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Write an article with the title: "Ezra Klein - The Washington Post"
Article: |
Ezra Klein is a columnist at the Washington Post, as well as a contributor to MSNBC. His work focuses on domestic and economic policymaking, as well as the political system that’s constantly screwing it up. He’s appeared on The Rachel Maddow Show, Charlie Rose, Real Time with Bill Maher, The McLaughlin Report, the Colbert Report, and many more. He really likes graphs.
It feels like we’re thinking. But too often, we’re just rationalizing.
“The problem with Obamacare is it’s product driven and not market driven.“
Chris Christie’s bullying got him elected governor. But it might keep him from getting elected president.
Ezra Klein and Evan Soltas | 7 | Flan2021 | newsroom:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Generate a sentence that includes all the following words: commander, deliver, remark | students listen to military commander deliver remarks . | 5 | Flan2021 | gem/common_gen:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
What's an example of a grad-school level question? | Which change would most likely increase the number of salamanders? | 8 | Flan2021 | ai2_arc/ARC-Challenge:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Q: What tool would be most useful to calculate the volume of a glass prism?
What is the correct answer to this question?
-- ruler -- scale -- voltmeter -- thermometer...A: | ruler | 3 | Flan2021 | ai2_arc/ARC-Challenge:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
News article: Charlie Hebdo staff hold emotional first editorial meeting after deadly attack
A journalist stroked the arm of a colleague to comfort her. Others whispered into mobile phones as they sat at a table for their first editorial meeting in new premises.
For the staff of Charlie Hebdo, which lost eight journalists including five of France’s best-known cartoonists in Wednesday’s attack , Friday’s gathering in their temporary office at Libération was an emotional affair.
Laurent Joffrin, Libération’s editor told the Guardian that about 20 journalists had arrived on Friday morning. He said that disruption to his own paper would be minimal: “They have their own room and all they need to do is to put in computers.”
It was natural for the paper to offer space to the satirical magazine after the “big shock” of the attack, he added. Four other people lost their lives on Wednesday: a maintenance worker who was the first victim of the gunmen, a visitor from Clermont-Ferrand who had come to return some cartoons, and two policemen, one of them a Muslim who was shot in the street.
Joffrin’s deputy, Johan Hufnagel, said the Charlie Hebdo journalists could stay as long as they needed. He asked for the exact location of the team to go unmentioned for security reasons. Two plainclothes officers stood outside the office where the editorial meeting began at 11.30am and was still continuing more than two hours later. Soft drinks and a sandwich lunch were brought in by caterers.
Those at the table included the cartoonist Luz, who escaped the carnage because he was late on Wednesday, reporter Laurent Léger, columnist Patrick Pelloux and the paper’s lawyer, Richard Malka.
Asked about the mood as he slipped outside the room, Malka, simply said: “We’re organising our work.”
The journalists asked for their privacy to be respected while they work on next Wednesday’s “special survival” edition, which will be limited to eight pages instead of the usual 16. A million copies are to be printed, a huge increase on its usual 60,000 print run.
The Libération building, located close to the Charlie Hebdo premises, is now under armed police guard. Visitors are only allowed in with a specific invitation from a staff member and have to leave via the adjacent car park.
Among the visitors on Friday was the prime minister, Manuel Valls, accompanied by the culture minister, Fleur Pellerin, who has promised €1m (£780,000) to the paper to guarantee its survival. Guardian Media Group has pledged £100,000, while more funding has come from the TV station Canal+ and Le Monde which has supplied the computers. Although “structural” state subventions are provided to French media, satirical publications have been excluded until now.
Asked about the irony of the state propping up the deliberately provocative Charlie Hebdo, one Libération staff member said: “It’s normal. This is a democracy.”
Journalist Jacky Durand said that welcoming the Charlie Hebdo staff members was “an obvious thing to do. It wasn’t necessary to ask us”.
Libération has had its own experience of a shooting attack: in November 2013 a gunman wounded a photographer in the paper’s reception area. “But the context then was completely different from now,” said Durand, referring to the increased sectarian tensions in France and the jihadist threat.
It emerged on Friday that Frédéric Boisseau, the 42-year-old maintenance worker who was killed in the Charlie Hebdo reception on Wednesday, was on his first day at work in the building. The married father of two was employed by the Sodexo facilities management company which deployed him in different workplaces.
There has been some unhappiness in France that the outpouring of sympathy for the dead journalists defending freedom of expression has overshadowed the other victims. On Thursday, police unions promoted a hashtag #jesuispolicier in solidarity with the two policemen killed by the gunmen, in addition to the #jesuischarlie which has become the global commemorative emblem.
Boisseau’s brother Christophe told RTL radio on Friday: When I hear on the TV ‘we’re thinking of the victims’, people think of the well-known victims. But it wasn’t just them, there were 12. You only hear talk of five. Who were the others? Collateral damage?”
“They were there at the wrong time in the wrong place. But they should have talked about them all at the same time.”
Christophe Boisseau said he felt resentful against the state which had not been in touch with his family and yet had promised a state funeral for the victims. “I take it that’s going to be only for the five artists, not for the others… I’m angry because they’ve been forgotten.”
What are the most important parts of this news article? | Libération provides journalists of satirical magazine space to bring out next edition, which will have print run of 1 million | 6 | Flan2021 | newsroom:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Add punctuation to the following sentence: 2 years ago 1110 RedTube double penetration double anal
| 2 years ago 11:10 RedTube double penetration, double anal | 7 | Flan2021 | fix_punct | zs_opt |
Translate the following sentence to German:
Siehe auch: chromjuwelen: More 2009 Invasion Car Show and Los Straitjackets After Party pics!... | LeMans Turbo: RAL5012/Lichtblau | chromjuwelen: Shot: Momo1 - Rocket59 hat dem Pool ein Foto hinzugefügt: Plan-les-Ouates 09... | 1972 Pontiac ''LeSupra'' LeMans @ Chromjuwelen | chromjuwelen: WTF!
German: | Siehe auch: Going to Extremes: The Best and Worst of Automotive Design | Royal Pontiac | Engine Swap Discrimination | chromjuwelen: Customs ***My first Shoebox chop for my first customer...Thanx Omar for trusting... | chromjuwelen: Original NASCAR Chevelle at Speedfest http://ff.im/-9o6Mb | chromjuwelen: Verflucht. | 5 | Flan2021 | wmt16_translate/de-en:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Sergio Santos Mendes (Portuguese pronunciation: ['seRZju 'satuZ 'medZiS]; born February 11, 1941) is a Brazilian musician. He has over 55 releases, and plays bossa nova heavily crossed with jazz and funk. He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2012 as co-writer of the song "Real in Rio" from the animated film Rio. Mendes is married to Gracinha Leporace, who has performed with him since the early 1970s.
Mendes' career in the U.S. stalled in the mid-1970s, but he remained very popular in South America and Japan. His two albums with Bell Records in 1973 and 1974 followed by several for Elektra from 1975 on, found Mendes continuing to mine the best in American pop music and post-Bossa writers of his native Brazil, while forging new directions in soul with collaborators like Stevie Wonder, who wrote Mendes' R&B-inflected minor hit, "The Real Thing." In 1983, he rejoined Alpert's A&M records and enjoyed huge success with a self-titled album and several follow-up albums, all of which received considerable adult contemporary airplay with charting singles. "Never Gonna Let You Go", featuring vocals by Joe Pizzulo and Leza Miller, equalled the success of his 1968 single "The Look of Love" by reaching No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart; it also spent four weeks atop the Billboard adult contemporary chart. In 1984 he recorded the Confetti album, which had the hit songs "Olympia", which was also used as a theme song for the Olympic games that year and "Alibis". The '80s also found Mendes working with singer Lani Hall again on the song "No Place to Hide" from the Brasil '86 album, and as producer of her vocals on the title song for the James Bond film Never Say Never Again. By the time Mendes released his Grammy-winning Elektra album Brasileiro in 1992, he was the undisputed master of pop-inflected Brazilian jazz. The late-1990s lounge music revival brought retrospection and respect to Mendes' oeuvre, particularly the classic Brasil '66 albums.
Using a quote from the above article, answer the following question: Did he win any awards | Grammy-winning Elektra album Brasileiro in 1992, | 1 | Flan2021 | quac:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Use the following highlights to write an article:
Jenson Button will partner Fernando Alonso for McLaren next season. Sportsmail exclusively revealed the news on Wednesday that Button stays. The 34-year-old was widely expected to end his career in F1. Kevin Magnussen will be reserve and test driver for the 2015 season.
Article: | Sportsmail's Jonathan McEvoy exclusively revealed the news on Wednesday that Jenson Button is staying at McLaren. Jenson Button relived the moment on Thursday he received the call he feared would never come. It was Monday and McLaren chairman Ron Dennis spoke to offer him a Formula One race seat for next season. ‘He put the options to me,’ said Button. ‘I just said yes.’ That night, he confesses, was a blur of celebration. Never mind that the deal involved an annual pay cut of about £4million, to £8m, he jumped at the chance to realise his father’s ambition for him — to race alongside Fernando Alonso, who has joined from Ferrari. Jenson Button (second left) is revealed as part of the McLaren 2015 line-up alongside Fernando Alonso (second right) and reserve driver Kevin Magnussen (centre) Alonso (left) joins McLaren from Ferrari while Button is staying put despite speculation about his future. On Thursday, Button, who only finally inked his new contract on Wednesday night, was still wreathed in smiles at the pair’s unveiling at McLaren’s Surrey headquarters. The man who was vying for Button’s seat, 22-year-old Dane Kevin Magnussen, handled himself manfully as he was paraded as the team’s test and reserve driver. He was given his bad news by Dennis on Tuesday. From being the long-term favourite to partner Alonso, his career had suddenly stalled. Button insists his heart has 'always been at McLaren' after signing a new contract with the F1 team. Alonso and Button pose inside McLaren's technology centre in Woking on Thursday morning. The 2009 world champion, Jenson Button, has been retained by McLaren for the 2015 season. Two-time world champion Fernando Alonso will re-join McLaren from Ferrari, having left in 2007. Dennis tried to console Magnussen in his comments. ‘Look at his poor little face,’ he said at one point. It sounded more patronising than Dennis intended. And, after all, Magnussen was his original choice for the seat. So what happened? How did Button replace the Dane in McLaren’s affections? The answer seems to lie in the complicated boardroom dynamics at Woking. A well-placed source has told Sportsmail that the other shareholders, the Bahrain Sovereign Wealth Fund and Saudi Arabian businessman Mansour Ojjeh, who has fallen out with his old friend Dennis, combined to save Button from the sack. Button in action for McLaren during the final Grand Prix of the 2014 season in Abu Dhabi last month. Kevin Magnussen faces an uncertain future after missing out on McLaren seat in 2015. The ins and outs were not important on Thursday amid the smiles and back-slapping. Button, one of the most popular and respected drivers on the grid, said: ‘This is where my heart has always been — racing with such an amazing partnership. ‘And I have enormous respect for Fernando. I don’t want to mention my late father (John) too much but, probably as much as me winning the world championship, he wanted me and Fernando to race on the same team together.’ Alonso’s arrival at the Woking-based team, on a three-year deal worth £75m, was in the pipeline long before the McLaren hierarchy decided on Button’s future. ‘Secret’ conversations between the team and Alonso began in September 2013, though he admits he was only truly convinced to move this past summer. Alonso’s return is somewhat surprising given the acrimonious year he spent at McLaren in 2007. ‘That experience meant that something wasn’t right in my career,’ said the Spaniard. ‘It’s time to change that.’ Dennis’s take on the upheavals was to apportion blame on the ‘immaturity’ of Alonso’s then team-mate Lewis Hamilton. He said: ‘If you go down the “who struck the first blow?” route, I would say Lewis.’ Button won the world title with Brawn back in 2009 and has been at McLaren since 2010. VIDEO It's McLaren or nothing - Button. | 8 | Flan2021 | cnn_dailymail:3.4.0 | zs_opt |
Hoping to rebound from their road loss to the Steelers, the Bengals went home for a Week 13 AFC North rematch with the Baltimore Ravens. In the first quarter, Cincinnati trailed early as Ravens kicker Matt Stover made a 27-yard field goal. In the second quarter, Baltimore increased its lead as Stover got a 21-yard field goal, along with QB Joe Flacco completing a 4-yard TD pass to TE Todd Heap. The Bengals would close out the half as kicker Shayne Graham nailed a 21-yard field goal. In the third quarter, the Ravens pulled away as WR Mark Clayton completed a 32-yard TD pass to WR Derrick Mason and caught a 70-yard TD pass from Flacco. In the fourth quarter, Baltimore pulled away as safety Jim Leonhard returned an interception 35 yards for a touchdown. With the loss, not only did Cincinnati fall to 1-10-1. They surpassed their 2007 loss total and were swept by the Ravens for the first time since 2002.
