of the six suspects , and attempts to deduce the correct answer by strategically moving around a game board representing the rooms of a mansion and collecting clues about the circumstances of the murder from the other players . \n \n Numerous games , books , and a film have been released as part of the Cluedo franchise . Several spinoffs have been released featuring various extra characters , weapons and rooms , or different game play . The original game is marketed as the `` Classic Detective Game '' , while the various spinoffs are all distinguished by different slogans . \n \n In 2008 , Cluedo : Discover the Secrets was created ( with changes to board , gameplay and characters ) as a modern spinoff , but was criticized in the media and by fans of the original game . Cluedo : The Classic Mystery Game was then introduced in 2012 , returning to Pratt 's classic formula but also adding several variations . \n \n History \n \n In 1944 , Anthony E. Pratt , an English musician , applied for a patent of his invention of a murder/mystery-themed game , originally named `` Murder ! '' The game was originally invented as a new game to play in bomb shelters . Shortly thereafter , Pratt and his wife , Elva Pratt ( 1913-1990 ) , who had helped in designing the game , presented it to Waddingtons ' executive , Norman Watson , who immediately purchased it and provided its trademark name of `` Cluedo '' ( a play on `` clue '' and `` Ludo '' ; ludo is Latin for game ) . Though the patent was granted in 1947 , due to post-war shortages , the game was not officially launched until 1949 , when the game was simultaneously licensed to Parker Brothers in the United States for publication , where it was renamed `` Clue '' along with other minor changes . \n \n There were several differences between the original game concept and that initially published in 1949 , In particular , Pratt 's original design calls for ten characters , one of whom was to be designated the victim by random drawing prior to the start of the game . These ten included the eliminated Mr. Brown , Mr. Gold , Miss Grey , and Mrs. Silver . The characters of Nurse White and Colonel Yellow were renamed Mrs. White and Colonel Mustard for the actual release . The game allowed for play of up to eight remaining characters , providing for nine suspects in total . Originally there were eleven rooms , including the eliminated `` gun room '' and cellar . In addition there were nine weapons including the unused bomb , syringe , shillelagh ( walking stick/cudgel ) , fireplace poker , axe , and poison . Some of these unused weapons and characters appeared later in spin-off versions of the game . \n \n Some gameplay aspects were different as well . Notably , the remaining playing cards were distributed into the rooms to be retrieved , rather than dealt directly to the players . Players also had to land on another player in order to make suggestions about that player 's character through the use of special counter-tokens , and once exhausted , a player could no longer make suggestions . There were other minor differences , all of which were later updated by the game 's initial release and remain essentially unchanged in the standard Classic Detective Game editions of the game . http : //www.hasbro.com/clue/default.cfm ? page \n History & src=endeca Hasbro , THE HISTORY OF CLUE \n \n Equipment \n \n The game consists of a board which shows the rooms , corridors and secret passages of an English country house called Tudor Mansion , although previously named variously as Tudor Close or Tudor Hall , and in some editions Boddy Manor or Boddy Mansion . More recent editions have restored the name Tudor Mansion to the mansion , and say the mansion is in Hampshire , England in the year 1926 . The game box also includes several coloured playing pieces to represent characters ,", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 2778, "text": "nine" } ], "id": "qz_4181--Cluedo.txt", "qid": "qz_4181", "question": "How many rooms are there in 'Cluedo'?