query stringlengths 19 300 | pos list | neg list | task stringclasses 1 value | instruction dict |
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Questions about the history of the English language! | [
"David Crystal does document some early borrowings of Latin words into English in his (excellent) *The Stories of English*. These words, though not many, do precede the Norman invasion and the borrowing of Latin via Norman French. The Continental period (prior to 450 AD) yields 183 words, 114 between 450 and 650 AD, and 144 between that and the Conquest."
] | [
"The main reason is because of the religious background of the United States."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
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Why is it that many US States ban cousin marriage where few other nations do? Is it true that the US attitude stems from anti-Native American sentiments? | [
"It doesn't address your second question, but you may be interested in u/yodatsracist's answer to [When and why did first cousin marriage become a taboo in many parts of the US, when it is not in most of the world?](_URL_0_)"
] | [
"They tend to support freedom of religion. They tend to support civil rights for minorities. Seems strange to think of them as a minority but in the US and Western countries they are."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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What makes a place (city, fort etc) strategically important in war? | [
"Why Switzerland was ignored: You could compare Switzerland with the Netherlands, Belgium or Denmark. All four of them declared their neutrallity when the war began, but all four of them could be of stragetic importance for the Germans: The conquest of Belgium was decisive for conquering France (ignoring the Maginot Line) The Dutch Harbours were crucial for the war against the British The Danes controlled the entrance to the Baltic And the Swiss is an important crossroad for traveling through the Alpes. Still the Swiss were the only one spared probably because of an easy cost benefit equastion. The Swiss were the only one of these 4 with a well trained and supplied army in a countryside difficult to conquer in contrast to the Low Countries and Denmark. Besides the Germans already had acces to Italy through Austria and having a neutral neighbour when you're in war can be just as useful as an ally"
] | [
"Are you asking how the mechanics of city states works in the context of Civ 5? Or are you asking what city states in real life are? Two really different questions."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
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Before allergies were realized, did servants/chefs/workers lose their lives due to suspicion of poisoning their King/Lord? | [
"The wording of your question makes it almost impossible to answer in any meaningful way, at least from my reading of it, for one pretty big reason: if you're stipulating the time period as being pre-discovery/understanding of allergies and allergic reactions, the historical sources would, by definition, have been just as ignorant in the matter as the king and his attendants. The best we can hope to do is speculate based on the accounting of the manner of death, but that's hardly going to provide any concrete answers."
] | [
"30 years ago loads of people were being successfully diagnosed with nut, latex, shellfish etc etc allergies. They were well known. Maybe a century ago those allergies were less well identified but due to nonexistent healthcare for the majority of the population those people just died or learned to avoid eating things that nearly killed them. What has changed is we're much smarter and capable at detecting allergies earlier and labelling goods for potential allergens, and people now get to live into adulthood who would otherwise have died in childhood of anaphylactic shock in a mall food court because they put nuts in their cookies and didn't tell anyone."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
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How did people in periods like Ancient Greece achieve such muscular and "sculpted" builds without as much knowledge of nutrition and fitness? (I assume they also didn't just "work out" but rather gained their builds by just working? | [
"First you have to take into account that the bodies represented by antique sculptures ([1)](_URL_0_) are representations of an ideal and not the physique of your average ancient greek. Then, the Greeks (at least the wealthy citizens of the city states) did exercise. Training at the gymnasium was an important part of the citizens life because 1- Aesthetics were considered the outside manifestation of an inside virtu and the sign of a strong will. 2- Physical exercise was a part of the military duty incumbent upon each citizen, as it was required to fight in an hoplitic formation. 3- The gymnasium was a place of physical training, but also socialization and learning. Working out was a part of the basic citizen social life."
] | [
"Power lifters focus on functional movements- the actual motions used to lift, push, and pull heavy items- to maximize the performance of the relevant muscles. Body builders focus on maximizing the size/appearance of many muscles that are superficially visible, but may not be relevant to the functional motion of lifting heavy. Body builders have to work hard to get their body fat so low, and often do so only for competitions before reverting back to a healthier percentage, while power lifters don't bother."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
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In jousting tournaments what were some of the most commonly used tatics and tricks? | [
"Follow up question: I once watched a movie called a knights tale(I think) and near the end **(possible spoiler)** the antagonist had a lance/jousting pole that had a poisoned tip on the end hidden behind a the first point of contact which would impale itself into the antagonist leaving him unable to \"go another round\" my question is did stuff like this happen"
] | [
"While dying in combat was seen as honorable, dying in a tournament was definitely not. As such, tournament armor was notably stronger than combat armor and frequently of different design like the frog mouth helm that would have been next to worthless in a battle. The overengineering of tourney armor has led to myths like that of the helpless unhorsed knight. Tourneys passed into history along with their participants, the heavy armored cavalry. Tourneys were originally a means to hone and refine combat techniques so as battlefield tactics changed in the face of gunpowder weapons and other factors, less importance was placed on equestrian prowess and the tourney passed out of favor."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit argument:",
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Are there exemples of newly formed regimes willing to let go of part of the territory in order to keep or consolidate power ? | [
"I don't think this is quite the example you're looking for but Muhammad Ali Pasha in Egypt initially claimed and controlled much of the Levant and the Hejaz in addition to his core territories in Egypt. When he went to war with the Ottomans to prove that dominance by force he was forced into a ceasefire by the British who threatened the supply lines of his army. The trade was to give up everything outside of Egypt (and Sudan) in exchange for permanent, hereditary, de-facto independence in Egypt. It wasn't intentional but the \"Egyptian-ness\" of these boundaries has proved beneficial, and I think it could be argued that Egypt is far more of a natural nation-state than many of its neighbors, historically speaking. Edit: typo."
] | [
"Just *because* they can control it. No country wants to cut away a constituent part of it so long as it can still be managed without negative consequences. Apart from controlling a ton of people in Tibet and gaining access to what resources it has, it also also allows China to keep an eye on the rest of Central and South Asia. PS. Don't think that this is because China is authoritarian or anything. Many countries have it in their constitutions to maintain territorial integrity at all costs. Places are only 'let off' when they become too much trouble to be worth it, for eg. India or the US getting independence from the UK."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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How did hockey evolve a play area behind the goal? | [
"I feel like r/hockey could answer that better. I honestly never thought of that. it could be because it makes it easier to move the puck around with the ablity to wrap around the net."
] | [
"They are completely different from the team colors to stand out, since they have the unique ability to use their hands. Also, most disputed actions (tackles, etc) that involve the goalie will often be decided in the goalie's favor (as a manner of protection)."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
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What happened between Kolechia and Arstotska? | [
"Well, we should not forget that those two countries had been engaged in the 6-Year-War until rather recently so tensions are natural. With the first and only border check-point opened in the divided town of Grestin of all places it is really no wonder that such an event would draw conflict and eventually terrorists (like the bombing that happened practically right after the check-point went live). However, the posts are apparently paying quite nicely and are highly sought-after and the best modern technology is provided to ensure the safety of the border (according to the national newspaper *The Truth of Arstotzka*) so it looks like the situation is under control and will hopefully normalise eventually once the criminal and terroristic scum have realised that they can't win against modern and professionally trained border staff."
] | [
"X does make that sound in the word Xylophone. Also: Xavier Xander Xenophobia Xanthum Xanadu *Xenon thanks /u/bovfem"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
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How ancient is the concept of a "nerd" and what were the social implications of being considered one? | [
"From Celsus, De medicina 1.2.1, on how to maintain health: \"The weak, however, among whom are a large portion of townspeople, and almost all those fond of letters, need greater precaution [than healthy people], so that care may re-establish what the character of their constitution or of their residence or of their study detracts.\""
] | [
"Follow-up question: If it is purely a modern idea, where did this idea come from, and how much validity is there to it?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
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Does anybody know where I can learn more about the RAF in the Far East during WW2? | [
"Christopher Shores's *Bloody Shambles* trilogy ( Volume 1: The Drift to War to the fall of Singapore, Volume 2: From the Defence of Sumatra to the fall of Burma, and Volume 3: Air War for Burma: The Allied Air Forces Fight Back in South-East Asia 1942-1945) are good places to start."
] | [
"Well, MTO stands for 'Mediterranean Theater of Operations' but without more information I can't say much. Did he serve in the Navy? Army?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
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What did people call discographies before compact discs became en vogue? | [
"According to the *Oxford English Dictionary*, the term *discography* dates from at least 1930. So, before compact discs, the term still appears to have been used. The term *disc* or *disk* used to refer to a medium for recording sound dates to at least 1879 according to the same reference. Hope that helps!"