Answer this question based on the article: Which players made field goals of less than 30 yards? | Matt Stover | 1 | Flan2021 | drop:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
New Legitimacy: Organized crime was soon to have a formidable adversary in its bid to control Las Vegas — corporate cash. Though Las Vegas had developed a powerful local economy, few major outside investments were made in the city, due primarily to mob infiltration and its inherent ties to illegal activities. That would change dramatically with the 1966 arrival of billionaire Howard Hughes. A legitimate businessman, Hughes was nonetheless eccentric and dramatic, a style suited to the Las Vegas ethos. True to the myth, the reclusive Hughes immediately cloistered himself in the Desert Inn's penthouse. Several weeks later he was asked — then ordered — to vacate the room to make room for high rollers, whereupon he promptly bought the property and fired the management. Thus began Hughes' legendary three-year, $300-million Las Vegas buying spree. When it was over, Hughes owned six casinos, an airport, and an airline, along with numerous plots of land stretching from the Strip to the mountains. Hughes' actions would have beneficial repercussions, both immediate and lasting. Because of the new legitimacy Las Vegas acquired from Hughes' investments, established companies such as Hilton Hotels bought into the gaming business, and their influence helped draw a line in the desert sand between legitimate operations and mob casinos, where illegal skimming of profits was rampant. That, combined with the formation of the Nevada Gaming Control Board, would signal the beginning of the end for heavy mob influence in the city. Las Vegas with a Vision As corporations moved in and the mob was slowly pushed out, a new Las Vegas emerged. The legitimization of gambling led to its increased legalization across the US. What was once a sure thing became much more competitive. Casino operators had to reassess the nature of their business. The first to really do so was Steve Wynn, a Las Vegas resident and owner of the Golden Nugget. In the mid-1980s, Wynn began plans to reinvigorate Las Vegas with a new resort. He bought several Strip properties — the Silver Slipper and Castaways among them — and demolished them to make way for a new kind of resort — Mirage — which became an instant success.
Question: "The owner of the Golden Nugget demolished several Strip properties to build what?"
Response: "A new kind of resort"
Based on the paragraph, is the response to the question is factually correct?
Select from the following. (1). no. (2). yes. | (2). | 1 | Flan2021 | super_glue/multirc:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
Choose the next sentence.(CNN) -- The bad news came via certified letter to Norma Jimenez, Edna Rodriguez and nearly 17,000 other Puerto Ricans this month. Thousands last week protest government layoffs in Puerto Rico. To cut spending, Puerto Rico announced last month that thousands of government employees would be fired in the second round of layoffs this year. More than 7,800 public employees were fired in March. "I was fearful because of the uncertainty," Jimenez, 42, an auxiliary administrator for the U.S. territory's Department of Education told CNN. "Will the letter come or not come?" The letter came, and it said that under a measure authorized by an emergency fiscal bill, her last day of work would be January 8 of next year.
"If that happened, we would become the first state in the history of the
OPTIONS:
- CNN to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said.
- California to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said.
- Department of Education to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said.
- Edna Rodriguez to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said.
- Jimenez to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said.
- Norma Jimenez to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said.
- Puerto Ricans to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said.
- Puerto Rico to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said.
- U.S. to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said.
| U.S. to have its credit downgraded to junk bond," he said. | 4 | Flan2021 | super_glue/record:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
What claim can be made from the following pieces of evidence?
1. If the government will not act on the issue of badgers then farmers will feel they are left with no choice .
2. Without a cull farmers will simply take the issue into their own hands in order to protect their herds .
3. Jenkinson , Stephen , Protect the Badger , Why Bother ?
4. According to groups that aim to protect badgers there are already an estimated 9,000 badgers killed each year through gassing , poisoning , and baiting .
5. , , | If there is no cull farmers will simply carry out their own killing | 4 | Flan2021 | opinion_abstracts_idebate | zs_opt |
Sentence: Hypermarcas makes healthcare products.
What structured data could we extract from this sentence? | Hypermarcas, product, Healthcare | 9 | Flan2021 | gem/web_nlg_en:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Milan museum to test whether sketch is lost Leonardo da Vinci work
(CNN) -- Peter Hohenstatt was skeptical at first, especially when he learned the drawing dated to about 1500.
The sketch was "absolutely Leonardesque," the University of Parma art historian thought, but it was probably the product of one of the master's students, imitators or admirers. When a technical exam showed the drawing originated closer to 1473, his skepticism waned.
The reason? Leonardo da Vinci was an apprentice until the late 1470s. He didn't have any students, imitators or admirers of his own yet.
"I can't be sure it's a Leonardo drawing, not scientifically or any other way," said Hohenstatt, "but I'm highly convinced that we have here one of the first drawings. I'm quite convinced it's one of his first portrait sketches."
Hohenstatt isn't alone. Da Vinci expert Luigi Capasso told CNN there is a "very high possibility that this sketch is by Leonardo da Vinci."
The object of their fascination is titled simply, "red pencil drawing of a profile of a man's head looking to the left." It was found about 70 years ago tucked into a book -- and like many objects of artistic intrigue, it has a long and twisting story, regardless of whether it's the product of the Renaissance master.
The two men's convictions are based on artistic similarities to other da Vinci works as well as the makeup of the sketch's paper, which they say is similar to the paper da Vinci used in other sketches.
The final word, though, must come from the Biblioteca Ambrosiana, the library in Milan, Italy, that houses the Codex Atlanticus, the largest collection of da Vinci's works.
Hohenstatt conducted the historical and artistic analysis of the drawing. Capasso, an anthropology professor at Gabriele d'Annunzio University in the medieval town of Chieti, Italy, handled the scientific and technical side of the work.
Capasso, who also serves as director of the university's museum, was credited in 2005 with reconstructing a da Vinci fingerprint from his manuscripts and the painting "Lady with an Ermine." The fingerprint is one of the only biological traces of da Vinci, Capasso said.
Though the men cite several reasons for their conclusions, two elements are the most convincing, said Capasso.
First, the composition of the 5½-by-3½-inch sheet of paper is almost identical to the paper used in three da Vinci sketches housed at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, including "The Landscape No. 8P," which da Vinci dated himself: August 5, 1473. All four works show evidence of lead salt treatment, which da Vinci commonly used to whiten his paper before applying inks and pigments, Capasso said.
The second element is where things get interesting: In volume 12, page 1033 of the Codex Atlanticus, there is a blank space with a glue silhouette that "corresponds impressively" with the paper on which the red-chalk sketch is drawn, Capasso said.
The glue on page 1033 even has a small imperfection that matches an imperfection in the glue on the back of the drawing.
Watch some of Capasso's and Hohenstatt's findings
Capasso said he has the chemical composition of the glue but cannot conduct a comparison with the codex until Biblioteca Ambrosiana permits an analysis.
Leonardo da Vinci is born in a small Tuscan town outside Florence.
A young da Vinci becomes the apprentice of Andrea del Verocchio, a talented artist whose workshop is famous in Florence.
Da Vinci is accepted into the painters' guild of Florence, qualifying him as a master.
After several years working in del Verocchio's workshop, he begins working on his own. Thus begins his first Florentine period.
Duke Ludovico Sforza hires da Vinci, who moves to Milan, where he worked as a painter, sculptor and architect, beginning what scholars call the first Milanese period.
Da Vinci completes "The Last Supper."
Ludovico flees the French army after it enters Milan, and da Vinci returns to Florence. The second Florentine period begins.
Pope Alexander VI's son, Cesare Borgia, hires da Vinci as a military architect and engineer.
Da Vinci travels back to Milan to work for French Gov. Charles d'Amboise.
Da Vinci moves to Rome, where he lives in a residence at the Vatican.
King Francis I of France asks da Vinci to enter his service, and the master leaves his native Italy.
Da Vinci dies in Cloux on May 2. He is buried at the palace church at St. Florentin. The church is later destroyed during the French Revolution, and da Vinci's remains are moved to a chapel at Amboise castle, where they are presumed to remain today.
Ambrosiana's vice prefect, Pier Francesco Fumagalli, declined to discuss the timing of the test. But in a letter to the sketch's owners, Fumagalli wrote that the library would permit a non-invasive analysis of the glue on page 1033.
The test will have to wait until at least 2012, he wrote, because the codex is in the process of being preserved.
Cristina Gerbino, the daughter of one of the sketch's current owners, has been tasked with publicizing the discovery. She said the drawing was originally found in a book belonging to Cardinal Placido Maria Tadini, the onetime archbishop of Genoa. When Tadini died in 1847, a notary from the Ponzellini family bought the cardinal's Montcalvo home and all its belongings, Gerbino said.
In 1940, the last Ponzellini descendant moved to Genoa and, while reorganizing the books, noticed the cover of an old tome coming apart. Upon inspection, "a small, red charcoal drawing appeared, a portrait of a man in profile, which had obviously been intentionally hidden," Gerbino said.
The descendant framed the drawing and began gathering the cardinal's documents to research its origin, but World War II interrupted his endeavor. He died in the early 1950s, leaving the framed sketch hanging on a wall in his study -- but not before he conveyed the story behind the sketch to his nephew, Giuseppe Boero.
Amedeo Barile, who restores antiques, was doing work at Boero's home and saw the drawing still preserved under glass. He "decided to buy it and continue the research in order to discover the identity of the artist behind the drawing," Gerbino said.
Barile, along with his colleague and friend, Francesco Gerbino, took ownership of the drawing and in 2001 commissioned studies by Consulting Scientific Group Palladio in Vicenza.
The basics came first: Examining the drawing's surface with infrared rays showed that it had been executed in one sitting, rather than in intervals, according to an analysis. And a scanning electron microscope determined the paper was made from rags, typical of paper produced before the 18th century.
Neither was a huge revelation until Barile showed the sketch to a scholar and author who suggested it might be the work of the great Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci himself.
Hoping to find evidence of the sketch's origin, Barile and Hohenstatt, who had been studying the drawing from a historical perspective, traveled together to Biblioteca Ambrosiana and examined a photocopy of the Codex Atlanticus. On page 1033, they found a collection of riddles and prophecies, for which da Vinci had a predilection, alongside two glue outlines: one large, one small.
On page 1035, they found the drawing that matched the larger outline, but there was no drawing in the codex matching the smaller outline.
Barile and Hohenstatt returned to the library later with tracing paper containing the glue outline from the back of the red-chalk sketch. They held it up to the photocopy of the codex, turned it upside down and were delighted.
"The match was perfect," said Cristina Gerbino, who in December set up the website Leonardo Rediscovered to plug the finding.
Hohenstatt, who has written books on da Vinci and his fellow Italian master Raphael, said the characteristics that initially led him to believe the sketch was influenced by da Vinci are the same ones that now convince him it is his actual work.
The sketch contains evidence that whoever drew it used both hands. Though da Vinci is generally regarded as a southpaw, many drawings from his first Florentine period "suggest an execution with both hands," Hohenstatt wrote.
Then, under the chalk near the neckline of the man in the drawing is a "slightly sketched head of an animal," perhaps a dog or a bear, Hohenstatt said. It's well documented that da Vinci studied both animals during his early Florentine period, which ended about 1482.
The drafting of "one sketch over the other, it's very common in his drawings," Hohenstatt said, explaining that artists of that era often recycled paper because it was so expensive.
A comparison of the drawing to other da Vinci portraits reveals certain similarities: the elaborateness of the eyes, nose, cheek and chin among them. The subject of the portrait also communicates "an intelligence" evident in at least five other da Vinci works, Hohenstatt said, including da Vinci's rendering of Isabella d'Este, who was known as the first lady of the Renaissance.
The chemical composition of the papers is, more or less, about the same, in the same epoch and in the same geographic area. --Luigi Capasso, Leonardo da Vinci expert
In the hair of the sketched subject, Hohenstatt also noticed a technique of creating light and shadow that da Vinci used up until about 1500.
Hohenstatt conceded that the red chalk, or sanguina, employed in the sketch was not commonly used by da Vinci until his first Milanese period, which began in 1482. But at least one other red-pencil da Vinci drawing has been attributed to the early Florentine period, and "The Landscape No. 8P," which da Vinci dated 1473, has evident traces of red pencil on it, the professor said.
As of about 1500, da Vinci was rarely doing portraits in profile, Hohenstatt said, but one of the master's documents mentions that he brought portraits with him to Milan, "so portraits were an interest he had when he was in Florence."
"If it's a Leonardo da Vinci drawing, this type of drawing has to be early, before the 1490s," Hohenstatt said, adding that all these elements -- the ambidexterity, the details in the face and hair, the obscured animal head, the red chalk traces -- "are marginal features, but all these things together make this a typical Leonardo drawing."
Again, though, these elements on their own weren't enough to convince Hohenstatt. If not for Capasso's scientific analysis, Hohenstatt would still have his doubts.
To compare the paper on which the sketch is drawn to other da Vinci sketches, Capasso used a colleague's analysis of the paper used for the three sketches at the Uffizi Gallery.
"The chemical composition of the papers is, more or less, about the same, in the same epoch and in the same geographic area," Capasso said, adding that there are traces of heavy elements that are so rare they help provide a sort of signature for the paper -- essentially, where it was made and used.
"In fact, contrary to the common elements in all the papers (which do not distinguish one kind of paper from another), traces of heavy elements are so rare and so characteristic as to be specific of one kind of paper," the professor wrote in his analysis.
The analysis showed that "The Landscape No. 8P" had traces of lead, copper, zinc, strontium and manganese in the chemical composition of the paper, the same as the red-chalk sketch. Another sketch, a study for "The Battle of Anghiari," had all the elements except zinc. A third sketch, a study for "The Adoration of the Magi," had all the elements except strontium and manganese.