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "My Fair Lady is a musical based on George Bernard Shaw 's Pygmalion , with book and lyrics by Alan Jay Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe . The story concerns Eliza Doolittle , a Cockney flower girl who takes speech lessons from professor Henry Higgins , a phoneticist , so that she may pass as a lady . The original Broadway , London and film versions all starred Rex Harrison . \n \n The musical 's 1956 Broadway production was a momentous hit , setting a record for the longest run of any major musical theatre production in history . It was followed by a hit London production , a popular film version , and numerous revivals . It has been called `` the perfect musical '' . \n \n Synopsis \n \n ; Act I \n On a rainy night in Edwardian London , opera patrons are waiting under the arches of Covent Garden for cabs . Eliza Doolittle , a Cockney flower girl , runs into a young man called Freddy . She admonishes him for spilling her bunches of violets in the mud , but she cheers up after selling one to an older gentleman . She then flies into an angry outburst when a man copying down her speech is pointed out to her . The man explains that he studies phonetics and can identify anyone 's origin by their accent . He laments Eliza 's dreadful speech , asking why so many English people do n't speak properly and explaining his theory that this is what truly separates social classes , rather than looks or money ( `` Why Ca n't the English ? `` ) . He declares that in six months he could turn Eliza into a lady by teaching her to speak properly . The older gentleman introduces himself as Colonel Pickering , a linguist who has studied Indian dialects . The phoneticist introduces himself as Henry Higgins , and , as they both have always wanted to meet each other , Higgins invites Pickering to stay at his home in London . He distractedly throws his change into Eliza 's basket , and she and her friends wonder what it would be like to live a comfortable , proper life ( `` Would n't It Be Loverly ? `` ) . \n \n Eliza 's father , Alfred P. Doolittle , and his drinking companions , Harry and Jamie , all dustmen , stop by the next morning . He is searching for money for a drink , and Eliza shares her profits with him ( `` With a Little Bit of Luck '' ) . Pickering and Higgins are discussing vowels at Higgins 's home when Mrs. Pearce , the housekeeper , informs Higgins that a young woman with a ghastly accent has come to see him . It is Eliza , who has come to take speech lessons so she can get a job as an assistant in a florist 's shop . Pickering wagers that Higgins can not make good on his claim and volunteers to pay for Eliza 's lessons . An intensive makeover of Eliza 's speech , manners and dress begins in preparation for her appearance at the Embassy Ball . Higgins sees himself as a kindhearted , patient man who can not get along with women ( `` I 'm an Ordinary Man '' ) . To others he appears self-absorbed and misogynistic . \n \n Alfred Doolittle is informed that his daughter has been taken in by Professor Higgins , and considers that he might be able to make a little money from the situation ( `` With a Little Bit of Luck '' [ Reprise ] ) . \n \n Doolittle arrives at Higgins 's house the next morning , claiming that Higgins is compromising Eliza 's virtue . Higgins is impressed by the man 's natural gift for language and brazen lack of moral values . He and Doolittle agree that Eliza can continue to take lessons and live at Higgins 's house if Higgins gives Doolittle five pounds for a spree . Higgins flippantly recommends Doolittle to an American millionaire who has written to Higgins seeking a lecturer on moral values . Meanwhile , Eliza endures speech tutoring , endlessly repeating phrases like `` In Hertford , Hereford and Hampshire , hurricanes hardly ever happen ” ( initially , the only `` h '' she aspirates is in `` hever '' ) and `` The rain in Spain stays mainly in the plain '' ( to practice the `` long a '' phoneme ) . Frustrated , she dreams of different ways to kill Higgins , from sickness to drowning to a firing squad ( `` Just You Wait", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 35, "text": "george bernard shaw" } ], "id": "qw_15658--My_Fair_Lady.txt", "qid": "qw_15658", "question": "\"The character \"\"Eliza Doolittle\"\" in \"\"My Fair Lady\"\" was originally created by whom?\"" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "The film noir genre generally refers to mystery and crime dramas produced from the early 1940s to the late 1950s . Movies of this genre were characteristically shot in black and white , and featured stories involving femmes fatales , doomed heroes or anti-heroes , and tough , cynical detectives . \n \n The term film noir , French for `` black film '' ( literal ) or `` dark film '' ( closer meaning ) , first applied to Hollywood films by French critic Nino Frank in 1946 , was unrecognized by most American film industry professionals of that era . Cinema historians and critics defined the category retrospectively . Before the notion was widely adopted in the 1970s , many of the classic films noir were referred to as `` melodramas '' . Whether film noir qualifies as a