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1500 questions
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5 answers
What was the economic incentive for "redlining"?
"Redlining" was the practice in the USA during the Jim Crow era of mortgage companies not offering mortgages to black people. But if black people wanted to take out mortgages, it would seem that there would be money to be made by providing them. So…
Paul Johnson
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Did the Soviet Union know when DEFCON levels changed?
The US military uses a scale of alert readiness called DEFCON, with DEFCON 5 being the lowest alert level and DEFCON 1 being the highest, preparing for imminent nuclear war. At least once during the Cold War, readiness was pushed all the way to…
Joe
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How did Hitler behave towards all those whom he knew in his childhood and youth after he rose to power?
What do we know of Hitler's acts and attitudes towards those people he knew in his childhood and youth after he rose to power? For example, his World War One comrades? Did they receive and attention or rise to serve as high ranking officials in the…
The Byzantine
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What is this metal box for, and where is it from?
The box was acquired at a thrift shop, no known provenance. It consists of a metal body with curved sides and a lid with a small handle that sits on top without being secured in any way. The inside is unmarked.
It has two symbols - one that…
SPavel
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What was the purpose of the breastplate rings on samurai armor?
In the Royal Ontario Museum, I found this armor, and was perplexed by the two gold rings that appear on the breastplate. While it seem that something ought to be attached to them, no example of samurai armor in the museum demonstrated…
SPavel
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Why did the Soviets not shoot down US spy satellites during the Cold War?
The USSR was not happy with unauthorised overflights, shooting down everything it could, from spy balloons to U-2s. Also, despite repeated US proposals, something like the Open Skies treaty was only agreed after the USSR disintegration. Nowadays…
the gods from engineering
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How did muzzle-loaded rifled artillery solve the problems of the hand-held rifle?
I'm specifically interested in muzzle-loading rifle artillery, so no smoothbores and no breach-loaders. The period I'm interested in is roughly 1820 - 1860, for both the army and navy.
But first I should compare to the background of the hand-held…
DrZ214
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Was the use of captured tanks an effective strategy for Germany?
Throughout WWII it was not uncommon for armor to be captured and reused by belligerent nations. It seems like Germany was the leading force on this, being recorded as frequently incorporating captured tanks in their own forces.
It is well known…
PausePause
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How did the KPA cross the Han River on 28 June 1950?
For those unfamiliar, here's a crude ascii art of what the map looks like:
| North Korea |
| /
| |
| 38th parallel |
\ |
| Han River |
| Seoul |
My commute in South Korea takes me across…
Dr-Bracket
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10 answers
Is there any instance of part of a country successfully seceding and then unifying with a neighbouring country in the last century?
There have been and still are plenty of groups who are fighting for independence of their home regions, and many who have been successful, but is there any precedent for groups fighting to leave the country they inhabit solely as to join a…
Alister Sinclair
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Why did Hitler send Manstein's army (and not some other) to Leningrad in the summer of 1942?
In July, 1942, Germany's General von Manstein won the siege of Sevastopol. Shortly thereafter, Manstein and his 11th Army were sent to Leningrad, which the Germans were also besieging.
I don't question why Hitler wanted to reinforce the siege on…
Tom Au
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Was there an increased interest in 'the spirit world' in the aftermath of the First World War?
In this excellent answer on Literature Stack Exchange, a quote from Alexander Leggatt's 'William Shakespeare's Macbeth' states:
The sense that evil forces are at work in Macbeth may be a product of
the aftermath of the First World War, whose…
Kayndarr
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Why did the film "The Longest Day" have the "cricket" training scene if the Allies received no intelligence about the hedgerows in Normandy?
I'm reading Stephen E. Ambrose's book "Citizen Soldiers" and he says that the allies had no intelligence about the high hedgerows in Normandy.
This shocked me, because I remember clearly the scene in "The Longest Day" where John Wayne trains the…
Thom
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What were the criteria for class ranking at West Point prior to the Civil War?
I was watching Grant on The History Channel last night, and it was mentioned that Robert E. Lee graduated second in his class, while Grant was in the middle*. They also made a point of pointing out how Grant came from humble circumstances (his…
T.E.D.
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How does Göbekli Tepe fit into the current picture of society development?
Göbekli Tepe is a huge archaeological site in Eastern Turkey, currently under excavation (make sure you click on "Pictures"). It is one of the oldest architectural complexes in the world, possibly the oldest, and appears to be a religious complex.…
astabada
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