At least two experts believe the sketch is a da Vinci, and Biblioteca Ambrosiana is intrigued enough that it plans to permit testing of a national treasure. If that's the case, exactly how does a priceless artwork from an Italian master become lost in the first place?
Turns out it's not that rare an occurrence.
In 2005, an Italian art detective said he believed that the da Vinci fresco "The Battle of Anghiari" was hidden behind a Giorgio Vasari mural in the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. The detective is still working to unearth the artwork.
We have tremendous loss of drawings, sketches and manuscripts of Leonardo da Vinci.--Peter Hohenstatt, Leonardo da Vinci expert
In 2008, the Louvre in Paris announced it had found three da Vinci sketches on the back of his oil painting "The Virgin and Child with Saint Anne." The following year, an Italian journalist said he found an early pencil self-portrait in da Vinci's Codex on the Flight of the Birds.
There have also been discoveries that pitted da Vinci authorities against each other. In 2009, experts claimed that a portrait purchased at auction in 1998 for $19,000 was actually da Vinci's "La Bella Principessa." Others disagreed. Also that year, a medieval historian said he found what he believed to be a self-portrait while studying a picture collection in Acerenza, but the historian quickly found critics.
"We have tremendous loss of drawings, sketches and manuscripts of Leonardo da Vinci," Hohenstatt explained.
Parts of the codices were simply dismantled, he said. Other drawings were cut out and assembled in different books.
Da Vinci's assistant and favorite student, Francesco Melzi, administered da Vinci's estate and upon his own death left the artworks to his son, Orazio.
"(Orazio) didn't have any more interest in the cultural understanding of the drawings" and gave away some of the pieces to his friends, Hohenstatt said.
When Orazio died, his heirs sold the remaining collection. Sculptor Pompeo Leoni, who originally assembled the Codex Atlanticus, took many of the drawings to Spain in the 16th century and split up many original manuscripts. One of them was lost until 1966, when it was rediscovered in the National Library in Madrid.
Many works were eventually donated to Biblioteca Ambrosiana in the mid-1600s, where they remained until Napoleon Bonaparte plundered Milan in 1796, Hohenstatt said. Several drawings and manuscripts remain at the French National Library and the Institute of France.
So, the professor explained, losing a da Vinci wouldn't have been too difficult because his works have been rather well traveled since his death in 1519.
Finding one, on the other hand -- and proving it's the genuine article -- is a markedly more difficult process.
What is a short summary of the above article? | Peter Hohenstatt was skeptical at first, especially when he learned the drawing dated to about 1500. | 4 | Flan2021 | newsroom:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Review: seriously what the hell was this movie about,,simply stupid,,i'd give it 0 but,,,1"awful" is the lowest you can go,,seriously this movie is not worth watching,,waste of time, i don't know what the hell is wrong with you guys voting this movie 7 out of 10,,i seriously can make a better movie than this , hire some other unemployed people,,'n i promise i'll make a movie better than this,,this movie was so bad,,that i'll never watch a movie starring Steve Carrel again,bottom line don't waste your time to download it off the net or rent it,,i'd nominate this movie for the worst movie of the century i mean the worst is Something Gotta give but after that this is the second
Now, what is this review like?
Choices: (A). negative. (B). positive.
| (A). | 8 | Flan2021 | imdb_reviews/plain_text:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Triple: Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning NOTES Starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren
What is a sentence that describes this triple? | In 2012 the title Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning notes the result for Starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren | 0 | Flan2021 | gem/dart:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Here is one sentence: The new railroad will connect the northern part of the state to the southern part.
Here is another sentence: These computers connected well.
Q: Does the term connect mean the same thing in both these sentences?
pick from the following. A. different meanings B. the same meaning | B. | 2 | Flan2021 | super_glue/wic:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
Choose your answer: If "A bowl with a spoon handle sticking out of it is in the left front bottom of the image.", does it logically follow that "There is no end to the spoon handle"?
Options:
+ yes.
+ it is not possible to tell.
+ no. | no | 2 | Flan2021 | snli:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Multi-choice problem: does word "feeling" have the same meaning in the following two sentences?
He lost all feeling in his arm.
He had terrible feelings of guilt.
[-] different meanings.
[-] the same meaning. | different meanings | 4 | Flan2021 | super_glue/wic:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
"It is clear there is a stalemate in Kosovo and the talks in Brussels cannot solve everything," Simic said, praising the Serbia president's move.
Translate to Turkish
Turkish: | Simiç ise, "Kosova'da bir çıkmaz olduğu aşikar ve Brüksel'deki görüşmeler her şeyi çözemez." diyerek Sırbistan Cumhurbaşkanının hareketine övgüde bulundu. | 0 | Flan2021 | wmt16_translate/tr-en:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
If "Sam tried to paint a picture of shepherds with sheep, but they ended up looking more like golfers.", is "The shepherds ended up looking more like golfers." correct?
Select from:
(a). no;
(b). yes;
Answer: | (b). | 2 | Flan2021 | glue/wnli:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
Are "Ann" and "she" the same in this sentence?
Ann asked Mary what time the library closes, because *she* had forgotten.
Available options: i. no ii. yes
The answer is: | ii. | 7 | Flan2021 | super_glue/wsc.fixed:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
Sentence 1: He had no choice but to resign the game and let his opponent become the champion.
Sentence 2: After fighting for so long, she finally resigned to her death.
Multi-choice problem: Does resign mean the same thing in these two sentences?
Possible answers:
a). different meanings.
b). the same meaning. | b). | 1 | Flan2021 | super_glue/wic:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
Article: Chopin made his last public appearance on a concert platform at London's Guildhall on 16 November 1848, when, in a final patriotic gesture, he played for the benefit of Polish refugees. By this time he was very seriously ill, weighing under 99 pounds (i.e. less than 45 kg), and his doctors were aware that his sickness was at a terminal stage.
Now answer this question: Where was Chopin's last public performance? | Guildhall | 6 | Flan2021 | squad/v1.1:3.0.0 | zs_opt |
Data: Blue Spice food Japanese; Blue Spice priceRange £20-25; Blue Spice area riverside
What would a sentence about this data be like? | Blue Spice in riverside sells Japanese meals for £20-25 | 1 | Flan2021 | gem/dart:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Dovyalis is a genus of shrubs and small trees. Recent genetic evidence has shown the genus to belong to the family Salicaceae; formerly it was classified in the family Flacourtiaceae. The 15 species are native to Africa (Ethiopia south to South Africa) and southern Asia (India, Sri Lanka). Some are cultivated for their fruit.
Based on that paragraph can we conclude that this sentence is true?
The Dovyalis genus is going extinct in Africa where it is native.
Available options:
(1). Yes.
(2). It's impossible to say.
(3). No. | (2). | 1 | Flan2021 | anli/r2:0.1.0 | zs_opt |
Nelson is an American rock band founded by singer/songwriters Matthew and Gunnar Nelson (twin sons of Ricky Nelson and Kristin Nelson). The band achieved success during the early 1990s with their double platinum debut album "After the Rain", which featured the number-one hit "(Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection".
Can we infer the following?
Nelson ends with a N.
Select from: (A). Yes; (B). It's impossible to say; (C). No;
The answer is: | (A). | 4 | Flan2021 | anli/r2:0.1.0 | zs_opt |
Add punctuation: The revolutionary BK File Analysis Tool scans analyzes and reports back every detail about your BK file
| The revolutionary BK File Analysis Tool™ scans, analyzes, and reports back every detail about your BK file. | 6 | Flan2021 | fix_punct | zs_opt |
Which ex Coronation Street star won the award for the annually contested female 'Rear of the Year' award in 1996???? | tracy shaw | 7 | Flan2021 | trivia_qa/rc:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Can you generate a question with a factual answer? | Which famous artist warned other artists not to use verdigris? | 9 | Flan2021 | glue/qnli:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
during the procedure, the excess skin and tissues will be removed.
Can you repeat this sentence, but capitalize it correctly? | During the procedure, the excess skin and tissues will be removed. | 5 | Flan2021 | true_case | zs_opt |
Read the text and answer the questions.
(CNN) -- In Pennsylvania, Tyler Dix, a 16-year-old movie buff, is wide awake by 7 a.m. to cook breakfast for his younger siblings.
Moranda Hern and Kaylei Deakin started Sisterhood of the Traveling BDUs, or battle dress uniforms.
In Georgia, Tucker Simmons, a 14-year old novice guitarist, prepares ice packs for his mother whenever her chronic lower back pain kicks in.
In California, Kaylei Deakin, an avid 17-year old rock climber, disciplines her little sisters when they act out.
Tyler, Tucker and Kaylei are three teenagers from across the country who have very different interests, but one experience that bonds them: They grew up fast -- sometimes too quickly -- to fill the shoes of mom or dad when their parent was shipped off to wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
As the death toll from the two wars has risen over the last eight years, the fight has also affected a growing number of children left at home to cope without a parent.
Whether it's raising their siblings or getting an after-school job, teens with parents in the military feel pressure to step up.
"These teens are expected to take on the responsibility the deployed parent used to take care of," said Mary Carolyn Voght, director of programs for Our Military Kids, a nonprofit organization that provides support to children with a deployed parent in the National Guard. "There's usually the expectation that they will pitch in and help out more."
More than 30,000 teens between 12 and 18 have at least one parent in the National Guard deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan, according to the Department of Defense.
1. who is a movie buff?
2. how did he grow up?
3. what is his age?
4. does he live in the US?
5. where?
6. what time does he wake up?
7. does he do anything when he gets up?
8. who feels pressure to step up?
9. how do they step up?
10. do any other teens help out?
11. who?
12. how does Tucker help?
Numbered answers: | 1. Tyler Dix
2. expected to take on the responsibility the deployed parent used to take care of
3. 16
4. yes
5. Pennsylvania
6. 7 a.m
7. cook breakfast for his younger siblings.
8. teens with parents in the military .
9. take on the responsibility
10. yes
11. Tyler, Tucker and Kaylei
12. prepares ice packs for his mother whenever her chronic lower back pain kicks in | 1 | Flan2021 | coqa:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Are "old coachman" and "his" the same in this sentence?
Sir Clifford wants me to find him a new groom , about twenty or twenty-one, who knows his business. His old coachman is getting feeble, and he wants a man to work with him and get into his ways, who would be able, when the old man was pensioned off, to step into *his* place
OPT:
[a]. no
[b]. yes
The answer is: | [b]. | 7 | Flan2021 | super_glue/wsc.fixed:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
Answer the following question. Which widow of a rock star appeared in Dallas? | priscilla presley | 5 | Flan2021 | trivia_qa/rc:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Text complete: without warning , max took off down the sand . when i caught up with him , i saw her . i put max back on his leash and watched becca . she stared out at the ocean with her arms wrapped around her chest . she looked lonely , and i had the urge to fix it . i had a lot of urges when it came to | becca | 7 | Flan2021 | lambada:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Answer this question.
What U.S. military base is located on the island of Cuba? | guantánamo bay | 4 | Flan2021 | trivia_qa/rc:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Do these mean the same?
The mare was sent to Europe where she was trained by Maurice Zilber in France .
The mare was sent to France , where she was trained in Europe by Maurice Zilber .
Choose your answer from:
[-] no.
[-] yes. | no | 8 | Flan2021 | paws_wiki:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
ThistribulationisnotthewrathofGod–thelastplagues.
What's a sentence that uses these characters? | This tribulation is not the wrath of God – the last plagues. | 1 | Flan2021 | word_segment | zs_opt |
Read the following article and answer the question by choosing from the options.
While there are other things on my mind today , it is hard for me to ignore the fact that today is September 11th and that I used to work for Cantor Fitzgerald Securities and spent June 1993 thru June 1996 working on the 32nd and 104th floors at One World Trade Center . There were plenty of times when I was at my desk at 8:47 AM and never did we ever expect to have a plane come thru the windows . I still have a hard time thinking about the people , their families and everyone who went to work on 9/11/01 just like any other regular day in their life , not knowing how everything would change , in some cases forever , afterwards .
What event is the narrator referring to for most of the passage ?
OPTIONS:
[1]. a bombing.
[2]. None of the above choices ..
[3]. a terrorist attack.
[4]. an accidental plane crash....A: | [3]. | 6 | Flan2021 | cosmos_qa:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Summarize this article in one sentence.
