romikgosai/squad_modified_2 huggingface dataset:
The use of the term Middle East as a region of international affairs apparently began in British and American diplomatic circles quite independently of each other over concern for the security of the same country: Iran, then known to the west as Persia. In 1900 Thomas Edward Gordon published an article, The Problem of the Middle East, which began:

Q1: Where did the use of the term Middle East as a region of international affairs begin?
A1: in British and American diplomatic circles
Q2: What was Iran known as to the west?
A2: Persia
Q3: When did Thomas Edward Gordon publish "The Problem of the Middle East"?
A3: 1900
Q4: What article did Thomas Edward Gordon publish?
A4: The Problem of the Middle East
Q5: The problem of the Middle East was published by who?
A5: Thomas Edward Gordon
The threat that caused Gordon, diplomat and military officer, to publish the article was resumption of work on a railway from Russia to the Persian Gulf. Gordon, a published author, had not used the term previously, but he was to use it from then on.

Q1: What threat caused Gordon to publish his article?
A1: resumption of work on a railway
Q2: Who was a diplomat and military officer?
A2: Gordon
Q3: Who had not used the term middle east previously in publications?
A3: Gordon
A second strategic personality from American diplomatic and military circles, Alfred Thayer Mahan, concerned about the naval vulnerability of the trade routes in the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean, commented in 1902:

Q1: Who was a member of American diplomatic and military circles?
A1: Alfred Thayer Mahan
Q2: What was Alfred Thayer Mahan concerned about?
A2: the naval vulnerability of the trade routes
Q3: When did Alfred Thayer Mahan comment on the trade routes?
A3: 1902
Apparently the sailor did not connect with the soldier, as Mahan believed he was innovating the term Middle East. It was, however, already there to be seen.

Q1: Who did not connect with the soldier?
A1: the sailor
Q2: What did Mahan believe he was innovating?
A2: the term Middle East
Q3: What had already been there to be seen?
A3: the term Middle East
Until the period following World War I the Near East and the Middle East coexisted, but they were not always seen as distinct. Bertram Lenox Simpson, a colonial officer killed eventually in China, uses the terms together in his 1910 book, The Conflict of Color, as "the Near and Middle East." The total super-region consisted of "India, Afghanistan, Persia, Arabistan, Asia Minor, and last, but not least, Egypt." Simpson (under his pen-name, Weale) explains that this entire region "is politically one region – in spite of the divisions into which it is academically divided." His own term revives "the Nearer East" as opposed to "the Far East."

Q1: The Near East and the Middle East coexisted until what period?
A1: the period following World War I
Q2: Who was the colonial officer killed in China?
A2: Bertram Lenox Simpson
Q3: Who wrote the 1910 book 'The Conflict of Color'?
A3: Bertram Lenox Simpson
Q4: What was Simpson's pen-name?
A4: Weale
The basis of Simpson's unity is color and colonial subjection. His color chart recognizes a spectrum of black, brown and yellow, which at the time had been traditional since the late 19th century. Apart from these was "the great white race", which the moderate Simpson tones down to simply the white race. The great whites were appearing as late as the 1920s works of James Henry Breasted, which were taught as the gospel of ancient history throughout the entire first half of the 20th century. A red wavelength was mainly of interest in America. The eastern question was modified by Simpson to "The Problem of the Nearer East," which had nothing to do with the Ottomans but everything to do with British colonialism. Simpson wrote of the white man:

Q1: What is the basis of Simpson's unity?
A1: color and colonial subjection
Q2: The great whites were appearing as late as what time?
A2: the 1920s
Q3: In whose works were the great whites appearing?
A3: James Henry Breasted
Q4: What was mainly of interest in America?
A4: A red wavelength
These regions were occupied by "the brown men," with the yellow in the Far East and the black in Africa. The color issue was not settled until Kenya became independent in 1963, ending the last vestige of the British Empire.

