askhistorians

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The original USB plug, first specified in 1996, is considered one of the worst mistakes in the history of industrial design, being externally symmetric but internally asymmetric. How did all the institutions involved fail to stop that absurd design from making it into a “universal” standard?	349
The North Korean women’s football team is currently ranked 10th in the world, and has been ranked as high as 5th. By comparison, their men’s team is only ranked 112th. How did women’s football become so big in North Korea?	213
“The Count of Monte Cristo”, “Les Miserables”, and “Papillon” are three world-famous French novels that all feature a convict as the main character. How did this subject come to play such an outsized role in French culture?	187
Why is the French Revolution often considered to be “the beginning of the modern age”, rather than the American Revolution which occurred earlier and was based on similar principles?	133
What emotions did ancient “comedies” actually evoke? Were audiences roaring with laughter? Or were they more intellectually amused?	113
How old did the Romans think the pyramids were?	37
Why did the Hindenburg disaster become by far the most famous of airship disasters, despite being neither the first of its kind nor the one with the most fatalities?	26
How do ancient Indian sources describe the Greek invaders that came with Alexander’s campaign?	23
During the Cold War, NATO used their own “reporting names” to identify Soviet military equipment (such as “Foxbat” for the MiG-25). Did the Soviet Union have an equivalent system of internal names for NATO arms?	21
Famous Renaissance artists like Michelangelo and Leonardo had many students. How exactly did they teach? Were there classes, curricula? And what did it take to be accepted as a student by a great master in the first place?	21

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