You need to place your fish in water from the tank, not from the tap. Fill your transport container with water from the top of the tank. This water is the cleanest. If you take water from the bottom, you will be placing waste into the small container and potential exposing them to bacteria that has settled at the bottom. You shouldn’t add your fish’s favorite rock or plant into the bucket or container with them. The fish should be the only thing in the bucket, except the water from your tank. Any extra items may move around and harm your fish. Fish need to stay at their normal water temperature. Any fluctuations in water temperature can cause your fish to get sick. Try to keep your fish’s water the same temperature of their normal aquarium. This means you should transport them in the part of your vehicle where you can use the air conditioner or heater. You can also use insulation to the transportation container. This can help regulate the temperature. Check the fish’s temperature to make sure it doesn’t get too hot or too cold. Transporting the fish in a darker state can help keep them from getting too stressed. Fish are active and awake during the day when it is bright outside. At night, they are less active. Place something over the fish if they are in a container where they can get light during the day. For example, you may place a sheet or rug over the container. Travel is very stressful for your fish, so you don’t want to do anything to cause more stress. Don’t worry about opening bags or containers to feed your fish. This also helps reduce the need for elimination, which can make the water it is traveling in dirty. If you transported fish in bucket, you can pour them and the water directly into the tank. You may also want to use a net to move them from the bucket to the tank. If you transported your fish in bags, place the bags on top of the water and let them float. This helps regulate the temperature of the water in the bags. When the temperature of the water in both are similar, you can pour the fish into the tank.
Summary: | Fill the containers with water from the top of the tank. Avoid placing items in the container with your fish. Regulate the temperature. Place your fish in a dark place. Avoid feeding your fish during travel. Reintroduce the fish to the tank when you arrive. | 3 | Flan2021 | gem/wiki_lingua_english_en:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
What are the keywords in the following sentence:
dollar banknotes throw into a small purse for coins | banknote, coin, purse | 6 | Flan2021 | gem/common_gen:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Multi-choice problem: Which entity is they this sentence?
Medics have a tough job of trying to heal the wounded since they normally have to fix them in hostile environments.
Available choices:
(1). Medics
(2). the wounded | (1). | 6 | Flan2021 | definite_pronoun_resolution:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
i saw the moves in my head : he opens his door , he steps out , he comes around the door toward me , and then he goes down , puking and retching and clutching his groin . no major difficulty . he said , `` do you speak english ? '' i said nothing . the guy in the passenger seat said , `` maybe he 's a mexican . '' the driver asked me , `` are you a | mexican | 0 | Flan2021 | lambada:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Keywords: model, quarter, rear
What is a sentence that includes all these keywords? | rear right quarter of automobile model | 1 | Flan2021 | gem/common_gen:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Можете начать прогулку в Димаро (Dimaro), "ворота" в Природный парк Адамелло Брента (Parco Naturale AdamelloBrenta) или направиться в Заповедник Стелвио (Parco Nazionale dello Stelvio) с нашими гидами.
Translate to English
English: | You can start off directly from Dimaro, the door to the Adamello Brenta Natural Park, or head off to the Stelvio National Park accompanied by the Park’s Guides. | 1 | Flan2021 | wmt16_translate/ru-en:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Keywords: obtain, peace, world
What is a sentence that includes all these keywords? | you must recite the rosary every day to obtain peace for the world . | 1 | Flan2021 | gem/common_gen:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Can we conclude that "The storekeepers stayed in town to run their stores and lived in the rooms behind the storekeepers." if the statement "The storekeepers stayed in town to run their stores and lived in the rooms behind them." is true?
Available options: - no; - yes; | no | 6 | Flan2021 | glue/wnli:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
Inferno (also released with the title, Operation Cobra) is a 1997 feature film directed by Fred Olen Ray starring Don Wilson, Deepti Bhatnagar and R. Madhavan. Evan Lurie, Michael Cavanaugh and Tané McClure appear in other pivotal roles. Wilson plays the role of Interpol agent Kyle Connors on a mission set in India.
Choose your answer: based on the paragraph above can we conclude that "In Inferno, Kyle Connors is a member of the International Police."?
Pick from:
1). Yes;
2). It's impossible to say;
3). No;
I think the answer is | 1). | 0 | Flan2021 | anli/r2:0.1.0 | zs_opt |
John talked to everybody who came up to him at the party.
How would you consider the linguistic integrity of the preceding sentence?
[a]. unacceptable
[b]. acceptable | [b]. | 1 | Flan2021 | glue/cola:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
Choose your answer: Johnson wanted to make friendship with David, because he wanted help.
Tell me who he is.
Choices:
+ Johnson.
+ David. | Johnson | 3 | Flan2021 | definite_pronoun_resolution:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Question: What did the TRIPS agreement accomplish?
Is "Moreover, under the TRIPS agreement of the World Trade Organization, countries must allow pharmaceutical products to be patented." the correct answer?
Possible answers: -- yes -- no | yes | 8 | Flan2021 | glue/qnli:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
Belgrad Üniversitesi'nde, 1925 yılında kurulmuş ve dünyanın en eskilerinden olan bir Arnavutça dili bölümü var.
Could you please translate this to English? | Belgrade University has an Albanian language department, one of the oldest in the world, established in 1925. | 2 | Flan2021 | wmt16_translate/tr-en:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Question: Which event occurs on a daily cycle?
What is the correct answer to the question from the following choices?
Select from: 1. The Sun rises and sets.. 2. Earth tilts on its axis.. 3. Earth revolves around the Sun.. 4. The Moon revolves around Earth.. | 1. | 2 | Flan2021 | ai2_arc/ARC-Challenge:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Write a summary based on this article:
President Trump makes a statement on the mass shooting at an outdoor concert in Las Vegas in the diplomatic room of the White House.
President Trump’s budget deal with Democrats last month encouraged Americans looking for a sign that he can put aside personal political calculations for the good of his country. In the aftermath of the worst mass shooting in this nation’s history, that same common sense is needed to help reduce the frequency and carnage of such tragedies.
This is a Nixon-in-China moment for Trump. Richard Nixon’s stature as an anticommunist Republican made it more palatable to conservatives when he traveled to Beijing in 1972 to meet with Mao Zedong, who seized power in 1949. Trump’s stature with the gun-rights activists who helped him win the presidency opens the door for him to argue for more gun control. But will he do it?
Trump’s first comment after at least 59 people were shot to death Sunday night while attending a country music festival on the Las Vegas Strip came in the form of a rather benign tweet: “My warmest condolences and sympathies to the victims and families of the terrible Las Vegas shooting. God bless you.”
Later, reading from a teleprompter, the president called the attack an “act of pure evil.” He commiserated with families who lost loved ones in the massacre, saying: “We cannot fathom their pain, we cannot imagine their loss.” But he made no mention of the rapid-fire guns that made it possible for the shooter to claim so many victims. At least 500 were wounded or injured during the chaos.
How many more must die or be maimed before Congress grows a spine strong enough to resist the gun lobby, whose campaign donations apparently mean more than seeing two House members – Gabby Giffords and Steve Scalise – wounded in mass shootings?
That Congress did nothing after Giffords and Scalise were shot shouldn’t have been surprising. After all, it did next to nothing in 2012 after 20 first-graders and six adults were shot to death at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. That sickening event led Trump to tweet his support for President Barack Obama’s call for more gun control, saying Obama “spoke for me and every American.”
Now it’s time for Trump to speak. The National Rifle Association endorsed his presidential campaign, but that doesn’t mean he must be the NRA’s tool. In fact, Trump’s 2000 book, The America We Deserve, called for a ban on assault weapons and a longer waiting period to buy a gun — positions he discarded on the campaign trail in 2016.
This president, who was born with all the accoutrements of wealth, prides himself on being able to connect with working-class, churchgoing Americans who also own guns. Many of them have bought the NRA’s position that any further restrictions would become a slippery slope toward banning gun ownership. Trump has the stature to argue otherwise.
To do that, he must find the same will he showed in avoiding a government shutdown by reaching a budget deal with Democratic leaders Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi. His fellow Republicans didn’t like it, but it was the right thing to do. Just as it is the right thing to support measures backed by law enforcement that may not prevent mass murders, but make it harder to kill so many. ||||| Large capacity ammunition magazines are a common thread in many high-profile mass shootings in the United States. Because shooters with such magazines can fire at large numbers of people without taking the time to reload, those in the line of fire do not have a chance to escape, law enforcement does not have the chance to intervene, and the number of lives shattered by senseless acts of gun violence increases dramatically.
Background
Large capacity magazines, some of which can hold up to 100 rounds of ammunition, significantly increase a shooter’s ability to injure and kill large numbers of people quickly because they enable the individual to fire repeatedly without needing to reload. The time required to reload can be critical in enabling victims to escape and law enforcement or others to intervene.
Although the statutory definitions vary, magazines with a capacity of more than 10 rounds of ammunition are generally considered “large capacity” magazines. While large capacity magazines are typically associated with semi-automatic assault weapons or machine guns, such devices are generally available for any semi-automatic firearm that accepts a detachable magazine.
Mass Shootings
Large capacity ammunition magazines are a common thread uniting many of the high-profile mass shootings in America. The shooter who killed 20 children and 6 adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, CT, in 2012 equipped his assault weapon with 30-round magazines, which enabled him to fire 154 rounds in less than five minutes. The gunman in Tucson, AZ, who killed six people and injured 13 others, including US Representative Gabrielle Giffords, in a supermarket parking lot in 2011, used a handgun equipped with a 33-round magazine. His shooting spree was only interrupted when he was tackled by a bystander as he finally stopped to reload his weapon.
Large capacity magazines were also used in the assault weapons massacres in a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, in 2012; at Columbine High School in 1999; on a military base in Fort Hood, Texas, in 2009; and in an office building at 101 California Street in San Francisco in 1993. Moreover, the shooter who killed 67 people at a summer camp in Norway in 2011 stated in his written manifesto that he purchased 30-round ammunition magazines via mail order from a dealer in the United States.
In fact, a review of 62 mass shootings between 1982 and 2012 by Mother Jones found that large capacity ammunition magazines were recovered in 50 percent. A review of mass shootings between January 2009 and January 2013 by Mayors Against Illegal Guns found that incidents where assault weapons or large capacity ammunition magazines were used resulted in 135 percent more people shot and 57 percent more killed, compared to other mass shootings.
A New Phenomenon
Large capacity magazines are a relatively new phenomenon. Prior to the 1980s, the most popular type of handgun was the revolver, which typically holds six rounds of ammunition in a rotating cylinder. During the 1980s, however, the firearms industry began mass producing and marketing semiautomatic pistols, which can accept ammunition magazines. In 1980, semiautomatic pistols accounted for only 32% of the 2.3 million handguns produced in America. By 2008, however, such pistols accounted for 76% of the 1.8 million handguns produced that year.
Comparison with Assault Weapons
Bans on large capacity ammunition magazines are often adopted in concert with bans on assault weapons. However, large capacity ammunition magazine bans reduce the capacity, and thus the potential lethality, of any firearm that can accept a large capacity ammunition magazine, including a firearm that is not an assault weapon. Crime data also suggests that a ban on large capacity magazines would have a greater impact on gun crime than a ban on assault weapons alone.
Polling consistently shows that a strong majority of Americans support laws banning large capacity ammunition magazines. For example, in a 2012 survey for CNN, 62 percent of those polled supported such laws.
Summary of Federal Law
The Former Federal Ban
In 1994, Congress adopted the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, making it unlawful to transfer or possess a “large capacity ammunition feeding device” not lawfully possessed on or before the law’s enactment. The law also banned the manufacture, transfer and possession of semi-automatic assault weapons. See our summary on Assault Weapons for more information. The law was adopted with a sunset clause, however, and expired in 2004, despite overwhelming public support for its renewal. Thus, large capacity ammunition magazines and assault weapons that were formerly banned under the federal law are now legal unless banned by state or local law.
The 1994 Act defined “large capacity ammunition feeding device” as “a magazine, belt, drum, feed strip, or similar device…that has a capacity of, or that can be readily restored or converted to accept, more than 10 rounds of ammunition.” The ban contained a loophole, however, allowing for the continued transfer and possession of large capacity ammunition magazines manufactured or possessed on or before enactment of the law.
Manufacturers took advantage of this loophole in the months leading up to the ban by boosting production of the magazines. As a result, they continued to be readily available — and legal — nationwide even during the time the 1994 Act was in effect, except where specifically banned by state or local law. Additionally, because most magazines do not have any identifying marks to indicate when they were manufactured, it was difficult to distinguish those made before or after the ban.
Effectiveness of the Ban
Despite these limitations, evidence indicates that the federal ban worked to reduce the use of large capacity magazines in crime. A Washington Post study analyzed data kept by the Virginia State Police and found a clear decline in the percentage of crime guns that were equipped with large capacity ammunition magazines after the federal ban was enacted. The percentage reached a low of 10% in 2004 and then steadily climbed after Congress allowed the ban to expire; by 2010, the percentage was close to 22%.
Similarly, since the end of the federal ban, the Los Angeles Police Department has recovered significantly greater numbers of large capacity ammunition magazines, from 38 in 2003 to anywhere from 151 to 940 each year between 2004 and 2010.
Bans on large capacity ammunition magazines — whether they contain grandfather provisions or not–do not present a problem under the Takings Clause of the Fifth Amendment.
Summary of State Law
Eight states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws banning large capacity ammunition magazines: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. All of these jurisdictions except Colorado also ban assault weapons.
