TASK DEFINITION: In this task, you're given passages that contain mentions of names of people, places, or things. Some of these mentions refer to the same person, place, or thing. Your job is to write questions that evaluate one's understanding of such references. Good questions are expected to link pronouns (she, her, him, his, their, etc.) or other mentions to people, places, or things to which they may refer. Do not ask questions that can be answered correctly without understanding the paragraph or having multiple answers. Avoid questions that do not link phrases referring to the same entity. For each of your questions, the answer should be one or more phrases in the paragraph, and it should be unambiguous.
PROBLEM: Passage: In philosophy, Chinese Buddhism had waned in influence but it retained its hold on the arts and on the charities of monasteries. Buddhism had a profound influence upon the budding movement of Neo-Confucianism, led by Cheng Yi (1033–1107) and Zhu Xi (1130–1200). Mahayana Buddhism influenced Fan Zhongyan and Wang Anshi through its concept of ethical universalism, while Buddhist metaphysics deeply affected the pre–Neo-Confucian doctrine of Cheng Yi. The philosophical work of Cheng Yi in turn influenced Zhu Xi. Although his writings were not accepted by his contemporary peers, Zhu's commentary and emphasis upon the Confucian classics of the Four Books as an introductory corpus to Confucian learning formed the basis of the Neo-Confucian doctrine. By the year 1241, under the sponsorship of Emperor Lizong, Zhu Xi's Four Books and his commentary on them became standard requirements of study for students attempting to pass the civil service examinations. The East Asian countries of Japan and Korea also adopted Zhu Xi's teaching, known as the Shushigaku (朱子學, School of Zhu Xi) of Japan, and in Korea the Jujahak (주자학). Buddhism's continuing influence can be seen in painted artwork such as Lin Tinggui's Luohan Laundering. However, the ideology was highly criticized and even scorned by some. The statesman and historian Ouyang Xiu (1007–1072) called the religion a "curse" that could only be remedied by uprooting it from Chinese culture and replacing it with Confucian discourse. A true revival of Buddhism in Chinese society would not occur until the Mongol rule of the Yuan dynasty, with Kublai Khan's sponsorship of Tibetan Buddhism and Drogön Chögyal Phagpa as the leading lama. The Christian sect of Nestorianism, which had entered China in the Tang era, would also be revived in China under Mongol rule.

SOLUTION: What religion did Ouyang Xiu call a curse?

PROBLEM: Passage: In 2007, Elderly sold more than 16,000 instruments. The company is a  dealer of Martin guitars, as well as other mainstream brands such as Guild and Fender. It sells used Gibson instruments, but not new models as a result of the Gibson lawsuit. Although the bulk of its business comes from guitar sales, the company carries a range of other instruments, such as banjos, ukuleles, mandolins, accordions, concertinas, bouzoukis, sitars, musical saws, and African thumb pianos. Some of the rarer instruments are purchased as collectibles. Elderly is an exclusive retailer of "LunchBox-A-LeLes", ukuleles made from various tin lunch box designs. The journal Bluegrass Unlimited has noted Elderly Instruments for carrying "elite" brands of instruments, such as Paul Duff mandolins, Huss & Dalton acoustic guitars, Stelling banjos, and Nash electric guitars. Elderly was once one of only two American retailers for Apitius Mandolins, now only sold directly. As part of its consignment business, Elderly sells "collections" of instruments that sometimes have rich histories. In September 2006, it placed the Dopyera family's personal collection of resonator instruments up for sale, including some of the Dobro and National brands. The Dopyera family was responsible for founding those companies and innovating the resonator instrument trade.Elderly Instruments carries a number of Martin guitars, including valuable vintage models. In interviews, Werbin frequently mentions Martins made before World War II as especially desirable and "memorable" pieces of the Elderly Instruments inventory. The guitars are sought after by musicians from the bluegrass and other genres. Werbin purchases some of the more valuable or interesting instruments for his personal collection, and has lent them to museums as temporary exhibits.Periodicals for the bluegrass genre such as Bluegrass Canada and Bluegrass Now have featured stories about Elderly and its selection of bluegrass instruments and repair services. Elderly employees maintain connections with the bluegrass industry by attending trade shows such as the International Bluegrass Association Trade Show in Louisville, Kentucky. At these shows, Elderly showcases typical bluegrass instruments, such as banjos, guitars, mandolins, fiddles and resophonic guitars, to musicians and businesspeople. Elderly Instruments staff members have set up organizations such as the "Friends of Bluegrass" to support local bluegrass musicians.Michigan Living magazine noted Elderly's liberal policy regarding the handling of instruments, something Werbin attributes to his difficulty shopping for Martin guitars in New York City in the 1960s. The magazine also notes that customers are encouraged to pick up and play any instrument, an unusual policy for a high-end instrument retailer. Impromptu "jam sessions" are frequent in the store, as customers try out guitars.

SOLUTION: What is the name of the organization set up to support bluegrass musicians by the employees of the company that sold over 16,000 instruments in 2007?

PROBLEM: Passage: Jonah is a young man without a care in the world. At one of his parties, the power goes out because Jonah has not paid his electric bill, but it gets turned back on thanks to his neighbor. Jonah meets up with Becky and they retreat up to his room away from the party, only for Becky to find a lump in Jonah's testicle. Jonah goes to see a doctor, who reveals that Jonah has testicular cancer. He tells Jonah that they can remove it in time, but Jonah's upset that he won't be able to father children. The doctor suggests that Jonah uses a sperm bank in the event that he would like to have children after the operation.
Now at a sperm bank, Jonah is left in a room to privately produce his semen. After he is finished, he returns home to his best friends and fellow party hosts, Stevie and Gus. When Stevie arrives home from work, Gus blurts out that Jonah has cancer, much to Jonah's dismay. Gus asks if he would still like to have the party scheduled for the coming Friday, and Jonah allows them to keep the date, not wanting to explain his condition to party-goers.
Jonah receives a call from the sperm bank and goes in for a meeting. The nurse explains that Jonah falls into a small percentage of men whose sperm cannot be frozen because of biological complications. Jonah asks what other options there are, now very worried that he will never have children. The nurse replies with, "Well, do you have a girlfriend?"
Jonah then begins the complicated journey of finding a woman to carry his child. He first approaches his ex-girlfriend Ava who is disgusted with Jonah for even contacting her. He then tries Becky (or "Stalker Becky" as Gus calls her) who rejects him by claiming she never thought of her and Jonah as a couple. Jonah never tells the girls he asks that he has cancer. Jonah goes back to the doctor to ask for more time and moves his operation three weeks.

SOLUTION:
What is the first names of the people who retreat to a room away from a party?