AskHistorians

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When and why did people drop the word "atomic" in terms such as "atomic power", "atomic weapons" etc, and replace "atomic" with "nuclear"?	4756
Why did Sri Lanka become a separate country instead of an Indian state?	140
After the South's defeat in the Civil War, Confederate money became instantly worthless. So how did people carry on commerce in the immediate aftermath of the war?	92
There are several pictures of Malcolm X holding a home movie camera while on his travels--did the film that he shot survive, and if so where is it archived?	55
The U. S. is dotted with ghost towns: small hamlets that sprung up and faded away with shifting economic fortunes. Do other countries have similar ghost towns, apart from the famous ancient ruins of major cities like Sumer, Teotihuacan, Merv and such? What are some examples, and why did they fade?	16
In the 1930s the Federal Writers Project conducted interviews with hundreds of American former slaves. Was any similar interview project conducted with any other group of people by the government back then?	6
Why did Soviet soldiers in World War II wear their military decorations on an everyday basis, even in battle?	6
Are there any ancient manuscripts from classical European antiquity that remain untranslated into modern languages, and if so, why?	6
Why are there now Eastern and Western bands of the Cherokee, if the original Cherokee were evicted from their eastern homelands in the 19th Century? Did they return in any numbers?	5
At the end of the American Civil War, I assume that Confederate money was instantly rendered worthless. How long did it take for national currency to be re-established in the South, and what did the people use in the meantime?	5

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