] | [
"AM/FM radio is still broadcast live, and is analog. There is no relationship between the ability to broadcast live and being digital. They used analog equipment to broadcast from the moon. Analog was in common use for recording and broadcast of audio (cassette tapes, vinyl records) and video (VCR, camcorders) for decades before digital became widespread."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
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Was the One Ring made of superior metal? | [
"It was made of Gold, however it was heavily enchanted by Sauron The Great. He infused his own inherent power into it so that the One Ring and Sauron was bound together. Source: \"Red Book of Westmarch\"."
] | [
"Well, as evidenced by the end of the story, Sauron seemed to tie some of his life force to the Ring. In his weakened state he didn't have enough strength left to create another one."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
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What resources exist to help me find the signature of a historical figure, specifically Ada Lovelace? | [
"[Here's her signature](_URL_0_) at the bottom of a letter to Charles Babbage. Signed her initials only in this [letter](_URL_1_)."
] | [
"How much demand is there for a poet or painter, compared to a lawyer or doctor?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
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The decline of the tall ship | [
"Large sailing ships continued to be used into the 1920s and only ceased to exist in regular use during the Great Depression of the 1930s. They were used to carry bulk goods over long distances. Wheat from Australia to Great Britain and Nitrates from Chile to Europe were the two trade routes where sailing ships continued to be used in large numbers for some 15 years after the end of World War I. Source: Chapter 13 \"Twilight of the Gods\" pp 202-217 in \"The History of the Ship: The Comprehensive Story of Seafaring from Earliest Times to the Present Day\" by Richard Woodman"
] | [
"What do you mean by downfall? This is still a dominant part of current culture."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
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Did people in the past never put blue and red together? | [
"*Purpura* was not \"purple\" in the modern sense. [I think you should find this enlightening and helpful](_URL_0_). In point of fact, as explained in the link, some cheaper imitations did mix red and blue dyes, but *purpura* was not a single shade nor could it really be replicated by the combination of red and blue dyes."
] | [
"What color is the skin of most of the people who make and utilize those drawings? Theres your answer"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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William III of England (or Holland, take your pick) was installed by a foreign power. How did this happen and what were the consequences? | [
"Tiny correction: William III was stadholder of the Netherlands, not *just* Holland, and he installed *himself* with a bit of help from Parliament. Two years ago [Scott Sowerby held an AMA](_URL_0_) on England in the seventeenth century, including a lot of questions on the nature of the event you're describing, the so-called Glorious Revolution."
] | [
"Saying they \"didn't have problems\" is overstating things somewhat. There were several plots against her during her reign, but she had the support of others in government. Even though England hadn't yet become a constitutional monarchy, Elizabeth made a point of seeking and heeding advice from advisers throughout her reign, which was a golden age of stability compared to what came before and after. Overall, I get the impression that her gender was a minor issue compared to the other problems facing England."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
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Did American schools really used to punish students for writing with their left hand? | [
"Hi everyone. Since this is the kind of question that can attract non-expert responses, just a friendly reminder that all responses must comply with [sub rules](_URL_0_), and that [personal anecdotes](_URL_1_) are explicitly not permitted in /r/AskHistorians."
] | [
"The neurons that control your left hand are not the same as the ones that control your right hand. If you taught one to write and not the other, then you made yourself one-handed as a writer. It's a parlor trick to teach yourself to write with both hands, but it takes hours that most people aren't willing to commit. Plus, when you write with both hands at the same time on the board in class, it leads to anti-intellectual jokes which are not pleasant. Fun Bonus Fact: James Garfield, 20th president of the US, could write Greek with his left hand and Latin with his right hand simultaneously. Oh, the things you could learn in the 1850s due to the extra time on your hands. (pun intended)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
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Portrait of Jadwiga of Poland | [
"\"Portrait of Queen Jadwiga\" by Antoni Piotrowski, painted in 1900. It is now held in Aula in Collegium Novum of Jagiellonian University"
] | [
"The Latin spelling of Charles is Carolus. Then from Carolus to Carolina. _URL_0_"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
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What's the oldest company logo still in use today? | [
"Lyle 's have been using the same logo for their golden syrup since 1883. It's a dead lion surrounded by bees, which makes sense if you know your bible and you can read the explanation here... _URL_0_ It's not quite as old as Mitsubishi's 3 diamonds, but AFAIK it has remained the same throughout whereas Mitsubishi's has been subtly modified over the years."
] | [
"So when and where did playing cards as we know them come into being anyways?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
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What are some good/interesting books on Antarctic expeditions? | [
"Lansing's \"Endurance\" is the classic starting point. If you read that, Lennard Bickel's \"Shackleton's Forgotten Men\" is a must-read too because it tells the rest of the story. Highly recommended. For a different approach to the Shackleton legend, try Caroline Alexander's \"The Endurance\". It has lots of wonderful photography from Frank Hurley, the expedition photographer. Once you think Shackleton was the toughest, most rugged explorer, read \"Mawson's Will\", also by Bickel. It will give you nightmares. To see how one man can fumble an expedition despite best intents, try Adm. Byrd's \"Alone\". The ultimate classic, of course, is Apsley Cherry-Gerrard's \"The Worst Journey in the World.\" This is a tome, kind of Moby Dick-like in its detailed analysis of the environment; but it's also a diary of real-life events. If you can slog through the trivia and tedious bits, there's some gem passages in there."
] | [
"Just asked this in the other sticky, but maybe this is the better place for it: Does anyone have any good book recommendations about the Nigerian Civil War or about Biafra as a country?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
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If the focus of the Roman phalanx was protecting the man to your left with your shield, wouldn't the guy to the far right be at a disadvantage because there was no one protecting him? | [
"Unrelated, but I wanted to point out that the Romans abandoned the traditional Greek Phalanx throughout the course of the Samnite Wars. Generally, most ancient armies would protect their flanks with a combination of light skirmishers or cavalry. Specific tactics would depend on the time period, geography, commander, etc."
] | [
"Mostly because that's generally not how premodern armies approached infantry combat; you kept your shield between you and the enemy, relied on the men next to you to cover you from attacks from the side, and thrust with your sword or spear. For hoplites, there's no point in having a spear if you're going to be fighting within inches of each other. Greek hoplite warfare generally involved quite low casualties; if entire phalanxes were bowled over as a result of this alleged shoving match, the slaughter would be absolutely appalling."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
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How did people not fall out of planes during WW1. | [
"Well, they had seat belts and various forms of harnesses to keep them in the cockpit. Although it was still risky, the belts were rudimentary and not designed with the best ergonomics. It was only by the mid-war that more purpose design seat belts like the Sutton Harness, which covered the shoulders, became regular equipment. Some aircraft still operated with a degree of risk, like the [later models of the FE2](_URL_0_) in which the front gunner had to unbuckle his lap-belt to use the rear gun. In this case, coordination between pilot and gunner was necessary to keep the gunner from falling out the aircraft. WWI flying was dirty and very dangerous work, and seat belts only eliminated one risk."
] | [
"Statistically, you should be scared sh*tless in your car, not on airplanes."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
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Did America ever steal tech or knowledge from the Soviet Union? | [
"In the first several years after the fall of the Soviet Union, the leading Russian export was... patents and inventions. Sorry, don't remember the source."
] | [
"Could the rebuilding of Japan after WWII be considered a partial colonization by the United States?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Why did the later Roman Empire (and Byzantine Empire) have such chronic troop shortages? | [
"Do you have any particular manpower crises in mind that you'd like explained? The late Roman/Byzantine era is a thousand years long, there's no single generalization that can explain every crisis in a satisfactory way. I'd be glad to help answer questions for the middle Byzantine period."
] | [
"Which historian do you think has the best explanation for the Fall of the Roman Empire? Did it collapse due to external pressures from the waves of barbarian migrations caused by the conquests of the Huns, as Peter Heather argues? Or, as Guy Halsall argues, was it actually power struggles within the Empire, and the consequent break down of systems of patronage and the political legitimacy this bestowed, which caused the tribal groupings to get drawn into the power struggles and civil wars of Rome, unwittingly leading to the downfall of the Empire from within? Edit: I studied under one of these historians, and it was always really fun to hear his forthright opinions on his counterpart."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question about History:",
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Prior to gunpowder what was the most effective military deployment? | [
"I think you must mean 'development.' \"What was the most effective military development?\""
] | [
"Time, money, resource management, getting them to the front lines would be a pain. Also, it wasnt necessarily better than the American weapons used at the time. But it shot with a fast rate of fire, a large caliber, and its ability to easily swap its barrels made it more useful for the type of combat."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
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Did Harald Wartooth control English territories before 793AD? | [
"Well, first off, Haraldr hilditönn, Ívarr inn viðfaðmi, and Hálfdan snjalli were legendary kings, so any information you're reading about them is instantly suspect; the earliest sources we have for these 6th, 7th, and 8th century kings are 12th century legends. Second, 793 was the first recorded raid of a monastery by *víkingar*, but there is no doubt that the Scandinavians were trading, raiding, and selling their services as mercenaries to the English well beforehand."
