text:
The Betrayal

When did it all begin? Where it always does I suppose, with the vows. Do you take this woman, to have and to hold in sickness and in health? Bullshit! Michael thought to himself. It ought to say are you taken with this woman. That’s exactly what he had been with Irene…. Taken! The better question he thought to himself as he sat there, alone in the waiting room was where did it all go wrong?

	Sitting there alone in the twelve feet wide by twenty-three foot long white box. Michael sat in the same waiting room chair that decorated every waiting room across the country. Two plastic arm supports thinner than any person’s forearm he had ever encountered. Who the fucks arm is this suppose to support? A predetermined back angle as if everyone set with the same posture. Michael was angry, not with the room although it did irritate and enrage him for many reason but no, Michael was angry at life and how his had turned out in particular.

	Sitting there in only chair in the white, picture less, waiting room Michael rotated his wedding band between his fingers like a magician does before making the coin disappear, starting at his pinky finger ending at his index finger before starting the process over again. One might look upon Michael as if he was lost in thought had they walked in on him, but he was not lost in thought for Michael knew exactly where his thoughts were at. They were on the wedding band, for that he surmised is where everything went wrong.

	A white gold band size ten in his case, with ten little diamond chunks set inside the band itself when it was purchased. It of course was bought as a match to Irene’s. He remembered the event like it was yesterday and not ten years ago. They had been in the mall and both spotted the Kay’s sign and went in. Irene and Michael were doing it backwards, they had married just hours earlier at the Bell County, Courthouse.

	Her face lit up when she saw the one carat diamond, it was one of the many smiles he would see on her face during the first two years of their marriage, but like everything else in life even the smiles fade he thought. The woman behind the counter Camille, Michael never forgot the name of a person that made Irene smile. It was a blessing back then and a curse as of the last few years. Camille placed the ring on Irene’s finger with all the tenderness and caring that Michael did not get to do back at the courthouse.

	He had to admit that when he first looked at the rings on their hands after they purchased them. “No need for bags he had told Camille! We will wear them out give everyone a chance to see an ordinary ring on an extraordinary woman!” Irene use to eat up his compliments back then no matter how cheesy he thought they sounded, she would always smile or squeeze his arm tighter. Yes, even he believed in the happiness they represented when they walked out of the store ten years ago to the day.

	Looking at the weathered ring now brought him back to a sobering reality. The scratches some deep, some minor, the diamond that fell out once and was replaced. It fell out again along the years and like most stuff in life you get tired of trying to fix it and you let it be. In some ways the wedding band had outlasted him. It was still on his fingers albeit worn and beaten but still there. Michael wished he could say the same for his Irene.

	He thought about how if he had never bought her the ring or stood in front of that justice of the peace then there would have never been broken promises. There never would have been late nights. There never would have been whiskey on his breath. Most of all Michael thought there never would have been him.

	Hindsight’s twenty/twenty his father had told him. Bill, his name was Bill. He had never had such rage in his heart for any name as he did for that name. The name that stripped everything from him, his life, his passion…his soul mate. He had never met the face behind the name; Irene had not afforded him that opportunity. Michael chose not to dwell on the memories of Bill; after all he had so few only the details that Irene had provided him before waling out of his life.

	She told him only enough so that he could understand why. Irene had not wanted to hurt Michael so she left out how they met after all that wasn’t important. What was important is that they met. Michael sat there in the only chair in that white picture less box of a waiting room when the buzzer sounded signaling that one patient was coming out and the next one would be buzzed in. A woman who looked to be about twenty three exited the room casually glanced at Michael before leaving.

	Michael stood slowly wondering if the blonde had smelled the whiskey on his breath as she passed by. If she had then she had not let on. She probably had problems of her own. The doctor stepped into the doorway bridging his office and the waiting room glancing up from his clipboard to pronounce Michaels name. Michael pointed the 357 Magnum Solid Black Revolver, one shot rang out and as the Doctor slumped to the floor Michael turned the Revolver toward his temple squeezing the wedding band tight in his left hand pulling the trigger with his right. One Shot rang out in the room as Michael’s lifeless body fell to the floor.