Q1: These regions were occupied by who?
A1: the brown men
Q2: Where where the yellow?
A2: the Far East
Q3: Where were the black?
A3: Africa
Q4: When did Kenya become independent?
A4: 1963
Q5: The color issue was not settled until when?
A5: Kenya became independent
This view reveals a somewhat less than altruistic Christian intent of the British Empire; however, it was paradoxical from the beginning, as Simpson and most other writers pointed out. The Ottomans were portrayed as the slavers, but even as the American and British fleets were striking at the Barbary pirates on behalf of freedom, their countries were promulgating a vigorous African slave trade of their own. Charles George Gordon is known as the saint of all British colonial officers. A dedicated Christian, he spent his time between assignments living among the poor and donating his salary on their behalf. He won Ottoman confidence as a junior officer in the Crimean War. In his later career he became a high official in the Ottoman Empire, working as Governor of Egypt for the Ottoman khedive for the purpose of conducting campaigns against slavers and slavery in Egypt and the Sudan.

Q1: The Ottomans were portrayed as what?
A1: the slavers
Q2: Who is known as the saint of all British colonial officers?
A2: Charles George Gordon
Q3: What did Charles George Gordon spend his time between?
A3: assignments living among the poor and donating his salary
Q4: When did he win Ottoman confidence?
A4: as a junior officer in the Crimean War
Q5: What did he become in his later career?
A5: a high official in the Ottoman Empire
The term "Near and Middle East," held the stage for a few years before World War I. It proved to be less acceptable to a colonial point of view that saw the entire region as one. In 1916 Captain T.C. Fowle, 40th Pathans (troops of British India), wrote of a trip he had taken from Karachi to Syria just before the war. The book does not contain a single instance of "Near East." Instead, the entire region is considered "the Middle East." The formerly Near Eastern sections of his trip are now "Turkish" and not Ottoman.

Q1: When did the term "Near and Middle East" hold stage?
A1: a few years before World War I
Q2: What proved to be less acceptable to a colonial point of view?
A2: The term "Near and Middle East,"
Q3: When did Captain T.C. Fowle write of a trip he had taken from Karachi to Syria?
A3: 1916
Q4: Who were the 40th Pathans?
A4: (troops of British India
Q5: In the book Fowle wrote, what is the entire region considered?
A5: "the Middle East.
Subsequently with the disgrace of "Near East" in diplomatic and military circles, "Middle East" prevailed. However, "Near East" continues in some circles at the discretion of the defining agency or academic department. They are not generally considered distinct regions as they were at their original definition.

Q1: What prevailed with the disgrace of "Near East"?
A1: "Middle East"
Q2: What continues in some circles at the discretion of the defining agency or academic department?
A2: Near East
Q3: What term was disgraced in diplomatic and military circles?
A3: Near East
Although racial and colonial definitions of the Middle East are no longer considered ideologically sound, the sentiment of unity persists. For much, but by no means all, of the Middle East, the predominance of Islam lends some unity, as does the transient accident of geographical continuity. Otherwise there is but little basis except for history and convention to lump together peoples of multiple, often unrelated languages, governments, loyalties and customs.

Q1: What sentiment persists even though racial and colonial definitions of the Middle East are no longer ideologically sound?
A1: sentiment of unity
Q2: What definitions of the Middle East are no longer ideologically sound?
A2: racial and colonial definitions
Q3: What are racial and colonial definitions of the Middle East considered?
A3: no longer considered ideologically sound
In the 20th century after decades of intense warfare and political turmoil terms such as "Near East", "Far East" and "Middle East" were relegated to the experts, especially in the new field of political science. The new wave of diplomats often came from those programs. Archaeology on the international scene, although very much of intellectual interest to the major universities, fell into the shadow of international relations. Their domain became the Ancient Near East, which could no longer be relied upon to be the Near East. The Ottoman Empire was gone, along with all the other empires of the 19th century, replaced with independent republics. Someone had to reconcile the present with the past. This duty was inherited by various specialized agencies that were formed to handle specific aspects of international relations, now so complex as to be beyond the scope and abilities of a diplomatic corps in the former sense. The ancient Near East is frozen in time. The living Near East is primarily what the agencies say it is. In most cases this single term is inadequate to describe the geographical range of their operations. The result is multiple definitions.