] | [
"Svend's (normally *Sweyn* in English) claim was based on the fact that he was the nephew of Canute the Great (Svend's mother, Estrid Svendsdatter, was Canute's sister) who had ruled England. And Svend did (sort of) push his claim - in 1069/70 he invaded East England to aid Anglo-Saxon rebels against William. However, Svend ended up accepting payment from William in exchange for his forces withdrawing to Denmark without a fight. Svend's invasion and subsequent withdrawal were a leading cause of the Harrying of the North."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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What recreational drugs would the average person have access to in 1910s-1920s Prague? | [
"Alcohol, tobacco, absinthe, hashish, nitrous oxide, ether, cocaine, heroin/opium/morphine (and laudenum). I may have missed some. Amphetamines were starting to be used medically in the 1920s but were not used recreationally until the late 30s."
] | [
"Are there any books on Berlin during 1920s?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
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"neg": "Represent the Reddit text about Literature:"
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Why was Romania the only Communist Country not to cut ties with Israel? | [
"It seems hard to believe now, especially after Ceausescu clung by his fingernails to power while the rest of Eastern Europe turned away from Communism, but during the seventies and eighties he had a reputation as something of a pro-Western (or at least not stridently anti-Western) \"reformer\" who worked hard to cultivate ties with the United States, Britain and other non-Communist powers. His own propaganda films made sure to show he and Elena hobnobbing with the likes of Richard Nixon and Pierre Trudeau, and riding in Queen Elizabeth's carriage. Meanwhile, Romania entered into seemingly lucrative business deals with Western nations, like building French Citroen automobiles under license and buying aircraft from Britain (and then trying to pay for them with strawberries). They even sent a team to the 1984 summer Olympics, defying the Soviet-led boycott. I'm not so sure about his country's ties with Israel, buy they would appear to fit this pattern."
] | [
"I can't answer, but Albania, Slovakia (as part of Czechoslovakia) and Romania were all members of the Warsaw Pact during the Cold War."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
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Has a presidential election ever been impacted by a weather event and if so, is voting delayed in the area impacted? | [
"turnout is always affected by weather - i.e. bad weather means only the determined vote"
] | [
"Most write-in campaigns that actually win are public and fairly well organized. To the best of my knowledge, there has never been a candidate that is simultaneously popular enough to win a write-in campaign, and unknown enough for officials to have difficulty establishing their identity. Theoretically it could happen, and cause a problem, but it has just never come up."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Any precedence in US History for a natural disaster effecting a nation-wide election date? | [
"I just did a quick google search and found this: _URL_0_ F. Glenn Abney and Larry B. Hill, \"Natural Disasters as a Political Variable: The Effect of a Hurricane on an Urban Election\", *The American Political Science Review*, Vol. 60, No. 4, 1966, pp. 974-981. Apparently, Hurricane Betsy flooded New Orleans pretty badly in early September. The response to flooding became hugely politicized, allowing the incumbent to win thanks to his \"political skill and material resources...for they enabled him to capitalize upon the disaster...\""
] | [
"Its not important in terms of electoral votes (what decides who is president), it's just that its the first ballot towards the presidential election is then sometimes used as an indicator to who might win."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
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In referring to foot stools how did the term Ottoman come about? | [
"It was first brought to Europe from the Ottoman Empire in the 1700s, therefore the nickname \"Ottoman.\""
] | [
"One is the British term, the other the American. They are the same thing."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
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Military strategy question: What was the biggest factor that caused military tacticians to stop using double line standard type formations? Any interesting anecdotes about the transition period? I assume this has to do with the accuracy of weapons... | [
"In a word? Rifling. Though Napoleon and the Revolutionary generals heavily utilised column formations throughout their campaigns, it was really only the introduction of rifling that witnessed the death-knell of the line. Such tactics were utilised at extreme cost when combined with rifled weapons during the Crimean War, American Civil War and Franco-Prussian War. As breech-loading rifles replaced muzzle-loading ones, the increased weight of accurate, long-range and rapid small arms fire made line formations near suicidal. By the end of the century, tight formations had been revised to loose order tactics (i.e. skirmishing lines) in the drill books of pretty much all the major powers."
] | [
"The hammer and anvil wasn't really invented by Alexander nor his father. What was special was that he *perfected* it. And it had to do with his companion cavalry which were superior to the Persians. As to why the tactic is so effective. Hammer and Anvil really has to do with flanking and the concept of local superiority. In Alexander's case, it was really more psychological."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about history:",
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Where does the traditional 'Middle Eastern/Arabian' music in Hollywood movies come from? | [
"/u/CptBuck on Belly Dancing, \"The Streets of Cairo\" and late 19th century world fairs will probably interest you: _URL_0_"
] | [
"\"Classical Music\" actually refers to music produced between 1750 and 1820. Russia and Europe were the cultural centers in these days, and thus they produced most of the memorable popular music for the time period. Sort of like asking \"Why does it seem like most of the big musical hits from the 50's were American?\"."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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Why did the English government decide to allow to sell their expertise during the industrial revolution? | [
"Could you clarify what what government owned technology you are referencing? Most of the industrial revolution in England was driven by the private sector IIRC."
] | [
"Was any Asian country capable of helping the United States during the revolutionary war?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
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} |
Does A Song of Ice and Fire (Game of Thrones) base it's story on any historical events? | [
"I agree that War of the Roses is the most obvious inspiration, but I also think there are some secondary influences from the Yugoslav Wars. George RR Martin wrote the first book from 1991-1996, when the Croatian and Bosnian Wars were a big deal for American foreign policy and got a lot of popular news coverage. It started out with six republics of Yugoslavia, each with differing cultures, started fighting for autonomy."
] | [
"Generally high fantasy involves worlds where magic and fantastical creatures are common. Example: LOTR Low fantasy is when there are subtle fantastical elements in a more realistic world. Example: Game of Thrones (at least so far in the first half of book 1)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
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Where there any nations that desired and/or benefited from WW1? | [
"Arguably, Japan made out quite well during the first World War. At the time, Japan was an ally of the United Kingdom, and early in the war Japan arranged to strike at German territories in China and the Pacific Islands in exchange for continued occupation of those areas after the war. Japan ended up intervening (or contributing) in China, Micronesia, Singapore, South Africa, Malta, and Russia. The upshot was that Japan occupied Micronesia under a League of Nations Mandate until the Second World War, and greatly expanded its presence in East Asia––and its influence globally. I'm more familiar with the Micronesia story, so here's a source for that: Peattie, Mark R. *Nan’yo: The Rise and Fall of the Japanese in Micronesia, 1885-1945*. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1988. Hopefully others can correct me if I slipped up elsewhere."
] | [
"By the US, you mean Rooservelt, because the US actually did help a few of its western allies (i.e France) try to keep their colonial domains after 1945. Especially with the start of the cold war. But also helped the colonized/ex-colonized (i.e Suez, Indonesia) after the war. But Roosevelt's basic view was that European imperialism was much responsible for creating WWI and WWII in the first place, plus, he, at least by some of his comments, genuinely seem to think that colonialism was wrong and sympathized with colonized people's nationalist aspirations. source: Warlords: An Extraordinary Re-creation of World War II through the Eyes and Minds of Hitler, Churchill, Roosevelt, and Stalin"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
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Why did they saw off limbs to prevent infections rather than using some sort of extremely sharp guillotine device? | [
"Premodern amputation (presumably also modern) was actually a very sophisticated medical procedure, even practiced under crude/battlefield tent conditions. I've actually discussed [medieval amputation practices](_URL_0_)) before, if you'd like to read in more depth. Basically, the surgery involves making an incision down to the bone, peeling back the soft tissue, and sealing off the blood vessels. At that point, the bone is sawed through. The skin and other soft tissue that had been peeled back, are folded over the sawed-off end and sewn and bandaged shut. One quick stroke with a leg-guillotine would also remove the soft tissue as well as not allow time to cauterize or tie off veins and arteries. Presumably a saw was also a bit more portable for emergency situations?"