     The size ten white gold band rolled out of his hand…..ending where it all began.

title: [RF] The Betrayal

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

Summarize the plot of the story.

answer: Michael is sitting in a waiting room, thinking about his marriage to Irene. He thinks about how he met Irene and how they got married. He thinks about how he bought her a wedding ring, and how he feels that he has been betrayed by her. He thinks about how he has been betrayed by Bill, the man who took Irene from him. He thinks about how he has been betrayed by his father, Bill, and how he has been betrayed by his life. He pulls out a gun and shoots himself in the head. He also kills the doctor.

text: The response inaccurately mentions that Michael was betrayed by Bill and that Bill was his father, however he was betrayed by his wife.

refinement: Michael is sitting in a waiting room, thinking about his marriage to Irene. He thinks about how he met Irene and how they got married. He thinks about how he bought her a wedding ring, and how he feels that he has been betrayed by her. He thinks about the man who took Irene from him. He pulls out a gun and shoots himself in the head. He also kills the doctor.

answer: Michael is sitting in a waiting room. He thinks about his wedding ring and how it has outlasted him. He remembers his wife leaving him. He is angry at her and at the man named Bill that she left him for. He shoots the doctor, and then shoots himself.

answer: Michael is sitting in a waiting room, thinking about his marriage to Irene. He thinks about how he met Irene and how they got married. He thinks about how he bought her a wedding ring, and how he feels that he has been betrayed by her. He thinks about how he has been betrayed by Bill, the man who took Irene from him. He thinks about how he has been betrayed by his father, Bill, and how he has been betrayed by his life. He pulls out a gun and shoots himself in the head.

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

Summarize the significance of Michael's wedding ring.

answer: Michael's wedding ring is a constant reminder of the broken promises of his marriage to Irene. He believes that if he had never bought her that ring, or if he hadn't gotten married at all, then maybe he would never have been in this situation. The ring is worn and beaten, and he thinks it has outlasted him.

answer: Michael's wedding ring is a constant reminder of the broken promises of his marriage to Irene. He believes that if he had never bought her that ring, or if he hadn't gotten married at all, then maybe he would never have been in this situation.

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

Summarize Michael's relationship with Irene.

answer: Michael and Irene got married a few hours earlier at the courthouse. Michael was in love with Irene, and she was in love with him. They were very happy for many years. However, Michael noticed that Irene stopped smiling as much as she used to, and she eventually left him for another man.

text: The response misses to specify that Michael and Irene were married for ten years.

refinement: Michael and Irene got married ten years earlier at the courthouse. Michael was in love with Irene, and she was in love with him. They were very happy for many years. However, Michael noticed that Irene stopped smiling as much as she used to, and she eventually left him for another man.

answer: Michael has been taken by Irene. Irene used to light up when she saw her ring, and Michael would often compliment her. They bought the rings together and wore them out. Irene left Michael, and he blamed her father, Bill.

answer: Michael has been taken by Irene. Irene used to light up when she saw her ring, and Michael would often compliment her. They bought the rings together and wore them out. Irene left Michael, and he blamed her father, Bill.

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

What does the text say about Michael's personality?

answer: Michael is a harsh, cynical alcoholic. He's not particularly kind or considerate. He thinks about himself a lot, and blames Bill for the state of his relationship with Irene.

answer: Michael is angry. He thought at first the woman he married had been the most wonderful woman in the world but he lamented that it couldn't have been so. He bitterly thought of the very day he bought her the rings that broke their solemn vows. He wished everything of that day never happened. Michael has a drinking problem.

answer: Michael is angry. He thought at first the woman he married had been the most wonderful woman in the world but he lamented that it couldn't have been so. He bitterly thought of the very day he bought her the rings that broke their solemn vows. He wished everything of that day never happened.


split: test

text:
He awoke to a witch light dancing beyond his window. He didn't know the time, in the high latitudes one couldn't always tell late twilight from early dawn.

He dressed quickly and warmly and stepped outside, finding what he half expected to find.  It was after midnight and cold enough to hear the stars twinkle like thousands of tiny shards of breaking glass and the northern lights play a chromatic scale on harp strings stretching from one horizon to the other.

