Question: What was Ms. Harper's profession?

But as she was leaving, the sheriff and his deputies intercepted her and broke the news that her son was the gunman. Ms. Harper, who divorced her husband a decade ago, appears to have been by far the most significant figure in her son’s troubled life; neighbors say he rarely left their apartment. Unlike his father, who said on television that he had no idea Mr. Harper-Mercer cared so deeply about guns, his mother was well aware of his fascination. In fact, she shared it: In a series of online postings over a decade, Ms. Harper, a nurse, said she kept numerous firearms in her home and expressed pride in her knowledge about them, as well as in her son’s expertise on the subject. She also opened up about her difficulties raising a son who used to bang his head against the wall, and said that both she and her son struggled with Asperger’s syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder. She tried to counsel others whose children faced similar problems. All the while, she expressed hope that her son could lead a successful life in finance or as a filmmaker. Ms. Harper did not respond to messages seeking comment.

Answer: a nurse

But as she was leaving, the sheriff and his deputies intercepted her and broke the news that her son was the gunman. Ms. Harper, who divorced her husband a decade ago, appears to have been by far the most significant figure in her son’s troubled life; neighbors say he rarely left their apartment. Unlike his father, who said on television that he had no idea Mr. Harper-Mercer cared so deeply about guns, his mother was well aware of his fascination. In fact, she shared it: <hl> In a series of online postings over a decade, Ms. Harper, a nurse , said she kept numerous firearms in her home and expressed pride in her knowledge about them, as well as in her son’s expertise on the subject. <hl> She also opened up about her difficulties raising a son who used to bang his head against the wall, and said that both she and her son struggled with Asperger’s syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder. She tried to counsel others whose children faced similar problems. All the while, she expressed hope that her son could lead a successful life in finance or as a filmmaker. Ms. Harper did not respond to messages seeking comment.

But as she was leaving, the sheriff and his deputies intercepted her and broke the news that her son was the gunman. Ms. Harper, who divorced her husband a decade ago, appears to have been by far the most significant figure in her son’s troubled life; neighbors say he rarely left their apartment. Unlike his father, who said on television that he had no idea Mr. Harper-Mercer cared so deeply about guns, his mother was well aware of his fascination. In fact, she shared it: In a series of online postings over a decade, Ms. Harper, <hl> a nurse <hl>, said she kept numerous firearms in her home and expressed pride in her knowledge about them, as well as in her son’s expertise on the subject. She also opened up about her difficulties raising a son who used to bang his head against the wall, and said that both she and her son struggled with Asperger’s syndrome, an autism spectrum disorder. She tried to counsel others whose children faced similar problems. All the while, she expressed hope that her son could lead a successful life in finance or as a filmmaker. Ms. Harper did not respond to messages seeking comment.

In a series of online postings over a decade, Ms. Harper, <hl> a nurse <hl> , said she kept numerous firearms in her home and expressed pride in her knowledge about them, as well as in her son’s expertise on the subject.


Question: Where is the fashion most dominant over the sport?

The blurring of lines between sports and ready-to-wear via that hybrid known as athleisure wear has only exacerbated the situation. Indeed, brands increasingly unveil their “collections” weeks in advance so consumers can Get the Look. Athletic brands, that is. Though this has become true to a certain extent for every tournament (save, perhaps, Wimbledon, where the insistence on traditional white limits the fashion options to a meaningful degree), it reaches its apogee with the United States Open, in part because of a certain boundary-pushing ethos associated with New York and in part because, according to Mr. Eisenbud, it is the Grand Slam event with the most nontennis news-media coverage attached, and hence the greatest potential reach.

Answer: United States Open

The blurring of lines between sports and ready-to-wear via that hybrid known as athleisure wear has only exacerbated the situation. Indeed, brands increasingly unveil their “collections” weeks in advance so consumers can Get the Look. Athletic brands, that is. <hl> Though this has become true to a certain extent for every tournament (save, perhaps, Wimbledon, where the insistence on traditional white limits the fashion options to a meaningful degree), it reaches its apogee with the United States Open , in part because of a certain boundary-pushing ethos associated with New York and in part because, according to Mr. Eisenbud, it is the Grand Slam event with the most nontennis news-media coverage attached, and hence the greatest potential reach. <hl>

The blurring of lines between sports and ready-to-wear via that hybrid known as athleisure wear has only exacerbated the situation. Indeed, brands increasingly unveil their “collections” weeks in advance so consumers can Get the Look. Athletic brands, that is. Though this has become true to a certain extent for every tournament (save, perhaps, Wimbledon, where the insistence on traditional white limits the fashion options to a meaningful degree), it reaches its apogee with the <hl> United States Open <hl>, in part because of a certain boundary-pushing ethos associated with New York and in part because, according to Mr. Eisenbud, it is the Grand Slam event with the most nontennis news-media coverage attached, and hence the greatest potential reach.

Though this has become true to a certain extent for every tournament (save, perhaps, Wimbledon, where the insistence on traditional white limits the fashion options to a meaningful degree), it reaches its apogee with the <hl> United States Open <hl> , in part because of a certain boundary-pushing ethos associated with New York and in part because, according to Mr. Eisenbud, it is the Grand Slam event with the most nontennis news-media coverage attached, and hence the greatest potential reach.


Question: Who was the perfect mate for John Delahunt?

⬥ “I’d be delighted,” replies John Delahunt, a student at Trinity College, when the young socialite Helen Stokes asks him to accompany her to a hanging. That colorful street entertainment is one of many striking set pieces in THE CONVICTIONS OF JOHN DELAHUNT (Pegasus, $24.95), a remarkable first novel that Andrew Hughes has set in 1840s Dublin and based on crimes of that period. The lovely Helen seems the perfect mate for Delahunt, who was executed, for killing a little boy, in full view of a mob of 10,000 souls in 1842. Hughes challenges historical accounts of Delahunt’s infamous career with an incisive portrait of an impoverished scholar lured into becoming a paid police informant. Urged by his corrupt handlers to bring them murderers (the big money is always in murder), he starts framing innocent people and then, in desperation, begins committing crimes himself. At once a close character study and a sweeping panorama of the era of “dissectionists” who buy bodies for medical research and the “resurrectionists” who dig them up, this fascinating book is a stirring work of fiction and a perceptive chapter in Ireland’s social history. ⬥

Answer: Helen Stokes

<hl> ⬥ “I’d be delighted,” replies John Delahunt, a student at Trinity College, when the young socialite Helen Stokes asks him to accompany her to a hanging. <hl> That colorful street entertainment is one of many striking set pieces in THE CONVICTIONS OF JOHN DELAHUNT (Pegasus, $24.95), a remarkable first novel that Andrew Hughes has set in 1840s Dublin and based on crimes of that period. The lovely Helen seems the perfect mate for Delahunt, who was executed, for killing a little boy, in full view of a mob of 10,000 souls in 1842. Hughes challenges historical accounts of Delahunt’s infamous career with an incisive portrait of an impoverished scholar lured into becoming a paid police informant. Urged by his corrupt handlers to bring them murderers (the big money is always in murder), he starts framing innocent people and then, in desperation, begins committing crimes himself. At once a close character study and a sweeping panorama of the era of “dissectionists” who buy bodies for medical research and the “resurrectionists” who dig them up, this fascinating book is a stirring work of fiction and a perceptive chapter in Ireland’s social history. ⬥

⬥ “I’d be delighted,” replies John Delahunt, a student at Trinity College, when the young socialite <hl> Helen Stokes <hl> asks him to accompany her to a hanging. That colorful street entertainment is one of many striking set pieces in THE CONVICTIONS OF JOHN DELAHUNT (Pegasus, $24.95), a remarkable first novel that Andrew Hughes has set in 1840s Dublin and based on crimes of that period. The lovely Helen seems the perfect mate for Delahunt, who was executed, for killing a little boy, in full view of a mob of 10,000 souls in 1842. Hughes challenges historical accounts of Delahunt’s infamous career with an incisive portrait of an impoverished scholar lured into becoming a paid police informant. Urged by his corrupt handlers to bring them murderers (the big money is always in murder), he starts framing innocent people and then, in desperation, begins committing crimes himself. At once a close character study and a sweeping panorama of the era of “dissectionists” who buy bodies for medical research and the “resurrectionists” who dig them up, this fascinating book is a stirring work of fiction and a perceptive chapter in Ireland’s social history. ⬥


Question: What do they feel about the quality of education and their society?

There are some promising signs of progress. For instance, the tax authorities have increased the use of digital filing methods, cutting into the mountains of paperwork. Some small businesses are thought to have benefited from a method aimed at simplifying their taxes. New legislation requiring retailers to estimate the amount of sales taxes embedded in the prices of their products is raising awareness among some Brazilians about the taxes they pay on everyday purchases. That, in turn, seems to be stoking anger about the deplorable quality of the education, health care, policing and other public services they receive in return. Brazil’s economic crisis is opening a new debate about taxes, with President Dilma Rousseff’s administration seeking to resuscitate a tax on financial transactions in an effort to raise government revenues. Other proposals under consideration would raise taxes on fuel and inheritance.

Answer: anger

There are some promising signs of progress. For instance, the tax authorities have increased the use of digital filing methods, cutting into the mountains of paperwork. Some small businesses are thought to have benefited from a method aimed at simplifying their taxes. New legislation requiring retailers to estimate the amount of sales taxes embedded in the prices of their products is raising awareness among some Brazilians about the taxes they pay on everyday purchases. <hl> That, in turn, seems to be stoking anger about the deplorable quality of the education, health care, policing and other public services they receive in return. <hl> Brazil’s economic crisis is opening a new debate about taxes, with President Dilma Rousseff’s administration seeking to resuscitate a tax on financial transactions in an effort to raise government revenues. Other proposals under consideration would raise taxes on fuel and inheritance.

There are some promising signs of progress. For instance, the tax authorities have increased the use of digital filing methods, cutting into the mountains of paperwork. Some small businesses are thought to have benefited from a method aimed at simplifying their taxes. New legislation requiring retailers to estimate the amount of sales taxes embedded in the prices of their products is raising awareness among some Brazilians about the taxes they pay on everyday purchases. That, in turn, seems to be stoking <hl> anger <hl> about the deplorable quality of the education, health care, policing and other public services they receive in return. Brazil’s economic crisis is opening a new debate about taxes, with President Dilma Rousseff’s administration seeking to resuscitate a tax on financial transactions in an effort to raise government revenues. Other proposals under consideration would raise taxes on fuel and inheritance.