] | [
"We do, but they have to be screwed in to your jawbone with titanium screws. Natural teeth are glued in place by a layer around the base of the tooth called the periodontal ligament. It acts as a cushion and can heal itself so it doesn't wear out. Tooth implants have no shock absorber or have shock absorbers which eventually wear out. The screws can also work loose... People get implants anyway but it's a last-ditch thing and expensive. You're arguably better off living with dentures. Back when I wanted to do something with my life I was going to invent a bioengineered lab-grown periodontal ligament to solve this exact problem so people could have tooth implants with cushioning but then I went crazy and wound up working menial jobs and commenting on Reddit for the rest of my life."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query about biology:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document about biology:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What was it like to be an emissary or messenger throughout the Middle Ages? | [
"In Western Europe, the messengers were the heralds, tasked with communicating important information, and required to be adept in the ways of diplomacy. On top of this, heralds primarily needed an encyclopaedic knowledge of the coats of arms of every knight; domestic and foreign. Heraldry became a highly established institution, and the top jobs were the '[Kings of Arms](_URL_0_)'. Granted, these men were no longer messengers, rather offices with the powers to grant armourial bearings. However, there was a very real possibility for heralds to advance up the ranks from messengers to a title which even possessed its own crown. (edit: very basic grammatical mistakes)"
] | [
"The Middle Ages is a pretty huge period that spanned centuries, so you might want to refine your question. The daily life of a monarch in the 8th century was incomparably different from that of a 16th century one."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
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} |
Why we're the Chinese so unsuccessful in industrializing? | [
"In what context are we talking here? I might be able to discuss this a bit for the Late Qing, but if you're thinking of the Great Leap Forward then I'll be of less help."
] | [
"The United States are *not* the wealthiest or most advanced country on the planet. And what exactly do you mean by anxiety?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
Does anyone have English sources on the Vandal kingdom in North Africa? | [
"What do you mean sources? Primary or secondary? Most stuff on the Vandals comes from the Roman perspective. As for secondary sources, a lot of the really good stuff is in German but if you want a survey on this subject in English, I suggest AHM Jone's [The Later Roman Empire, 284-602: A Social, Economic, and Administrative Survey](_URL_2_) and George Ostrogorsky's [History of the Byzantine State](_URL_0_). Peter Heather's [The Fall of the Roman Empire: A New History of Rome and the Barbarians](_URL_1_) also has some obscure tidbits that most people would not normally know. Also, who could forget the The Cambridge Ancient History series? They actually have a [chapter dedicated to the Vandals](_URL_3_)."
] | [
"I'd like to flip this and ask a question, can anyone shed some light on wintertime survival in Early Medieval Britain and Ireland?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
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Any history books recommendations for learning about WWII? | [
"You're in luck! [This subreddit has a fantastic booklist with a section devoted to many aspects of the Second World War.](_URL_0_) If there is anything specific you're looking for, we'll be happy to try and steer you towards that perfect book."
] | [
"I'd like to flip this and ask a question, can anyone shed some light on wintertime survival in Early Medieval Britain and Ireland?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query about Education:",
"pos": "Represent the argument about Education:",
"neg": "Represent the argument:"
} |
Why didn't Thomas Paine play a larger role in post-revolution America? | [
"Mostly it was because he was in France, where he went and supported their revolution, pumped out revolutionary material, joined the National Convention, and eventually got himself put in jail by Robespierre. He survived and returned to America, but after most of the post-Revolution stuff was done. Edit: Removed some material that I can't back up."
] | [
"Was any Asian country capable of helping the United States during the revolutionary war?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
Let's say I'm a duke/king/earl/etc. in medieval Europe, and I want to declare war on my neighbor. How do I do it? | [
"On a similar note: would casus belli be a large factor in declaring a war? To narrow it down, the 11th-12th century is the time period that I'm referring to. I understand the Crusades would be a justification for meddling in the Middle East, but other than that, was it (a CB) ever needed?"
] | [
"> How would I go about doing this? The hardest part is going to be getting other countries to recognize you. There's not some sort of paperwork you can fill out that makes you sovereign. You'd have to have some amazing political clout, or one heck of an arsenal, or you'll always just be 'some guy who wants to play pretend.' Countries are countries inasmuch as they recognize one another to be where it counts."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit sentence:"
} |
What was NATOs plan, in case the cold war went hot? | [
"Similarly, what were the 'roles' for NATO countries in this eventuality? I know the UK was supposed to focus on ASW warfare in the Noorth sea and guarding the GIUK gap, Germany was armoured warfare (hence the large numbers of tanks and vehicles they held/hold) and the US was the main 'Air Force' of the conflict, but what were the jobs for other countries?"
] | [
"That would assume that 2 NATO countries would go to war with each other. I believe that if that was the case, one or both would be kicked out of NATO... and then NATO will choose sides."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
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'All Groups Have Been Slaves At One Point or Another'. Is this a Stretch or Demonstrably False? | [
"I would be hugely wary of term \"group\" in this statement, as the way humans have grouped each other and themselves has changed drastically over history. Then we need to ask if by group, we mean the whole group or just some section of the group and if it is just a section of the group then how large a section? So depending on how loosely you define these things you could make this true or false, but due to the vague nature of the statement I would say it has little meaning either way."
] | [
"Being Black Does Actually Have (Relatively Minor) Health Consequences, It's Just That They're Obviated By Modern Life. There's An Energy Cost To Have Extra Melanin, Even A Small One, So If You Don't Need It It Won't Be Selected For. Melanin Reduces Vitamin-D Uptake From The Sun If Sunlight Is Lower Than You're Adapted For. Vitamin-D Deficiency Was Very Common In Black Children In The Northern US And Europe Before Modern Technology Made Nutrients More Easily Accessible. Being Black Or Brown Outside Of The Tropics Would Have Been Maladaptive For Most Of Human History Because There Would Not Have Been Enough Sunlight For Proper Nutrient Uptake. Capital Letters."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
The last lunch menu on the Titanic has just been auctioned, and it lists a few vegetables. How would vegetables have been kept fresh on a long trans-ocean voyage back then? | [
"You may be overestimating the time that the journey took -- the runs by *Titanic* and her sister ships were meant to take no more than five or six days in each direction, leaving weekly Wednesday from Southampton and Saturday from New York (the ships would rotate that schedule). Vegetables will keep perfectly well for a week or less, especially in cold storage."
] | [
"Scurvy was brought on by a lack of Vitamin C. And while fruits and other foods containing it were common parts of people's diets on land, such foods are difficult to preserve over a long sea voyage."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query about Technology:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text about Technology:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Is devoting any time to "Killing Lincoln" worth it? | [
"Your choice. When the book was first released, Ford's Theatre refused to stock the text in its bookstore due to historical inaccuracies. Supposedly these have since been fixed. Still, IMHO, it appears a little too sensationalist for my liking."
] | [
"Isn't it just another way to take your mind off it?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document about Health:"
} |
During the Soviet era in Russia, what exactly was the state of medical research? | [
"It might help if you narrowed down your question a little. The Soviet era is a solid seventy years, which is a very long time when you're talking about scientific advances in the 20th century. The answers to your questions will be very different directly post-revolution versus WWII versus the Cold War (which itself is almost 40 years)"
] | [
"The main reason is because of the religious background of the United States."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit post:"
} |
Wikipedia has a list of common misconceptions. Has such a thing been considered for this sub? I know many of these are addressed in the FAQ, but I was wondering about something in plain sight. | [
"Could you clarify what you mean by 'something in plain sight'? We are pretty limited in what we can do, after all, in terms of visibility! We have limited sidebar space which we try to save for \"BIG THINGS!\", so the Wiki is really all we have for second-order stuff, which this would seem to fit under."
] | [
"While I realize this is a real question, I believe there's a rule about asking loaded questions."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the argument:",
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In the Jim Crow South, what was the penalty for a white person breaking simple laws such as using a negro bathroom or drinking from a black water fountain? | [
"White people didn't face legal repercussions for using \"colored\" fountains. There would have been a chance of social derision from the White community, due to the association with African Americans, or the significantly lower quality of \"Colored\" specific areas but nothing illegal would have happened if a white man used a black restroom or water fountain. To clarify: It's possible that this would have been illegal in some municipality, but I haven't read anything on it."
] | [
"They are very intentional, but I only know some of the reasons why. More than anything, a lack of privacy reduces illegal activity, mostly prostitution and drug use. Companies are liable for what happens to you in a restroom. In Boston, a girl once overdosed on heroin, got knocked out hitting the toilet, and the restaurant was liable because they didn't see her lying there for hours. It's what restrooms are so hard to come by in Boston. Anywho, companies don't benefit from you being comfortable in a restroom. get in, get out, move along."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit post:"
} |
Any podcast that you historians would recommend to listen to learn about the different chapters of the history of the world, maybe get a sense of different times in history. | [
"I do really like \"In our time\" with Melvyn Bragg (BBC4). 45 minutes per week of a condensed fact (or fiction) historical talk. Mainly academics from Oxford, therefore you must be accustomed to British English (brilliant). *In Our Time With Melvyn Bragg* > Melvyn Bragg and his guests discuss the history of ideas - including topics drawn from philosophy,..."
] | [
"I'm looking for recommendations for books to read if I want an overview of the history of the LGBT+ movement in the United States but don't have any previous background knowledge in the subject."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post about Education:",
"pos": "Represent the document about Education:",
"neg": "Represent the document about Literature:"
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How much do we know about america before Columbus, where large wars fought, alliances made or something like that | [
"This is an incredibly vague question. Are you specifically interested in wars? Politics? Where? It's really hard to help you without narrowing that down first."
