Newest Questions
15,488 questions
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When did literary critics stop saying "machine" and start saying "plot device"? [migrated]
This answer about Tolkien's use of "machine" to mean "plot device" / "deus ex machina" says that such use of "machine" is archaic.
But that means that there was ...
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79
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During the Cold War, would American citizens have been willing to go to war with Soviet Russia? [closed]
Pretty much the title. During the Cold War, would the majority of American citizens have been willing to go to war with the Soviet Union, or would they rather remain peaceful?
Of course, the President'...
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91
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What do we know about Minoan deities and their cult practices?
The Minoans of Crete (c. 3100–1100 BC) developed one of the first organized civilizations in the Mediterranean. Despite the lack of deciphered written sources, archaeology provides evidence of their ...
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Who settled in the West Bank and the Gaza strip, and when and why and how? [duplicate]
This is about the settlement history of the West Bank and Gaza strip and zionism in this area. It is not about the Palestine from Roman times on.
Any links you find on the net or voices might be ...
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1
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What's the earliest attested reference to lighting a fart on fire?
In Chaucer's Summoner's Tale, a friar must divide the alms he's collected among his convent, a group of twelve. Unfortunately the only alms he collected that day was a single fart. So his companions ...
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Who has lived in South Tyrol from ancient history till today, Italians or Austrians, or Ladins, or even some other peoples? [closed]
Italians are said to have come to Italy from the east as the indo-germanic tribe of Italers / Italics (I do not know the English translation, in German, it is "Italer" or "Italiker"...
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Why was France/Western Europe Stalin's second front of choice?
That's counterintuitive to me, but that's the message of this and other sources. Because the alternatives seem to benefit the Soviet Union more directly.
In November 1942, the Anglo Americans landed ...
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Was Ephesians 6:12 used historically to dehumanize opponents and justify physical war? [closed]
Apparently this question is not on topic for Christianity Stack Exchange, so I am posting it here.
In Ephesians 6:12, the Apostle Paul writes:
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but ...
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1k
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What's the earliest case thrown out or otherwise lost due to an entrapment defense?
I just learned about how the Panther 21 trial was lost by the government due to the presence and specific placement of undercover agents / officers in the organization, a.k.a basically an entrapment ...
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2k
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When did Soviet industrial planners start tooling for tank production?
I came across this statista.com graph about tank production during WWII:
There are many things to find interesting on this graph. My question is about just this upper corner:
This says that the ...
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153
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Is the quote “All who drink of this remedy recover in a short time, except those whom it does not help, who all die” misattributed?
“All who drink of this remedy recover in a short time, except those whom it does not help, who all die”
This quotation is widely attributed online to the ancient Greek physician Galen. I have seen it ...
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128
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Were there any factions or khalifs (after Muhammad) who could have benefited politically from the selection of Mecca as holy city?
Was there any geopolitical benefits that could have accrued from selecting Mecca as the holy city. E.g. was it the birthplace of a khalif or an area of historical control by one of the factions in ...
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On what basis did Churchill sleep "the sleep of the saved" immediately after Pearl Harbor?
Churchill said that night he “went to bed and slept the sleep of the saved.” pearlharbor.org
That quote was Churchill's reaction on Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, because it meant that the United ...
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276
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Why is it difficult to argue that fascists have never been voted out of office? [closed]
It has been said online that Fascists have never been successfully voted out of office in all of recorded history (brief facebook meme) and in longer form Fascism Cannot Be Voted Away at the Ballot ...
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How big was the nuclear-triggered tsunami at Moruroa in July 1979?
A serious accident occurred on 25 July 1979 when a nuclear device became stuck halfway down an 800-meter shaft. Since army engineers were unable to move the device, they exploded it where it was, ...
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185
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Are Norse blot and ting systems connected to Middle Eastern traditions?
I’ve come across1 a modern interpretation suggesting that both the Norse blót (sacrificial rituals) and the thing (assembly system) were influenced by or even originated from traditions in the Middle ...
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156
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When and how did Pharisaism arise?
At the time of Jesus there were three major Jewish sects in Palestine:
Sadducees, Essenes, and Pharisees. During the Hasmonean dynasty 100
years earlier the Sadducees were dominant because they ...