State that Bans LCAMs For Use w/ Which Firearms Legal Magazine Capacity Limit Prohibited Acts for LCAMs Treatment of Pre-Owned LCAMs California All Firearms 10 rounds Manufacture, importation, keeping for sale, offering and exposing for sale, giving, and lending, possession Not allowed as of July 1, 2017. Colorado All Firearms 15 rounds Sale, transfer and possession Allowed (“grandfathered”) Connecticut All Firearms 10 rounds Distribution, importation, keeping for sale, offering and exposing for sale, purchase, and possession Allowed but must be registered. D.C. All Firearms 10 rounds Possession, sale and other transfer Not allowed Hawaii Handguns Only 10 rounds Manufacture, possession, sale, barter, trade, gift, transfer, and acquisition Not allowed Maryland All Firearms 10 rounds Manufacture, sale, offering for sale, purchase, receipt and transfer Allowed (like all LCAMs. There is no ban on possession.) Massachusetts All Firearms 10 rounds Sale, offering for sale, transfer and possession Allowed (“grandfathered”) New Jersey All Firearms 15 rounds Manufacture, transportation, shipment, sale, disposal, and possession Not allowed New York All Firearms 10 rounds Manufacture, transportation, disposal and possession Not allowed
Description of State Laws Banning Large Capacity Ammunition Magazines:
For citations to these laws, please see the chart above.
Large capacity ammunition magazine bans can be broken down into the following general categories:
States that Ban Large Capacity Magazines for Use with Any Firearm
Seven states (California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York) and the District of Columbia all ban large capacity ammunition magazines for use with any firearm.
State that Bans Large Capacity Magazines for Use with Handguns Only
Hawaii prohibits the manufacture, transfer and possession of large capacity magazines designed for or capable of use with a handgun.
Definition of Large Capacity Magazine
State laws vary as to how the term “large capacity magazine” is defined. California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, and the District of Columbia define a large capacity magazine as a magazine that is capable of holding more than 10 rounds. Colorado and New Jersey define a large capacity magazine as a magazine capable of holding more than 15 rounds.
Prohibited Activities
California, Hawaii, New Jersey, and New York have the most comprehensive prohibitions, banning possession, manufacture, and transfer (including sale) of large capacity magazines. New Jersey allows possession of large capacity magazines by a person who has registered a grandfathered assault weapon and uses the magazine in connection with competitive shooting matches sanctioned by the Director of Civilian Marksmanship of the U.S. Department of the Army.
Other states ban various combinations of activities related to large capacity magazines. Colorado, Massachusetts and the District of Columbia ban possession and transfer; Maryland bans manufacture and transfer; and Connecticut bans distribution, importation, purchase, transfer and possession.
Magazines Owned at the Time of the Ban
State laws that ban the possession of large capacity ammunition magazines vary in their approach to large capacity magazines already in the possession of private individuals at the time a ban was adopted.
States that Do Not Grandfather Pre-Ban Magazines
California, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, New Jersey, and New York do not generally allow for the continued possession of large capacity magazines obtained before these states enacted a ban. As a result, these jurisdictions effectively required any large capacity magazine owned at the time the ban was enacted to be destroyed or transferred to a dealer, law enforcement, or out of state. New York extends a 30-day grace period to any individual in possession of such a magazine manufactured before September 13, 1994, who is unaware that it is illegal. This individual is not required to dispose of the magazine until he or she is notified by law enforcement or county licensing officials that possession is unlawful. Once they receive notice, they have 30 days to surrender or “lawfully dispose” of illegal magazines.
States that Grandfather Pre-Ban Magazines
The Connecticut ban does not apply to large capacity magazines that were lawfully possessed before January 1, 2014, but lawful owners of such magazines must register them with the State Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection within a specified period. The Colorado ban does not apply to magazines that were lawfully possessed before July 1, 2014, and the Massachusetts ban exempts magazines that were lawfully possessed on September 13, 1994 (the date the federal ban took effect), but neither Colorado nor Massachusetts required the registration of pre-ban magazines. Maryland does not prohibit possession of large capacity magazines, although manufacture and transfer are banned. As a result, individuals who possessed such magazines before these states’ bans may continue to possess them.
States that Require Identification Markings for Magazines Manufactured after the Law
As noted above, enforcement of laws grandfathering pre-ban magazines is difficult because most magazines do not contain any markings to identify those that were manufactured before or after the effective date of the ban. As a result, the Colorado law requires manufactures to include a permanent stamp or marking on all large capacity magazine produced after July 1, 2013. These markings must indicate that the magazine was manufactured after the date the ban went into effect and must be conspicuously engraved or cast on the outer surface of the magazine.
Bans on “Conversion” or “Repair” Kits
In 2013, California explicitly banned the use of “conversion” or “repair” kits that allow the purchaser to construct home-made large capacity ammunition magazines from spare parts.
Selected Local Law
See the description in our summary on Assault Weapons of the Blair-Holt Assault Weapons Ban in Cook County, Illinois. This law includes a ban on large capacity ammunition magazines.
Key Legislative Elements
The features listed below are intended to provide a framework from which policy options may be considered. A jurisdiction considering new legislation should consult with counsel. ||||| 5. Limit gun purchases by any one person to no more than, say, two a month, and tighten rules on straw purchasers who buy for criminals. Make serial numbers harder to remove.
6. Adopt microstamping of cartridges so that they can be traced to the gun that fired them, which is useful for solving gun crimes.
7. Invest in “smart gun” purchases by police departments or the U.S. military, to promote their use. Such guns incorporate technology to restrict their operation, such as not firing without a PIN, a fingerprint or a device in proximity, like a special bracelet, so that children cannot misuse them and they are less vulnerable to theft.
8. Require safe storage, to reduce theft, suicide and accidents by children.
9. Invest in research to see what interventions will be more effective in reducing gun deaths, so we can base our policies on robust evidence.
These are all modest steps that shouldn’t be controversial, and I can’t claim that they would have an overwhelming effect. But public health experts think it’s plausible that well-crafted safety measures could over time reduce gun deaths by one-third — or more than 10,000 a year.
It might be that nothing could have prevented the slaughter in Las Vegas, but mass shootings are anomalies: Most gun deaths occur in ones or twos, usually with handguns (which kill far more people than assault rifles), and suicides outnumber murders. And we can chip away at gun violence as a whole.
When Connecticut tightened handgun laws, gun homicides there fell by 40 percent. Conversely, Missouri loosened handgun laws, and firearm homicides there rose by 25 percent.
In every other sphere of life, we use safety regulations to try — however imperfectly — to reduce death and injury. For example, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has seven pages of rules about ladders, which kill 300 people a year. Yet the federal government doesn’t make a serious effort to reduce gun deaths, with a toll more than 100 times as high. ||||| David Becker/Getty Images
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The first reports about the horrific attack in Las Vegas on Sunday night will surely evolve into more detailed knowledge. But there are three lessons we might draw from the information already available. First, automatic rifles like the one the shooter apparently used have the potential to kill large numbers of people, particularly when aimed at a crowd in a confined space. Second, a shooter positioned in a high-rise building hundreds of meters away can render moot many of the security measures now used to protect crowds. And third, despite what gun advocates tend to say in response to shootings, it’s incredibly unlikely that any armed bystander could have made a difference, given the distance, elevation, and darkness that separated this shooter from his victims. These three facts made the Las Vegas shooting a nightmare scenario for police agencies, and for the rest of us too.
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Based on what we know now, shooter Stephen Paddock was a 64-year-old man who lived a relatively obscure and unremarkable life before his awful final act. He was, according to Las Vegas police, both a “solo actor” and a “lone wolf.” Paddock had no apparent ties to domestic or foreign terrorist organizations, nor had he made his murderous intentions apparent to others before Sunday. Perhaps that helped him acquire his arsenal and plan his attack. Although automatic weapons like those he apparently used are illegal, it would have been perfectly legal for a person like Paddock—a nonfelon who likely didn’t show up on any government watch lists—to acquire semi-automatic weapons and ammunition that could have been almost as deadly.
The first lesson that emerges from Las Vegas concerns the awesome destructive power of modern armaments like the 10 weapons Paddock was reportedly found with. In the hands of even a mediocre shot, an automatic weapon (like the one Paddock apparently shot, based on audio recordings from the scene) can fire 600 or more rounds per minute. The destructive power of such weapons is limited only by their ammunition capacity. In this case, it appears Paddock fired long streams of automatic fire into the crowd, sending scores or hundreds of bullets into concertgoers’ bodies. Bullets from such weapons travel at speeds of 2,000 to 3,000 feet per second, easily covering a third of a mile. On the battlefield, these weapons are used to suppress, wound, or kill enemy troops. In the civilian world, they can quickly kill dozens or hundreds before any effective police response can occur.
The second lesson from Las Vegas is that the geometry of Paddock’s attack rendered security measures ineffective—even those of Las Vegas, a city with thousands of armed police and security guards on duty around the clock, surveillance cameras covering nearly every inch of ground, and a sophisticated police department with a robust SWAT capability. Paddock apparently fired on concertgoers from a room on the 32nd story of the Mandalay Bay hotel, across the street and approximately 400 meters from the concert. He did so during nighttime, when it would have been difficult to see an open window from the street, let alone someone preparing in the shadows behind it. The distance, elevation, and obscuration make this kind of attack an almost impossible tactical problem for security services. No perimeter security measures or screening checkpoints would help against a threat like Paddock. It would have taken Secret Service–type precautions, of the sort deployed to protect presidents since John F. Kennedy’s assassination, to prevent an attack like this.
A third lesson: It would have been incredibly difficult for any bystander, or even local law enforcement personnel on the ground, to return fire and stop Paddock during his attack. Infantry units are trained to react to snipers by taking cover, obscuring themselves with smoke grenades, and returning fire, often with heavy machine guns, shoulder-fired rockets, or sniper rifles of their own. So are police SWAT teams, although the latter try to use less force and to be more precise in their return fire.
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A concertgoer carrying a pistol would have been vastly outranged by Paddock; pistols can barely reach targets 50 meters away. It would have taken a concertgoer carrying a rifle, ideally with a scope and large magazine of ammunition, to respond. And even then, it would have taken the discipline and skill of a Navy SEAL to effectively shoot back at Paddock while under fire, and hit him, while not killing scores more in the Mandalay Bay hotel and turning the scene into a firefight. An armed hotel guest would have fared no better, as it took heavily armed and armored Las Vegas police, guided by the smoke detector in Paddock’s room, to find Paddock in the massive hotel. Contrary to what the NRA may say about shooting violence, a good guy with a gun would have made no difference in Las Vegas. ||||| This combination photo shows country performers, top row from left, Luke Combs, Thomas Rhett, Luke Bryan, and from bottom left, Maren Morris, Carrie Underwood and Reba McEntire who took to social media... (Associated Press)
This combination photo shows country performers, top row from left, Luke Combs, Thomas Rhett, Luke Bryan, and from bottom left, Maren Morris, Carrie Underwood and Reba McEntire who took to social media to express their sadness after the mass shooting in Las Vegas at the Route 91 Harvest Festival on... (Associated Press)
This combination photo shows country performers, top row from left, Luke Combs, Thomas Rhett, Luke Bryan, and from bottom left, Maren Morris, Carrie Underwood and Reba McEntire who took to social media to express their sadness after the mass shooting in Las Vegas at the Route 91 Harvest Festival on... (Associated Press) This combination photo shows country performers, top row from left, Luke Combs, Thomas Rhett, Luke Bryan, and from bottom left, Maren Morris, Carrie Underwood and Reba McEntire who took to social media... (Associated Press)
Country stars and celebrities took to social media to express their sadness after the mass shooting in Las Vegas at the Route 91 Harvest Festival:
— "I am incredibly saddened by tonight's events and while I'm thankful that me and all of my band and crew are alive and unharmed, I can't help but hurt for all the people who weren't as fortunate and the pain their loved ones must feel. Keep Vegas, these fans, and all of the country music community in your thoughts and prayers, we could sure use it tonight. Thank you." — Luke Combs, who performed earlier in the night, in a message posted to Instagram.
"There are no words to express the helplessness and sorrow my broken heart feels for the victims in Vegas and their families." Taylor Swift on Twitter.
"I am shocked by this horrific display of evil and deeply saddened for the families of the victims of our beautiful city. My heart is crying for Las Vegas," — Nicolas Cage, who starred in "Leaving Las Vegas," on Twitter.
— "I just can't even fathom what happened in Vegas. My heart is broken. My love and all my prayers go out this morning to every family and friend who suffered loss, and everyone who was there. May God be with you through this tragic time." — Thomas Rhett on Twitter.
"I'm not gonna say anything else other than I'm lucky to be alive. As are many others... and so many people are gone... this is heartbreaking." — Chris Young on Twitter.
— "Words can't begin explain my sadness. My family and I are praying for the victims of this tragedy. Truly heartbroken." — Luke Bryan on Twitter.
— "Praying for everyone at #HarvestFestival. There are no words right now that suffice." — Brad Paisley on Twitter.
— "We played Route 91 in Vegas the night before last. It was one of my favorite shows and festivals to be on. We were all singing. I'm in shock over this unfair, senseless tragedy and heartbroken for the lives taken too soon." — Maren Morris on Twitter.
— "Woke up to such horrible news. We are praying for the victims and their families. May the Lord bring some comfort to them." — Carrie Underwood on Twitter.
"Praying for all the innocent victims and their families in Las Vegas." — Celine Dion on Twitter.
— "Stilled and speechless... Our hearts and prayers are with everyone involved and affected." — Keith Urban on Twitter.