Q1: When were terms such as "Near East", "Far East", and "Middle East" relegated to the experts?
A1: the 20th century
Q2: Where did the new wave of diplomats often come from?
A2: the new field of political science
Q3: Where did archaeology on the international scene fall into?
A3: the shadow of international relations
Q4: What replaced the fallen empires of the 19th century?
A4: independent republics
The United States is the chief remaining nation to assign official responsibilities to a region called the Near East. Within the government the State Department has been most influential in promulgating the Near Eastern regional system. The countries of the former empires of the 19th century have in general abandoned the term and the subdivision in favor of Middle East, North Africa and various forms of Asia. In many cases, such as France, no distinct regional substructures have been employed. Each country has its own French diplomatic apparatus, although regional terms, including Proche-Orient and Moyen-Orient, may be used in a descriptive sense. The most influential agencies in the United States still using Near East as a working concept are as follows.

Q1: What is the chief remaining nation to assign official responsibilities to a region called the Near East?
A1: The United States
Q2: What has the state department been most influential in promulgating?
A2: the Near Eastern regional system
Q3: Who has abandoned the term Near East?
A3: The countries of the former empires of the 19th century
The Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, a division of the United States Department of State, is perhaps the most influential agency to still use the term Near East. Under the Secretary of State, it implements the official diplomacy of the United States, called also statecraft by Secretary Clinton. The name of the bureau is traditional and historic. There is, however, no distinct Middle East. All official Middle Eastern affairs are referred to this bureau.

Q1: The Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs is a division of what?
A1: the United States Department of State
Q2: What is perhaps the most influential agency to still use the term Near East?
A2: The Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs
Q3: Secretary Clinton also calls the implementation of official diplomacy of the United States what?
A3: statecraft
Working closely in conjunction with the definition of the Near East provided by the State Department is the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies (NESA), an educational institution of the United States Department of Defense. It teaches courses and holds seminars and workshops for government officials and military officers who will work or are working within its region. As the name indicates, that region is a combination of State Department regions; however, NESA is careful to identify the State Department region. As its Near East is not different from the State Department's it does not appear in the table. Its name, however, is not entirely accurate. For example, its region includes Mauritania, a member of the State Department's Africa (Sub-Sahara).

Q1: Who works closely with the definition of the Near East?
A1: the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies (NESA)
Q2: What is NESA?
A2: an educational institution of the United States Department of Defense
Q3: What does NESA Teach?
A3: It teaches courses and holds seminars and workshops
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WINEP) is a non-profit organization for research and advice on Middle Eastern policy. It regards its target countries as the Middle East but adopts the convention of calling them the Near East to be in conformance with the practices of the State Department. Its views are independent. The WINEP bundles the countries of Northwest Africa together under "North Africa." Details can be found in Policy Focus #65.

Q1: What is WINEP?
A1: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Q2: What is WINEPS target countries as?
A2: the Middle East
Q3: How does WINEP bundle the countries of Northwest Africa?
A3: under "North Africa."
The Library of Congress (LoC) is an institution established by Congress to provide a research library for the government of the United States and serve as a national library. It is under the supervision of the United States Congress Joint Committee on the Library and the Librarian of Congress. The Near East is a separate topic and subdivision of the African and Middle Eastern division. The Middle East contains a Hebraic section consisting of only Israel for a country, but including eleven modern and ancient languages relating to Judaism, such as Yiddish, a European pidgin language. The Near East is otherwise nearly identical to the Middle East, except that it extends partly into Central Asia and the Caucasus, regions that the State Department considers to be in Asia.