Question: At what age did Louise die?

The sculptor Louise Nevelson took up a fair amount of space in New York in the 1960s and early ’70s. She was one of the most prominent artists of her generation, known for her imperious personality and a penchant for false eyelashes, heavy jewelry and chinchilla capes. More important were her forward-looking wood reliefs, painted entirely black or white, which linked the found-object aesthetic of assemblage to the clean lines and orderly sequences of Minimalism (and also presaged the all-black assemblage sculptures of Rashid Johnson). But by the time she died at age 88 in 1988, the art world had moved on.

Answer: 88

The sculptor Louise Nevelson took up a fair amount of space in New York in the 1960s and early ’70s. She was one of the most prominent artists of her generation, known for her imperious personality and a penchant for false eyelashes, heavy jewelry and chinchilla capes. More important were her forward-looking wood reliefs, painted entirely black or white, which linked the found-object aesthetic of assemblage to the clean lines and orderly sequences of Minimalism (and also presaged the all-black assemblage sculptures of Rashid Johnson). <hl> But by the time she died at age 88 in 1988, the art world had moved on. <hl>

The sculptor Louise Nevelson took up a fair amount of space in New York in the 1960s and early ’70s. She was one of the most prominent artists of her generation, known for her imperious personality and a penchant for false eyelashes, heavy jewelry and chinchilla capes. More important were her forward-looking wood reliefs, painted entirely black or white, which linked the found-object aesthetic of assemblage to the clean lines and orderly sequences of Minimalism (and also presaged the all-black assemblage sculptures of Rashid Johnson). But by the time she died at age <hl> 88 <hl> in 1988, the art world had moved on.


Question: What does DeWitt apply to their novel that is also seen in science fiction literature?

Joe’s is a descriptivist moralism made evident by empty jargon, meaningless tautologies and cheerful resignation. “Let’s face it,” he likes to say, before making an assumptive declaration. “If you’re in sales” is one of his favorite introductory phrases. A refrain is the literary term for what in life we would call an “annoying verbal tic.” Repeat a line over and over in a book, and it’s an aesthetic choice that your readers will react to with an approving nod. Repeat a line over and over again in speech and whoever you’re talking to will fidget and try to get away from you. In DeWitt’s novel, the redundancy does both. Like the authors of the best science fiction, DeWitt applies logistical rigor to a riotously imaginative premise. Were the world of the book the same as the world we live in, we’d never tolerate the mundanity she provides: the bureaucratic hurdles, the financial negotiations, the material impediments to tricking out toilets with glory holes. But it’s just this kind of gratuitous information that lends the novel its necessary plausibility; it’s just this kind of boring nuance that makes up a good part of a worker’s day (or so I hear). DeWitt’s satirical prose, which is rich in italics and ridden with corporate platitudes, succeeds in the unlikely task of getting the reader both to laugh with derision and to agree, however reluctantly, with the optimism and sick logic of our protagonist. Almost nothing is more satisfying than observing improvement. Like time-lapse footage of a construction site, “Lightning Rods” is an account of progress, a record of how someone became skillful at something. That the “something” here is anonymous sex on demand as a means of increasing corporate profit is both funny and horrifying.

Answer: logistical rigor

Joe’s is a descriptivist moralism made evident by empty jargon, meaningless tautologies and cheerful resignation. “Let’s face it,” he likes to say, before making an assumptive declaration. “If you’re in sales” is one of his favorite introductory phrases. A refrain is the literary term for what in life we would call an “annoying verbal tic.” Repeat a line over and over in a book, and it’s an aesthetic choice that your readers will react to with an approving nod. Repeat a line over and over again in speech and whoever you’re talking to will fidget and try to get away from you. In DeWitt’s novel, the redundancy does both. <hl> Like the authors of the best science fiction, DeWitt applies logistical rigor to a riotously imaginative premise. <hl> Were the world of the book the same as the world we live in, we’d never tolerate the mundanity she provides: the bureaucratic hurdles, the financial negotiations, the material impediments to tricking out toilets with glory holes. But it’s just this kind of gratuitous information that lends the novel its necessary plausibility; it’s just this kind of boring nuance that makes up a good part of a worker’s day (or so I hear). DeWitt’s satirical prose, which is rich in italics and ridden with corporate platitudes, succeeds in the unlikely task of getting the reader both to laugh with derision and to agree, however reluctantly, with the optimism and sick logic of our protagonist. Almost nothing is more satisfying than observing improvement. Like time-lapse footage of a construction site, “Lightning Rods” is an account of progress, a record of how someone became skillful at something. That the “something” here is anonymous sex on demand as a means of increasing corporate profit is both funny and horrifying.

Joe’s is a descriptivist moralism made evident by empty jargon, meaningless tautologies and cheerful resignation. “Let’s face it,” he likes to say, before making an assumptive declaration. “If you’re in sales” is one of his favorite introductory phrases. A refrain is the literary term for what in life we would call an “annoying verbal tic.” Repeat a line over and over in a book, and it’s an aesthetic choice that your readers will react to with an approving nod. Repeat a line over and over again in speech and whoever you’re talking to will fidget and try to get away from you. In DeWitt’s novel, the redundancy does both. Like the authors of the best science fiction, DeWitt applies <hl> logistical rigor <hl> to a riotously imaginative premise. Were the world of the book the same as the world we live in, we’d never tolerate the mundanity she provides: the bureaucratic hurdles, the financial negotiations, the material impediments to tricking out toilets with glory holes. But it’s just this kind of gratuitous information that lends the novel its necessary plausibility; it’s just this kind of boring nuance that makes up a good part of a worker’s day (or so I hear). DeWitt’s satirical prose, which is rich in italics and ridden with corporate platitudes, succeeds in the unlikely task of getting the reader both to laugh with derision and to agree, however reluctantly, with the optimism and sick logic of our protagonist. Almost nothing is more satisfying than observing improvement. Like time-lapse footage of a construction site, “Lightning Rods” is an account of progress, a record of how someone became skillful at something. That the “something” here is anonymous sex on demand as a means of increasing corporate profit is both funny and horrifying.


Question: Are salaried workers eligible for overtime?

Under current rules, salaried workers are not eligible for overtime if they earn enough to qualify as executives, professionals or administrators. The proposal would raise the salary threshold that defines those positions. Today, employees can be considered part of the top ranks — and generally ineligible for overtime — once their salary reaches a paltry $455 a week, or $23,660 a year. The new threshold in 2016 would be $970 a week, or $50,440 a year, about where it would be if it had kept pace with inflation over the decades. At or below that level, salaried workers are automatically eligible for overtime. (The current rules for hourly workers would remain intact.)

Answer: salaried workers are not eligible for overtime

<hl> Under current rules, salaried workers are not eligible for overtime if they earn enough to qualify as executives, professionals or administrators. <hl> The proposal would raise the salary threshold that defines those positions. Today, employees can be considered part of the top ranks — and generally ineligible for overtime — once their salary reaches a paltry $455 a week, or $23,660 a year. The new threshold in 2016 would be $970 a week, or $50,440 a year, about where it would be if it had kept pace with inflation over the decades. At or below that level, salaried workers are automatically eligible for overtime. (The current rules for hourly workers would remain intact.)

Under current rules, <hl> salaried workers are not eligible for overtime <hl> if they earn enough to qualify as executives, professionals or administrators. The proposal would raise the salary threshold that defines those positions. Today, employees can be considered part of the top ranks — and generally ineligible for overtime — once their salary reaches a paltry $455 a week, or $23,660 a year. The new threshold in 2016 would be $970 a week, or $50,440 a year, about where it would be if it had kept pace with inflation over the decades. At or below that level, salaried workers are automatically eligible for overtime. (The current rules for hourly workers would remain intact.)


Question: What was the reporter asked to ignore when talking to Marcelo?

The #nightshift hashtag is especially well populated by the armed professions and the healing ones. Sometimes they are almost one and the same, as in the case of @armedmedic3153, a.k.a. Marcelo Aguirre, a paramedic in Newark and suburban New Jersey. He owns an AR-15, a 9-millimeter and a shotgun, but the only thing he shoots on the night shift is his camera. He works nights so he can study days; he wants to be a doctor. Nights are good preparation for that: You get more serious cases. You learn on the job. A 12-hour course each night you’re on. Twenty-four hours if you take a double. After a while, the adrenaline that juices you when you’re new — when you’re still keeping a tally of the lives you’ve saved — disappears. You just do the job. “High speed and low drag,” Aguirre told me when I called. “Please ignore the siren,” he said. “We’re going to a call.” A stroke. Nothing to get excited about. Coffee sustains him. He stays clean. Some guys, he said, use Provigil, but that’s prescribed. “For shift-work disorder,” he said.

Answer: Please ignore the siren

“ Please ignore the siren ,” he said.

The #nightshift hashtag is especially well populated by the armed professions and the healing ones. Sometimes they are almost one and the same, as in the case of @armedmedic3153, a.k.a. Marcelo Aguirre, a paramedic in Newark and suburban New Jersey. He owns an AR-15, a 9-millimeter and a shotgun, but the only thing he shoots on the night shift is his camera. He works nights so he can study days; he wants to be a doctor. Nights are good preparation for that: You get more serious cases. You learn on the job. A 12-hour course each night you’re on. Twenty-four hours if you take a double. After a while, the adrenaline that juices you when you’re new — when you’re still keeping a tally of the lives you’ve saved — disappears. You just do the job. “High speed and low drag,” Aguirre told me when I called. <hl> “ Please ignore the siren ,” he said. <hl> “We’re going to a call.” A stroke. Nothing to get excited about. Coffee sustains him. He stays clean. Some guys, he said, use Provigil, but that’s prescribed. “For shift-work disorder,” he said.