distinct genre is a matter of ongoing debate among scholars . \n \n Film noir encompasses a range of plots : the central figure may be a private eye ( The Big Sleep ) , a plainclothes policeman ( The Big Heat ) , an aging boxer ( The Set-Up ) , a hapless grifter ( Night and the City ) , a law-abiding citizen lured into a life of crime ( Gun Crazy ) , or simply a victim of circumstance ( D.O.A . ) . Although film noir was originally associated with American productions , films now so described have been made around the world . Many pictures released from the 1960s onward share attributes with film noir of the classical period , and often treat its conventions self-referentially . Some refer to such latter-day works as neo-noir . \n \n Problems of definition \n \n The questions of what defines film noir , and what sort of category it is , provoke continuing debate . `` We 'd be oversimplifying things in calling film noir oneiric , strange , erotic , ambivalent , and cruel [ … ] '' —this set of attributes constitutes the first of many attempts to define film noir made by French critics Raymond Borde and Etienne Chaumeton in their 1955 book Panorama du film noir américain 1941–1953 ( A Panorama of American Film Noir ) , the original and seminal extended treatment of the subject . They emphasize that not every film noir embodies all five attributes in equal measure—one might be more dreamlike ; another , particularly brutal . The authors ' caveats and repeated efforts at alternative definition have been echoed in subsequent scholarship : in the more than five decades since , there have been innumerable further attempts at definition , yet in the words of cinema historian Mark Bould , film noir remains an `` elusive phenomenon [ … ] always just out of reach '' . \n \n Though film noir is often identified with a visual style , unconventional within a Hollywood context , that emphasizes low-key lighting and unbalanced compositions , films commonly identified as noir evidence a variety of visual approaches , including ones that fit comfortably within the Hollywood mainstream . Film noir similarly embraces a variety of genres , from the gangster film to the police procedural to the gothic romance to the social problem picture—any example of which from the 1940s and 1950s , now seen as noir 's classical era , was likely to be described as a `` melodrama '' at the time . \n \n While many critics refer to film noir as a genre itself , others argue that it can be no such thing . While noir is often associated with an urban setting , many classic noirs take place in small towns , suburbia , rural areas , or on the open road ; so setting can not be its genre determinant , as with the Western . Similarly , while the private eye and the femme fatale are character types conventionally identified with noir , the majority of film noirs feature neither ; so there is no character basis for genre designation as with the gangster film . Nor does film noir rely on anything as evident as the monstrous or supernatural elements of the horror film , the speculative leaps of the science fiction film , or the song-and-dance routines of the musical . \n \n A more analogous case is that of the screwball comedy , widely accepted by film historians as constituting a `` genre '' : the screwball is defined not by a fundamental attribute , but by a general disposition and a group of elements , some—but rarely and perhaps never all—of which are found in each of the genre 's films . However , because of the diversity of noir ( much greater than that of the", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "odql_9986--Film_noir.txt", "qid": "odql_9986", "question": "The films 'The Postman Always Rings Twice' and 'Double Indemnity' were both based on novels written by which author of hardboiled school of American crime fiction?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Sorrowing Old Man ( At Eternity 's Gate ) is an oil painting by Vincent van Gogh that he made in 1890 in Saint-Rémy de Provence based on an early lithograph . The painting was completed in early May at a time when he was convalescing from a severe relapse in his health and some two months before his death , generally accepted as a suicide . \n \n In the 1970 catalogue raisonné , it is given the title Worn Out : At Eternity 's Gate . \n \n The lithograph was based on a pencil drawing Worn Out , one of a series of studies he made in 1882 of a pensioner and war veteran , Adrianus Jacobus Zuyderland , at a local almshouse in The Hague and itself a reworking of a drawing and watercolor he had made the previous year . The inspiration for Worn Out