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247
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Which was the first big gun to be loaded and moved mechanically?
Which was the first big gun to be loaded and moved1: SEE BELOW: important definition mechanically2 (i.e. by something other than just lots of men and brute force).
The 100 ton Armstrong gun at Fort ...
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440
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Who was the last Westminster monarch before Charles III to pray with a pope?
Several media sources are describing Charles III praying with Leo XIV as the first time a British (or in the last example English) monarch has prayed with a pope since the 16th century. Of course, ...
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180
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What does this reply in La Peau de Chagrin mean? What is the referent?
Towards the end of La Peau de Chagrin a reference is made that I believe is pertinent to this forum, and that I am not able to locate. The scene takes place in a club of sorts in which the protagonist ...
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118
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When and how did the English crown come to be viewed as "indivisible" [closed]
Being a modern Briton who has only ever known the monarchy hand down to the eldest child, I was slightly surprised to realise that William the Conqueror split his land holdings between his two eldest ...
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Have post-ruin dead bodies ever been found in actual ruins?
I just walked by my family watching the first Indiana Jones movie. One of the bad guys suggested making Indiana a new resident of the ruin.
Has that actually happened in real life? Someone checked out ...
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245
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Why is the linear model of human history treated as fact, while the cyclic model is dismissed as myth despite evidence of global catastrophes? [closed]
Modern archaeology follows a linear timeline of human development, with early hominins appearing around 4 million BCE, Homo sapiens around 300 000 BCE, and the rise of agriculture and complex ...
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What is the significance (if any) of the distinct pose of the Islamic figures depicted in these paintings?
Note the commonality between these paintings, namely, the victor killing his foe using a straight downward slash, sometimes through a shield.
Shah Ismail I and Shaybani Khan duel at the Battle of ...
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331
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How much help did the Royal Navy give over land during the Battle of Britain?
By Battle of Britain I refer to the air conflict of summer/fall 1940 over southern Britain.
The British Royal Air Force were outnumbered in aircraft something like 2550 to 1960 according to the ...
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268
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What kind of knife did people use to cut open cows?
I'm writing a fantastical story and one of the characters needs to cut open a cow equivalent. What kind of knife (shape, size, handle kind) was used to butcher cows? I looked online and only found ...
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430
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Why did opium hurt China so much but not Britain
Apparently opium was legal in both Britain and China during the Opium Wars, but in China in had a crazy caustic effect while in Britain it seemed to be way more under control.
My theory is that this ...
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141
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What is the history of the Palestinian city neighborhoods and villages remaining inside Israel?
I'm looking into the history of the 100 or so Palestinian villages that were not partially or fully depopulated and whose inhabitants became subjects and later Israeli citizens. More precisely the ...
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An online game intended to encourage collecting garbage in an ex-Soviet Republic
Sometime after the collapse of the Soviet Union (say, between 2000 and 2010?) I heard a report on the American National Public Radio, describing the work of a man who had emigrated to the States from ...
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How was a pot of coffee prepared in 18th century Sweden?
There is an (apocryphal?) story about Gustav III ordering a twin study of the effects of tea and coffee, making twins drink three pots of each every day. The Swedish coffee museum seems to regard it ...
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Did PM Curtin actually say "...from one hour ago, Australia has been at war with the Japanese Empire"?
One hour after Japanese bombers struck at Hawaii on the morning of December 7, 1941, Prime Minister John Curtin of Australia declared that "from one hour ago, Australia has been at war with the ...
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What are the approximate percentages of the 3 classes of population in the city of Rome around the time of Octavian?
I wonder what's the best recent scholarly estimate of the percentages of each of the 3 main social classes of population in the city of Rome around the time of Octavian:
Patricians
Plebeians
Slaves
...
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What tools were used to herd cattle from horseback?
I've documented the garrocha pole. Wikipedia discusses the Italian Mazzarella, and the Mongolian uurga. I've also documented the use of the horse in herding horses from horseback.
This question is ...
MCW♦
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How were riders trained in the use of the garrocha pole?
I've got three citations documenting the use of the garrocha pole in history. What I don't have are any sources that would indicate how the pole was used, or how it was trained.