The #nightshift hashtag is especially well populated by the armed professions and the healing ones. Sometimes they are almost one and the same, as in the case of @armedmedic3153, a.k.a. Marcelo Aguirre, a paramedic in Newark and suburban New Jersey. He owns an AR-15, a 9-millimeter and a shotgun, but the only thing he shoots on the night shift is his camera. He works nights so he can study days; he wants to be a doctor. Nights are good preparation for that: You get more serious cases. You learn on the job. A 12-hour course each night you’re on. Twenty-four hours if you take a double. After a while, the adrenaline that juices you when you’re new — when you’re still keeping a tally of the lives you’ve saved — disappears. You just do the job. “High speed and low drag,” Aguirre told me when I called. “<hl> Please ignore the siren <hl>,” he said. “We’re going to a call.” A stroke. Nothing to get excited about. Coffee sustains him. He stays clean. Some guys, he said, use Provigil, but that’s prescribed. “For shift-work disorder,” he said.

“ <hl> Please ignore the siren <hl> ,” he said.


Question: What is an unreliable indicator of the job market's strength?

I count myself among those analysts who have described the potential benefits of wage targeting at the Fed — waiting until wages are growing considerably faster than they are today before tapping the brakes. Ms. Yellen’s stance offers a reason to explain those benefits. So here goes: The current unemployment rate is an unreliable indicator of the job market’s strength. The unemployment rate has long informed Fed policy by signaling the extent of slack in the labor market, but in recent years, it has been biased down in this regard. For example, the job market is not as tight as its current level of 5.5 percent unemployment suggests.

Answer: The current unemployment rate

I count myself among those analysts who have described the potential benefits of wage targeting at the Fed — waiting until wages are growing considerably faster than they are today before tapping the brakes. Ms. Yellen’s stance offers a reason to explain those benefits. <hl> So here goes: The current unemployment rate is an unreliable indicator of the job market’s strength. <hl> The unemployment rate has long informed Fed policy by signaling the extent of slack in the labor market, but in recent years, it has been biased down in this regard. For example, the job market is not as tight as its current level of 5.5 percent unemployment suggests.

I count myself among those analysts who have described the potential benefits of wage targeting at the Fed — waiting until wages are growing considerably faster than they are today before tapping the brakes. Ms. Yellen’s stance offers a reason to explain those benefits. So here goes: <hl> The current unemployment rate <hl> is an unreliable indicator of the job market’s strength. The unemployment rate has long informed Fed policy by signaling the extent of slack in the labor market, but in recent years, it has been biased down in this regard. For example, the job market is not as tight as its current level of 5.5 percent unemployment suggests.


Question: What place were the Penguins in for goals per game?

Pittsburgh’s 4-1 loss to Washington on Monday night in Sullivan’s debut dropped the Penguins to 15-11-3. They were tied for ninth in the Eastern Conference going into Tuesday night’s games and were 27th in goals per game despite ranking fifth in shots. Their power play, with a unit littered with All-Stars, is 28th, ahead of only Calgary and Arizona. Enter Sullivan, who spent a decade grinding out a career as a defensive-minded forward before getting into coaching. He now finds himself trying to get Pittsburgh’s highly capable, occasionally high-strung players working in unison. Nowhere are Pittsburgh’s struggles more evident than in Sidney Crosby’s prolonged funk. Crosby, a two-time Hart Trophy winner, is on pace for career lows in goals and points, and his team appears destined for a four-month battle just to reach the postseason let alone make a serious run at Stanley Cup to bookend the one he and fellow superstar Evgeni Malkin won in 2009 back when a dynasty seemed almost inevitable.

Answer: 27th

Pittsburgh’s 4-1 loss to Washington on Monday night in Sullivan’s debut dropped the Penguins to 15-11-3. <hl> They were tied for ninth in the Eastern Conference going into Tuesday night’s games and were 27th in goals per game despite ranking fifth in shots. <hl> Their power play, with a unit littered with All-Stars, is 28th, ahead of only Calgary and Arizona. Enter Sullivan, who spent a decade grinding out a career as a defensive-minded forward before getting into coaching. He now finds himself trying to get Pittsburgh’s highly capable, occasionally high-strung players working in unison. Nowhere are Pittsburgh’s struggles more evident than in Sidney Crosby’s prolonged funk. Crosby, a two-time Hart Trophy winner, is on pace for career lows in goals and points, and his team appears destined for a four-month battle just to reach the postseason let alone make a serious run at Stanley Cup to bookend the one he and fellow superstar Evgeni Malkin won in 2009 back when a dynasty seemed almost inevitable.

Pittsburgh’s 4-1 loss to Washington on Monday night in Sullivan’s debut dropped the Penguins to 15-11-3. They were tied for ninth in the Eastern Conference going into Tuesday night’s games and were <hl> 27th <hl> in goals per game despite ranking fifth in shots. Their power play, with a unit littered with All-Stars, is 28th, ahead of only Calgary and Arizona. Enter Sullivan, who spent a decade grinding out a career as a defensive-minded forward before getting into coaching. He now finds himself trying to get Pittsburgh’s highly capable, occasionally high-strung players working in unison. Nowhere are Pittsburgh’s struggles more evident than in Sidney Crosby’s prolonged funk. Crosby, a two-time Hart Trophy winner, is on pace for career lows in goals and points, and his team appears destined for a four-month battle just to reach the postseason let alone make a serious run at Stanley Cup to bookend the one he and fellow superstar Evgeni Malkin won in 2009 back when a dynasty seemed almost inevitable.


Question: What sort of company was Goldman Sachs before it became a global pubicly traded company?

The Goldman Sachs Group is in the middle of its biennial election of the next class of managing directors, an envied status that puts the lucky few just a breath away from the company’s loftiest title of partner. The managing director class that will be inducted starting in January is being culled now, said Gary Cohn, president and chief operating officer, who added he had “no real concerns” about the culture of the bank. Mr. Cohn said Goldman had learned to adapt and change over the years as its model shifted from a traditional private partnership to a global publicly traded company.

Answer: traditional private partnership

The Goldman Sachs Group is in the middle of its biennial election of the next class of managing directors, an envied status that puts the lucky few just a breath away from the company’s loftiest title of partner. The managing director class that will be inducted starting in January is being culled now, said Gary Cohn, president and chief operating officer, who added he had “no real concerns” about the culture of the bank. <hl> Mr. Cohn said Goldman had learned to adapt and change over the years as its model shifted from a traditional private partnership to a global publicly traded company. <hl>

The Goldman Sachs Group is in the middle of its biennial election of the next class of managing directors, an envied status that puts the lucky few just a breath away from the company’s loftiest title of partner. The managing director class that will be inducted starting in January is being culled now, said Gary Cohn, president and chief operating officer, who added he had “no real concerns” about the culture of the bank. Mr. Cohn said Goldman had learned to adapt and change over the years as its model shifted from a <hl> traditional private partnership <hl> to a global publicly traded company.


Question: What is the name of the interior minister of Afghanistan?

The N.D.S. arrested a number of men in the crowd, including the butcher believed to have stabbed the soldier, said Mr. Khan and other witnesses. That seemed to provoke further anger, with the crowd demanding that Afghan security forces on the scene release their countrymen who had stood up against the foreign soldiers. A spokesman for the American-led coalition, Col. Brian Tribus, said the episode was under investigation. He added that two service members in the convoy had minor injuries. The suicide bombing wounded at least 22 people and killed one, said a spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Sediq Sediqqi. But witnesses said the death toll was probably higher.

Answer: Sediq Sediqqi

The N.D.S. arrested a number of men in the crowd, including the butcher believed to have stabbed the soldier, said Mr. Khan and other witnesses. That seemed to provoke further anger, with the crowd demanding that Afghan security forces on the scene release their countrymen who had stood up against the foreign soldiers. A spokesman for the American-led coalition, Col. Brian Tribus, said the episode was under investigation. He added that two service members in the convoy had minor injuries. <hl> The suicide bombing wounded at least 22 people and killed one, said a spokesman for the Interior Ministry, Sediq Sediqqi . <hl> But witnesses said the death toll was probably higher.

The N.D.S. arrested a number of men in the crowd, including the butcher believed to have stabbed the soldier, said Mr. Khan and other witnesses. That seemed to provoke further anger, with the crowd demanding that Afghan security forces on the scene release their countrymen who had stood up against the foreign soldiers. A spokesman for the American-led coalition, Col. Brian Tribus, said the episode was under investigation. He added that two service members in the convoy had minor injuries. The suicide bombing wounded at least 22 people and killed one, said a spokesman for the Interior Ministry, <hl> Sediq Sediqqi <hl>. But witnesses said the death toll was probably higher.

The suicide bombing wounded at least 22 people and killed one, said a spokesman for the Interior Ministry, <hl> Sediq Sediqqi <hl> .


Question: What city does Officer Munoz live?

Officer Munoz, 32, of Suffern, N.Y., pleaded not guilty as he was formally charged before Justice Marcy L. Kahn in State Supreme Court in Manhattan. His lawyer, Stephen C. Worth, said the officer was justified in making the arrest and should never have been indicted. “We look forward to his exoneration,” he said. The charges stem from an encounter on March 12 outside La Casa Del Mofongo, a nightspot in Washington Heights, where Officer Munoz arrested Jason Disisto, 21, on charges of disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and interfering with a police investigation. The officer later said that Mr. Disisto had crouched in a fighting stance, lunged at him and swung a fist before he was arrested.

Answer: Suffern

<hl> Officer Munoz, 32, of Suffern , N.Y., pleaded not guilty as he was formally charged before Justice Marcy L. Kahn in State Supreme Court in Manhattan. <hl> His lawyer, Stephen C. Worth, said the officer was justified in making the arrest and should never have been indicted. “We look forward to his exoneration,” he said. The charges stem from an encounter on March 12 outside La Casa Del Mofongo, a nightspot in Washington Heights, where Officer Munoz arrested Jason Disisto, 21, on charges of disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and interfering with a police investigation. The officer later said that Mr. Disisto had crouched in a fighting stance, lunged at him and swung a fist before he was arrested.