Q1: What does LoC stand for?
A1: The Library of Congress
Q2: What is the Library of Congress?
A2: an institution established by Congress to provide a research library for the government
Q3: The Library of Congress is under whose supervision?
A3: the United States Congress Joint Committee on the Library
The United Nations formulates multiple regional divisions as is convenient for its various operations. But few of them include a Near East, and that poorly defined. UNICEF recognizes the "Middle East and North Africa" region, where the Middle East is bounded by the Red Sea on the west and includes Iran on the east. UNESCO recognizes neither a Near East nor a Middle East, dividing the countries instead among three regions: Arab States, Asia and the Pacific, and Africa. Its division "does not forcibly reflect geography" but "refers to the execution of regional activities." The United Nations Statistics Division defines Western Asia to contain the countries included elsewhere in the Middle East. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) describes its entire theatre of operations as the Near East, but then assigns many of its members to other regions as well; for example, Cyprus, Malta and Turkey are in both the European and the Near Eastern regions. Its total area extends further into Central Asia than that of most agencies.

Q1: Who formulates multiple regional divisions as is convenient for its various operations?
A1: The United Nations
Q2: Who recognizes the "Middle East and North Africa" region?
A2: UNICEF
Q3: The United Nations Statistics Division defines Western Asia to contain what?
A3: the countries included elsewhere in the Middle East
Q4: The Food and Agriculture Organization describes its entire theater of operations as what?
A4: the Near East
The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is a quasi-independent agency of the United States Government. It appears to have multiple leadership. On the one hand its director is appointed by the president. It plays a significant role in providing the president with intelligence. On the other hand, Congress oversees its operations through a committee. The CIA was first formed under the National Security Act of 1947 from the army's Office of Strategic Services (OSS), which furnished both military intelligence and clandestine military operations to the army during the crisis of World War II. Many revisions and redefinitions have taken place since then. Although the name of the CIA reflects the original advised intent of Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman, the government's needs for strategic services have frustrated that intent from the beginning. The press received by the agency in countless articles, novels and other media have tended to create various popular myths; for example, that this agency replaced any intelligence effort other than that of the OSS, or that it contains the central intelligence capability of the United States. Strategic services are officially provided by some 17 agencies called the Intelligence Community. Army intelligence did not come to an end; in fact, all the branches of the Armed Forces retained their intelligence services. This community is currently under the leadership (in addition to all its other leadership) of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.

Q1: What is a quasi-independent agency of the United States Government?
A1: The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Q2: The CIA appears to have what?
A2: multiple leadership
Q3: Who appoints the director of the CIA?
A3: the president
Q4: Who oversees the operations of the CIA?
A4: Congress
Under these complex circumstances regional names are less useful. They are more historical than an accurate gauge of operations. The Directorate of Intelligence, one of four directorates into which the CIA is divided, includes the Office of Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis (NESA). Its duties are defined as "support on Middle Eastern and North African countries, as well as on the South Asian nations of India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan." The total range of countries is in fact the same as the State Department's Near East, but the names do not correspond. The Near East of the NESA is the same as the Middle East defined in the CIA-published on-line resource, The World Factbook. Its list of countries is limited by the Red Sea, comprises the entire eastern coast of the Mediterranean, including Israel, Turkey, the small nations of the Caucasus, Iran and the states of the Arabian Peninsula.

Q1: The Near East of the NESA is the same as the Middle East define in what?
A1: The World Factbook
Q2: What does NESA stand for?
A2: Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis
Q3: Whose duties are defined as "support on Middle Eastern and North African countries?"
A3: (NESA)
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), an independent agency under the Department of State established in place of the Marshall Plan for the purpose of determining and distributing foreign aid, does not use the term Near East. Its definition of Middle East corresponds to that of the State Department, which officially prefers the term Near East.

