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1500 questions
34
votes
1 answer
CIA mole in Indira Gandhi's Cabinet
It is discussed in several books that the CIA had a mole in Indira Gandhi's cabinet around the time of the Liberation war for Bangladesh in 1971. There are conflicting reports about who the mole could be. In spite of several denials and claims, it…
Rajib
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34
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9 answers
What do the modern Japanese people think about the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
Japan has been an ally of the USA for a long time now.
On the other hand, every year they observe Hiroshima Day.
Moreover, Japanese people visit Yasukuni Shrine.
Then what is the catch?
user806
34
votes
7 answers
Why didn't Hannibal attack Rome after the Battle of Cannae?
Hannibal Barca defeated 8 Roman legions in the Battle of Cannae. At that time Carthage also had control over Hispania. Why did Hannibal not seize Rome at that time?
Juan Antonio Gomez Moriano
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34
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10 answers
Why does Latin America have a higher number of surviving Native Americans than North America?
Despite having the same disease susceptibility and technological inferiority against the Europeans, it seems that Native Americans have much more surviving descendants in Latin America compared to North America (today's US and Canada). In many Latin…
user69715
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34
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4 answers
Why is it that the maiden name is traditionally dropped when a woman is getting married?
Haven't seen anything online, even after googling. Wikipedia seems to only list the countries that support the practice, but offers no history.
Why is it that the maiden name is traditionally dropped when a woman is getting married? Is this…
yuritsuki
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34
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6 answers
Why did Italy abandon its alliance with Germany in WW1 and join the Allied side?
Before WW1 Italy was part of an alliance with Germany and Austria-Hungary, yet it didn't join them when the war started and it even joined the Allied side later during the war. Why did Italy do this? And if there were good reasons to join the Allies…
Louis Rhys
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34
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5 answers
What were the reasons for making Prohibition a constitutional amendment?
What were the reasons that the Prohibition in the United States was passed as a constitutional amendment, rather than a normal federal law, or a set of state laws?
Carmi
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34
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2 answers
Why did Meiji government consider switching from Japanese to English?
During the Meiji restoration, the Meiji govenment sought to switch Japan's national language from Japanese to English.
Who and why advocated that?
Ultimately, why was it unsuccessful?
Source: The Role of English and Other Foreign Languages in…
Sardathrion - against SE abuse
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34
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6 answers
Why was the Treaty of Versailles so harsh?
When Germany signed the armistice in the first world war, they were still (technically) in a decent bargaining position.
Germany still had troops in France and Belgium
There were no enemy forces in German territory
Germany had already won the war…
Nix
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34
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5 answers
Why isn't Somaliland recognized as a separate country?
The modern country of Somalia is pretty much universally considered a failed state. Within Somalia itself, however, is the de facto state of Somaliland, which if I remember correctly is almost exactly coterminus with the former colony of British…
Affable Geek
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33
votes
2 answers
How beneficial were war bonds to the US during WWII
I've been watching classic cartoon shorts from Disney and Warner Brothers. So many devoted time to encouraging Americans to buy war bonds.
Did money collected from war bonds amount to a significant contribution to the overall US war effort? Were…
Brien Malone
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33
votes
3 answers
Did the Romans have winter uniforms?
Standard ancient Roman uniform consisted of a tunic, a cloak and sandal-type boots, resulting in a look like this. Now, this is all very well for Mediterranean climates but I really cannot fathom how they got along with this clothing in Northern…
Felix Goldberg
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33
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4 answers
Where does the name 'D-Day' come from?
What is the significance of the name D-Day? My whole life I thought it was a 4 day plan, starting with A-Day, then B-Day, C-Day and finally D-Day.
I just learned that in French, it's referred to as... Jour J, which just means J-Day. Shatters my…
Fredy31
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4 answers
Why were nomadic tribes (like the Mongols) from the Eurasian steppes a much reduced threat from the 15th century onwards?
Tribesmen from the Eurasian steppes found significant success in their conquests between the 13th and 15th centuries. Beginning with the Mongol invasions between the 13th and 14th centuries, nomadic tribesmen conquered much of Russia, Europe and…
Twilight Sparkle
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33
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1 answer
Did Shackleton's crew all "miss out" on WW1?
They've just found Shackleton's Endurance.
This has always been a fascinating story to me. 28 men lost for 2 years, Shackleton sails a rowboat to South Georgia in winter, crosses the mountains of South Georgia on foot. Everyone makes it out safely,…
Italian Philosophers 4 Monica
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