] | [
"Because of natural disasters, some ages just built over their ancestors ruins as they held less significance with their closer proximity. That happens then events like world war 2 which levels current civilizations over the ruins of their ancestors that's already laying atop other ruins, etc etc"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
Please can you explain how the law William Wilberforce and his lawyer friend managed to get through which had the side effect of reducing the slave trade by 80% actually worked. | [
"The Foreign Slave Trade Act of 1806 banned British subjects from trading slaves to, or on behalf of, foreign nations. This had the effect of reducing the British slave trade by so much because so much of the trade was with foreign nations and their colonies. Prior to this law, British slave traders could fly the US flag and trade with French colonies in the Caribbean (as well as the USA, South America, etc) despite Britain and France being at war. Passage of the law was seen as war measure (stop giving labor/aid to the French) rather than an abolition measure, which boosted support and aided in the Act being passed. Of course, once the law passed, British subjects could trade only with British colonies in the West Indies, which was a much smaller part of the market. Once the trade in slaves was dimished by so much, resistance to abolition of the trade as a whole rapidly decreased and the total abolition of the slave trade was passed less than a year later, in February 1807."
] | [
"Can't comment on the CAR but in his closing statement he says something to the effect that slaves would have been better off under British rather than American rule. I'd love to know his rational for that statement, since especially if we accept the rather compelling arguments made in *Moral Capital*, the American revolution was a major factor in the end in the slave trade (in Britain and the United States), gradual ending of slavery in the northern states, loosening of manumission laws, and an explosion of manumissions in the years following the revolution. Arguments that it would have been better had Britain won for the slaves usually center on the fact that Britain ended slavery 30 odd years before the United States, but this is a rather stupid argument as it ignores the fact that slavery would have been able to wield substantially more political influence within the British empire had the Southern region of the United States remained within British rule."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
When did we stop using "the class system" in America? Do we just call it something else? It seems like in the early 1900s, there was three classes... ?? | [
"Flights still have \"first class\" although many call it business class. I'm sure ships and trains still have similar arrangements. I think it's a mistake to suggest that there is a direct correlation between this and a formalized position in society, although obviously more well off people are more likely to be able to afford better accommodations. America did not have a formalized class system in the early 1900s, although like anywhere class and wealth were and are interrelated but not entirely overlapping and can have a profound impact on your life and opportunities."
] | [
"Do you mean middle-class in the British sense (something like 'the professional class') or in the US sense which seems to include working people?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the paragraph:",
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} |
What are the must-visit places to understand Einstein's life and discoveries in Switzerland and Germany? I will visit the most popular ones in this thread in October and promise to post photos and descriptions. | [
"Bern, Switzerland. You need to get a picture next to the large clock face that Einstein would often walk by on his way to work at the patent office (this clock among others may have inspired Einstein's ideas behind SR). Perhaps you should pick up a copy of Peter Galison's Einstein's Clocks, Poincare's Maps: Empires of Time. The clock in question is on the cover. Go walk around the city checking out the synchronized clocks. Don't take Galison's argument too seriously, but the clocks undoubtedly had some sort of effect on Einstein. Apparently his apartment is preserved there as well (Kramgasse 49). Maybe it's possible to check out the patent office where he worked as well. In Germany you should check out his summer home in Caputh although from what I saw you need to make advanced reservations for a visit."
] | [
"You are too kind! Thanks. I hope people will continue to enjoy it; as for me, it's like a journey where you know more or less your final destination but don't really know what turns lay ahead... Since most of the time I don't know in advance what's going to be the focus of the next week, I suppose this helps keeping it \"open\" - as I don't have to pick in order to follow a line of thought or a specific theme. Eventually, maybe, a coherent picture will surface, that retains an idea of the size and scope of the processes involved. And for anyone who has suggestions or would like some topic to be touched upon... just let me know!"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph about Announcements:"
} |
Did Einstein work for Oktoberfest in 1908? | [
"This website is wrong in at least one regard–Albert was born in 1879, making him 29, not 17, in 1908. Albert's father's firm, Elektro-Technische Fabrik J. Einsterin & Co., was awarded a contract in 1885 to provide lighting for Oktoberfest in Bavaria.[1] However, at the time Albert was just six years old. The firm went bankrupt in 1892 after failing to secure a contract in their hometown Munich, when Albert was 13.[2] So while it's possible Albert worked in some respect for his father's company in that timespan, and that that work included Oktoberfest, it's highly unlikely he was screwing in lightbulbs in a tent in 1908. Sources 1. *Einstein in Love* By Dennis Overbye, page 8. 2. *Einstein: A Biography* By Jürgen Neffe, page 47"
] | [
"Are there any books on Berlin during 1920s?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document about Literature:"
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When/How did stage antics become a major component of Rock Concerts? | [
"I don't have time for an in-depth history, but you can't talk about stage antics without talking about Jerry Lee Lewis. Just watch [this video](_URL_1_) from beginning to end and you'll see exactly what I mean. He was famous for his erratic, manic behavior on stage; he would play with his feet, stand on the instrument, and even was rumored to have set a piano on fire [(Source)](_URL_0_). Here's how one biographer describes his performances: > Jerry Lee loads up the song with his signature moves—the egocentric first-person references, the theatrically raised arms, the absurd glissandos, the pounding double-time right hand, the long blond hair threatening to burst loose from the pomade...\" [Source](_URL_2_)"
] | [
"You mean as in, why isn't it discussed more as a part of US History education?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What was the longest peaceful period in history? | [
"globally? never. regionally? Canada and the US haven't been at war for 200 years."
] | [
"Was any Asian country capable of helping the United States during the revolutionary war?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Is San Antonio the most fought-over city in North America? | [
"I think Quebec would be a stronger candidate: 1629 Quebec taken by the Kirke brothers (representing Britain). 1632 French re-take Quebec. 1660s Several attacks by Iroquois. 1690 English fleet driven off by Quebec cannon. 1711 British fleet under Admiral Walker fails to take Quebec. 1759 British under General Wolfe capture Quebec. Battle of the Plains of Abraham. 1775 Battle of Quebec. Americans fail to take the city."
] | [
"What do you want to hear more about? The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan? The Israel vs. Palestine situation? The Arab Spring? The recent attacks on US embassies?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
Why are guillotine blades slanted? | [
"You mention resistance. This is correct. With a slanted blade, the point of resistance is in a smaller area when it first arrives at the person's head. This means that the initial impact does not slow the blade as much as it would if the blade were straightened. The reason this is important is that it makes it more unlikely to get lodged in the middle of the neck or hardly entering it at all. I mean, would you wanna be the guy to have to break off the rest of the head from the blade, especially if the dying person is still screaming?"
] | [
"Iron supplements are in powder form, made for digestion purposes. Iron shavings will rip your stomach and intestines before they'll dissolve."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
How long after the American Revolution did the US or UK hold a grudge against the other side? | [
"I am not a historian by any means; I just wrote a paper on Anglophobia transitioning to Anglophilia in Hollywood for a class last year. One book you should check out is [Twisting the Lion's Tail by John Moser](_URL_0_). It covers Anglophobia between the two world wars. It's basically a pretty detailed account of American official policy in the interwar years and how it was meant to be directly in competition with Britain. I can't comment on any specific examples of Anglophobia, but the fact that American foreign policy was still quite \"anti-British\" even between the wars suggests that it was only really after WWII that the two countries started really warming up to each other."
] | [
"Was any Asian country capable of helping the United States during the revolutionary war?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
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How did the Kim family come into power in North Korea? | [
"Follow-up question: what were the factors that cemented the practice of hereditary rule in the DPRK? We didn't see this in the USSR or the PRC."
] | [
"Was any Asian country capable of helping the United States during the revolutionary war?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
How did the Kim family obtain power in North Korea and hold on to it? | [
"Follow up- when was it determined that Kim Jong il would succeed Kim il sung and how did the country not fall into civil war?"
] | [
"Each side wants reunification on their own terms. North Korea wants all of Korea to worship the Kim family, which isn't going to happen. South Korea wants all of Korea to be a modern country, which won't happen as long as the Kim family remains in power."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the comment:",
"neg": "Represent the comment:"
} |
Did people in past centuries (Middle Ages - XIX century) struggle with the same health issues as we do? | [
"Not \"unnecessary knowledge\" at all! In fact, a lot of those diseases/conditions have been asked about, separately, on AskHistorians before! Hopefully some of these are of interest: * [Depression and anxiety](_URL_4_) (this is an old one of mine and kind of a mess; please ask for clarification if you want or need) * [A different perspective on depression/an expansion of one part of the previous post](_URL_6_) * [Anorexia nervosa](_URL_5_) (this is an answer to a follow-up question, so the top-level question is...different) * [Suicide](_URL_7_) * [PTSD](_URL_1_) (by /u/Iphikrates) * [Obesity](_URL_0_) * [\"Mental illness\" as a concept](_URL_2_) (by /u/hillsonghoods) * [Acne](_URL_3_) (by /u/cdesmoulins) I hope that gives you a good start!"