Officer Munoz, 32, of <hl> Suffern <hl>, N.Y., pleaded not guilty as he was formally charged before Justice Marcy L. Kahn in State Supreme Court in Manhattan. His lawyer, Stephen C. Worth, said the officer was justified in making the arrest and should never have been indicted. “We look forward to his exoneration,” he said. The charges stem from an encounter on March 12 outside La Casa Del Mofongo, a nightspot in Washington Heights, where Officer Munoz arrested Jason Disisto, 21, on charges of disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and interfering with a police investigation. The officer later said that Mr. Disisto had crouched in a fighting stance, lunged at him and swung a fist before he was arrested.

Officer Munoz, 32, of <hl> Suffern <hl> , N.Y., pleaded not guilty as he was formally charged before Justice Marcy L. Kahn in State Supreme Court in Manhattan.


Question: What contemporized Miró?

“The Birth of the World,” Joan Miró’s clairvoyant masterpiece from 1927, presaged much of postwar American painting — the early date can elicit a double take when you see it at the Museum of Modern Art. Its expansive surface of thin gray pours and washes, and the delicate lines and shapes in black, red and white that dance across them, open a pathway to so much: the automatic drawing of Surrealism, the frank painterliness and scale of Abstract Expressionism and the lightness and elegance of Color Field painting. So when Miró (1893-1983) took tips from the Abstract Expressionists on his first trip to New York in 1947 and again in 1959, he was learning from artists who had already learned from him. This fascinating show proposes that encountering New York painting enabled Miró to lose some of his refinement and play up a roughness and scale only intermittently visible before. Rather than delicate and nib thin, his lines thickened, brightened and became more dominant, no longer subservient to shapes. “Bird in the Night” is spareness itself: not much more than an open black ovoid and a looping red wishbone that effortlessly summon nest, egg and occupant. Elsewhere Miró improvised layer upon layer, adding a parade of harlequin creatures over a big brown splash of runny paint in “Figures, Birds,” and in “Woman and Bird in the Night,” girdling a series of colorful dots and scribbles in black. Nearly every canvas here is a different excursion into paint, materiality and poetic suggestion. The ensemble enlarges and contemporizes Miró, especially in a commercial gallery’s relatively intimate viewing conditions.

Answer: The ensemble

“The Birth of the World,” Joan Miró’s clairvoyant masterpiece from 1927, presaged much of postwar American painting — the early date can elicit a double take when you see it at the Museum of Modern Art. Its expansive surface of thin gray pours and washes, and the delicate lines and shapes in black, red and white that dance across them, open a pathway to so much: the automatic drawing of Surrealism, the frank painterliness and scale of Abstract Expressionism and the lightness and elegance of Color Field painting. So when Miró (1893-1983) took tips from the Abstract Expressionists on his first trip to New York in 1947 and again in 1959, he was learning from artists who had already learned from him. This fascinating show proposes that encountering New York painting enabled Miró to lose some of his refinement and play up a roughness and scale only intermittently visible before. Rather than delicate and nib thin, his lines thickened, brightened and became more dominant, no longer subservient to shapes. “Bird in the Night” is spareness itself: not much more than an open black ovoid and a looping red wishbone that effortlessly summon nest, egg and occupant. Elsewhere Miró improvised layer upon layer, adding a parade of harlequin creatures over a big brown splash of runny paint in “Figures, Birds,” and in “Woman and Bird in the Night,” girdling a series of colorful dots and scribbles in black. Nearly every canvas here is a different excursion into paint, materiality and poetic suggestion. <hl> The ensemble enlarges and contemporizes Miró, especially in a commercial gallery’s relatively intimate viewing conditions. <hl>

“The Birth of the World,” Joan Miró’s clairvoyant masterpiece from 1927, presaged much of postwar American painting — the early date can elicit a double take when you see it at the Museum of Modern Art. Its expansive surface of thin gray pours and washes, and the delicate lines and shapes in black, red and white that dance across them, open a pathway to so much: the automatic drawing of Surrealism, the frank painterliness and scale of Abstract Expressionism and the lightness and elegance of Color Field painting. So when Miró (1893-1983) took tips from the Abstract Expressionists on his first trip to New York in 1947 and again in 1959, he was learning from artists who had already learned from him. This fascinating show proposes that encountering New York painting enabled Miró to lose some of his refinement and play up a roughness and scale only intermittently visible before. Rather than delicate and nib thin, his lines thickened, brightened and became more dominant, no longer subservient to shapes. “Bird in the Night” is spareness itself: not much more than an open black ovoid and a looping red wishbone that effortlessly summon nest, egg and occupant. Elsewhere Miró improvised layer upon layer, adding a parade of harlequin creatures over a big brown splash of runny paint in “Figures, Birds,” and in “Woman and Bird in the Night,” girdling a series of colorful dots and scribbles in black. Nearly every canvas here is a different excursion into paint, materiality and poetic suggestion. <hl> The ensemble <hl> enlarges and contemporizes Miró, especially in a commercial gallery’s relatively intimate viewing conditions.


Question: How many people died and why?

Outside, shaking women wept into tissues. Stern men, rocking back and forth, blinked out tears. The grief was felt throughout the Orthodox neighborhoods of Brooklyn, and in Israel, where Ms. Sassoon had met her husband. Even as people failed to make sense of the seven deaths — the largest toll from a fire in New York City since 2007 — the mourners turned their thoughts to the mother who leapt out of her bedroom window and a sister who also somehow survived. “Mommy, Mommy, help me!” one neighbor heard Siporah cry as she stumbled outside.

Answer: seven deaths — the largest toll from a fire in New York City since 2007

Outside, shaking women wept into tissues. Stern men, rocking back and forth, blinked out tears. The grief was felt throughout the Orthodox neighborhoods of Brooklyn, and in Israel, where Ms. Sassoon had met her husband. <hl> Even as people failed to make sense of the seven deaths — the largest toll from a fire in New York City since 2007 — the mourners turned their thoughts to the mother who leapt out of her bedroom window and a sister who also somehow survived. <hl> “Mommy, Mommy, help me!” one neighbor heard Siporah cry as she stumbled outside.

Outside, shaking women wept into tissues. Stern men, rocking back and forth, blinked out tears. The grief was felt throughout the Orthodox neighborhoods of Brooklyn, and in Israel, where Ms. Sassoon had met her husband. Even as people failed to make sense of the <hl> seven deaths — the largest toll from a fire in New York City since 2007 <hl> — the mourners turned their thoughts to the mother who leapt out of her bedroom window and a sister who also somehow survived. “Mommy, Mommy, help me!” one neighbor heard Siporah cry as she stumbled outside.


Question: What was damage was done personally to Thomas?

Yes, O.K., sorry, but not really. Six of the seven jurors wanted Thomas held financially responsible. He can thank a lone holdout for the fact that the damage was only to his reputation, and not to his bank account.

Answer: damage was only to his reputation

Yes, O.K., sorry, but not really. Six of the seven jurors wanted Thomas held financially responsible. <hl> He can thank a lone holdout for the fact that the damage was only to his reputation , and not to his bank account. <hl>

Yes, O.K., sorry, but not really. Six of the seven jurors wanted Thomas held financially responsible. He can thank a lone holdout for the fact that the <hl> damage was only to his reputation <hl>, and not to his bank account.

He can thank a lone holdout for the fact that the <hl> damage was only to his reputation <hl> , and not to his bank account.


Question: Who claimed that they won the battle in Northern Syria?

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Scores of Syrian government soldiers and civilians besieged by insurgents for nearly a month in a hospital in northern Syria fled on Friday in a dramatic exit that both the army and its opponents promptly claimed as a victory. Videos posted by each side showed lines of uniformed soldiers trotting away across a field as what sounded like rifle and artillery fire echoed in the background; the government claimed that they reached safety, while insurgents claimed that many were killed or captured.

Answer: both the army and its opponents

<hl> BEIRUT, Lebanon — Scores of Syrian government soldiers and civilians besieged by insurgents for nearly a month in a hospital in northern Syria fled on Friday in a dramatic exit that both the army and its opponents promptly claimed as a victory. <hl> Videos posted by each side showed lines of uniformed soldiers trotting away across a field as what sounded like rifle and artillery fire echoed in the background; the government claimed that they reached safety, while insurgents claimed that many were killed or captured.

BEIRUT, Lebanon — Scores of Syrian government soldiers and civilians besieged by insurgents for nearly a month in a hospital in northern Syria fled on Friday in a dramatic exit that <hl> both the army and its opponents <hl> promptly claimed as a victory. Videos posted by each side showed lines of uniformed soldiers trotting away across a field as what sounded like rifle and artillery fire echoed in the background; the government claimed that they reached safety, while insurgents claimed that many were killed or captured.


Question: What does early research show of those with new coverage?

That may be one way of thinking about the law’s benefits for the newly insured, who had limited access to the health care system. For many, their new coverage means they can get free checkups and preventive disease screenings, and can more easily pay for big health care needs, like prescription drugs and operations. Early evidence suggests they are facing less financial stress as a result of their coverage. Some are now managing chronic and potentially life-threatening health conditions. But those benefits don’t mean we should be surprised by the actuaries’ recent findings on spending growth. More people in the health care system means more dollars spent on health care. The increase doesn’t mean that Obamacare is leading to runaway costs, or that it’s failing to reform the health care system to make it more efficient. But it does mean that we can’t think of the coverage expansion as free.

Answer: they are facing less financial stress

That may be one way of thinking about the law’s benefits for the newly insured, who had limited access to the health care system. For many, their new coverage means they can get free checkups and preventive disease screenings, and can more easily pay for big health care needs, like prescription drugs and operations. <hl> Early evidence suggests they are facing less financial stress as a result of their coverage. <hl> Some are now managing chronic and potentially life-threatening health conditions. But those benefits don’t mean we should be surprised by the actuaries’ recent findings on spending growth. More people in the health care system means more dollars spent on health care. The increase doesn’t mean that Obamacare is leading to runaway costs, or that it’s failing to reform the health care system to make it more efficient. But it does mean that we can’t think of the coverage expansion as free.

That may be one way of thinking about the law’s benefits for the newly insured, who had limited access to the health care system. For many, their new coverage means they can get free checkups and preventive disease screenings, and can more easily pay for big health care needs, like prescription drugs and operations. Early evidence suggests <hl> they are facing less financial stress <hl> as a result of their coverage. Some are now managing chronic and potentially life-threatening health conditions. But those benefits don’t mean we should be surprised by the actuaries’ recent findings on spending growth. More people in the health care system means more dollars spent on health care. The increase doesn’t mean that Obamacare is leading to runaway costs, or that it’s failing to reform the health care system to make it more efficient. But it does mean that we can’t think of the coverage expansion as free.