— "My heart goes out to all of our friends, @jasonaldean, our music family and fans in Las Vegas.." — Reba McEntire on Instagram.
— "My heart hurts... what in the world?! Let's all show Vegas we have their back in this madness... praying for all the victims and for the country music community... damn this hits close to home... We WILL get through this." — Brett Eldredge on Twitter.
— "The band & crew were on the concert grounds and saw people get shot. Some of my crew members were hit with shrapnel, but not injured. We are deeply disturbed by this horrific act of violence and send our thoughts and prayers to the victims and their families. It was a long awful night but we are blessed to be alive and healthy. Hug your loved ones tight." — Josh Abbott Band on Facebook. ||||| CLOSE Las Vegas mass murder; Worst shooting in US history; POTUS to visit Vegas on Wednesday APP NewsBreak
A man in a wheelchair is taken away from the Route 91 Harvest country music festival. (Photo: David Becker, Getty Images)
It was not a record anyone wanted to see broken.
At 10:09 p.m. PST Sunday, Stephen C. Paddock reportedly began firing from a 32nd-floor room at the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas, targeting concert-goers at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival below.
At least 58 are known dead, meaning the Las Vegas shooting now is the deadliest in modern American history — breaking the shameful "record" previously held by Fort Pierce's Omar Mateen, who killed 49 at the Pulse nightclub last year in Orlando.
MORE | From childhood to mass shooting, what happened to Omar Mateen?
There is a close-to-home connection in the Vegas shooting: Paddock, who shot himself before police broke down his hotel room door, owned a home in Brevard County from 2013 to 2015. Neighbors had little to say about Paddock, 64, except that he didn't spend much time at the home in Heritage Isle, a 55-plus community in Viera.
Said former neighbor Sharon Judy, “He seemed normal, other than that he lived by gambling. He was very open about that."
CLOSE Stephen Paddock's former neighbors say the alleged Las Vegas shooter was a night owl who wasn’t around much when he lived in Viera, Fla. USA TODAY
MORE | Las Vegas shooter's former neighbors in Viera: 'He seemed normal'
Is that, perhaps, a clue? To live by gambling is to raise the specter of death by gambling, to be overwhelmed by debts. Could such a thing have driven Paddock to mass murder?
Other questions abound. Why did Paddock target the concert, which was to include artist Jake Owen, originally from Vero Beach? Was it simply a target of opportunity — many people densely packed into a relatively small place? Or was it intended as some sort of political statement?
MORE | EXCLUSIVE: Jake Owen calls father in Vero Beach during Las Vegas shooting
What type of weapons did Paddock use, and how did he get them? As of Monday morning, the guns hadn't been identified, though police said they found 10 rifles when they burst into Paddock's hotel room after he took his own life. How did he manage to smuggle them into the hotel?
Audio of the shooting contains what sounds like automatic gunfire amidst the screams. Predictably, this is reigniting the perpetual debate about "assault weapons." But it's clear that whatever guns he used, Paddock made sure he'd be able to squeeze off many rounds as possible in a short period of time.
This is a recurring motif among mass shooters, though as Treasure Coast Newspapers' editorial board noted after the Pulse nightclub shooting, semi-automatic assault-style rifles are used in a comparably small number of massacres. The left-leaning website Mother Jones maintains a database of mass shootings dating back to 1982; of the 91 incidents (not including Las Vegas), assault rifles were used in 20.
MORE | Ban high-capacity magazines in Florida now
The most common weapon, by far, is a semi-automatic handgun.
This led us to call for a discussion of new restrictions on large-capacity magazines that permit a shooter fire 30 or more rounds without reloading.
CLOSE Las Vegas Metropolitan Police say one of their own was among the scores of concertgoers killed when "lone wolf" gunman Stephen Paddock opened fire on crowds at the Route 91 Harvest music festival. USA TODAY
Data from the Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence shows that large-capacity magazines have been used in half of all mass shootings over a 20-year span. They are the common thread linking many of the highest-profile mass slaughters in recent American history. Should the guns used by Paddock confirm to this unfortunate "norm," it makes an even stronger case for reform.
Unfortunately, these mass shootings have fallen into a depressing pattern; initial shock and outrage followed by loud calls for more gun control.
As the Pew Research Center noted in a June report, some four in 10 Americans either own a gun or live in a home where one is present. Some common-sense reforms, such as preventing the mentally ill from buying guns, enjoys broad support. But sharp differences predominate.
In the face of such carnage, such evil, we want simple answers. Yet the remedy that seems so self-evidently moral to so many — take away guns — finds no societal consensus.
This being the case, thoughtful people must come up with a measured approach that enjoys broad support. We think limiting magazine size is one such possibility. There could be others.
But what we can't do is shrug our shoulders, post our condolences on social media and go about our lives as if nothing can be done. That's the one way to ensure nothing is done, making it easier for the next deranged gunman to set his own macabre "record."
Read or Share this story: https://www.tcpalm.com/story/opinion/editorials/2017/10/02/las-vegas-massacre-makes-case-smaller-magazines-tcpalm-trending/722508001/ ||||| One of the questions police will try to answer, and which will frame the ensuing debate, is whether Paddock obtained his firearms legally. But the question that really needs addressing is why we allow such weapons in the hands of civilians in the first place. The simple answer is that we lack the political will to stop it. Our nation is awash in firearms — by some estimates, the U.S. has more guns than people, and Wall Street investors on Monday drove up the stock prices of gunmakers. According to the Gun Violence Archive, there have been 273 mass shootings — defined as four or more people shot in one incident, not including the shooter — in the last 275 days. According to a BBC report last year, the number of gun murders per capita in the U.S. in 2012 — the most recent year for comparable statistics — was nearly 30 times that in the U.K., at 2.9 per 100,000 compared with just 0.1. |||||
Summary: | – In the wake of the massacre in Las Vegas, an outpouring of prayers, condolences—and opinions. Here's what some editorial boards and columnists are arguing: This was a "nightmare scenario," writes Phillip Carter at Slate, and he outlines three reasons why. One: "The geometry of Paddock’s attack"—that is, the "distance, elevation, and obscuration"—was one that the stepped-up security measures we now have at public events are no match for. "It would have taken Secret Service-type precautions, of the sort deployed to protect presidents since John F. Kennedy's assassination, to prevent an attack like this." "This is a Nixon in China moment for Trump," writes the Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial Board, which argues Richard Nixon found conservative support when visiting Communist China because of his anti-Communist attitudes. "Trump's stature with the gun-rights activists who helped him win the presidency opens the door for him to argue for more gun control." Time will tell whether the man who once called for a ban on assault weapons will play the part of the "NRA's tool" or not. "The remedy that seems so self-evidently moral to so many—take away guns—finds no societal consensus," writes Gil Smart for TCPalm. As such, he thinks the most prudent approach is to push for a remedy that "enjoys broad support." He nominates one: limiting the size of magazines; large-capacity ones were used in Sandy Hook, Aurora, Columbine, and Fort Hood among other massacres. The Los Angeles Times Editorial Board has no interest in such middle ground. "The gun lobby argues that military-style weapons are necessary for hunting, and for sport shooting." In its view, "These are weapons of war, not of sport, and to argue otherwise is to either lie, or to not understand the difference." They must go, but we continually show we don't have the "political will" to make that happen. At the New York Times, Nicholas Kristof isn't calling for a ban, but he is calling for action, and he sees the auto industry as a model worth emulating. He does the math behind the staggering drop in auto fatalities per 100 million miles driven since 1921, and observes that there "was no single solution" behind making that happen, "but rather many incremental efforts." He suggests eight such incremental efforts we could make on the gun front. | 1 | Flan2021 | multi_news:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
What concepts are described in the following sentence?
"Alimentum, located along the riverside near the Yippee Noodle Bar, serves wine and hors d'oeuvres in the high price range and has a three-star customer rating."
Return the answer as pairs of triples. | Alimentum priceRange high
Alimentum customer rating 3 out of 5
Alimentum area riverside
Alimentum near Yippee Noodle Bar | 8 | Flan2021 | gem/dart:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
This question has options. Answer the question about text:
They probably wo n't invite me over to Redmond again . After telling me for weeks about the wonderful summer weather there , it rained for most of the two weeks I was on site . Not many people would suggest that I have a magnetic personality , but it sure looks like the English weather followed me across the pond . We even had hail one day ( in the middle of August ) , followed by a small tornado .
Why would the narrator not get another invite ?
pick from the following. (1). They bring ill - timed precipitation .; (2). They bring evil vibes .; (3). They bring danger to Redmond .; (4). They bring bad vibes .; | (1). | 7 | Flan2021 | cosmos_qa:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Are "The man" and "his" the same in this sentence?
The man lifted the boy onto *his* bunk bed.
Choose your answer from:
(1). no.
(2). yes.
The answer is: | (1). | 7 | Flan2021 | super_glue/wsc.fixed:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
Sentence: "Yes, she will."
Would a linguist rate this sentence to be acceptable linguistically?
Options are:
--unacceptable
--acceptable | acceptable | 3 | Flan2021 | glue/cola:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
Tweet: @adityarao310 : Hey yeah I can see that on @bing
Predict the sentiment of this tweet.
Select from the following.
* negative.
* positive. | positive | 3 | Flan2021 | sentiment140:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Q: who sings when i kissed the teacher in mamma mia? A: | Lily James | 9 | Flan2021 | natural_questions_open:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Can we draw the following hypothesis from the context (see options)?
Context:
Lex Talionis Fraternitas, Inc. Sodalitas Ducum Futurorum is an exclusive fraternal organization of Filipino jurists, legal practitioners and law students founded on September 29, 1969 at the San Beda College of Law. A chapter in the Ateneo de Davao University School of Law was established in 1974. In 1983, the Securities and Exchange Commission granted the incorporation of the fraternity.
Hypothesis: In 1980 Lex Talionis Fraternitas, Inc. was not yet incorporated.
pick from the following.
(1). Yes;
(2). It's impossible to say;
(3). No; | (1). | 7 | Flan2021 | anli/r2:0.1.0 | zs_opt |
Find the right ending to this passage.
By Sam Webb PUBLISHED: 09:09 EST, 12 December 2012 | UPDATED: 12:36 EST, 12 December 2012 Photographer and artist Jason Levesque was walking around an art show in Miami Beach when he found a series of paintings that looked more than a little bit familiar. Two of the paintings, on sale for around $4,000, had more than a passing resemblance to a pair of stills he had taken, while a third looked an awful lot like an image captured by his close friend Marie Killen. An outraged Levesque took to Facebook and exposed Josafat Miranda, the artist behind the three paintings on display.
He posted his original pictures alongside Miranda's work, and wrote: 'What
OPTIONS:
- Facebook has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form.
- Jason Levesque has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form.
- Josafat Miranda has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form.
- Levesque has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form.
- Marie Killen has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form.
- Miami has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form.
- Miami Beach has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form.
- Miranda has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form.
- Sam Webb has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form.
| Josafat Miranda has done here reveals a total disrespect for photography as an art form. | 2 | Flan2021 | super_glue/record:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
What is the title of this article:
Among the results of the Greek and Islamic influence on this period in European history was the replacement of Roman numerals with the decimal positional number system and the invention of algebra, which allowed more advanced mathematics. Astronomy advanced following the translation of Ptolemy's Almagest from Greek into Latin in the late 12th century. Medicine was also studied, especially in southern Italy, where Islamic medicine influenced the school at Salerno.
Title: | Middle Ages | 9 | Flan2021 | squad/v1.1:3.0.0 | zs_opt |
Produce a brief English sentence that would be considered grammatically as category: B).
All categories: Pick from: A). unacceptable; B). acceptable; | I have often a cold. | 9 | Flan2021 | glue/cola:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
Context:George got free tickets to the play, but he gave them to Eric , because *he* was not particularly eager to see it.
Is "he" the same as "Eric"? Possible answers:Available options: a). no; b). yes;
Answer: | a). | 5 | Flan2021 | super_glue/wsc.fixed:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
Premise: Section 609: Participation by small entities
Hypothesis: Section 609 deals with participation of large entities.
Does the premise entail the hypothesis?
Choices:
*yes
*it is not possible to tell
*no | no | 0 | Flan2021 | glue/mnli:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
En la isla de la que proviene Zeus, el hotel Elounda Mare y sus casitas blancas se asoman a las aguas color turquesa de la bahía de Mirabello. Una luz etérea inunda este complejo y su laberinto de jardines de embriagadoras esencias. How do you say this sentence in English? | On the native island of Zeus, the King of the Greek gods, sits the Elounda Mare Hotel, with its white cottages that look out onto the turquoise waters of the Mirabello Bay. An ethereal light bathes this retreat and its maze of sweet-smelling gardens. | 1 | Flan2021 | para_crawl_enes | zs_opt |
Possible tweet sentiments: Select from: * negative. * positive.