The first is ...
MCW♦
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Was homosexuality part of Gibbon's "moral decay" reason the Roman Empire fell?
Wikipedia's "Historiography of the fall of the Western Roman Empire" article mentions several theories for the fall of the Roman Empire. Edward Gibbon's is "moral decay" and ...
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What was the practical difference between Russian secret police functions being organized as part of the chancery versus a ministry?
Researching the Third Section which was organized under the Tsar's chancery. I get the benefit of setting up a parallel organization outside of the culture and hierarchy of existing institutions but ...
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Was the ground between Cowpens and the Broad River "trappy" ground?
In a celebrated American victory in January, 1781, the Americans offered battle in a pastured area in northern South Carolina, then (and later) referred as the Cowpens.
In his later memoirs, Tarleton, ...
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315
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In 1944, were American civilians able to buy 5 US gallon jerrycans?
In 1944 USA, were civilians able to buy empty 5 US gallon jerrycans, the type of metallic containers used by the military. Especially in New Hampshire, Massachusetts and other states in the North-...
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What can you tell me about this likely British military uniform, on the antique porcelain portrait of an officer?
I have an antique and unique photoceramic portrait of an officer, likely dating back to the 1800s. I believe he is wearing a British uniform. I guess that the year is 1860s-1870s. Can somebody with ...
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Did Hamilton misrepresent Williams's view on democracy in the NY Ratifying Convention?
Founders Online New York Ratifying Convention. First Speech of June 21 (Francis Childs’s Version), [21 June 1788] quotes Hamilton:
It has been observed by an honorable gentleman, that a pure ...
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Why is Diodorus' account of Baal worship similar to the Baal worship described in the Bible? [duplicate]
The Bible mentions the deities Baal-hamon, Molech, and Tophet, as deities to which the ancient peoples of the near east would sacrifice children to. Moreover, Baal-Hammon is also mentioned as a place ...
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Could a Sergeant become a Knight Templar?
I know being noble was one of the requirements (not the only) to be a Knight Templar, and the commoners would end up being Sergeants or a lower range, but, could a non-noble be promoted to Knight ...
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How did gas restrictions work in the United States during the 1940's? [duplicate]
Sorry for my bad English here (I'm French speaking)...
I'm writing an adventure novel occurring in October 1944, in the USA. A woman (lets call her Alice) is working as a scientist in a military ...
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When did people start using open bookshelves or bookcases without doors?
I'm interested in how books have been stored throughout European history, specifically the transition from enclosed bookcases (with wooden or glass doors) to open bookshelves that leave books exposed ...
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How to travel from New Hampshire to Bayou Lafourche LA in 1940?
I'm trying to find a proper realistic time of travel through the USA during the 1940's. The routes weren't the same as of today, and there was a federal speed limit of 35mph (56 km/h) since 1942 to ...
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Are there any surviving PHOTOS of James J Kilroy's ship inspection marks? [duplicate]
Three days ago, I asked this question:
Are there any surviving examples of James J Kilroy's ship inspection marks?
Despite a good number of up votes, there have been no responses. Not even ...
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What were "milk bars" in 1920s Japan?
Ian Buruma (Inventing Japan: 1853–1964, 2003):
The Ginza in Tokyo, that Europeanized center of “Civilization and Enlightenment,” had changed a great deal since the dark days of late Meiji. Longhaired ...
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Who is this person? what is this uniform? Mid-late 1800's (Belgian/French)
Looks like a 1860s/70s Belgian cavalry uniform to me, but is it?
Google also suggested it's a portrait photograph of Napoleon, Prince Imperial (1856-1879). Is that valid? (They definitely look very ...
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What type of paper was used in the original 1687 edition of Isaac Newton's Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica?
ABC news Australia says book was made of high quality materials. What materials were used, cotton, linen, wood, animal skin?
Was book made of different material then regular cheap paper?
Video of old ...
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What books were challenged by the Rhode Island Commission To Encourage Morality In Youth
The Rhode Island Commission To Encourage Morality In Youth was founded in the late 1950s and sent lists of books that they found objectionable to a number of publishers, which led to the U.S. Supreme ...
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