Question: What was the main false claim the police accused Hammond of?

To Zachary Hammond’s supporters, the shooting death of the 19-year-old man was yet another example of questionable police behavior that has shaken communities around the country. In their view, the police in Seneca, S.C., falsely claimed Mr. Hammond was shot last month as he tried to drive his car over the officer who fired on him, when his wounds show he was actually shot from the side and back. They also say the deadly confrontation, in which officers approached with their guns drawn and screaming profanities, evolved from an absurd sting effort to trap his date into selling a tiny amount of marijuana, a drug now decriminalized in much of the country.

Answer: tried to drive his car over the officer

To Zachary Hammond’s supporters, the shooting death of the 19-year-old man was yet another example of questionable police behavior that has shaken communities around the country. <hl> In their view, the police in Seneca, S.C., falsely claimed Mr. Hammond was shot last month as he tried to drive his car over the officer who fired on him, when his wounds show he was actually shot from the side and back. <hl> They also say the deadly confrontation, in which officers approached with their guns drawn and screaming profanities, evolved from an absurd sting effort to trap his date into selling a tiny amount of marijuana, a drug now decriminalized in much of the country.

To Zachary Hammond’s supporters, the shooting death of the 19-year-old man was yet another example of questionable police behavior that has shaken communities around the country. In their view, the police in Seneca, S.C., falsely claimed Mr. Hammond was shot last month as he <hl> tried to drive his car over the officer <hl> who fired on him, when his wounds show he was actually shot from the side and back. They also say the deadly confrontation, in which officers approached with their guns drawn and screaming profanities, evolved from an absurd sting effort to trap his date into selling a tiny amount of marijuana, a drug now decriminalized in much of the country.


Question: Who nominated Mr. Fox to be a commissioner last year?

The United States attorney’s office in Newark is investigating whether United reinstated flights to a South Carolina airport close to the weekend home of David Samson, the former Port Authority chairman, in exchange for concessions the airline sought from the agency. Mr. Samson is said to have raised the issue with United officials at a dinner that Mr. Fox attended in Manhattan in September 2011. Mr. Christie, a Republican, nominated Mr. Fox to be commissioner a year ago. He was hired in hopes that he could broker a deal with New Jersey’s Legislature, led by Democrats, to replenish the state’s fund for roads and transportation, which, if current trends continue, would be out of money next year.

Answer: Mr. Christie

The United States attorney’s office in Newark is investigating whether United reinstated flights to a South Carolina airport close to the weekend home of David Samson, the former Port Authority chairman, in exchange for concessions the airline sought from the agency. Mr. Samson is said to have raised the issue with United officials at a dinner that Mr. Fox attended in Manhattan in September 2011. <hl> Mr. Christie , a Republican, nominated Mr. Fox to be commissioner a year ago. <hl> He was hired in hopes that he could broker a deal with New Jersey’s Legislature, led by Democrats, to replenish the state’s fund for roads and transportation, which, if current trends continue, would be out of money next year.

The United States attorney’s office in Newark is investigating whether United reinstated flights to a South Carolina airport close to the weekend home of David Samson, the former Port Authority chairman, in exchange for concessions the airline sought from the agency. Mr. Samson is said to have raised the issue with United officials at a dinner that Mr. Fox attended in Manhattan in September 2011. <hl> Mr. Christie <hl>, a Republican, nominated Mr. Fox to be commissioner a year ago. He was hired in hopes that he could broker a deal with New Jersey’s Legislature, led by Democrats, to replenish the state’s fund for roads and transportation, which, if current trends continue, would be out of money next year.

<hl> Mr. Christie <hl> , a Republican, nominated Mr. Fox to be commissioner a year ago.


Question: Which is team is scrappy underdog?

Rose, cleared medically but uncertain of his own health, was accused of a lack of toughness and a me-first attitude. When he finally returned for the next season, 2013-14, another injury — this time a torn medial meniscus in his right knee — felled him in only his 10th game. Rose aggravated the injury this season, had surgery and missed a quarter of the campaign; he returned just before the end of the regular season. In his absence, the Bulls were a scrappy underdog — a solid regular-season team that lacked the star power for playoff crunchtime. On Saturday, they had the look of a championship contender.

Answer: Bulls

Rose, cleared medically but uncertain of his own health, was accused of a lack of toughness and a me-first attitude. When he finally returned for the next season, 2013-14, another injury — this time a torn medial meniscus in his right knee — felled him in only his 10th game. Rose aggravated the injury this season, had surgery and missed a quarter of the campaign; he returned just before the end of the regular season. <hl> In his absence, the Bulls were a scrappy underdog — a solid regular-season team that lacked the star power for playoff crunchtime. <hl> On Saturday, they had the look of a championship contender.

Rose, cleared medically but uncertain of his own health, was accused of a lack of toughness and a me-first attitude. When he finally returned for the next season, 2013-14, another injury — this time a torn medial meniscus in his right knee — felled him in only his 10th game. Rose aggravated the injury this season, had surgery and missed a quarter of the campaign; he returned just before the end of the regular season. In his absence, the <hl> Bulls <hl> were a scrappy underdog — a solid regular-season team that lacked the star power for playoff crunchtime. On Saturday, they had the look of a championship contender.


Question: Who did Mr. Faulkner pledge that he would get along better with than Mr. de Blasio?

Mr. Faulkner, who served on a task force on police relations under Mayor Giuliani, faulted Mr. de Blasio for failing to reassure police officers that he “has their back,” and for alienating the business community. Mr. Faulkner pledged that he would get along better with Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, who is a Democrat, than Mr. de Blasio has. The two Democratic leaders have clashed, with increasingly open hostility. “This governor has been pretty independent of his party,” Mr. Faulkner said. “I have no doubt that I will have a much better relationship, a working relationship, with this governor.” And if Mr. Faulkner were to advance to a debate with Mr. de Blasio, he would at least be able to challenge the mayor eye-to-eye: At 6-foot-4, Mr. Faulkner is, at most, only one or two inches shorter than Mr. de Blasio.

Answer: Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo

Mr. Faulkner, who served on a task force on police relations under Mayor Giuliani, faulted Mr. de Blasio for failing to reassure police officers that he “has their back,” and for alienating the business community. <hl> Mr. Faulkner pledged that he would get along better with Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo , who is a Democrat, than Mr. de Blasio has. <hl> The two Democratic leaders have clashed, with increasingly open hostility. “This governor has been pretty independent of his party,” Mr. Faulkner said. “I have no doubt that I will have a much better relationship, a working relationship, with this governor.” And if Mr. Faulkner were to advance to a debate with Mr. de Blasio, he would at least be able to challenge the mayor eye-to-eye: At 6-foot-4, Mr. Faulkner is, at most, only one or two inches shorter than Mr. de Blasio.

Mr. Faulkner, who served on a task force on police relations under Mayor Giuliani, faulted Mr. de Blasio for failing to reassure police officers that he “has their back,” and for alienating the business community. Mr. Faulkner pledged that he would get along better with <hl> Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo <hl>, who is a Democrat, than Mr. de Blasio has. The two Democratic leaders have clashed, with increasingly open hostility. “This governor has been pretty independent of his party,” Mr. Faulkner said. “I have no doubt that I will have a much better relationship, a working relationship, with this governor.” And if Mr. Faulkner were to advance to a debate with Mr. de Blasio, he would at least be able to challenge the mayor eye-to-eye: At 6-foot-4, Mr. Faulkner is, at most, only one or two inches shorter than Mr. de Blasio.

Mr. Faulkner pledged that he would get along better with <hl> Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo <hl> , who is a Democrat, than Mr. de Blasio has.


Question: Who is the interim chief executive of Emilio Pucci and Mr. Pucci's daughter?

Laudomia Pucci, the interim chief executive of Emilio Pucci and Mr. Pucci’s daughter, attested to Mr. Fairchild’s particular mixture of kindness and cutting. “He was extremely, extremely nice with my father, whenever he talked to him,” she said. “But at the same time, he had that niceness and then this very dry sense of humor.”

Answer: Laudomia Pucci

<hl> Laudomia Pucci , the interim chief executive of Emilio Pucci and Mr. Pucci’s daughter, attested to Mr. Fairchild’s particular mixture of kindness and cutting. <hl> “He was extremely, extremely nice with my father, whenever he talked to him,” she said. “But at the same time, he had that niceness and then this very dry sense of humor.”

<hl> Laudomia Pucci <hl>, the interim chief executive of Emilio Pucci and Mr. Pucci’s daughter, attested to Mr. Fairchild’s particular mixture of kindness and cutting. “He was extremely, extremely nice with my father, whenever he talked to him,” she said. “But at the same time, he had that niceness and then this very dry sense of humor.”

<hl> Laudomia Pucci <hl> , the interim chief executive of Emilio Pucci and Mr. Pucci’s daughter, attested to Mr. Fairchild’s particular mixture of kindness and cutting.


Question: What is the only cure?

Jay’s troubles begin after she sleeps with her new boyfriend, Hugh (Jake Weary), who, after their lovemaking in his car, ties her to a chair under a bridge, and explains her predicament. From him, she has caught a supernatural version of a venereal disease. Having sex with someone else is the only cure, if cure is the right word. The explanations for almost everything that happens are intentionally enigmatic and sometimes completely mystifying. In the most elaborate set piece, Jay dives into an indoor swimming pool, which her friends encircle with electrical appliances. But why? For protection?

Answer: Having sex with someone else

Jay’s troubles begin after she sleeps with her new boyfriend, Hugh (Jake Weary), who, after their lovemaking in his car, ties her to a chair under a bridge, and explains her predicament. From him, she has caught a supernatural version of a venereal disease. <hl> Having sex with someone else is the only cure, if cure is the right word. <hl> The explanations for almost everything that happens are intentionally enigmatic and sometimes completely mystifying. In the most elaborate set piece, Jay dives into an indoor swimming pool, which her friends encircle with electrical appliances. But why? For protection?

