askhistorians

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The Roman Senate continued to meet more than 200 Years after the Fall of Rome. How much of a political role did the Senate play in the Early Medieval Kingdoms of Italy? Did the Senators consider themselves to be 'Roman'? How important was the Fall of Rome for the Senate anyway?	2934
Botswana and Namibia have far lower levels of perceived corruption (per the Corruption Perception Index) than any other African countries--with rates comparable to Spain, Italy, and Poland. What led to these two states excelling while their neighbors still struggle?	2649
Khat is a stimulant plant widely used for millenia in Yemen, Ethiopia, and Somalia--much like coffee. Also like Coffee, it can be grown in tropical environments worldwide. Why did Coffee become a global trade good, while Khat remained confined to Eastern Africa and Southern Arabia?	1200
Modern military combat is infamous for causing permanent hearing loss. How did the aftermath of WW1 and WW2 shape societal attitudes towards Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing people? How did they impact the culture of Deaf communities?	806
Diethyl ether is extremely cheap to manufacture, is not especially toxic, and has anesthetic and euphoric effects. What prevented it from becoming widespread as a recreational drug, as similar anesthetics (ketamine, nitrous oxide, etc.) have?	408
Stinging Nettle is an extremely common plant in the Northern Hemisphere. Its leaves can be prepared as tea or vegetables, and its fibrous stalks are useful in textile making. Why is it that stinging nettle is rarely used for either purpose today?	292
European colonists often referred to Native Americans by grouping them into categories like "Cherokee" or "Choctaw" on an ethnolinguistic basis. How relevant were such distinctions to the indigenous groups themselves?	263
Why did Arabic largely replace Aramaic and Coptic as spoken language, but not replace Persian?	240
The Total Area of the Achaemenid Persian Empire was 5.5 million square kilometers, while the total area of the Macedonian Empire that conquered it was only 5.2 million square kilometers. What happened to the 0.3 million square kilometers not conquered by Alexander?	234
It's 1965, and I want to watch an old movie I saw in the 30s. What are my options? Do theaters play old movies sometimes? Do I have to buy my own projector? If it's a fairly obscure film, can I even buy a film roll?	110

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