TASK DEFINITION: You are given a background paragraph that describes one or more causal or qualitative relationships such as a relationship in economics or a scientific law and a story that makes use of the concepts or the relationship described in the provided paragraph. You need to come up with a question about the story that requires an understanding of the relationship described in the background paragraph. The generated question should not be answerable without both the background and story. Write a question about the story that requires a relationship in the background paragraph to answer. Check whether your question requires both the background paragraph and the story to answer. If your question can be answered by only one of these, try to rewrite your question so that it requires both. Note that "flipping" a word in the question can give rise to a new question where the answer will be different from the original question. Often, "flipping" a word gives rise to flipping the direction of the relationship, for example, from "increase" to "decrease."
PROBLEM: Background Paragraph: In the U.S., the majority of electricity is produced by burning coal or other fossil fuels. This causes air pollution, acid rain, and global warming. Fossil fuels are also limited and may eventually run out. Like fossil fuels, radioactive elements are limited. In fact, they are relatively rare, so they could run out sooner rather than later. On the other hand, nuclear fission does not release air pollution or cause the other environmental problems associated with burning fossil fuels. This is the major advantage of using nuclear fission as a source of energy. 
Story: Seattle produces a large amount of their electricity by burning fossil fuels due to the large presence of natural coal in the state. Jacksonville, on the other hand, has decreased their usage of fossil fuels used to produce electricity to low levels due to recent policy changes enacted by their state's government.

SOLUTION: Which city, Seattle or Jacksonville, will contribute less to global warming?

PROBLEM: Background Paragraph: When the temperature of reactants is higher, the rate of the reaction is faster. At higher temperatures, particles of reactants have more energy, so they move faster. As a result, they are more likely to bump into one another and to collide with greater force. For example, food spoils because of chemical reactions, and these reactions occur faster at higher temperatures (see the bread on the left in the Figure below ). This is why we store foods in the refrigerator or freezer (like the bread on the right in the Figure below ). The lower temperature slows the rate of spoilage. 
Story: A scientist is observing two chemicals react. The reaction is very slow and he wants to find a way to speed up the reaction. One day the labs air conditioner breaks and he notices the reaction is happening significantly faster than usual.

SOLUTION: Given two batches of chemicals, Batch A at 20 degrees celcius and batch B at 45 degrees C, which will react faster?

PROBLEM: Background Paragraph: Many different chemical substances cause cancer. Dozens of chemicals in tobacco smoke, including nicotine, have been shown to cause cancer ( Figure below ). In fact, tobacco smoke is one of the main sources of chemical carcinogens. Smoking tobacco increases the risk of cancer of the lung, mouth, throat, and bladder. Using smokeless tobacco can also cause cancer. Other chemicals that cause cancer include asbestos, formaldehyde, benzene, cadmium, and nickel. 
Story: Two friends met after 20 years. Tom had been smoking tobacco all these years and had some health problems related to that, while Randy quit smoking 25 years ago.

SOLUTION:
Which friend had a higher risk of developing cancer of the mouth?