Jay’s troubles begin after she sleeps with her new boyfriend, Hugh (Jake Weary), who, after their lovemaking in his car, ties her to a chair under a bridge, and explains her predicament. From him, she has caught a supernatural version of a venereal disease. <hl> Having sex with someone else <hl> is the only cure, if cure is the right word. The explanations for almost everything that happens are intentionally enigmatic and sometimes completely mystifying. In the most elaborate set piece, Jay dives into an indoor swimming pool, which her friends encircle with electrical appliances. But why? For protection?


Question: How many people in South Sudan are facing a food crisis?

Three United Nations agencies reported Thursday that 3.9 million people in South Sudan, roughly a third of the population, now face “severe food insecurity” because of the mayhem and disruptions caused by that country’s nearly two-year-old civil war. A statement issued jointly by the agencies, Unicef, the World Food Program and the Food and Agriculture Organization, also said that at least 30,000 people in Unity State, in the north-central part of South Sudan, had fallen into the “catastrophe” phase of food insecurity — the most dire — and are “living in extreme conditions and are facing starvation and death.” Some families, the statement said, are subsisting on one meal a day of fish and water lilies. Despite a number of peace pledges made by the warring sides, fighting has persisted in South Sudan. Serge Tissot, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s representative in South Sudan, said in the statement that “livelihoods have been severely affected by high inflation rates, market disruption, conflict-related displacement and loss of livestock and agricultural production.”

Answer: 3.9 million

<hl> Three United Nations agencies reported Thursday that 3.9 million people in South Sudan, roughly a third of the population, now face “severe food insecurity” because of the mayhem and disruptions caused by that country’s nearly two-year-old civil war. <hl> A statement issued jointly by the agencies, Unicef, the World Food Program and the Food and Agriculture Organization, also said that at least 30,000 people in Unity State, in the north-central part of South Sudan, had fallen into the “catastrophe” phase of food insecurity — the most dire — and are “living in extreme conditions and are facing starvation and death.” Some families, the statement said, are subsisting on one meal a day of fish and water lilies. Despite a number of peace pledges made by the warring sides, fighting has persisted in South Sudan. Serge Tissot, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s representative in South Sudan, said in the statement that “livelihoods have been severely affected by high inflation rates, market disruption, conflict-related displacement and loss of livestock and agricultural production.”

Three United Nations agencies reported Thursday that <hl> 3.9 million <hl> people in South Sudan, roughly a third of the population, now face “severe food insecurity” because of the mayhem and disruptions caused by that country’s nearly two-year-old civil war. A statement issued jointly by the agencies, Unicef, the World Food Program and the Food and Agriculture Organization, also said that at least 30,000 people in Unity State, in the north-central part of South Sudan, had fallen into the “catastrophe” phase of food insecurity — the most dire — and are “living in extreme conditions and are facing starvation and death.” Some families, the statement said, are subsisting on one meal a day of fish and water lilies. Despite a number of peace pledges made by the warring sides, fighting has persisted in South Sudan. Serge Tissot, the Food and Agriculture Organization’s representative in South Sudan, said in the statement that “livelihoods have been severely affected by high inflation rates, market disruption, conflict-related displacement and loss of livestock and agricultural production.”


Question: What is the name of the boat that arrived in the Northeast?

The Pilgrims and their fellow travelers weren’t terrorists, of course (despite an instance of putting the severed head of a perceived enemy on a pole), but they and those who followed certainly did effect a cultural conquest. Some versions of their story play that down, partly because a plague resulting from earlier contact with Westerners brought widespread death to coastal Indians in the Northeast just before the Mayflower arrived. God, it seemed to some, killed off the Indians to make way for the whites, a view this program corrects.

Answer: Mayflower

the Mayflower arrived.

The Pilgrims and their fellow travelers weren’t terrorists, of course (despite an instance of putting the severed head of a perceived enemy on a pole), but they and those who followed certainly did effect a cultural conquest. Some versions of their story play that down, partly because a plague resulting from earlier contact with Westerners brought widespread death to coastal Indians in the Northeast just before <hl> the Mayflower arrived. <hl> God, it seemed to some, killed off the Indians to make way for the whites, a view this program corrects.

The Pilgrims and their fellow travelers weren’t terrorists, of course (despite an instance of putting the severed head of a perceived enemy on a pole), but they and those who followed certainly did effect a cultural conquest. Some versions of their story play that down, partly because a plague resulting from earlier contact with Westerners brought widespread death to coastal Indians in the Northeast just before the <hl> Mayflower <hl> arrived. God, it seemed to some, killed off the Indians to make way for the whites, a view this program corrects.


Question: The question asker has what kind of computers?

Some phone makers, like Samsung with its Galaxy S5 and Galaxy S6 models, let you take a screen shot by touching the phone’s display with the side of your hand and swiping from left to right; the Power and Volume Down button combination works as well. To see a collection of your Samsung screen shots, open the Gallery app, go to Album view and tap Screenshots. Sharing iTunes Files Between Computers Q. I have a work and home computer with different iTunes libraries. If I want to copy songs from one computer’s music library to the other, can I just copy the tracks to my Dropbox folder and then download them to the other computer from there?

Answer: work and home

Some phone makers, like Samsung with its Galaxy S5 and Galaxy S6 models, let you take a screen shot by touching the phone’s display with the side of your hand and swiping from left to right; the Power and Volume Down button combination works as well. To see a collection of your Samsung screen shots, open the Gallery app, go to Album view and tap Screenshots. Sharing iTunes Files Between Computers Q. <hl> I have a work and home computer with different iTunes libraries. <hl> If I want to copy songs from one computer’s music library to the other, can I just copy the tracks to my Dropbox folder and then download them to the other computer from there?

Some phone makers, like Samsung with its Galaxy S5 and Galaxy S6 models, let you take a screen shot by touching the phone’s display with the side of your hand and swiping from left to right; the Power and Volume Down button combination works as well. To see a collection of your Samsung screen shots, open the Gallery app, go to Album view and tap Screenshots. Sharing iTunes Files Between Computers Q. I have a <hl> work and home <hl> computer with different iTunes libraries. If I want to copy songs from one computer’s music library to the other, can I just copy the tracks to my Dropbox folder and then download them to the other computer from there?


Question: Who ran into Lockette?

It made all the difference. Butler, a reserve cornerback and undrafted rookie who was understandably convinced he would be the goat after Kearse had played pinball wizard at his expense, turned out to be quite the contrary. This was not by chance. He recognized an opportunity and made it happen, correctly reading the pick play and slant route the Seahawks were counting on and beating Ricardo Lockette to the ball as he and Lockette collided. It was the first interception of Butler’s N.F.L. career.

Answer: Butler,

It made all the difference. <hl> Butler, a reserve cornerback and undrafted rookie who was understandably convinced he would be the goat after Kearse had played pinball wizard at his expense, turned out to be quite the contrary. <hl> This was not by chance. He recognized an opportunity and made it happen, correctly reading the pick play and slant route the Seahawks were counting on and beating Ricardo Lockette to the ball as he and Lockette collided. It was the first interception of Butler’s N.F.L. career.

It made all the difference. <hl> Butler, <hl> a reserve cornerback and undrafted rookie who was understandably convinced he would be the goat after Kearse had played pinball wizard at his expense, turned out to be quite the contrary. This was not by chance. He recognized an opportunity and made it happen, correctly reading the pick play and slant route the Seahawks were counting on and beating Ricardo Lockette to the ball as he and Lockette collided. It was the first interception of Butler’s N.F.L. career.


Question: Who expected them to know much of the basics?

In the first two weeks of training, the Americans found the Ukrainians’ soldierly skills lacking, and the group generally in need of instruction. “I came into it expecting them not to know much of the basics,” said Sgt. Michael Faranda, who is teaching maneuvers. He was correct. Things “every soldier should know,” he said, they did not. Some even forgot their helmets on the first day of exercises. Still, Sergeant Faranda said, the Ukrainians’ willingness to go into combat was all the more notable for their lack of preparation for it.

Answer: Sgt. Michael Faranda

In the first two weeks of training, the Americans found the Ukrainians’ soldierly skills lacking, and the group generally in need of instruction. <hl> “I came into it expecting them not to know much of the basics,” said Sgt. Michael Faranda , who is teaching maneuvers. <hl> He was correct. Things “every soldier should know,” he said, they did not. Some even forgot their helmets on the first day of exercises. Still, Sergeant Faranda said, the Ukrainians’ willingness to go into combat was all the more notable for their lack of preparation for it.

In the first two weeks of training, the Americans found the Ukrainians’ soldierly skills lacking, and the group generally in need of instruction. “I came into it expecting them not to know much of the basics,” said <hl> Sgt. Michael Faranda <hl>, who is teaching maneuvers. He was correct. Things “every soldier should know,” he said, they did not. Some even forgot their helmets on the first day of exercises. Still, Sergeant Faranda said, the Ukrainians’ willingness to go into combat was all the more notable for their lack of preparation for it.

“I came into it expecting them not to know much of the basics,” said <hl> Sgt. Michael Faranda <hl> , who is teaching maneuvers.


Question: What is the name of Joan Shelley's second solo album?

Ms. Shelley is from Louisville, Ky., where she has recorded in duos and groups; “Electric Ursa” is her second solo album. Her songs hold echoes of the area’s Appalachian heritage in their unhurried picking and Celtic-tinged melodies, and she sings with the centered clarity of a mountain balladeer. But her songs aren’t necessarily traditionalist. She also invokes another school of American and British acoustic music: the guitar meditations of musicians like John Fahey, Davy Graham and Vashti Bunyan, who found more hypnotic uses for elements of folk styles. Although Ms. Shelley leads a full band on her albums, at Union Pool, her backup was ample with just two acoustic guitars — her own and Nathan Salsburg’s — and the occasional vocal harmonies of Glen Dentinger. A few cyclical, undulating, fingerpicked chords were enough for each song, with Ms. Shelley pinpointing the rhythm and Mr. Salsburg entwining it with touches of filigree. Mr. Salsburg, also from Louisville, had started the evening with guitar instrumentals (including a folkified version of the Smiths’ “Reel Around the Fountain”); Nathan Bowles, a banjoist and singer who also shared the bill, joined Ms. Shelley’s group for one song.