*The heavens declare ...,"* he whispered to himself.

Shuffling sounds in the forest drew his attention earthwards, a  scuffle between a hunting fox and its prey ended in mystery.  His eyes swept out over the sleeping village, past the mudflat with its grounded fishing boats, out to where the North Sea rolled restless in her bed.  Mists shifted leaving the horizon a clean line where sea met sky.

As he watched, flashes erupted seaward.  Below the horizon and dim at first, then blossoming white hot before dying out, only to repeat and repeat.  Within minutes a hands width of sky glowed dull red, punctuated by sporadic brilliance.  By a rare combination of temperature gradients and wind an atmospheric duct opened and a distant thunder that was not thunder rolled through.

Twenty minutes later the light show ended abruptly, the horizon darkened.  The aurora was gone but he hadn't noticed when.  The stars were quiet again, dimmed by a rising predawn mist.

By the end of the week debris from the inconclusive meeting between the English and German fleets began washing up on the mudflats: a yellow and blue signal flag, a wrecked lifeboat, a patch of fuel oil, a drowned sailor.

title: [HF] In The Small Hours

question: Where is the narrator?

answer: The narrator is in a high latitude area, likely near the North Sea.

text: Answer missing.

refinement: The narrator is in a high latitude area, likely near the North sea.

answer: The narrator is in a village off of the North Sea.

answer: The narrator is in the high latitudes.

question: What time does the narrator wake up?

answer: The narrator wakes up after midnight.

answer: It is after midnight.

answer: The narrator wakes up at midnight.

text: It is incorrectly stated that he woke up at midnight.

answer: The narrator wakes up in the small hours of the morning, likely around midnight.

question: What is the narrator watching on the horizon?

answer: The narrator is watching a battle between the English and German fleets.

answer: He is watching a fight between the English and German fleets.

answer: The aurora borealis.

text: It is incorrectly stated that he was watching the aurora on the horizon.

refinement: The narrator was watching the battle between the English and German fleets.

answer: The narrator is watching the Northern Lights.

text: It is incorrectly stated that he was watching the northern lights on the horizon.

refinement: The narrator is watching the battle between the English and German fleets.

question: When the debris start washing up on shore?

text: Answer missing.

refinement: The debris started washing up on shore by the end of the week.

answer: By the end of the week.

answer: The debris starts washing up by the end of the week.

answer: The debris starts washing up on shore a few days after the atmospheric duct and light show.

question: Write a ~3 sentence summary.

answer: The narrator wakes up late at night and walks outside. He looks out to sea and watches a naval battle happening on the horizon. By the end of the week wreckage from the battle starts washing up on shore.

answer: The narrator wakes up to a witch light dancing beyond his window. He steps outside and sees the aurora borealis. He watches the aurora for a while, and then debris from the English and German fleets begins to wash up on the mudflats.

text: It is incorrectly stated that he watches the aurora for a while.

refinement: The narrator wakes up to a witch light dancing beyond his window. He steps outside and sees the aurora borealis. He watches the light show for about a while until it ends abruptly, and then debris from the English and German fleets begins to wash up on the mudflats.

text: It is incorrectly stated that the debris washes up right after he watches the aurora.

refinement: The narrator wakes up to a witch light dancing beyond his window. He steps outside and sees the aurora borealis. He watches the light show for about a while until it ends abruptly. By the end of the week, the debris from the English and German fleets begins to wash up on the mudflats.

text: Since the man lives somewhere close to the North Sea, it is evident that the aurora he sees is aurora borealis (northern lights).

text: "a yellow and blue signal flag, a wrecked lifeboat, a patch of fuel oil, a drowned sailor." This is evidence that the debris from the battle was washing ashore.

answer: In the small hours of the night, the protagonist witnesses a strange light show in the sky, caused by a battle between two fleets. By the end of the week, debris from the battle washes up on the shore, hinting at the destruction that took place.

answer: The protagonist wakes up to a witch light dancing outside his window. He goes outside and sees the northern lights and a battle between a fox and a rabbit. He watches the battle and then sees a battle between the English and German fleets.