Write a tweet that is negative. | @ItsJHawk sadly there isnt one in boston boo. | 6 | Flan2021 | sentiment140:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Write a question about the following article: Following the Denver Broncos loss on Thursday night to the San Diego Chargers, the Raiders looked to move into sole possession of first place in the AFC West as they hosted the Kansas City Chiefs. Things began well for the Raiders as Jalen Richard returned the opening kick 50 yards and Derek Carr hit Andre Holmes for a three-yard touchdown pass to put the Raiders up 7-0. However, the struggling Raiders defense continued to have problems stopping opponents as the Chiefs scored on a two-yard touchdown run by Spencer Ware and a four-yard run by Jamaal Charles (extra point failed), putting the Chiefs in front 13-7. The Raiders were able to get a field goal from Sebastian Janikowski as the half ended to pull within 13-10. However, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, who is 16-2 in his career coming off of bye weeks, continued to baffle the Raiders defense in the second half. The Chiefs added a one-yard run by defensive lineman Dontari Poe and two field goals by Cairo Santos to go up 26-10. The Raiders offense managed nothing in the second half and the Chiefs won 26-10. The Chiefs offense put up 406 yards on the hapless Raiders defense. The Raiders fell to 4-2 on the season and back into a first place tie with the Broncos.
Question about the article: | How many field goals were kicked in the game? | 8 | Flan2021 | drop:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
Write a "A." movie review (OPT: A. negative. B. positive.). | soap opera that tornatore was right to cut | 8 | Flan2021 | glue/sst2:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
What is the version of the following sentence with correct punctuation?
And especially the very Stonehenges axis of winter solstice shows its major importance in the whole arrangement of the construction
| And especially the very Stonehenge's axis of winter solstice shows its major importance in the whole arrangement of the construction. | 9 | Flan2021 | fix_punct | zs_opt |
Choose from the possible answers, would the following sentence, by the strictest standards, be considered correct by a linguist?
The man who Mary loves and Sally hates George computed my tax.
Select from the following.
A). unacceptable
B). acceptable | A). | 5 | Flan2021 | glue/cola:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
the same can be said for the chemicals commonly used to make hair smooth and easily combed, such as silicone, which is not easily soluble in water nor does it can be cleansed off easily, therefore it is remains deposited on the hair.
Repeat this setence, but with the correct capitalization. | The same can be said for the chemicals commonly used to make hair smooth and easily combed, such as silicone, which is not easily soluble in water nor does it can be cleansed off easily, therefore it is remains deposited on the hair. | 4 | Flan2021 | true_case | zs_opt |
Write an article based on this "A cyclist and pedestrian were spotted on the hard shoulder of motorways in two separate early-morning incidents."
Article: | The first one involved a cyclist who was seen on the hatch markings off the eastbound carriageway of the M8, before J15 Townhead, Glasgow, at about 07:30.
The other involved a pedestrian who was seen walking southbound on the hard shoulder of the northbound M77, near J1 Dumbrek Road.
Traffic Scotland tweeted warnings and said police were being notified. | 9 | Flan2021 | huggingface:xsum | zs_opt |
Write the next sentence in the following story.
How to lower blood pressure
Lower your sodium intake.
Many people eat as much as 3 , 500 mg of sodium per day. The dash diet, which is short for dietary approaches to stop hypertension, recommends no more than 2 , 300 mg of sodium per day.
Options:
(1). There are many side effects of cutting down your sodium intake. Some, however, include : Diabetes heart disease kidney disease bloating nicotine cell replacement therapy Restrict your alcohol intake.
(2). Check with your doctor about your dosage. If your blood pressure is chronic, your doctor may recommend a 1500 mg supplement or a program that includes nitrates.
(3). However, people with elevated blood pressure typically want to decrease their sodium intake to about 3 , 500 mg per day. You should also avoid drinking and swallowing foods that impact blood sugar levels.
(4). Sodium is in salt, so the best way to reduce your sodium intake is to eat less salt. You can do this by : Not adding table salt to your food.. The answer should be | (4). | 9 | Flan2021 | hellaswag:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Read the text and determine if the sentence is true (see options at the end):
The Imperial Japanese Navy Aviation Bureau (海軍航空本部 , Kaigun Kōkū Hombu ) of the Ministry of the Navy of Japan was responsible for the development and training of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service. In 1941 it was headed by Vice-Admiral Katagiri and was organized as follows:
Sentence: The Ministry of the Navy of Japan was responsible for more than the development and training of the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service.
Choose your answer from:
[A]. Yes.
[B]. It's impossible to say.
[C]. No. | [B]. | 6 | Flan2021 | anli/r1:0.1.0 | zs_opt |
Translate the following sentence to Finnish:
For that reason, my group and I want future border areas to receive more attention.
Finnish: | Siksi ryhmäni ja minä haluamme, että tulevat raja-alueet saavat enemmän huomiota. | 5 | Flan2021 | wmt16_translate/fi-en:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Here is an article:
soap opera for that show in 1979, becoming the first African American to be so honored. When I saw Al Freeman, Jr. in Spike Lee’s Malcolm X, I smiled with delight, since it had been a long time since I had seen him. By that time in his career (1992), he was
Write a title for it. | Malcolm X Topics Page | 9 | Flan2021 | newsroom:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
-- negative -- positive
Short movie review: sheds light on a subject few are familiar with , and makes you care about music you may not have heard before .
Did the critic thinking positively or negatively of the movie?
| positive | 1 | Flan2021 | glue/sst2:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
Translate the following.
English: Source: Women and Men in Uganda. Facts and Figures 2000.
Spanish: | Fuente: Mujeres y Hombres en Uganda. Hechos y Cifras 2000 | 7 | Flan2021 | para_crawl_enes | zs_opt |
LAHORE, Pakistan -- A bomb has exploded at a Shiite mosque in downtown Lahore, killing three people and wounding several others, police sources told CNN.
What best summarizes the content of the above article?
(a). World
(b). Sports
(c). Business
(d). Science/Tech | (a). | 4 | Flan2021 | ag_news_subset:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
In 1993, the city passed a massive redevelopment package known as the Metropolitan Area Projects (MAPS), intended to rebuild the city's core with civic projects to establish more activities and life to downtown. The city added a new baseball park; central library; renovations to the civic center, convention center and fairgrounds; and a water canal in the Bricktown entertainment district. Water taxis transport passengers within the district, adding color and activity along the canal. MAPS has become one of the most successful public-private partnerships undertaken in the U.S., exceeding $3 billion in private investment as of 2010. As a result of MAPS, the population living in downtown housing has exponentially increased, together with demand for additional residential and retail amenities, such as grocery, services, and shops.
If it is possible to answer this question, answer it for me (else, reply "unanswerable"): What was the name of the redevelopment passage that was passed in 1993? | Metropolitan Area Projects | 5 | Flan2021 | squad/v2.0:3.0.0 | zs_opt |
Two pedestrians hit and killed in Queensland
Two pedestrians have died after being hit by vehicles in Queensland.
Police say that just before 6pm yesterday a car struck a man aged in his 80s on Alexandra Parade at Alexandra Headlands and he died at the scene.
At around 8.40pm a man aged in his 30s was struck by a truck at the Saltwater Creek Bridge on the Bruce Highway at Maryborough and he also died at the scene.
The Forensic Crash Unit is investigating both deaths.
Do you have any news photos or videos?
What was this article about? | Two pedestrians have been killed in separate road accidents in Queensland. | 3 | Flan2021 | newsroom:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Officials said the Finnish suspect was among the dead but did not provide a motive for the attack.
Question with options: Based on the paragraph above can we conclude that "Officials said that the suspect, a Finnish citizen, was among the dead."?
Available choices: (i) yes. (ii) no. | (i) | 0 | Flan2021 | super_glue/rte:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
Math problem: Solve 14 = -30*j + 36 + 38 for j.
What is the solution? | 2 | 6 | Flan2021 | math_dataset/algebra__linear_1d:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Translate to Czech:
At the very least, we'll have the cleanest room in the house.
Czech: | Alespoň budeme mít nejčistší pokoj v domě. | 4 | Flan2021 | wmt16_translate/cs-en:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Article:
PARIS — France and Italy said Wednesday that they would join Britain in sending liaison officers to support the rebel army in Libya , in what military analysts said was a sign that there would be no quick and easy end to the war in Libya.
The dispatching of the liaison officers — probably fewer than 40 of them, and carefully not designated as military trainers — is a sign also, they said, that only a combination of military pressure from the sky, economic pressure on the government and a better-organized and coordinated rebel force will finally convince Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi that he has no option but to quit.
“Some countries thought the Libya operation could be over quickly,” said a senior NATO ambassador. “But no military commander thinks so.”
Sending advisers to Libya is the latest in a series of signs of trouble for the NATO campaign, which began in earnest with a stinging, American-led attack but has seemed to fizzle since operational command was transferred to NATO on March 31. After that, a rebel offensive was smashed by Colonel Qaddafi’s forces, which sent the rebels reeling toward the eastern city of Ajdabiya.
New tactics used by Colonel Qaddafi’s forces — mixing with civilian populations, camouflaging weapons and driving pickup trucks instead of military vehicles — have made it hard for NATO pilots to find targets. At the same time, loyalist artillery and tanks have hammered the rebel-held city of Misurata with cluster bombs, which have been banned by much of the world, making a mockery of NATO’s central mission of protecting civilians.
Divisions within NATO seem to be harming the strategy as much as Colonel Qaddafi’s new tactics, said Robin Niblett, the director of Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London. Only six of the 28 member countries are participating in the airstrikes, with France and Britain doing half of them and Denmark, Norway, Belgium and Canada the rest.
Prominent nations like Italy and Spain are hanging back, and others have sent planes only to support the no-fly zone, or are helping to enforce the arms embargo. The Obama administration, which has ruled out deploying American troops in Libya, announced Wednesday that it would authorize as much as $25 million in military surplus supplies, though not weapons, to the Libyan opposition forces.
“You want to send Qaddafi a message of collective will, that there’s no way out, that he’s facing a determined and unified opposition,” Mr. Niblett said. “And he’s seeing a European-led NATO that is not sufficiently cohesive.”
“If I were him, I would look at European disagreements and take heart from them, especially when the opposition appears so weak,” Mr. Niblett said.
Colonel Qaddafi “senses there is a gap between means and ends,” he added. “He can look at divisions among members of NATO and feel he can be part of a political solution, because in the end he may feel there is not sufficient cohesion to follow the strategy through to its end,” which is his ouster.
To persuade Colonel Qaddafi and his sons to leave, he said, “we need both the political and military track, and we have bits of the military and a fractured political situation, and we’re not giving the strategy the best shot.”
To some extent, the problems in NATO can be traced to changes since the end of the cold war. With the end of the Soviet threat and its expansion to global missions outside Europe, NATO has become less an alliance than a coalition of like-minded nations, analysts say.
“As soon as NATO went out of area it stopped being an alliance,” said François Heisbourg, a defense expert at the Foundation for Strategic Research in Paris. “In area, it is an unlimited liability partnership. But now with a global scope, everything must be negotiated, and it’s all à la carte. That’s the post-cold-war world.”
Tomas Valasek, a defense expert at the London-based Center for European Reform, compared NATO to an American political party, “a coalition of countries with broadly the same interests, but with different views.”
It was inevitable after the cold war, he said, that NATO countries would focus on different threats: terrorism and Afghanistan for some, like the United States, Britain, Canada and the Netherlands; Russia, for the Central Europeans.
“As for the rest,” he said, “I don’t even know why they stay in NATO.”
NATO will never be what it was, Mr. Valasek said. “NATO will become more of a transactional place in the future, so, as in Libya, more often than not there will be coalitions of the willing, with NATO support.”
NATO officials reject the criticism, saying the alliance has done a good job in a short time and that the air campaign is working well.
“There is no question about the collective will in NATO” to carry out the United Nations’ resolution on Libya, said Oana Lungescu, the alliance spokeswoman. She said that in the three weeks since NATO took over command of the operation, “we are steadily degrading Qaddafi’s ability to carry out and sustain attacks on his own people and gradually squeezing the regime’s forces.”
But just about everyone agrees “that there can’t be a military solution to the crisis as such,” Ms. Lungescu said.
“This mission keeps up the pressure for a credible political solution,” she said.
A senior NATO ambassador asked for patience. “In the end the balance will shift; it has to,” he said. “Qaddafi gets no more arms, no more tanks, no more ammo, and he gets weaker and over time the others get stronger. And at some point someone around Qaddafi decides to have a political way out.”
While Colonel Qaddafi’s foreign minister, Moussa Koussa, defected to Britain three weeks ago — where he was treated leniently, as an encouragement to others around the Libyan leader to change sides — there have been no prominent defections since.
The current political debate, the senior NATO ambassador said, is not about whether the Libya war will end in negotiations, but the nature and context of the talks. Some countries would like to begin negotiations with Colonel Qaddafi before he leaves power, with the clear aim that he must leave. But others, particularly the rebels, say that negotiations can begin only after the colonel and his sons are safely out of the country.
For now, Mr. Valasek said, the problem is that both Colonel Qaddafi and the NATO-supported opposition think that time is on their side. “It may take everyone longer to realize that this is as far as military force takes us. But unless we want a divided Libya, we need to sit down and negotiate.” ||||| Correction: An earlier version of this article said that two journalists working in Libya, Tim Hetherington and Chris Hondros, had been reportedly killed in an artillery attack. It remains unclear how the journalists were killed, although they are believed to have come under attack by mortars or rocket-propelled grenades.