Answer: Electric Ursa

<hl> Ms. Shelley is from Louisville, Ky., where she has recorded in duos and groups; “ Electric Ursa ” is her second solo album. <hl> Her songs hold echoes of the area’s Appalachian heritage in their unhurried picking and Celtic-tinged melodies, and she sings with the centered clarity of a mountain balladeer. But her songs aren’t necessarily traditionalist. She also invokes another school of American and British acoustic music: the guitar meditations of musicians like John Fahey, Davy Graham and Vashti Bunyan, who found more hypnotic uses for elements of folk styles. Although Ms. Shelley leads a full band on her albums, at Union Pool, her backup was ample with just two acoustic guitars — her own and Nathan Salsburg’s — and the occasional vocal harmonies of Glen Dentinger. A few cyclical, undulating, fingerpicked chords were enough for each song, with Ms. Shelley pinpointing the rhythm and Mr. Salsburg entwining it with touches of filigree. Mr. Salsburg, also from Louisville, had started the evening with guitar instrumentals (including a folkified version of the Smiths’ “Reel Around the Fountain”); Nathan Bowles, a banjoist and singer who also shared the bill, joined Ms. Shelley’s group for one song.

Ms. Shelley is from Louisville, Ky., where she has recorded in duos and groups; “<hl> Electric Ursa <hl>” is her second solo album. Her songs hold echoes of the area’s Appalachian heritage in their unhurried picking and Celtic-tinged melodies, and she sings with the centered clarity of a mountain balladeer. But her songs aren’t necessarily traditionalist. She also invokes another school of American and British acoustic music: the guitar meditations of musicians like John Fahey, Davy Graham and Vashti Bunyan, who found more hypnotic uses for elements of folk styles. Although Ms. Shelley leads a full band on her albums, at Union Pool, her backup was ample with just two acoustic guitars — her own and Nathan Salsburg’s — and the occasional vocal harmonies of Glen Dentinger. A few cyclical, undulating, fingerpicked chords were enough for each song, with Ms. Shelley pinpointing the rhythm and Mr. Salsburg entwining it with touches of filigree. Mr. Salsburg, also from Louisville, had started the evening with guitar instrumentals (including a folkified version of the Smiths’ “Reel Around the Fountain”); Nathan Bowles, a banjoist and singer who also shared the bill, joined Ms. Shelley’s group for one song.

Ms. Shelley is from Louisville, Ky., where she has recorded in duos and groups; “ <hl> Electric Ursa <hl> ” is her second solo album.


Question: What is the name of the person that filed the lawsuit?

A Texas plumber has filed a lawsuit against a car dealership after a used truck he sold showed up on the front lines in Syria being used by Islamist fighters. The logo and phone number of his company, Mark-1 Plumbing, were still visible on the doors. After images of the truck appeared online, the plumber, Mark Oberholtzer of Galveston County, claims he lost business and received hundreds of threats that accused him of being a terrorist sympathizer. Mr. Oberholtzer is seeking more than $1 million in damages, in a lawsuit filed last week, according to his lawyer, Craig Eiland. A copy of the lawsuit was provided to The New York Times. Mr. Oberholtzer’s truck began its strange journey from fixing leaky pipes in suburban Texas to the Syrian battlefield in 2013. In October of that year, the lawsuit said, Mr. Oberholtzer handed over the 2005 Ford F-250 truck to AutoNation Ford Gulf Freeway in Houston as part of a trade-in deal for a newer model. As the paperwork was being completed, Mr. Oberholtzer’s son started peeling off the decal on the truck that showed the phone number and name of the company, but the salesman told him to stop because it would harm the paint and said it would be removed later, the lawsuit said.

Answer: Mark Oberholtzer

A Texas plumber has filed a lawsuit against a car dealership after a used truck he sold showed up on the front lines in Syria being used by Islamist fighters. The logo and phone number of his company, Mark-1 Plumbing, were still visible on the doors. <hl> After images of the truck appeared online, the plumber, Mark Oberholtzer of Galveston County, claims he lost business and received hundreds of threats that accused him of being a terrorist sympathizer. <hl> Mr. Oberholtzer is seeking more than $1 million in damages, in a lawsuit filed last week, according to his lawyer, Craig Eiland. A copy of the lawsuit was provided to The New York Times. Mr. Oberholtzer’s truck began its strange journey from fixing leaky pipes in suburban Texas to the Syrian battlefield in 2013. In October of that year, the lawsuit said, Mr. Oberholtzer handed over the 2005 Ford F-250 truck to AutoNation Ford Gulf Freeway in Houston as part of a trade-in deal for a newer model. As the paperwork was being completed, Mr. Oberholtzer’s son started peeling off the decal on the truck that showed the phone number and name of the company, but the salesman told him to stop because it would harm the paint and said it would be removed later, the lawsuit said.

A Texas plumber has filed a lawsuit against a car dealership after a used truck he sold showed up on the front lines in Syria being used by Islamist fighters. The logo and phone number of his company, Mark-1 Plumbing, were still visible on the doors. After images of the truck appeared online, the plumber, <hl> Mark Oberholtzer <hl> of Galveston County, claims he lost business and received hundreds of threats that accused him of being a terrorist sympathizer. Mr. Oberholtzer is seeking more than $1 million in damages, in a lawsuit filed last week, according to his lawyer, Craig Eiland. A copy of the lawsuit was provided to The New York Times. Mr. Oberholtzer’s truck began its strange journey from fixing leaky pipes in suburban Texas to the Syrian battlefield in 2013. In October of that year, the lawsuit said, Mr. Oberholtzer handed over the 2005 Ford F-250 truck to AutoNation Ford Gulf Freeway in Houston as part of a trade-in deal for a newer model. As the paperwork was being completed, Mr. Oberholtzer’s son started peeling off the decal on the truck that showed the phone number and name of the company, but the salesman told him to stop because it would harm the paint and said it would be removed later, the lawsuit said.


Question: In what role was officer Flanery working on  the night of the shooting?

Prosecutors in St. Louis will not charge the police officer who fatally shot VonDerrit D. Myers Jr. in October, a shooting that renewed tensions with law enforcement weeks after Michael Brown was killed by an officer in nearby Ferguson. In a report released Monday, Jennifer M. Joyce, the circuit attorney for St. Louis, found that Mr. Myers “produced a gun” during the encounter with the officer, Jason Flanery, who was working an off-duty security detail for a private company. Police had said Mr. Myers, 18, who was black, shot a stolen handgun before Officer Flanery, who is white, returned fire. Prosecutors said in their report that witnesses had seen gunfire coming from both directions and from two guns and that a semiautomatic pistol had been recovered next to Mr. Myers’s body. Mr. Myers’s family disputed the police account and insisted that he had been unarmed. Protesters marched for several nights after the shooting, and some drew parallels between Mr. Myers’s death and that of Mr. Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old shot by a white Ferguson officer in August. In a statement, Ms. Joyce expressed condolences to the Myers family and called his death “a tragic situation for our entire community.”

Answer: an off-duty security detail for a private company

Prosecutors in St. Louis will not charge the police officer who fatally shot VonDerrit D. Myers Jr. in October, a shooting that renewed tensions with law enforcement weeks after Michael Brown was killed by an officer in nearby Ferguson. <hl> In a report released Monday, Jennifer M. Joyce, the circuit attorney for St. Louis, found that Mr. Myers “produced a gun” during the encounter with the officer, Jason Flanery, who was working an off-duty security detail for a private company . <hl> Police had said Mr. Myers, 18, who was black, shot a stolen handgun before Officer Flanery, who is white, returned fire. Prosecutors said in their report that witnesses had seen gunfire coming from both directions and from two guns and that a semiautomatic pistol had been recovered next to Mr. Myers’s body. Mr. Myers’s family disputed the police account and insisted that he had been unarmed. Protesters marched for several nights after the shooting, and some drew parallels between Mr. Myers’s death and that of Mr. Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old shot by a white Ferguson officer in August. In a statement, Ms. Joyce expressed condolences to the Myers family and called his death “a tragic situation for our entire community.”

Prosecutors in St. Louis will not charge the police officer who fatally shot VonDerrit D. Myers Jr. in October, a shooting that renewed tensions with law enforcement weeks after Michael Brown was killed by an officer in nearby Ferguson. In a report released Monday, Jennifer M. Joyce, the circuit attorney for St. Louis, found that Mr. Myers “produced a gun” during the encounter with the officer, Jason Flanery, who was working <hl> an off-duty security detail for a private company <hl>. Police had said Mr. Myers, 18, who was black, shot a stolen handgun before Officer Flanery, who is white, returned fire. Prosecutors said in their report that witnesses had seen gunfire coming from both directions and from two guns and that a semiautomatic pistol had been recovered next to Mr. Myers’s body. Mr. Myers’s family disputed the police account and insisted that he had been unarmed. Protesters marched for several nights after the shooting, and some drew parallels between Mr. Myers’s death and that of Mr. Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old shot by a white Ferguson officer in August. In a statement, Ms. Joyce expressed condolences to the Myers family and called his death “a tragic situation for our entire community.”

In a report released Monday, Jennifer M. Joyce, the circuit attorney for St. Louis, found that Mr. Myers “produced a gun” during the encounter with the officer, Jason Flanery, who was working <hl> an off-duty security detail for a private company <hl> .


Question: What does Tingting think is the worst thing about domestic violence in China?

In 2012, as she, Li Tingting and another woman prepared for a Valentine’s Day protest against domestic violence in Beijing, she described the childhood trauma of watching men pummel their wives in public — including her own father. “People thought that women deserved beating,” she said, according to a video made at the time. “The worst thing is people tolerate it and accept it as a natural part of life, but no one believes beating a man is O.K.” As a project manager at the Beijing Gender Health Education Institute, Ms. Wei helped stage an annual AIDS Walk on the Great Wall, attended women’s conferences in India and South Korea, and started collecting footage for a documentary about bisexuality in China.