text: "a battle between a fox and a rabbit." can be omitted.

refinement: The protagonist wakes up to a witch light dancing outside his window. He goes outside and sees the northern lights and a few mysterious lights at the sea. He watches the battle and then sees a battle between the English and German fleets.

text: It is omitted that the debris washes up ashore.

refinement: The protagonist wakes up to a witch light dancing outside his window. He goes outside and sees the northern lights and a few mysterious lights at the sea. A week later, the debris of the battle between the German and English washes ashore.


text:
	We owned the bottle the whole time we lived there, from the day we moved in. Nobody used it much; Devon and I have the basement to ourselves so we get our own fridge. He uses ketchup only with fries twice a month or so, while I myself am a Sriracha man. The thing most people don’t immediately realize when they move out of home is that the kitchen, a once magical and generous place that gratified you with instant food and satisfaction, on your own becomes a burdensome, dark and dingy room whose contents are always scarce and incompatible. Well, it was like that for us. We didn’t cook much, and we weren’t inclined to spend much time competing with the bugs for space in our cramped kitchen. We found out through the grapevine that our landlord was in fact a stubborn sort of miser who gutted, wired, and walled the house without any help. Help costs money to a man with no friends. In those slanted rooms we stood when we decided to thusly rename him slumlord.
	I clearly remember once being a more naive high school version of my self, dreaming of the day life granted me autonomy, as if that somehow includes the skills necessary to live on one’s own. Those days, I imagined credulously that I would teach myself to cook great things once I had my own place. But too soon into university did work and school brandish their heavy burdens. In the sparse moments of freedom and idleness, time was a ration; something to be used on preservation rather than sacrificed on expansion (although I did get a build a sweet aquarium over the year, but that’s another story). As a result, neither of us cooked so much as grazed. For a whole week I ate raw hot dogs and carrots before I forced myself to buy apples and soup. No kind of gourmet, organic, free-range food of any sort tastes better than the apple that ends the drought of raw hot dogs. The lonely contents of our fridge were primarily condiments and take-away meals. There were all the compliments and additions we needed for a meal, but no meal itself. We had every colour of paint, but no brush.
	One recurring disturbance that arose from the stochastic rearranging of our fridge’s contents  confused and frustrated me and Devon. Often without warrant, the kitchen door would refuse to stay shut. What seemed like a simple problem was mysteriously adamant. There was no resistance, no visible obstruction. No; this was a more subtle and cruel refusal, one that allowed the magnetic trim of the door to first kiss that of the refrigerator unit, then slowly pry the door away from its lover. The door would tease us by feigning closure, then mockingly swinging open.
	The fridge drove us insane. We took out the drawers and the shelfs and readjusted the magnetic strips. Nothing worked. For poor students, keeping food from waste was a priority. Expiry dates no longer counted; in poverty and squalor, one’s nose becomes the sole and executive arbiter of food safety. Keeping the fridge closed and cool was more important to us than any homework we did that year. But no matter what we tried, the fridge would recurrently, as if on it’s own volition, switch its magnetic strip to repel mode. For the longest time we had no idea why or how the fridge door would patently remain open. The fridge seemed to have a mind of its own and, to some degree, we respected it. Accepting the fridge’s perseverance, we would concede defeat by wedging the broom against the wall and the door in a rocky cease-fire between the fridge’s will and our own. It was one of the things that made me apt to spend a little more on the place I’m living next year.
	Nevertheless, for majority of the year the adamancy of the problem overcame us. It was not until later in second semester that my housemate figured out the cause. This happened on some otherwise unremarkable day in a week during which the fridge again decided to gape open. Excitedly, as one should when they solve some complex and demanding problem, he burst into my room. The width of his smile suggested that he won some sort of Nobel Prize. “Matt,” he managed, almost panting. “It was the ketchup.”
	Bemused, I followed Devon to the kitchen to witness his solution. Talking with a mixture of excitement and relief, he explained: “When the ketchup sits inside the door, it pushes the door away if it’s turned horizontally. We have to keep it parallel with the door,” he said, and enacted his description in order to exhibit the difference.
	What a marvel! I was beyond words. Such an easy solution to such a complex problem. It was certainly a relief, a simple fix to a pervasive and pestering issue. For the rest of the year, we lived in harmonious cohabitation with that fridge, albeit at the price of a few sour milk cartons and rotten oranges. However, throughout the constant reshuffling of cold cuts, hot dogs, cream cheese and yogurt, one item has been left unperturbed.
	The ketchup bottle, resilient and proud, stands proudly in claimed territory, a spot on the inside railing upon which it remains parallel to the door. It has earned the spot, through rigid victory over it’s supposed owners. It controlled harmony and restored balance to our kitchen on many occasions. It’s happiness controlled us. It was omnipotent. In the squalid darkness of our kitchen, we found a light in the Ketchup God, and we obeyed it.