was Hubert von Herkomer 's Sunday at the Chelsea Hospital , an immensely popular print depicting an old war veteran slumped dead that went on to become an acclaimed painting at the Royal Academy , The Last Muster , that van Gogh had seen in 1875 when in England . Van Gogh wrote of his drawing : \n \n Van Gogh 's first attempt at the lithograph followed just two days later . He wrote : \n \n Later , in a rare expression of his own religious feelings , he wrote expressly about this lithograph and two other drawings also posed by Zuyderland , of an old man reading a Bible and saying grace ( below ) respectively : \n \n Writing about At Eternity 's Gate in 1998 , the American theologian Kathleen Powers Erickson remarked : \n \n Seven impressions of the lithograph are known , of which one is annotated At Eternity 's Gate . The same theme is taken up again in two later 1883 studies of a seated woman . \n \n Genesis \n \n Vincent van Gogh suffered from some form of mental illness , acutely during the last two years of his life . The official diagnosis furnished by the hospital in Arles that van Gogh was taken to on Christmas Eve , 1888 , following the celebrated incident involving his ear , was `` acute mania with generalised delirium '' . Dr. Félix Rey , a young intern at the hospital , also suggested `` a kind of epilepsy '' he characterised as mental epilepsy . \n \n There is no agreement today over a modern diagnosis of van Gogh 's illness . Suggestions include epilepsy and bipolar disorder , possibly exacerbated by excessive absinthe drinking , heavy smoking and venereal disease . Symptoms were varied , but in their most severe manifestations they involved attacks of confusion and unconsciousness followed by periods of stupor and incoherence during which he was generally unable to paint , draw , or even to write letters . It was such an attack that first led him to being hospitalised at Arles , and following a later relapse , he had himself committed to the asylum at Saint-Rémy in May 1889 , where he remained for the most part until May 1890 . \n \n On February 22 , 1890 , van Gogh suffered his most severe relapse , an episode Jan Hulsker called the longest and saddest of his life , and one which lasted some nine weeks through to late April . During this time , he was only able to write his brother Theo once , in March 1890 , and then only briefly to say he was totally stupified ( totalement abruti ) and unable to write . He did not write Theo again until late April , but that letter makes it clear that he had been able to paint and draw a little during this time , despite his sadness and melancholy : It is in these drawings and paintings that Hulsker sees unmistakable signs of his mental collapse , otherwise rare in his work . \n \n It is not clear whether Sorrowing Old Man ( 'At Eternity 's Gate ' ) is one of the canvases referred to in his April letter . Hulsker remarks that it would have been remarkable for van Gogh to have copied his lithograph so faithfully from memory . Nevertheless , the painting is clearly a return to the past , and both the 1970 catalogue raisonné and Hulsker cite the painting as fecit May 1890 at Saint-Rémy . \n \n From the 1880s \n \n File : Hubert von Herkomer 1871 - Sunday at the Chelsea Hospital ( The Graphic ) .jpg|Hubert von Herkomer - Sunday at the Chelsea Hospital ( 1871 ) \n File : Vincent van Gogh - Prayer", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 72, "text": "van gogh" } ], "id": "bb_5003--At_Eternity's_Gate.txt", "qid": "bb_5003", "question": "Who painted The Starry Night, Sorrowing Old Man and Self-Portrait Without Beard?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Peter Heering is a Danish manufacturer of liqueurs , most famous for Heering Cherry Liqueur , a liqueur flavored with cherries which is often referred to simply as Peter Heering or Cherry Heering in cocktail recipes . Heering Cherry Liqueur has been produced since 1818 , and the company is purveyor to the Royal Danish Court and to Queen Elizabeth II . It is sold in more than 100 countries . Heering Cherry Liqueur is an ingredient of cocktails including the Singapore Sling , and Blood & Sand . \n \n Cherry Heering is used in baking ; some of the alcohol evaporates .", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 461, "text": "singapore sling" } ], "id": "odql_5018--Peter_Heering.txt", "qid": "odql_5018", "question": "Developed sometime before 1915 by a bartender named Ngiam Tong Boon, which cocktail contains Gin, Cherry Heering, Benedictine,and fresh Sarawak Pineapple juice?