Answer: people tolerate it and accept it as a natural part of life,

In 2012, as she, Li Tingting and another woman prepared for a Valentine’s Day protest against domestic violence in Beijing, she described the childhood trauma of watching men pummel their wives in public — including her own father. “People thought that women deserved beating,” she said, according to a video made at the time. <hl> “The worst thing is people tolerate it and accept it as a natural part of life, but no one believes beating a man is O.K.” As a project manager at the Beijing Gender Health Education Institute, Ms. Wei helped stage an annual AIDS Walk on the Great Wall, attended women’s conferences in India and South Korea, and started collecting footage for a documentary about bisexuality in China. <hl>

In 2012, as she, Li Tingting and another woman prepared for a Valentine’s Day protest against domestic violence in Beijing, she described the childhood trauma of watching men pummel their wives in public — including her own father. “People thought that women deserved beating,” she said, according to a video made at the time. “The worst thing is <hl> people tolerate it and accept it as a natural part of life, <hl> but no one believes beating a man is O.K.” As a project manager at the Beijing Gender Health Education Institute, Ms. Wei helped stage an annual AIDS Walk on the Great Wall, attended women’s conferences in India and South Korea, and started collecting footage for a documentary about bisexuality in China.


Question: How were many of the items featured in the Swedish Wooden Toys exhibition produced?

★ ‘Swedish Wooden Toys’ (through Feb. 28) This presentation of more than 300 playthings from the late 16th to the early 21st centuries will be catnip for anyone into antique toys. The show features diminutive vehicles of all kinds from old-time wagons, trains and fully-rigged sailboats, to futuristic cars and a rocket ship. There are naturalistic and anthropomorphic animals, weapons, puzzles, games, dollhouses and architectural construction kits. While many of these items were produced by big manufacturers like BRIO and Playsam, many others are one-of-a-kind wonders like a miniature baking set from around 1900 that includes rolling pins, spatulas and other implements all lovingly carved from wood and fitting into a tray just eight inches long. Bard Graduate Center Gallery, 18 West 86th Street, Manhattan, 212-501-3011, bgc.bard.edu. (Johnson) ★ Gil Batle: ‘Hatched in Prison’ (through Jan. 9) Mr. Batle, 53, served a total of 20 years in five California prisons for fraud and forgery. Now living in the Philippines, he has been recounting his experiences in an unlikely medium. Using a high-speed dental drill, he carves miniature narratives of prison life into the surfaces of ostrich eggs. The 19 examples in this show, all made in the past two years, are amazing for their meticulous craftsmanship and detailed story telling. Ricco Maresca, 529 West 20th Street, Chelsea, 212-627-4819, riccomaresca.com. (Johnson) ★ Annu Palakunnathu Matthew: ‘Indelible Memories’ (through Jan. 16) Ms. Matthew was born in England to Indian parents, spent her adolescence and early adulthood in India, and has lived in the United States since. The mostly album-size photographs in this compact but far-ranging gallery survey are about the intensities and confusions of a cultural mixing that makes the artist, psychologically, both a global citizen and an outsider, at home and in transit, wherever she is. And it’s about photography as document and fiction: souvenir, re-enactment and imaginative projection. (Closed Dec. 24 through Jan. 4.) A beautiful show that could too easily slip away. sepiaEYE, 547 West 27th Street, Chelsea, 212-967-0738, sepiaeye.com. (Cotter) ★ Robert Ryman (through June 18) For nearly 60s years, the Minimalist painter Robert Ryman has had few equals when it comes to doing more with less. White has been his primary, if not quite his only, color, the square his typical format. And yet within these seeming limitations a remarkably fecund and resonant body of work has evolved as demonstrated with unusual clarity (and in natural light) by this small but comprehensive exhibition. Dia: Chelsea, 535 West 22nd Street, 212-989-5566, diaart.org. (Smith) ★ Giorgio Morandi (through June 25) The Italian master of modern still life, and closet abstractionist, is celebrated in a large show devoted foremost to his painting from the 1930s, which are not well known in this country. They reveal a period of struggle during which the artist had settled on what to paint, how to paint was still very much up for grabs. Joel Meyerowitz’s large color photographs of Morandi’s still life objects – which he sometimes altered – are also on view. Reservations are required. Center for Italian Modern Art, 421 Broome Street, near Crosby Street, SoHo, 646-370-3596, italianmodernart.org. (Smith)

Answer: While many of these items were produced by big manufacturers like BRIO and Playsam, many others are one-of-a-kind wonders

★ ‘Swedish Wooden Toys’ (through Feb. 28) This presentation of more than 300 playthings from the late 16th to the early 21st centuries will be catnip for anyone into antique toys. The show features diminutive vehicles of all kinds from old-time wagons, trains and fully-rigged sailboats, to futuristic cars and a rocket ship. There are naturalistic and anthropomorphic animals, weapons, puzzles, games, dollhouses and architectural construction kits. <hl> While many of these items were produced by big manufacturers like BRIO and Playsam, many others are one-of-a-kind wonders like a miniature baking set from around 1900 that includes rolling pins, spatulas and other implements all lovingly carved from wood and fitting into a tray just eight inches long. <hl> Bard Graduate Center Gallery, 18 West 86th Street, Manhattan, 212-501-3011, bgc.bard.edu. (Johnson) ★ Gil Batle: ‘Hatched in Prison’ (through Jan. 9) Mr. Batle, 53, served a total of 20 years in five California prisons for fraud and forgery. Now living in the Philippines, he has been recounting his experiences in an unlikely medium. Using a high-speed dental drill, he carves miniature narratives of prison life into the surfaces of ostrich eggs. The 19 examples in this show, all made in the past two years, are amazing for their meticulous craftsmanship and detailed story telling. Ricco Maresca, 529 West 20th Street, Chelsea, 212-627-4819, riccomaresca.com. (Johnson) ★ Annu Palakunnathu Matthew: ‘Indelible Memories’ (through Jan. 16) Ms. Matthew was born in England to Indian parents, spent her adolescence and early adulthood in India, and has lived in the United States since. The mostly album-size photographs in this compact but far-ranging gallery survey are about the intensities and confusions of a cultural mixing that makes the artist, psychologically, both a global citizen and an outsider, at home and in transit, wherever she is. And it’s about photography as document and fiction: souvenir, re-enactment and imaginative projection. (Closed Dec. 24 through Jan. 4.) A beautiful show that could too easily slip away. sepiaEYE, 547 West 27th Street, Chelsea, 212-967-0738, sepiaeye.com. (Cotter) ★ Robert Ryman (through June 18) For nearly 60s years, the Minimalist painter Robert Ryman has had few equals when it comes to doing more with less. White has been his primary, if not quite his only, color, the square his typical format. And yet within these seeming limitations a remarkably fecund and resonant body of work has evolved as demonstrated with unusual clarity (and in natural light) by this small but comprehensive exhibition. Dia: Chelsea, 535 West 22nd Street, 212-989-5566, diaart.org. (Smith) ★ Giorgio Morandi (through June 25) The Italian master of modern still life, and closet abstractionist, is celebrated in a large show devoted foremost to his painting from the 1930s, which are not well known in this country. They reveal a period of struggle during which the artist had settled on what to paint, how to paint was still very much up for grabs. Joel Meyerowitz’s large color photographs of Morandi’s still life objects – which he sometimes altered – are also on view. Reservations are required. Center for Italian Modern Art, 421 Broome Street, near Crosby Street, SoHo, 646-370-3596, italianmodernart.org. (Smith)

★ ‘Swedish Wooden Toys’ (through Feb. 28) This presentation of more than 300 playthings from the late 16th to the early 21st centuries will be catnip for anyone into antique toys. The show features diminutive vehicles of all kinds from old-time wagons, trains and fully-rigged sailboats, to futuristic cars and a rocket ship. There are naturalistic and anthropomorphic animals, weapons, puzzles, games, dollhouses and architectural construction kits. <hl> While many of these items were produced by big manufacturers like BRIO and Playsam, many others are one-of-a-kind wonders <hl> like a miniature baking set from around 1900 that includes rolling pins, spatulas and other implements all lovingly carved from wood and fitting into a tray just eight inches long. Bard Graduate Center Gallery, 18 West 86th Street, Manhattan, 212-501-3011, bgc.bard.edu. (Johnson) ★ Gil Batle: ‘Hatched in Prison’ (through Jan. 9) Mr. Batle, 53, served a total of 20 years in five California prisons for fraud and forgery. Now living in the Philippines, he has been recounting his experiences in an unlikely medium. Using a high-speed dental drill, he carves miniature narratives of prison life into the surfaces of ostrich eggs. The 19 examples in this show, all made in the past two years, are amazing for their meticulous craftsmanship and detailed story telling. Ricco Maresca, 529 West 20th Street, Chelsea, 212-627-4819, riccomaresca.com. (Johnson) ★ Annu Palakunnathu Matthew: ‘Indelible Memories’ (through Jan. 16) Ms. Matthew was born in England to Indian parents, spent her adolescence and early adulthood in India, and has lived in the United States since. The mostly album-size photographs in this compact but far-ranging gallery survey are about the intensities and confusions of a cultural mixing that makes the artist, psychologically, both a global citizen and an outsider, at home and in transit, wherever she is. And it’s about photography as document and fiction: souvenir, re-enactment and imaginative projection. (Closed Dec. 24 through Jan. 4.) A beautiful show that could too easily slip away. sepiaEYE, 547 West 27th Street, Chelsea, 212-967-0738, sepiaeye.com. (Cotter) ★ Robert Ryman (through June 18) For nearly 60s years, the Minimalist painter Robert Ryman has had few equals when it comes to doing more with less. White has been his primary, if not quite his only, color, the square his typical format. And yet within these seeming limitations a remarkably fecund and resonant body of work has evolved as demonstrated with unusual clarity (and in natural light) by this small but comprehensive exhibition. Dia: Chelsea, 535 West 22nd Street, 212-989-5566, diaart.org. (Smith) ★ Giorgio Morandi (through June 25) The Italian master of modern still life, and closet abstractionist, is celebrated in a large show devoted foremost to his painting from the 1930s, which are not well known in this country. They reveal a period of struggle during which the artist had settled on what to paint, how to paint was still very much up for grabs. Joel Meyerowitz’s large color photographs of Morandi’s still life objects – which he sometimes altered – are also on view. Reservations are required. Center for Italian Modern Art, 421 Broome Street, near Crosby Street, SoHo, 646-370-3596, italianmodernart.org. (Smith)