] | [
"Maybe because we know so little about it and even less about how to deal with those with mental illness."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Book recommendations request: Early medieval England | [
"Hoo boy. I could give you hundreds, but to start with: Charles-Edwards, *After Rome* Bartlett, *The Making of Europe* Stenton, *Anglo-Saxon England* Higham, *The Anglo-Saxon World* Bede's *Historia Ecclesiastica* *The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle* (I like Dorothy Whitelock's 1961 edition which displays the different MS versions next to each other for comparisson, but it can be tricky to track down). Asser's *Vita Ælfredi* Brown and Farr, *Mercia: An Anglo-Saxon Kingdom in Europe* Hill, Rumble *et al*: *The Defence of Wessex; The* Burghal Hidage* Baker and Brookes, *Beyond the Burghal Hidage* Keynes and Dumville, *Kings, Currency and Alliances* Keynes and Lapidge, *Alfred the Great* Lavelle, *Alfred's Wars* Lavelle, *The Danes in Wessex* Pratt, *The Political Thought of Alfred the Great* Molyneaux, *The Foundation of the English Kingdom in the Tenth Century* Stafford, *The Annals of Æthelflæd*"
] | [
"Just asked this in the other sticky, but maybe this is the better place for it: Does anyone have any good book recommendations about the Nigerian Civil War or about Biafra as a country?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document about Literature:"
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How long would it take a ship to gain enough steam to set out? | [
"I don't think it would take as much time as you think. 600 PSI/850 degree Babcock and Wilcox boilers (the Iowa class used 8 of them, but they were common across the fleet) could go from a \"cold\" condition to ready to answer bells in about an hour or so under \"emergency\" conditions. A \"normal\" warmup (limiting the heat-up rate to prevent thermal stresses to the piping) could take four hours or so. Most steam-powered vessels aren't kept in a \"cold\" condition; unless work on the steam system is needed, they're kept in a \"hot standby\"; the steam stop is shut and the steam in the piping is bled off. Even if one was stoking the boiler, it wouldn't take as much fuel as steaming would; heat is only being lost to the atmosphere rather than being used to power engines."
] | [
"Well you couldn't push your self off hard enough. All you'd manage is to enter a slightly different orbit. If you could push yourself off hard enough you'd have to push the ISS way out of its orbit in order to get the necessary velocity to deorbit."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage about Physics:"
} |
Are there any example of democracies going to war against each other? | [
"I'm not certain if this will meet your requirements, but how about the War of 1812? The US was obviously a democracy, while the UK was governed by Parliament. The reason I'm not certain if this will count is I'm unsure of the relative strength of the King, the House of Lords, and the House of Commons/ Still, might be a place to look."
] | [
"Nations are sovereign which means there's no higher power that can force them to do/not do something. Rather a stronger nation or group of nations must go to war. No group of nations feels that North Korea is worth going to war over, much less the vastly more powerful US."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
Can anyone help me interpret this political cartoon? All I know about it is that it is related to the Algerian War. | [
"My knowledge of the Algerian war is limited, but I can tell you that the image is a visual reference to [the three wise monkeys](_URL_0_), which in turn refer to the saying \"see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.\" The cartoon is accusing someone of turning a blind eye to unethical behavior, though I don't know who the figures are."
] | [
"A related question were there public figures at the time who were apologists that tried to justify for the actions of the Japanese military at Pearl Harbor?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
In the Tudors TV show, a person being burnt at the stake has a bag of gunpowder put around their neck to 'ease their suffering'. Was this common practice at the time? | [
"Related question: In that moment when they light the fire and they are waiting for it to reach the person and then become hot enough to kill... there must have been an awkward lull in the event. What happened, did someone keep making speeches or did everyone stand there silently waiting for the screaming to begin?"
] | [
"Let me answer your question with another question: if you tape a grenade to the back of someone's head and pull the pin, what happens to the front of their head? Same thing, more or less."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
Has a first lady ever had a job while living in the white house? | [
"Eleanor Roosevelt earned 75K during the first year of FDRs presidential term from giving lectures and a syndicated column. [Source](_URL_0_)"
] | [
"US President is the highest office in the nation. Once you've been President, you can command many thousands of dollars in speaking fees, you can open your library, you can publish your memoirs and make more money, you receive a pension of $200,000 per year - why would you want to stay in politics? Anyways, they don't all retire from politics. Harry Truman stayed active for years, campaigning for Democrat Senate candidates."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit argument:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit argument:"
} |
Can anyone recommend a good book about the Glorious Revolution? | [
"J.C.D. Clark's *English Society 1660-1832* is an excellent book about the 'long eighteenth century' and has quite a lot of material about the Glorious Revolution."
] | [
"Just a follow-up question to the original question - what about the reverse. What was Napoleon's view of the United States?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
What nation went to war the most in history? | [
"This question is flawed because of how you define war. Are the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan being counted even though the U.S. has not made a formal declaration of war? Does the Hundred Years' War count as one war or multiple? Also, how do you define a nation? Does the current Russia get to count it's time as the Soviet Union? China has existed as a country since 221 BCE according to them, but is it really the same nation now as it was in the 1500's?"
] | [
"Was any Asian country capable of helping the United States during the revolutionary war?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
Asked this on /r/AskAnthropology and got nothing. In the movie Jeremiah Johnson, "Bearclaw" Chris Lapp describes the Crow as "an adulterous people." What would he have meant by that? What were Crow sexual mores like? | [
"It is quite possible that \"an adulterous people\" was a reference to the Crow's polygamous marital arrangements. [This](_URL_0_) 1892 report to the Secretary of Interior makes several references to the fact that among many other plains groups, the Crow were still frequently practicing polygamy. The author notes that polygamy was still very common on the Crow reservation, but also notes its practice among the Gros Ventre, Blackfeet and some other Northern Plains Tribes. I don't have a Crow ethnography handy, and can't get to the library today (got baseball tickets), so this is the best I can do."
] | [
"- Cannibalism was noted in some South Pacific, north/south American and Caribean cultures. - There were child soldiers used in various roles in [Colombia](_URL_2_), and in [Chechnya](_URL_2_), among many other non-african nations. - I would be surprised if there was any culture on earth where cross-dressing or strange costumes weren't present. Do you mean something more specific by this? Like cross-dressing when going into battles? - I don't know what you mean by this. What particular bit about Blahyi do you mean? The going into war naked? That kind of warlord in general?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
Lars Andersen archery - historical accuracy? | [
"There already is an ongoing discussion about this * [What truth is there to the claims on historical archery made in this video? why did archery die out as a military specialty?](_URL_0_)"
] | [
"This is an older design of common cans. Let this guy shed some light on it in the most interesting can-related video ever produced: _URL_0_"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Melania Trump was born and raised in Slovenia. When was the last time (if ever) the first lady was not born on what is now U.S. soil? | [
"Louisa Adams, wife of John Quincy Adams, was born in England marking the last (and only other time) that a first lady was not born in the USA... Well sorta. Apart from Louisa Adams, the first eight first ladies were born in what is NOW the USA, but at the time was British America Hannah Van Buren (nee Hoes), wife of Martin Van Buren, was the first First Lady to be born in the USA - Kinderhook, New York to be precise. She died before Martin Van Buren took office, but Van Buren's second wife, Sarah Angelica Singleton Van Buren (née Singleton), was born in the USA as well."
] | [
"The main thing is that Poland immigrants going to North America went to the United States. Greek immigrants going to North America went to the United States. Irish immigrants going to North America went to the United States. Spanish immigrants going to North America went to Mexico, because it was a Spanish colony and they spoke the language there. Very few Spanish immigrants, if given a choice between one country that does speak their language and another that doesn't, would choose the United States."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
Was the Battle of Vimy Ridge important for anything other then Canada's ego? | [
"Another poster has answered your question, but a nice book for general survey reading is [A Military History of Canada](_URL_1_) from Desmond Morton. A big point he makes is that First World War Canadian troops were caught between being underestimated by the British military and overestimated by their own evaluation (they at times really bought into their own frontiersman mythology)- so battles like Vimy Ridge kind of served well for everyone. These sort of engagements also came at an important time for defining and also reassuring Canadian identity and sovereignty; after the war there were some meetings to discuss the Empire and eventually in 1931 you had the Statute of Westminster which was a further step in Canadian independence. Gallipoli is another interesting situation, which is very important in the national identities of New Zealand and Australia; I'm sure there are some comparisons to be drawn there."