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Twelfth Night , or What You Will is a comedy by William Shakespeare , believed to have been written around 1601–02 as a Twelfth Night 's entertainment for the close of the Christmas season . The play centres on the twins Viola and Sebastian , who are separated in a shipwreck . Viola ( who is disguised as a boy ) falls in love with Duke Orsino , who in turn is in love with the Countess Olivia . Upon meeting Viola , Countess Olivia falls in love with her thinking she is a man . The play expanded on the musical interludes and riotous disorder expected of the occasion , with plot elements drawn from the short story `` Of Apollonius and Silla '' by Barnabe Rich , based on a story by Matteo Bandello . The first recorded performance was on 2 February 1602 , at Candlemas , the formal end of Christmastide in the year 's calendar . The play was not published until its inclusion in the 1623 First Folio . \n \n Characters \n \n * Viola - Sebastian 's twin sister , a shipwrecked young lady , the heroine of the play , later disguised as a young man named Cesario . \n * Sebastian – Viola 's twin brother , supposedly drowned in the shipwreck , but actually alive and visiting Illyria . \n * Duke Orsino – Duke of Illyria \n * Olivia – a wealthy countess \n * Malvolio – steward in the household of Olivia \n * Maria – Olivia 's gentlewoman \n * Sir Toby Belch – Olivia 's uncle \n * Sir Andrew Aguecheek – a rich man who Sir Toby brings to be Olivia 's wooer \n * Feste – the clown , or jester , of Olivia 's household \n * Fabian – a servant and friend to Sir Toby \n * Antonio – a captain and friend to Sebastian \n * Valentine and Curio – gentlemen attending on the Duke \n * A Servant of Olivia \n * Captain of the Wrecked Ship – friend to Viola \n \n Setting \n \n Illyria , the setting of Twelfth Night , is important to the play 's romantic atmosphere . Illyria was an ancient region of the Western Balkans whose coast ( the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea which is the only part of ancient Illyria which is relevant to the play ) covered ( from north to south ) the coasts of modern day Slovenia , Croatia , Bosnia and Herzegovina , Montenegro and Albania . It included the city state of the Republic of Ragusa which has been proposed as the setting . Illyria may have been suggested by the Roman comedy Menaechmi , the plot of which also involves twins who are mistaken for each other . Illyria is also referred to as a site of pirates in Shakespeare 's earlier play , Henry VI , Part 2 . The names of most of the characters are Italian but some of the comic characters have English names . Oddly the `` Illyrian '' lady Olivia has an English uncle , Sir Toby Belch . It has been noted that the play 's setting also has other English allusions such as Viola 's use of `` Westward ho ! `` , a typical cry of 16th-century London boatmen , and also Antonio 's recommendation to Sebastian of `` The Elephant '' as where it is best to lodge in Illyria ; The Elephant was a pub not far from the Globe Theatre . \n \n Synopsis \n \n Viola is shipwrecked on the coast of Illyria and she comes ashore with the help of a captain . She loses contact with her twin brother , Sebastian , whom she believes to be drowned . Disguising herself as a young man under the name Cesario , she enters the service of Duke Orsino through the help of the sea captain who rescues her . Duke Orsino has convinced himself that he is in love with Olivia , whose father and brother have recently died , and who refuses to see charming things , be in the company of man , and entertain love or marriage proposals from anyone , the Duke included , until seven years have passed . Duke Orsino then uses 'Cesario ' as an intermediary to profess his passionate love before Olivia . Olivia , however , forgetting about the seven years in his case , falls in love with 'Cesario ' , as she does not realize the Duke 's messenger is a woman in disguise . In the meantime , Viola has fallen in love with the Duke Orsino , creating a love triangle between Duke Orsino , Olivia", "qas": [ { "answers": [ { "answer_start": 1454, "text": "feste" } ], "id": "sfq_4261--Twelfth_Night.txt", "qid": "sfq_4261", "question": "Who is the clown in Shakespeare's 'Twelfth Night'?