AskHistorians

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Superman is an alien who looks like a “standard” human, a white man. His two creators were Jewish men who by today’s standards look completely white. Have historians analyzed Superman in the context of his creators being aliens themselves, trying to fit in?	6
The opening sentences of the first Sherlock Holmes story A Study in Scarlet are as follows: " IN the year 1878 I took my degree of Doctor of Medicine of the University of London, and proceeded to Netley to go through the course prescribed for surgeons in the army. Having completed my studies there-	6
Has killing a vampire with a cross always been part of the mythology?	6
I was recently told department stores used have X-ray machines that they’d use to make sure a shoe properly fit. This was obviously before the risks of radiation were known, but how did we figure it out? I’ve read Nagasaki and Hiroshima helped, is this really where we learned this?	6
“Gentlemen’s Agreement” is a 1947 movie that deals with antisemitism, set in New York. There is a sense of urgency in the movie that antisemitism will come to a head. If the movie had been made a few years later, at what point would it have been realistic for it to have mentioned the Holocaust?	6
How did the public, scholars, laypersons, etc react to learning about the existence of germs? How on earth was the world convinced the reasons behind so many diseases are tiny creatures invisible to the naked eye that cover every surface?	5
Before it was standardized, was spelling considered an art form? Was it considered to be like painting a picture of (for example) Adam and Eve, ie a basic format but plenty of wiggle room? Also, am I wrong in think the values placed on good handwriting and spelling have flipped over time?	5
I know back-diagnosing is not an exact science, but we do have records of symptoms Nikola Tesla displayed. What were these symptoms? What was thought of them at the time? What did Tesla think of them at the time?	5
A play becomes popular and sells drawings of its characters. A fan sells original drawing of the same characters of equal quality. Before copyright laws, would people have qualms about buying “unofficial” artwork? When did “official” become a desirable and marketable trait of merch?	5
Where can I find first-hand accounts of people’s reactions to vaccines when they first came out? I’m specifically interested how parents would’ve felt at their children having a decent shot at surviving adolescence. I’m also interested in reactions to the polio vaccine, but any vaccine works	5

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