Problem: Read the following paragraph and extract the answer for the question: What rank did the man who abandoned his civil servant career in 1863 graduate with in 1859?  Tchaikovsky was born in 1840 in Votkinsk, a small town in present-day Udmurtia, formerly the Imperial Russian province of Vyatka. A precocious pupil, he began piano lessons at the age of five, and could read music as adeptly as his teacher within three years. However, his parents' passion for his musical talent soon cooled. In 1850, the family decided to send Tchaikovsky to the Imperial School of Jurisprudence in Saint Petersburg. This establishment mainly served the lesser nobility or gentry, and would prepare him for a career as a civil servant. As the minimum age for acceptance was 12, Tchaikovsky was sent by his family to board at the Imperial School of Jurisprudence's preparatory school in Saint Petersburg, 800 miles (1,300 km) from his family home in Alapayevsk. Once Tchaikovsky came of age for acceptance, he was transferred to the Imperial School of Jurisprudence to begin a seven-year course of studies.Music was not a priority at the School, but Tchaikovsky regularly attended the theater and the opera with other students. He was fond of works by Rossini, Bellini, Verdi and Mozart. Piano manufacturer Franz Becker made occasional visits to the School as a token music teacher. This was the only formal music instruction Tchaikovsky received there. From 1855 the composer's father, Ilya Tchaikovsky, funded private lessons with Rudolph Kündinger, a well-known piano teacher from Nuremberg, and questioned Kündinger about a musical career for his son. Kündinger replied that nothing suggested a potential composer or even a fine performer. Tchaikovsky was told to finish his course and then try for a post in the Ministry of Justice.Tchaikovsky graduated on May 25, 1859 with the rank of titular counselor, a low rung on the civil service ladder. On June 15, he was appointed to the Ministry of Justice in Saint Petersburg. Six months later he became a junior assistant and two months after that, a senior assistant. Tchaikovsky remained there for the rest of his three-year civil service career.In 1861, Tchaikovsky...

A: titular counselor


Problem: Read the following paragraph and extract the answer for the question: Who does Fred promise to prove himself to?  In Bedrock, Slate International's vice president Cliff Vandercave and his secretary Miss Stone discuss their plan to swindle the company of its vast fortune and flee. As part of the plan, they would need one of the employees to be the scapegoat. Meanwhile, Fred Flintstone loans his best friend and neighbor Barney Rubble money so that he and his wife Betty can adopt a child. The agency pairs them up with a child named Bamm-Bamm, who can only pronounce his own name. Although Bamm-Bamm is initially difficult to control due to being raised by mastodons, and thus has super strength, he eventually warms up to his new family. Barney vows to repay his friend Fred for his debt of gratitude. Despite his mother-in-law Pearl Slaghoople's objections, Fred's wife Wilma remains supportive of Fred's decision to help Barney. Fred promises he will prove himself to her one day.

A: Pearl Slaghoople


Problem: Read the following paragraph and extract the answer for the question: Who joins the bank robber that poses as a salesman?  Harper is a bank robber posing as a traveling salesman. He arrives in town, soon to be joined by sadistic benzedrine addict Dill and bookish Chapman. Boyd Fairchild is manager of the local copper mine, troubled by his philandering wife. He considers an affair with nurse Linda Sherman, though he truly loves his wife. His associate, Shelley Martin, has a happy home life, but is embarrassed that his son believes he is a coward because he did not serve in World War II. Subplots involves a peeping-tom bank manager, Harry Reeves, and a larcenous librarian, Elsie Braden. As the bank robbers carry out their plot, the separate character threads are drawn together. Violence erupts during the robbery. Fairchild's wife is slain and bank manager Reeves is wounded. Martin is held hostage on a farm with an Amish family. With the help of the father, he defeats the crooks in a savage gunfight. In the aftermath, Martin becomes a hero to his son, and Linda comforts Fairchild as he grieves for his wife.

A: Chapman


Problem: Read the following paragraph and extract the answer for the question: It what centrury did Tak'alik Ab'aj first start to flourish?  Tak'alik Ab'aj (; Mayan pronunciation: [takˀaˈlik aˀ'ɓaχ] (listen); Spanish: [takaˈlik aˈβax]) is a pre-Columbian archaeological site in Guatemala. It was formerly known as Abaj Takalik; its ancient name may have been Kooja. It is one of several Mesoamerican sites with both Olmec and Maya features. The site flourished in the Preclassic and Classic periods, from the 9th century BC through to at least the 10th century AD, and was an important centre of commerce, trading with Kaminaljuyu and Chocolá. Investigations have revealed that it is one of the largest sites with sculptured monuments on the Pacific coastal plain. Olmec-style sculptures include a possible colossal head, petroglyphs and others. The site has one of the greatest concentrations of Olmec-style sculpture outside of the Gulf of Mexico.Takalik Abaj is representative of the first blossoming of Maya culture that had occurred by about 400 BC. The site includes a Maya royal tomb and examples of Maya hieroglyphic inscriptions that are among the earliest from the Maya region. Excavation is continuing at the site; the monumental architecture and persistent tradition of sculpture in a variety of styles suggest the site was of some importance.Finds from the site indicate contact with the distant metropolis of Teotihuacan in the Valley of Mexico and imply that Takalik Abaj was conquered by it or its allies. Takalik Abaj was linked to long-distance Maya trade routes that shifted over time but allowed the city to participate in a trade network that included the Guatemalan highlands and the Pacific coastal plain from Mexico to El Salvador. Takalik Abaj was a sizeable city with the principal architecture clustered into four main groups spread across nine terraces. While some of these were natural features, others were artificial constructions requiring an enormous investment in labour and materials. The site featured a sophisticated water drainage system and a wealth of sculptured monuments.

A:
9th century BC