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "Magnetism is a class of physical phenomena that are mediated by magnetic fields . Electric currents and the magnetic moments of elementary particles give rise to a magnetic field , which acts on other currents and magnetic moments . Every material is influenced to some extent by a magnetic field . The most familiar effect is on permanent magnets , which have persistent magnetic moments caused by ferromagnetism . The prefix ' refers to iron , because permanent magnetism was first observed in a form of natural iron ore called magnetite , Fe3O4 . Most materials do not have permanent moments . Some are attracted to a magnetic field ( paramagnetism ) ; others are repulsed by a magnetic field ( diamagnetism ) ; others have a more complex relationship with an applied magnetic field ( spin glass behavior and antiferromagnetism ) . Substances that are negligibly affected by magnetic fields are known as non-magnetic substances . These include copper , aluminium , gases , and plastic . Pure oxygen exhibits magnetic properties when cooled to a liquid state . \n \n The magnetic state ( or magnetic phase ) of a material depends on temperature and other variables such as pressure and the applied magnetic field . A material may exhibit more than one form of magnetism as these variables change . \n \n History \n \n Aristotle attributed the first of what could be called a scientific discussion on magnetism to Thales of Miletus , who lived from about 625 BC to about 545 BC . Around the same time , in ancient India , the Indian surgeon Sushruta was the first to make use of the magnet for surgical purposes . \n \n In ancient China , the earliest literary reference to magnetism lies in a 4th-century BC book named after its author , The Master of Demon Valley . \n The 2nd-century BC annals , Lüshi Chunqiu , also notes : \n `` The lodestone makes iron approach , or it attracts it . '' From the section `` Jingtong '' ( ) of the `` Almanac of the Last Autumn Month '' ( ) : `` ] '' \n The earliest mention of the attraction of a needle is in a 1st-century work Lunheng ( Balanced Inquiries ) : `` A lodestone attracts a needle . '' \n The 11th-century Chinese scientist Shen Kuo was the first person to write – in the Dream Pool Essays – of the magnetic needle compass and that it improved the accuracy of navigation by employing the astronomical concept of true north . \n By the 12th century the Chinese were known to use the lodestone compass for navigation . They sculpted a directional spoon from lodestone in such a way that the handle of the spoon always pointed south . \n \n Alexander Neckam , by 1187 , was the first in Europe to describe the compass and its use for navigation . In 1269 , Peter Peregrinus de Maricourt wrote the Epistola de magnete , the first extant treatise describing the properties of magnets . In 1282 , the properties of magnets and the dry compass were discussed by Al-Ashraf , a Yemeni physicist , astronomer , and geographer . \n \n In 1600 , William Gilbert published his De Magnete , Magneticisque Corporibus , et de Magno Magnete Tellure ( On the Magnet and Magnetic Bodies , and on the Great Magnet the Earth ) . In this work he describes many of his experiments with his model earth called the terrella . From his experiments , he concluded that the Earth was itself magnetic and that this was the reason compasses pointed north ( previously , some believed that it was the pole star ( Polaris ) or a large magnetic island on the north pole that attracted the compass ) . \n \n An understanding of the relationship between electricity and magnetism began in 1819 with work by Hans Christian Ørsted , a professor at the University of Copenhagen , who discovered more or less by accident that an electric current could influence a compass needle . This landmark experiment is known as Ørsted 's Experiment . Several other experiments followed , with André-Marie Ampère , who in 1820 discovered that the magnetic field circulating in a closed-path was related to the current flowing through the perimeter of the path ; Carl Friedrich Gauss ; Jean-Baptiste Biot and Félix Savart , both of whom in 1820 came up with the Biot–Savart law giving an equation for the magnetic field from a current-carrying wire ; Michael Faraday , who in 1831 found that a time-varying magnetic flux through a loop of wire induced a voltage , and others finding further links between magnetism and electricity", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "odql_4727--Magnetism.txt", "qid": "odql_4727", "question": "What was the name of the Scottish physicist who wrote 'Treatise On Electricity And Magnetisim' in 1873?" } ] } ] }

{ "paragraphs": [ { "context": "# redirect Middle Ages", "qas": [ { "answers": [], "id": "sfq_17728--Middle_Ages.txt", "qid": "sfq_17728", "question": "Who is known as the Father of English literature, is widely considered the greatest English poet of the middle ages and was the first poet to have been buried in Poet's Comer of Westminster Abbey?" } ] } ] }