Problem: The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification.

The USPTO is "unique among federal agencies because it operates solely on fees collected by its users, and not on taxpayer dollars". Its "operating structure is like a business in that it receives requests for servicesapplications for patents and trademark registrationsand charges fees projected to cover the cost of performing the services [it] provide[s]".

The USPTO is based in Alexandria, Virginia, after a 2005 move from the Crystal City area of neighboring Arlington, Virginia. The offices under Patents and the Chief Information Officer that remained just outside the southern end of Crystal City completed moving to Randolph Square, a brand-new building in Shirlington Village, on April 27, 2009.

The last head of the USPTO was Michelle K. Lee. She took up her new role on January 13, 2014, initially in a temporary Deputy role. On March 13, she formally took office as Director after being nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate. She formerly served as the Director of the USPTO's Silicon Valley satellite office. She resigned effective June 6, 2017.
1. Does the USPTO use tax money?
2. What income does it run on?
3. Any other sources?
4. Who is the most recent leader of the USPTO?
5. What position did she start in?
6. True or False: That was a permanent position.
7. What position did she work in later?
8. What position does she work in currently?
9. When did she stop working for the USPTO?
10. Which president had nominated her?
11. What does USPTO stand for?
12. What larger government division are they a part of?
13. Who do they provide patents for?
14. Do they provide anything else?
15. What?
16. For what purpose?
17. Where is the USPTO located now?
18. Was it always there?
19. When did it move?
20. Why did it move?
Answer: 1. no
2. user fees
3. no
4. Michelle K. Lee
5. Deputy
6. false
7. Director of the USPTO's Silicon Valley satellite office
8. unknown
9. June 6, 2017
10. Obama
11. United States Patent and Trademark Office
12. Department of Commerce
13. inventors and businesses
14. yes
15. trademark registration
16. for product and intellectual property identification
17. Alexandria, Virginia
18. no
19. 2005
20. unknown

Problem: Two young artists named Sue and Joanna shared a studio apartment in the Greenwich Village area of New York, trying to realize their dreams. In November pneumonia killed many people. Unluckily, Joanna fell ill, too. One morning, a doctor examined Joanna and then spoke with Sue in another room. "She has decided that she has no chance. All we can do is give her a strong will to live."

Holding back her tears, Sue went to Joanna's room. Joanna lay with her face toward the window, eyes wide open. She was counting something backward. "Twelve," she said, and a little later "eleven" until "five," almost together. Sue looked out of the window. What was there to count? There was a wall covered with an old ivy vine growing half way up it. The cold breath of autumn has stricken the leaves from the vine until it was almost bare.

"Five what, dear?" asked Sue.

"Leaves. On the ivy vine. When the last one falls I must go, too."

"Oh, Don't be silly." Said Sue, "You will get better."

"There goes another one. I want to see the last one fall before it gets dark."

"Try to sleep." said Sue. "I must call Mr. Behrman up to be my model for my drawing of an old miner. Don't try to move until I come back."

Old Behrman was a poor painter who lived in the building. For years he had always been planning to paint a work of art, but had never yet begun it. He earned a little money by serving as a model to artists who could not pay for a professional model.

Sue found Behrman in his room. In one area was a blank canvas that had been waiting twenty-five years for the first line of paint. Sue told him about Joanna and how she feared that her friend would float away like a leaf.

"What!" Old Behrman was angered at such an idea. "How silly! Just take me to her room."

Joanna was sleeping when they went in. A cold rain was falling, mixed with snow.

The next morning, Sue awoke after an hour's sleep. She found Joanna staring at the covered window. "Pull up the shade; I want to see." Sue obeyed.

"It's the last leaf," said Joanna. "It will fall today, and I will go with it."

When night came, the rain began to fall again with a strong wind.

The next morning, Joanna demanded that the window shade be raised. The ivy leaf was still there. Joanna lay for a long time, looking at it. And then she called Sue, "I have been a bad girl. I'm so wrong. Now I want to get well and paint again."

The doctor came to see Joanna in the afternoon. He told Sue "Joanna is improving. Now I must see Behrman. Pneumonia, too, very ill. Little hope for him."

Later that day, Sue came to Joanna, and put one arm around her.

"Mr. Behrman died of pneumonia in the hospital today. He was sick only two days. When someone went into his room, Behrman was lying there with his shoes on. His shoes and clothes were all wet. Nobody knew why."

"Oh, poor Behrman!" Cried Joanna.

"See the last leaf on the wall," said Sue, " It looks like a real leaf, doesn't it? "

"A real leaf ? "

"Ah, darling, it is Behrman's masterpiece -- he painted it there the night when the last leaf fell."
1. What are the names of the 2 artistis?
2. What condition killed many people?
3. Did Joanna fall ill?
4. What was her prognosis?
5. How did she react?
6. Who spoke with her?
7. Who was the painter in the building?
8. How did he earn money?
9. How many years for the first line of paint?
10. Did Joanna improve?
Answer:
1. Sue and Joanna
2. pneumonia
3. yes
4. she has no chance.
5. She was counting something backward
6. a doctor
7. Old Behrman
8. by serving as a model to artists
9. twenty-five years
10. yes