title: [RF] Ketchup God

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

Summarize the symbolism of food in this story.

answer: The narrator and his housemate are poor college students who don't cook much. They have a fridge full of condiments and take-away meals, but no actual food. The fridge is a source of frustration for them, but they are also dependent on it to keep their food from spoiling. The ketchup bottle is the only food item that remains unperturbed in the fridge. It is a source of light in the squalid darkness of the kitchen.

answer: The narrator and his housemate are poor college students who don't cook much. They have a fridge full of condiments and take-away meals, but no actual food. The fridge is a source of frustration for them, but they are also dependent on it to keep their food from spoiling. The ketchup bottle is the only food item that remains unperturbed in the fridge.

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

Summarize the issues food can cause or highlight in any sort of a relationship.

answer: No answer

answer: The fridge can cause issues in a relationship because it can be a source of frustration.

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

Describe how the narrator and Devon know each other.

answer: They are roommates.

answer: They lived together in their shared basement and are best friends.

answer: They lived together in their shared basement.

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

Summarize the singular source of tension in the story and how it is resolved.

answer: The singular source of tension in the story is the fact that the fridge door would not stay shut. It would open without reason or warning. The tension is resolved when the narrator and his housemate, Devon, realize the reason for the problem is a ketchup bottle that, when placed horizontally, would push the door open.

answer: The singular source of tension in the story is the fact that the fridge door would not stay shut. It would open without reason or warning. The tension is resolved when the narrator and his housemate, Devon, realize the reason for the problem is a ketchup bottle that, when placed horizontally, would push the door open. The solution is to place the ketchup bottle parallel to the door.


text:
QONQURTAI () was a Mongol prince and viceroy of Anatolia for the Ilkhanate khanate.

Life

Qonqurtai was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. Qonqurtai was Hulagu's ninth son and was the senior commander during the reign of his brother Abaqa. He was twice appointed as viceroy of Anatolia, first during the reign of Abaqa and then under Tekuder. His winter quarters were in Kazova plains near Tokat, while his viceroyalty itself has centred around Kayseri.

Rule in Anatolia

Qonqurtai was appointed as commander of Ilkhanid army in Anatolia with Shams al-Din Juvayni as his vizier after the Battle of Elbistan in 1277 to support the Sultanate of Rum against revolting Turcomans.[1] He pursed Jimri, a claimant to Seljuk throne, and attacked his patrons - the Karamanids. As a consequence, Mehmet I of Karaman was captured and executed together with his sons Mahmud and Karaman in October 1277.[2] Qonqurtai further authorised Sâhib Ata to act on his behalf. He aided Kaykhusraw III's efforts to subdue Karamanids and Eshrefids in 1282. However, Qonqurtai had to cease his activities upon hearing the death of Abaqa.

Upon the death of Abaqa, Qonqurtai supported Tekuder's succession in Maragha, who in return gave him the hand of Toqiyatai Khatun, a Keraite concubine of Hulagu and niece of Dokuz Khatun on 12 July 1282. He was also re-appointed as viceroy of Anatolia the same day.[3] However, later in Tekuder's reign, he shifted his alliance to Arghun, which made the former suspicious. Qonqurtai was summoned to Karabakh, accused of conspiracy and was arrested by Tegüder's son-in-law, Alinaq - the viceroy of Georgia on 17 January 1284, and was executed next day by breaking his neck.[4] Later, Arghun had put Tekuder on trial for Qonqurtai's death, who suffered the same penalty as him.

