Hey guys. I'm an American living in China and I intent to go to grad school for my PhD next year. Are there any books on Chinese history you would recommend? I've read a fair bit but am looking to broaden my knowledge before grad school. I'm most interested in the Han, Ming and Qing dynasties, as well as the modern/PRC period. I'm open to any subjects or time periods, however.

Why didn't they find it first? Did they lack economic pressures to travel by ship in that direction? Did they lack an adventurous culture that was present elsewhere?

Did the Soviet Union at anytime consider annexing any of its satellite states into the USSR? I read that Todor Zhivkov, the leader of Communist Bulgaria, once called the nation the 16th republic of the USSR and made requests for Bulgaria to become part of it, and was wondering if there was any movement by these republics to become part of the Soviet Union. Additionally were there any people in the USSR advocating expansion, especially considering some places like Poland had been part of Russia prior to the Communist Revolution?

This is probably a question that's asked quite a bit, so I apologize in advance.

My Grandpa passed away when I was still in grade school. I know he served in the European Theater of WWII. I've been told he fought in the Battle of the Bulge. I'd love to learn more about what he did during the war, but from what I understand he never liked to talk about his experience and no one in my family seems to know much. Does anyone know how I can look up his service record?

Edit: By the way, he was from the US.

The SV-1 Walking Tank is showcased in the popular game Warthunder, and it is a very interesting concept, but I've been completely unable to find any reputable sources to verify it's existence. My question is, was this actually used by the soviets, or was it just made up?

Did water cooled machine guns have a better advantage in jungles?

It has been some time since I started looking for books on Mesopotamian culture/history, especially that of Babylon. However, I haven´t had much luck as of this moment. The only "prominent" example I get is a pop history book written by Paul Kriwaczek, whose authority on the subject I don´t know. Any book recommendation will be greatly appreciated, as would be commentary on the book I mentioned above as well as its author.

Was it to be innovative? What was the main purpose?

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Or just dairy products in general. What happened in the medieval world when a European was lactose intolerant, did they just die from hunger because everybody drank milk and ate cheese? Did people understand lactose intolerance back then?

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I'd like to learn more about pirate raids on land, both how small coastal villages defended themselves against the threat of pirates and what tactics the pirates themselves employed. Preferably something that covers multiple time periods and locations (e.g., Caribbean pirates but also northern Viking raids). I'm finding a lot of books about piracy at sea, but I'm only really interested in how they attacked villages. Thanks.