The United States and its allies have entered a new stage of involvement in Libya, sending assistance and advisers directly to opposition military forces, which have been unable to break Libyan leader Moammar Gaddafi’s stranglehold over much of the country despite help from NATO airstrikes.
France and Italy said Wednesday that they would join Britain in dispatching military advisers to assist the inexperienced and disorganized rebel army, primarily in tactics and logistics. President Obama authorized sending $25 million worth of nonlethal equipment, including body armor, tents, uniforms and vehicles.
The assistance appeared to stretch the definition of the “civilian protection” mandate contained in last month’s U.N. resolution authorizing foreign intervention in Libya. The allies said their efforts were indirectly achieving that objective, because the rebel force was best-positioned on the ground to protect Libyans from attacks — or the threat of attacks — by Gaddafi loyalists.
The rebel-held western Libyan city of Misurata continued to be the focus of the fighting. Among those killed in the violence were photographers Tim Hetherington, a British American, and American Chris Hondros, reportedly from an attack by Gaddafi forces, and two other Western journalists were wounded. NATO said its warplanes struck government targets on the outskirts of the besieged city, as well as around Tripoli, the capital.
The arrival of European military advisers and U.S. uniforms is unlikely to rapidly change the trajectory of the conflict, however, and NATO and its Arab partners in the Libya operation continue to count on their economic and diplomatic war of attrition against Gaddafi paying off in the end.
“We are dealing with a set of imperfect options,” a senior administration official said, noting that the measure of success is not “where things stand” but “where they would have stood had we done nothing.” The NATO airstrikes and a no-fly zone enforced by NATO and Arab countries “have essentially frozen the battle space in terms of the advance of Gaddafi’s forces,” he said, and “if you work all the other levers, you can make time work against Gaddafi.”
The official emphasized that Obama has no intention of sending U.S. ground forces — including noncombat military advisers — to Libya. But the administration’s attempts to firmly limit its involvement have also contributed to an image of disarray within NATO.
A senior European official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid antagonizing the Americans, said that Obama’s eagerness to turn over command of the Libyan air operation to NATO late last month, and the withdrawal of U.S. fighter planes from ground-strike missions, had undermined the strength of their united front against Gaddafi.
Although U.S. military officials have said that American strike aircraft remain “available” to NATO commanders should they request it, the senior administration official indicated that agreement would not be automatic.
“We would assess any requests,” the official said.
In a feisty response to any suggestion that the U.S. move to the back seat had undermined the NATO campaign, Vice President Biden said the alliance was perfectly capable of handling the air attack mission itself.
“It is bizarre to suggest that NATO and the rest of the world lacks the capacity to deal with Libya — it does not,” Biden said in an interview with the Financial Times.
“Occasionally other countries lack the will,” he said, “but this is not about capacity.”
Biden said U.S. resources were better spent trying to guide Egypt’s transition toward democracy. He denied that U.S. public reluctance to become deeply involved in another conflict in the Muslim world had anything to do with Obama’s decisions.
“This is about our strategic interest and it is not based upon a situation of what can the traffic bear politically at home,” Biden said. “The traffic can bear politically more in Libya,” he said, because “everybody knows [Gaddafi] is a bad guy.”
But as the situation in Libya has continued without resolution, popular disapproval of the president’s handling of the situation has shot up 15 percentage points, from 34 to 49, since mid-March, shining a light on the political risks Obama faces on the issue amid a host of domestic problems, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll. Among political independents, disapproval jumped to 51 percent.
Fifty-six percent of those polled said they agreed the United States should participate in the NATO-led international coalition; most of those said they wanted the level of U.S. participation to remain “about the same.” Most of those who supported participation appeared to agree with Biden’s assessment of Gaddafi, with 58 percent saying the goal of the operation ought to be getting rid of him.
France and Italy have recognized the opposition Transition National Council (TNC) as Libya’s legitimate government, and Britain, France and Italy have had civilian and military personnel on the ground at rebel headquarters in the eastern city of Benghazi for some time. But the new teams being sent were described as professionals capable of training rebel officers and organizing a more efficient command network for the ground war. Each country is expected to field at least 10 advisers.
France has also agreed to escalate the airstrikes being carried out by NATO. French President Nicolas Sarkozy met Libyan opposition leader Mustafa Abdel Jalil in Paris on Wednesday.
Although NATO is in command of the U.N.-authorized operation in Libya, different countries have agreed to different missions. Only six NATO members — France, Britain, Canada, Belgium, Denmark and Norway — are participating in the airstrikes against Libyan government forces on the ground. Others — along with non-NATO nations, including some Arab countries — are contributing aircraft to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya but have declined to participate in strikes. A third group is enforcing an arms embargo with air and sea patrols outside Libyan territory.
Those sending advisers or other assistance to the rebel forces are doing so as individual nations, in coordination with but outside the NATO command structure.
The three sending trainers have publicly ruled out sending ground forces. “The rebels themselves are afraid of being accused by other Arab countries of having allowed ‘crusaders’ on their land,” said an Italian official who was not authorized to discuss the issue on the record.
Qatar, one of several Arab countries whose planes are participating in the no-fly-zone enforcement, is also reportedly providing military equipment directly to the rebels, including weapons. “They’re sort of freelancing . . . throwing in money in a lot of different and odd ways,” including helping to finance a satellite television station to counter Gaddafi’s control of domestic media, said a senior congressional aide briefed on the operations.
Obama administration officials said their comfort level with the rebel council had grown in recent weeks, after high-level meetings with its leaders and direct contact by a U.S. diplomatic mission sent to Benghazi.
“Whether there are people in Libya who may have more extremist or nefarious agendas, that is something we watch very carefully,” the senior administration official said in reference to suggestions of possible al-Qaeda involvement. “We don’t believe that the organized opposition, represented by the TNC, reflects that agenda.”
Staff writer Mary Beth Sheridan contributed to this report. |||||Summary: |
– Coalition forces have stepped up their cooperation with Libyan rebels, with France and Italy announcing yesterday that they would send military liaisons and advisers, and the US saying it would send them $25 million worth of non-lethal equipment like body armor, tents, and vehicles, the Washington Post reports. The moves are a telling sign that this war will drag on, military analysts tell the New York Times. “Some countries thought the Libya operation could be over quickly,” said one senior NATO ambassador. “But no military commander thinks so.” By hiding among civilians, Gadhafi’s forces have largely blunted NATO’s attack power, and consolidated their grip on western Libya. “Gadhafi’s people are feeling quite confident,” one European security official tells Reuters, predicting that the conflict will ultimately result in a “de facto partition for a long time to come.” | 7 | Flan2021 | multi_news:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
Sentence 1: "The actress used to be named Terpsichore, but she changed it to Tina a few years ago, because she figured it was too hard to pronounce."
Sentence 2: "Tina was too hard to pronounce."
Is sentence 2 true, based on sentence 1?
Pick from:
A). no
B). yes | A). | 9 | Flan2021 | glue/wnli:2.0.0 | zs_opt |
What is a one-sentence summary of the following article?
If any of your ingredients are frozen, thaw them before you start to assemble the soup. Place the frozen ingredients in your refrigerator and allow them to thaw slowly overnight. If you need to quickly thaw ingredients, do so by using the "defrost" setting on your microwave. Avoid thawing certain ingredients, like meat, at room temperature since doing so provides more opportunity for bacteria to grow. Most of the meat and vegetables should be cut down to similar sizes. Ingredients cut to an even size will cook at the same rate, so they should all reach the right consistency at the same time. It is especially important to cut each particular ingredient into evenly sized pieces. In other words, if you cut some of the meat into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces, you should cut all of the meat into 2-inch (5-cm) pieces. If you cut some of the potatoes into 1-inch (2.5-cm) cubes, you should cut all of the potatoes into 1-inch (2.5-cm) cubes. Note that aromatic vegetables (like onion and garlic) and soft vegetables (like corn and peppers) can be cut into smaller pieces than the meats and hearty root vegetables. Aromatic ingredients can enhance the flavor more thoroughly if they cook faster than the rest of the soup, and soft vegetables are usually added later in the cooking process, so they won't be cooking for quite as much time as their heartier counterparts. Consider trimming away the visible, separate layers of fat on any meat you plan to use for your soup. Since melted fat has nowhere to drain in a slow cooker, it tends to pool in layers at the top of the soup. A little interior fat can enhance the flavor of the soup, but too much fat can make the broth seem greasy. For the same reason, you'll also want to avoid adding any oil, butter, margarine, or lard to the soup ingredients in the slow cooker. While not strictly essential, browning your meat in a skillet before adding it the to slow cooker can enhance both the color and flavor of the dish. Use roughly 1 to 2 Tbsp (15 to 30 ml) of oil, butter, or margarine for every 1 lb (450 g) of meat. Heat the fat in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, then toss in the cut portions of meat and cook, stirring frequently, until the meat looks evenly browned. If desired, you can also brown aromatic vegetables beforehand to enrich the flavor profile of the soup. Common aromatic vegetables include onions and garlic. When you're running short on time, however, you do not need to brown the meat beforehand. The soup should cook perfectly fine even if you skip this step, but the flavor and color of the finished soup will vary slightly.
Summary: | Thaw your ingredients. Cut your ingredients into even pieces. Trim the fat. Brown the meat. | 4 | Flan2021 | gem/wiki_lingua_english_en:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
This is the content of an email: Hello Scooter, Hope you had fun on your three dates this weekend!!! (you slut!) You know I am jealous. Peggy says not to spread yourself too thin!!!! You would not believe how cheap it is here. Today at the musuem I had a sandwich, snickers and a cafe latte for $1.50!!! A three course dinner last night cost $3.00. The bad news is that your gift cost $0.20!! (ha, ha) I really haven't bought it yet. Take Care, Miss you, Julie :-)
What was the subject line for this email? | Hello from Prague | 5 | Flan2021 | aeslc:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
The upward trend of stock-market prices.
Not openly liberal but that is the trend of the book.
Choose your answer: Does the word "trend" mean the same thing in the above two sentences?
Options:
a). different meanings;
b). the same meaning; | a). | 0 | Flan2021 | super_glue/wic:1.0.2 | zs_opt |
Question: How does a student best avoid becoming dehydrated during a field investigation on a hot day?
OPTIONS:
(a). drink water from a bottle.
(b). wear a wide-brimmed hat.
(c). drink a lot before leaving school.
(d). drink from a clear running stream.
Answer: | (a). | 1 | Flan2021 | ai2_arc/ARC-Easy:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
What is the subject line for this email?
Krishna, We shall have meeting with Kim Watson on Thu at 10:00, 49 C2. It will be followed by a Video Conference with Nebraska at 11:30. Vince
Subject Line: | Kim Watson | 0 | Flan2021 | aeslc:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
israel will on monday organize a seminar in dar es salaam on the irrigation situation of tanzania .
Summarize the aforementioned text in a single phrase. | israel to organize seminar on irrigation in | 6 | Flan2021 | gigaword:1.2.0 | zs_opt |
Multi-choice problem: Continue writing the next sentence in this paragraph:
The men continue to serve and then hit and return each other's serves. They take a short break after one man scores. they
OPT:
(a). return to playing again and hitting the balls back into the pocket.;
(b). continue to play and serve.;
(c). take a break and you can see that they are experiencing victory.;
(d). take a break after another player hits the ball.; | (b). | 1 | Flan2021 | hellaswag:1.1.0 | zs_opt |
Choose from options: Determine if the sentence is true based on the text below:
Lotus Flower was a popular song.
"Lotus Flower" is a song by the English alternative rock band Radiohead, released on their eighth studio album "The King of Limbs "(2011). It features singer Thom Yorke's falsetto over syncopated beats and a "propulsive" bass line. Its music video, featuring Yorke's erratic dancing, spawned an internet meme.
Available choices: (I) Yes. (II) It's impossible to say. (III) No. | (II) | 8 | Flan2021 | anli/r1:0.1.0 | zs_opt |
Context: The Boo baby has learned to roll . He rolled from tummy to back the first time when he was about a week old and has done it a few times since . About three weeks ago he figured out how to roll from back to tummy over his left side , and he 's been a rolly - poly boy ever since . Now , when we lay him in the floor , he will roll back to tummy to back to tummy over and over again .
Question Why did the baby roll back and forth ?
Possible answers:
Select from the following.
a). None of the above choices .
b). He was learning to walk .
c). He was learning to sit up .
d). His clothing was uncomfortable .
The answer: | c). | 5 | Flan2021 | cosmos_qa:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
What is the version of the following sentence with correct punctuation?
Anja februar 22 2017 februar 11 2017 Denmark Danmark Restauranter 0
| Anja februar 22, 2017 februar 11, 2017 Denmark - Danmark, Restauranter 0 | 9 | Flan2021 | fix_punct | zs_opt |
Write an email with the following subject:
Contract Review
Email: | When: Thursday, December 13, 2001 1:30 PM-2:30 PM (GMT-06:00) Central Time (US & Canada). Where: ECS 6716 *~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* Please note, This meeting is in reference to the email sent to all of you this morning from Laura Luce. Please accept this invite, as it will automatically populate onto your schedules. Thank you, | 8 | Flan2021 | aeslc:1.0.0 | zs_opt |
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