Personality

He was described as a wise ruler in _Zafarnamah_ by Hamdullah Mustawfi,[5] while Qalawun considered him as a not only dishonorable, but also cruel man.[6]

Family

He was married to Toqiyatai Khatun (d. 1292), a Keraite concubine of Hulagu and niece of Dokuz Khatun on 12 July 1282, and only two of his children reached adulthood.[7]:

1.  Esen Timur Kharbanda (executed by Ghazan in 1296[8])
    1.  Pulad
2.  Ildar (executed by Ghazan in 1296[9])
    1.  Aq Timur
3.  Karai (died in infancy)
4.  Changtimur (died in infancy)
5.  Tashtimur (died in infancy)
6.  Ashightimur (died in infancy)
7.  Akash m (died in infancy)

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5] L. J. Ward, “The Ẓafar-nāmah of Ḥamd Allāh Mustaufi and the Il-Khān dynasty of Iran,” Ph.D. diss, p.204, University of Manchester, 1983.

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

title: Qonqurtai

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

What does the text say about Qonqurtai?

answer: Qonqurtai was a Mongol prince and viceroy of Anatolia for the Ilkhanate khanate. He was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. Qonqurtai was Hulagu's ninth son and was the senior commander during the reign of his brother Abaqa. He was twice appointed as viceroy of Anatolia, first during the reign of Abaqa and then under Tekuder. His winter quarters were in Kazova plains near Tokat, while his viceroyalty itself has centred around Kayseri.

answer: Qonqurtai was a Mongol prince and viceroy of Anatolia for the Ilkhanate khanate. He was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. He was Hulagu's ninth son and was the senior commander during the reign of his brother Abaqa. He was twice appointed as viceroy of Anatolia, first during the reign of Abaqa and then under Tekuder. Qonqurtai was appointed as commander of Ilkhanid army in Anatolia with Shams al-Din Juvayni as his vizier after the Battle of Elbistan in 1277 to support the Sultanate of Rum against revolting Turcomans.

answer: Qonqurtai was a Mongol prince and viceroy of Anatolia for the Ilkhanate khanate. He was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. He was Hulagu's ninth son and was the senior commander during the reign of his brother Abaqa. He was twice appointed as viceroy of Anatolia, first during the reign of Abaqa and then under Tekuder.

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

What does the text say about Qonqurtai's early life?

answer: Qonqurtai was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. He was Hulagu's ninth son and was the senior commander during the reign of his brother Abaqa.

text: Being senior commander is not part of his early life and should be omitted.

refinement: Qonqurtai was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. He was Hulagu's ninth son.

answer: Qonqurtai was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. He was Hulagu's ninth son and was the senior commander during the reign of his brother Abaqa. He was twice appointed as viceroy of Anatolia, first during the reign of Abaqa and then under Tekuder.

answer: Qonqurtai was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. He was Hulagu's ninth son and was the senior commander during the reign of his brother Abaqa. He was twice appointed as viceroy of Anatolia, first during the reign of Abaqa and then under Tekuder. His winter quarters were in Kazova plains near Tokat.

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

What does the text say about Qonqurtai's family?

answer: Qonqurtai was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi. He was Hulagu's ninth son. Qonqurtai was married to Toqiyatai Khatun. He had seven children, only two of which reached adulthood.

text: The response could mention more about Toqikayatai Khatun.

refinement: Qonqurtai was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi. He was Hulagu's ninth son. Qonqurtai was married to Toqiyatai Khatun, a Keraite concubine of Hulagu and niece of Dokuz Khatun. He had seven children, only two of which reached adulthood.

answer: Qonqurtai was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. He was Hulagu's ninth son and was the senior commander during the reign of his brother Abaqa. He was married to Toqiyatai Khatun, a Keraite concubine of Hulagu and niece of Dokuz Khatun on 12 July 1282. He had seven children, but only two reached adulthood.

answer: Qonqurtai was born to Hulagu Khan and Ajuja Aguchi, his Khitan concubine wife. He was Hulagu's ninth son and was the senior commander during the reign of his brother Abaqa. He was married to Toqiyatai Khatun, a Keraite concubine of Hulagu and niece of Dokuz Khatun on 12 July 1282.