] | [
"I asked a WWI question a while back with no luck: how did Australians, Canadians and other members of the Commonwealth feel about being sent to fight a far off European war? Did they remember the wartime conscription debates differently after the war?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Whatever happened with the Lupercal Grotto within Palatine Hill in Rome? | [
"I don't know exactly but I believe works are still being carried on, albeit at a snail's pace (given these days' *very* limited funding). The newspaper article mentioned that archaeologists were still looking for a point of entry... You know what they do whenever there's roadwork and a Roman ruin pops up? If they can't ensure its preservation, the ruin is minor or simply not profitable, they bury back everything. And this is exactly what they're doing in [via](_URL_1_) [Portuense](_URL_0_), a few blocks from home. Due to heavy traffic, the road needs to be enlarged; so, after having studied the site, they're removing everything of note in order to bury the rest and let the new road be built."
] | [
"I believe this was a serious issue for Sparta."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
Why was David Hume such a controversial figure? | [
"Atheism was still a crime punishable by death in Scotland, although he never publicly say said he was an atheism, but his philosophy was viewed as a philosophy of an atheist. Also in contexts of philosophy, one the most important work in philosophy Kant's Critque of Pure Reason was an repudiation of Hume."
] | [
"Would John Jay count? Is he considered as influential as Hamilton in academic circles?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
I'm a twelve-year-old girl who's part of a patrician family at the height of the Roman Republic. I also happen to be a tomboy by personality. What activities or opportunities can I take up to be "one of the boys"? | [
"For that matter, what were the basic personality archetypes for children?"
] | [
"There are people who are simply immune to it. I don't really want to find out if I'm one of them, although the idea does seem interesting."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer:"
} |
How aware was Abraham Lincoln of the Meiji Restoration in Japan? | [
"Lincoln was already dead when the restoration started."
] | [
"Could the rebuilding of Japan after WWII be considered a partial colonization by the United States?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
If Columbus thought he was somewhere near China when initially in Hispaniola, did any of his crew fear that the Tiano might have been Ming vassals, or that their atrocities might have poisoned the prospects for Chinese trade? | [
"I don't have an answer, but I'd like to add to the question: Did Columbus order his men to attack the natives, or did the attacks stem from a breakdown of discipline after a difficult voyage?"
] | [
"The point is that Columbus discovered and opened the Americas to colonization by we formerly English Europeans. Technically the native Americans discovered the area first before even the Vikings but you understood how that wasn't relevant."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit passage:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit passage:"
} |
Does anyone have information on Georgy Zhukov's service in WWI? | [
"You mean you need to give a speech on him, so, schoolwork? In that case, I'd like to simply point you in the right direction to research this. \"Stalins General\" by Geoffrey Roberts is the best English language biography on Zhukov. Roberts also is the editor for the most recent English edition of Zhukovs memoirs. Get your hands on those and it covers the topic quite well."
] | [
"Catherine Merridales Ivans War. It describes the experiences of ordinary soldiers of the red army in the second world war."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit text:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit text:"
} |
Could the Muggle adaptation of traditional wizarding quidditch be considered cultural appropriation? | [
"From a certain perspective, yes. Bare in mind, however, that there are certain, obvious differences between [Muggle] quidditch and [Wizard] Quidditch: muggles don't fly, the bludgers are thrown \"dodgeballs\", the Snitch is actually a *person* (Muggles… bless their hearts), and catching it is only worth 30 points. I imagine that muggle-friendly wizards would be impressed and pleased to see how creative they adapted the sport, while those who consider wizards superior would look at their attempt in disgust, and discard its existence and not worth the time or energy it takes to care. So neither side will consider it 'appropriation', in the negative sense."
] | [
"I don't have the reference tools here with me (or the time to expound thoroughly on my answer right now), but to the best of my knowledge, the Wizarding world was only oppressed in the sense of being forced to hide by social conventions, as an ostensible minority. I may be completely out in left field here, but it seems comparable to the persecution of extra-evolved humans in the MComU. Though the minority wields power, the majority (in this case, Mugglekind) wields far greater numbers. To what extent was He Who Must Not be Named right, well, that's a subjective question, depending on partisan bias and the current Ministry. I'd recommend directing it to a scholar in Ministerial relations between the Wizarding and Non-Wizarding worlds; I'm not purporting to be learned on the topic. My specialties lie in alternate timelines. :)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit paragraph:"
} |
In "That 70s Show" father Red Forman references serving in both theaters of WWII and later the Korean War. Was this kind of extensive service record realistic? | [
"Not that improbable, though it does depend a bit on exactly which battles are being claimed. I don’t watch the show, but apparently Mr Forman was supposedly in the Navy. All it would take would be a posting on the right ship. For example, USS Alabama kicked off in Europe, going as far North East as around Norway, looking for the German BB Tirpitz. August 43, she went to the Pacific, and finished off the war there. USS Texas was in Europe from 42 on, staying through Sept 44 partaking in Torch, Overlord and Dragoon before moving to the Pacific. Both ships decomissioned at the end of the war, so if CPO Forman stayed in the Navy, he could have been reassigned to, say, Iowa, which saw service in Korea. That’s the big ships, doubtless Many smaller vessels or logistic ships saw service in all three area. For example, I could easily see a landing ship used in in Pacific, Atlantic and Korea. (Such may, for example, also explain any time spent ashore)"
] | [
"In the United States, it's because the war on Germany took precedence, so we learn more about the Western Front, briefly touch on the Soviet Union and the Eastern Front, and our experience with the other side of the world is mainly limited to the Pacific War with Japan. China's not covered because, to be honest, the vast majority of our servicemen were deployed elsewhere. All we ever hear about from the Chinese Theater of Operations is the Flying Tigers."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What do I read to get a good overview of history? | [
"*A History of the World* by Roberts is one of the few books that comes close to a good (Western) world history."
] | [
"I'm looking for recommendations for books to read if I want an overview of the history of the LGBT+ movement in the United States but don't have any previous background knowledge in the subject."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title about Education:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment about Education:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment about Literature:"
} |
Which Canadian Prime Ministers have killed someone directly? | [
"Its highly unlikely. Unlike US Presidents, most Canadian Prime Ministers never served in the military. Of the 22 PM's, only 7 ever served. And of that, three (Mackenzie, Abbott and Trudeau) never saw combat. Of the others: Sir John A. Macdonald was a private in the Upper Canada Rebellion of 1837, which was hardly a military engagement, so unlikely; Sir Mackenzie Bowell served with the militia guarding the border during the US Civil War, so again highly unlikely; and both Diefenbaker and Pearson served in the First World War. Diefenbaker was commissioned as a lieutenant, and seemingly never left Britain for the front lines, while Pearson was a stretcher-bearer before joining the Royal Flying Corps, and is not recorded to have any kills. So it seems dubious that any of the Canadian Prime Ministers ever killed anyone."
] | [
"What torture method? What's the context of that quote? Who said it?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the sentence:",
"neg": "Represent the sentence:"
} |
In Darkest Hour, Churchill exclaims "Our troops were chewing barb wire in Flanders and I saw it! Opening a separate front, outflanking the Turks was a serious military idea that could have damn well worked if the Admirals of the First Sea Lord didn't dither away our element of surprise!" Accurate? | [
"Gallipoli has been written about quite a bit here. You might want to start with [this answer](_URL_0_) from Margaret Harris in an AMA, and glance at [this part](_URL_1_) of our FAQ."
] | [
"The Germans were at the height of their power in the beginning months of 1918 - however threw it all away on wasteful offensives which bled them dry by the summer of that year. By the end of summer it was all over when fresh reinforcements from America and Canada were pouring in. I did a paper on the food crisis in Germany at the time, and there was no shortage of food. The trouble was shipping it to places it needed to be - which left hundreds of thousands of people starving. Both sides were equally guilty of silly charges and tactics which got many people killed - in the end Germany could afford the losses the least. edit. So, did they ever have a chance? I suppose - had they not threw everything away in those failed advances in 1918 then they could have bled the others out and they would have had a better chance."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the answer:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
I noticed that some old headstones have a '/' after the year of death, followed by a number (ex. 1720/21). What does this mean? | [
"The two years mark what is called Old Style and New Style dates. Prior to 1752, the new year in England and the American colonies started on March 25th. So if the person died on March 24th, 1720, it's ambiguous whether that meant the year that had not ended yet, or the one that started on January 1st (and to add confusion, Scotland started their year on January 1st since 1600). So this person died in the year 1720 or 1721, depending on when you start the year. The other major change in 1752 was that Britain and her colonies switched to the Gregorian calendar. So Wednesday, September 2nd, 1752 was followed by Thursday, September 14th."