Q1: What does USAID stand for?
A1: U.S. Agency for International Development
Q2: What is the independant agency under the Department of State for the purpose of determining and distributing foreign aid called?
A2: USAID
Q3: What term does USAID not use?
A3: the term Near East
The Foreign and Commonwealth Office of United Kingdom recognises a Middle East and North Africa region, but not a Near East. Their original Middle East consumed the Near East as far as the Red Sea, ceded India to the Asia and Oceania region, and went into partnership with North Africa as far as the Atlantic.

Q1: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office of United Kingdom recognizes what?
A1: a Middle East and North Africa region
Q2: What region does the Foreign and Commonwealth office of United Kingdom not recognize?
A2: Near East
Q3: What consumed the Near East as far as the Red Sea?
A3: Their original Middle East
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Greece conducts "bilateral relationships" with the countries of the "Mediterranean – Middle East Region" but has formulated no Near East Region. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey also does not use the term Near East. Its regions include the Middle East, the Balkans and others.

Q1: What does the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Greece conduct?
A1: "bilateral relationships"
Q2: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Turkey does not use what term?
A2: Near East
Q3: The Middle East, the Balkans and others are included in what republic?
A3: Republic of Turkey
The Ancient Near East is a term of the 20th century intended to stabilize the geographical application of Near East to ancient history.[citation needed] The Near East may acquire varying meanings, but the Ancient Near East always has the same meaning: the ancient nations, people and languages of the enhanced Fertile Crescent, a sweep of land from the Nile Valley through Anatolia and southward to the limits of Mesopotamia.

Q1: What is a term of the 20th centrury intended to stabilize the geographical application of Near East to ancient history?
A1: The Ancient Near East
Q2: The ancient nations, people and languages of the enhanced Fertile Crescent will always refer to what?
A2: the Ancient Near East
Q3: What is the sweep of land from the Nile Valley through Anatolia called?
A3: Fertile Crescent
Resorting to this verbal device, however, did not protect the "Ancient Near East" from the inroads of "the Middle East." For example, a high point in the use of "Ancient Near East" was for Biblical scholars the Ancient Near Eastern Texts relating to the Old Testament by James Bennett Pritchard, a textbook of first edition dated 1950. The last great book written by Leonard Woolley, British archaeologist, excavator of ancient Ur and associate of T.E. Lawrence and Arthur Evans, was The Art of the Middle East, Including Persia, Mesopotamia and Palestine, published in 1961. Woolley had completed it in 1960 two weeks before his death. The geographical ranges in each case are identical.

Q1: James Bennett Pritchard wrote what?
A1: Texts relating to the Old Testament
Q2: When did James Bennett Pritchard write his textbook?
A2: 1950
Q3: Who was a British archaeologist?
A3: Leonard Woolley
Q4: Who excavated ancient Ur?
A4: Leonard Woolley
Parallel with the growth of specialized agencies for conducting or supporting statescraft in the second half of the 20th century has been the collection of resources for scholarship and research typically in university settings. Most universities teaching the liberal arts have library and museum collections. These are not new; however, the erection of these into "centres" of national and international interest in the second half of the 20th century have created larger databases not available to the scholars of the past. Many of these focus on the Ancient Near East or Near East in the sense of Ancient Near East.

Q1: What do most universities teaching liberal arts have?
A1: library and museum collections
Q2: What has had parallel growth of in the 20th century?
A2: the collection of resources
Q3: What are these resources collected for?
A3: for scholarship and research
One such institution is the Centre for the Study of Ancient Documents (CSAD) founded by and located centrally at Oxford University, Great Britain. Among its many activities CSAD numbers "a long-term project to create a library of digitised images of Greek inscriptions." These it arranges by region. The Egypt and the Near East region besides Egypt includes Cyprus, Persia and Afghanistan but not Asia Minor (a separate region).

Q1: What does CSAD stand for?
A1: Centre for the Study of Ancient Documents
Q2: Who founded the CSAD?
A2: Oxford University
Q3: Where is Oxford University?
A3: Great Britain