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

What does the text say about the royal lifestyle?

answer: Qonqurtai's winter quarters were in Kazova plains.

text: The detail included here isn't necessarily indicative of lifestyle; "no answer" would be more relevant.

answer: No answer


text:
THE THIRD ARM OF KILIMANJARO

(This concept was originally developed in detail by Marshall T. Savage in his book, "The Millennial Project". By no means am I claiming his works as my own. I respect his creation and wanted to incorporate this part of it into my ongoing tale.)

A public works project had begun in Tanzania on Mt. Kilimanjaro. To the press it had been dubbed a water and energy reclamation experiment, and to the water impoverished nations of Africa they didn't question it too loudly. Why question something that would bring thousands of jobs and clean water to the stricken center of the continent, and let's not forget millions, (perhaps billions if you could really dig into the books and ferret out all the nickels and dimes) of dollars of industry? On the surface, the construct did exactly what it said. There were no lies told. The engineers had built vast sluices to harness and channel the melt from the heavy snows that had been steadily increasing at the peak of the volcano. "This increase in snowfall was an effect of the changing climate brought about by human influence on global temperatures", a few interest groups were shouting at the top of their lungs, "and we should be devoting energies to stem the changes and not just blindly take advantage of them!" They shouted, but no one was listening. Besides, the extra snowfall handled and distributed by what became known as the Kilimanjaro Resource Reclamation Project jointly managed by the central African countries, the US, and after a fashion, the UK, revitalized one of the most impoverished areas on Earth.

The three gargantuan sluices were evenly distributed around the circumference on the mountain's even-sloped rise, and from there each of the three bases branched out to smaller and smaller distribution channels like tree roots, (but moving water in the opposite direction) to the surrounding areas. Using the support pylons for the sluices as foundations, massive turbines were constructed creating wind farms, some classic propeller driven, a few using a new air-compressed turbine technology. With these farms, vast amounts of energy was produced and distributed along the water pipelines. With one well engineered stroke, the project cured much of the strife in Africa bringing water, energy, jobs, and outside interest to the nations. That outside interest being tourism of course, the universal income maker. With the violent rebellions dying down, and much of the varied countries slowly but surely working their way through peace talks and economic summits, the central African countries became a new and fresh tourist destination, bringing even more money to the table.

It was quite a generous act from the First World, again, on the surface. But, does it really matter after that? With all of the good the project had brought to millions of people, did the underlying reasons detract from the gesture? Much of the grand gestures in history had one hand giving and the other taking, and sometimes the price of what was taken was monumental and horrific. From where I sit here in the Salt Flats, I wonder.

You see, two of the sluices were just that: water collectors. They were labeled the  Kilimanjaro First and Second Arms respectively, or K1A and K2A. The third, which happened to be built directly parallel to the equator, was much larger than the other two, (and had an exponentially larger amount of security than the other two), housed a secret. There was indeed a water reclamation facility built there, (there were no overt lies spoken, remember), it just had one more pathway built into it that was never meant to be touched by water,
And just a small fraction of the energy created by the wind farms were diverted to this facility to power it. Knowing that the facility would eventually have to be revealed, the right amount of money had been exchanged to the right hands, (certain heads of the African nations, and as always, the press) to keep the project quiet, but be a loud and positive supporter when the time came for the unveiling.

Housed under this third arm was a thirty mile long set of rails. There was a subtle opening at the peak of the mountain that was the exit for the projected launch vehicle. The passage was essentially a gun, a "rail gun" apparatus first imagined by French inventor Louis Octave Fauchon-Villeplee in 1918.  It was a device that, using two parallel conductive rails that were fed an electromagnetic current in a pulse traveling the length of the barrel, could accelerate an object at extremely high velocity, no chemical propellant required.