] | [
"If you see circa (ca.) followed by a single year (ca. 1145), that just means \"around 1145\". For date *ranges*, circa applies to the value which immediately follows it. So \"ca. 526-550\", means \"from about 526 to no later than 550\"--the end year is known for sure, but the starting year is unsure. Likewise if they knew the starting year but not the definite ending year, you'd see \"526 - ca. 550\". If they were approximating both years you'd see \"ca. 526 - ca. 550.\" As for why you'd see something dated across an entire century or half a century, it's likely because we don't have specific years to work with at all."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit comment:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit comment:"
} |
Why were the powers of Congress explicitly enumerated, but the Executive and Judicial branches were not? | [
"The Executive (A2S2) & judicial branches (A1S3, A3S2) are both enumerated by the Constitution. They are not *explicitly* spelled out because of the concept of checks and balances. Congress may wish to enumerate the President with additional powers for a set period of time. This is line with Article 1, Section 9 re: the suspension of Habeas corpus, for example. The Constitution is to serve as a document that not only enumerates government, but which specifically states the things that government *cannot* do. Things which are undefined may be permissible, but they may not be... these evolutions will be checked/balanced by the other branches of government. If you read Federalist No. 10 you'll see why the founders choose this style of government over another. The idea was that the system could evolve over time while at the same time protecting state rights, etc."
] | [
"The U.S. was founded as a loose confederation of unique and independent states. Besides a balance of power between the Executive, Legislative and Judicial branches, there was to be a balance between the power of state governments and that of the federal or national government. The 10th Amendment of the US Constitution expresses this idea of Federalism by stating all powers not directly given to the federal government by the Constitution are reserved for the states. Each state is to deal with those issues as it sees best. Of course, today the federal government has grown and reached into many areas that were once only the domain of the states."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the post:",
"pos": "Represent the text:",
"neg": "Represent the text:"
} |
I'm finishing up a research paper on the Front de Libération du Québec and don't know how to cite the War Measures Act. Can you guys help me with this one footnote? | [
"Citing a statute is fairly simple. It generally follows the following pattern: > short title, statute volume (including jurisdiction and year), chapter number, section number (if needed) Also, most acts include a line about how they can be cited (their short title). The first point of the War Measures Act is: > 1. This Act may be cited as *The War Measures Act, 1914.*"
] | [
"France/Belgium/Germany seems relevant. Sandwiched between both major powers, Belgium was used by the Germans as a backdoor into France in both World Wars. Is that helpful? In truth I'm a little confused as to what exactly your looking for. Could you elaborate a bit more? Perhaps if you give us some insight as to the purpose of your inquiry we could better help you."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the question:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Was Ser or Sir more commonly used in Medieval Europe? | [
"\"Ser\" is an invention by *Game of Thrones* author George R. R. Martin. The English word \"Sir\" is the only correct honorific for a Knight, and is translatable in Italian as \"Cavalier/e\" and in French as \"Chevalier,\" however in France all titleholders are addressed with a normal \"Monsieur\" and \"Madame.\" In Italy, titleholders can be addressed as \"Don\" for men and \"Donna\" for women, however this does not apply to orders of knighthood. The word \"Sir\" is also the only correct translation of the German form of address, \"Ritter\" and the Spanish \"Caballero.\""
] | [
"There are for men. The honorific term for an unmarried male is \"master\". But that honorific fell out of use in the late 1800s early 1900s. But it has remained in use is some regions and specific places such as with some very proper butler schools (think Alfred with Bruce Wayne)."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit title:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
How did locking someone up for an extended period of time become a punishment? | [
"I can heartily recommend 'Discipline and Punish' by Michael Foucault if you want to answer this question. Its not the easiest of reads but its very rewarding, it charts the shift from physical punishments and public shaming to the modern idea of detention and denial of rights."
] | [
"Some life sentences are technically only about 20 years. Thus, multiple life sentences may have a use if you want to keep someone locked up longer. Another possibility is to eliminate the possibility of parole or early release."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What do contemporary historians think of Fernand Braudel's work? | [
"Follow-up question, in case it's not mentioned in the answers to OP: How does Braudel's work compare to more recent work on the Mediterranean, especially David Abulafia's *The Great Sea* - how do their approaches and goals differ and where do they disagree?"
] | [
"My HS history teacher mentioned the French Annales School, but he did a terrible job of explaining it's significance. How did the 20th century historians shift the practice of history??"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
How was the coaling station at Pearl Harbor operated? Was it fully mechanized or did it need lots of manual labor? | [
"Let me point you to a few articles from the *Honolulu Star-Bulletin.* [This one from Sept. 1, 1914](_URL_1_), talks about a German cruiser that stops in port for coal and how no Japanese laborers were allowed to coal the ship, due to the war between Germany and Japan. Then you have [this one from November 1914](_URL_0_) that talks about the system for loading coal in more detail."
] | [
"Follow up question: What other types of bootcamp training strategies would drill instructors use? Also what were training structures like when there was a massive influx of troops who needed to be trained quickly, such as when the US joined WWII after Pearl Harbor?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
Resources for Medieval Church/Choir Music | [
"The style of music you're looking for is known as Gregorian Chant. There are already some great examples on here, but i'll still throw in one more. [Léonin](_URL_4_)"
] | [
"Next Week's Theme: 'Royalty, Nobility, and the Exercise of Power' To be followed by: \"Eastern Europe\""
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the query:",
"pos": "Represent the document:",
"neg": "Represent the document:"
} |
A user of /r/military calls George Patton a "sub par commander". Is he correct? | [
"I think that the most convincing evidence of Patton's capability as a commander is how he was able to react to the \"Battle of the Bulge.\" His ability to change the axis of advance for his troops from East to North put a considerable pinch into the southern part of the German advance. This force eventually relieved Bastogne and made a critical contribution to the Allied recovery and victory. That he was able to accomplish this task gives evidence for a good grasp of logistics, tactics, and strategy. That he accomplished this task with alacrity points to a motivated and competent staff under him with clear direction from above. I think that this operation alone proves that he was competent, which I would equate to being \"at par.\" I am not sure I would go so far as to assert that he was brilliant, but he was at least competent."
] | [
"RT is anti-American. Reddit loves to circlejerk about how Amerikkka is literally Hitler. It is a match made in heaven."
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit post:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit answer:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit answer about Media and Journalism:"
} |
Sorry if this is the wrong place, but how does one become a historian? | [
"I will recycle an older post of mine: History as a career and going to graduate school for a history PhD get discussed a lot here. I don't want to discourage anyone else from answering, but just provide some useful links: * _URL_6_ * _URL_3_ * _URL_4_ * _URL_0_ * _URL_8_ * _URL_5_ * _URL_9_ * _URL_11_ * _URL_7_ * _URL_1_ * _URL_2_ * _URL_10_ tl;dr: A \"backup plan\" is a good idea!"
] | [
"Happy to explain this one but I'll need you to be a bit more specific about what you want to understand. Are you asking the how or why?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the title about Education:",
"pos": "Represent the answer about Education:",
"neg": "Represent the answer:"
} |
[How] was US taxpayer money used in the Japanese/Germany Occupation? | [
"Since the UN was only founded in 1945 and still in the booting-up phase (and they still have to put up with certain nations #cough# USA #cough# holding back funds for political reasons), they didn't have much to do with reconstruction in Europe. Instead, the USA implemented the [Marshall plan](_URL_0_)."
] | [
"Follow up, if this warrant a new post please tell me: How did politicians and the general public react when they found out these companies were aiding Nazi forces in WW2?"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit question:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
What the earliest example of a culture leaving a "time capsule"? | [
"Ashurbanipal's library in the 7th century BCE was a deliberate attempt to catalogue and preserve more than 20,000 cuneiform texts from all across the Assyrian Empire. They were even inscribed with the preface \"For the sake of later days\", and Ashurbanipal took great pride in his knowledge of the past and efforts to maintain knowledge for the future. There are probably older examples of this sort of thing though."
] | [
"Transfer of knowledge is a fragile thing. Do you know the address of your great-grandparents? If you wanted to ensure your own great-grandchildren would know your medical history, how do you ensure its survivability and retrievability? Literacy needs to be combined with resilient materials. Tombstones last longer than wooden crosses, but even stone erodes to illegibility. And how to convey the location of the stone to a mobile population (now globally)? Songs tend to last, but even they get fuzzy and changed. Carl Sagan sent out the planet's info on a disk made of gold because it doesn't corrode. But first someone's gotta find it, and then they have to understand the writing & meaning. My favorite thought exercise is the real problem of warning people for the next 10,000 years not to dig up buried radioactive waste. How can you ever ensure the info will survive that long? (Some of us have documents on 3.25\" floppies in WordStar that can't be retrieved!)"
] | eli5_question_answer | {
"query": "Represent the Reddit query:",
"pos": "Represent the Reddit document:",
"neg": "Represent the Reddit document:"
} |
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