/r/askhistorians

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What exactly was the 'Gay Bomb' and why did the US plan to develop it?

352 upvotes • Aye_boi

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Is there any recorded abolitionist (anti-slavery) sentiment from ancient civilizations (ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, China, etc...) ?

352 upvotes • trekman3

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In the USSR, how politically problematic was being religious? How much did it depend on position and time? Was there a difference between the treatment of Christians and Muslims?

352 upvotes • The_Manchurian

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An Ancient Chinese poem says, "Beneath lie men who died long ago / Black, black is the long night that traps them... Thousands of years they lie without waking." Was the Ancient Chinese view of the afterlife really so gloomy?

352 upvotes • PangeranDipanagara

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Symbolic Cannibalism...What was the thinking behind Christ saying "Eat this for it is my body and drink this for it is my blood." Why was this significant at the time?

352 upvotes • Melemakani

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Why is Marie Skłodowska-Curie's maiden name dropped out in most English articles?

352 upvotes • atresj

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Did any of Lewis Carroll's contemporaries believe or suspect he was a pedophile, or is this purely a modern idea?

352 upvotes • Starfire-Galaxy

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I’ve read that people like Tennessee Williams and Oscar Wilde lived permanently in hotels. Did hotels offer discounted rates for permanent guests, were they cheaper in general, or were these people just blowing lots of money?

352 upvotes • vivadixiesubmarine

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In Societies like Byzantium and Medieval China, Eunuchs were a common feature in court culture. However in Western Europe they're unheard of. Could someone explain why this is? Further, do we have sources on visitors to noble courts in which meeting a Eunuch would be a entirely new experience?

352 upvotes • dostoyevskyfaith

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There have historically been many slang words used to mean a similar thing to "yes/positive/nice" such as 'dope, sick, uber, gnarly', yet none have aged as well as the word 'cool'. What caused this term to become so accepted as an alternative to good to be written in some dictionaries as such?

352 upvotes • alfatems

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Title	Upvotes	Author	Mark as read	Favorited	Rating	Add to a list
What exactly was the 'Gay Bomb' and why did the US plan to develop it?	352	Aye_boi
Is there any recorded abolitionist (anti-slavery) sentiment from ancient civilizations (ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, China, etc...) ?	352	trekman3
In the USSR, how politically problematic was being religious? How much did it depend on position and time? Was there a difference between the treatment of Christians and Muslims?	352	The_Manchurian
An Ancient Chinese poem says, "Beneath lie men who died long ago / Black, black is the long night that traps them... Thousands of years they lie without waking." Was the Ancient Chinese view of the afterlife really so gloomy?	352	PangeranDipanagara
Symbolic Cannibalism...What was the thinking behind Christ saying "Eat this for it is my body and drink this for it is my blood." Why was this significant at the time?	352	Melemakani
Why is Marie Skłodowska-Curie's maiden name dropped out in most English articles?	352	atresj
Did any of Lewis Carroll's contemporaries believe or suspect he was a pedophile, or is this purely a modern idea?	352	Starfire-Galaxy
I’ve read that people like Tennessee Williams and Oscar Wilde lived permanently in hotels. Did hotels offer discounted rates for permanent guests, were they cheaper in general, or were these people just blowing lots of money?	352	vivadixiesubmarine
In Societies like Byzantium and Medieval China, Eunuchs were a common feature in court culture. However in Western Europe they're unheard of. Could someone explain why this is? Further, do we have sources on visitors to noble courts in which meeting a Eunuch would be a entirely new experience?	352	dostoyevskyfaith
There have historically been many slang words used to mean a similar thing to "yes/positive/nice" such as 'dope, sick, uber, gnarly', yet none have aged as well as the word 'cool'. What caused this term to become so accepted as an alternative to good to be written in some dictionaries as such?	352	alfatems