The setting of Kilimanjaro had been ideal for a couple of reasons: the long slope stretching up from the flat plain was a perfect platform to build the rail, and it's closeness to the equator. The long slope allowed for minimum construction (and minimum visibility from the outside world) to set the shape of the track. The extra benefit of the height of the mountain meant that the catapulted object would make it quite a ways up in elevation before it even left the track, meaning less energy spent. The location along the equator was ideal in that anything launched would require minimal adjustments once in orbit to attain a geosynchronicity circling the planet, or to orbital trajectories further out, say. It was these outbound trajectories that were important for the second stage of the project. The third stage would change the world.

Once the rail, dubbed the Kilimanjaro Third Arm Launch Facility (or K3ALF for a slightly less unwieldy title) had been finished, there was a massive marketing push to popularize it and as always, it was easier to ask for forgiveness after the fact than for the initial permissions. After a few test runs; the brave astronautical test pilot's proud and triumphant (widely broadcast across the internet and televisions of the world) flight, not to forget his grinning mug, (also widely broadcast) telling the citizens just how beautiful their small blue world was from where he sat and that humanity should get over their petty squabbles, blah blah blah, and the usual insertion or two of new commercial satellites, (to pay for the previous' advertising), the project was much lauded for it's forward thinking and advancement of Mankind. Once the launch facility was fully operational, it was not unusual to hear the distant thunder from a bullet-shaped vehicle hitting multiple times the speed of sound and leaving nothing but a vapor contrail and a wide cloud halo around the peak of the slumbering volcano.

The third phase began with renewed landings on Earth's lonely companion, the Moon. And at the beginning of the new year, a permanent facility had been constructed in the Copernicus crater that utilized the sloping wall along with the relative flatness of it's basin, (in a slightly funhouse mirror image) to build a smaller sister version of the Kilimanjaro launch rail for the benefit of propelling craft on their return trip to Terra Firma. The public was told that the construction in Copernicus, (named the Arthur C. Clarke Platform; it wasn't in Clavius or the Tycho Crater but the name was fitting, and no one objected to honoring the famous co-author of "2001 - A Space Odyssey") would be primarily used to explore the lunar surface, research into the rocky terrain for the possibilities of future mineral prospects, and mainly; mankind's first proper foothold into space proper, where the foundation of exploration to the outer reaches of the solar system would begin.

These things were all true; proper and successful lies are always obfuscated in a web of truth. As it had been since the beginning of the massive project, there were no lies told. It was what went by unsaid that paid for all in the end. Ironically, this venture having been covered up until it was ready at K3ALF by the publics works programs was in turn a cover for the real strategy, a plan that only a handful of people outside the project were aware of.  Even the majority of the crews at the Arthur C. Clarke site were unaware of what they were a part of and if they were told, they probably wouldn't have believed it anyway.

(6/16/16)

title: [SP] The Third Arm of Kilimanjaro

question:
Answer the following question based on the above passage:

What was the main aim of the public works (Kilimanjaro Resource Reclamation) that were set up in Tanzania?

answer: The main aim was to produce energy so the sluices could be cleared to bring fresh water to the heads of the African Nation. Also the added bonus of mini-wind farms was to bring quick energy production to the country. In this case, the international community was quietly providing assistance to bring quick energy and revitalize the country.

answer: The aim of the project was to produce water and energy for the suffering African countries dominated by violence and failure as well as to attract tourism.

answer: The main aim of the public works on Mt. Kilimanjaro was to build a launch facility that would propel objects into orbit at extremely high velocity.

answer: The main aim of the public works on Mt. Kilimanjaro is to propel a bullet-shaped vehicle at extremely high velocity in order to launch it into a geosynchronic orbit around the planet.

answer: The Kilimanjaro Resource Reclamation was set up on the peaks of Mount Kilimanjaro to process melted snowfall into clean water for the inhabitants of the country and other parts of the region. However, there is a third part of the project that was not revealed to the public. under the third arm of the mountant is a "rail gun". It is a gun capable of accelerating an object at a high velocity with no chemical propellant needed. The exact use of this gun is unknown, but it is speculated that it has something to do with space.