It seems that for most indigenous civilizations in the Americas, a shifting climate was enough to lead to dramatic political shifts or even total collapse. In places like Europe or Asia, however, the climate is rarely discussed in the context of geopolitical shifts, and seems to have had a negligible impact on events like the Bronze Age collapse, the decline of the Roman Empire, various Chinese conflicts, or any other noteworthy periods of change and instability in Eurasia. Is there a theory as to why Eurasian civilizations were so much more climate-resistant than those of the Americas?

For context, I'm Hard of Hearing and recently went to a Broadway show. The theater gave me a set of headphones so I could listen to the singers at a much higher volume and actually understand the lyrics and generally enjoy the show. It made me wonder about life for those with hearing difficulties before modern technology, especially when art appreciation was (as I unertand it) basically a cultural requirement for nobility. What would my life have been like in such a time?

If you wanted to read the text of a recently passed or proposed bill in the United States before the internet, how would you do so? Did libraries or some other resource maintain and provide transcripts of ongoing legislation or was newspaper (and later radio and television) relied upon to summarize the happenings of government?

​

I recognize that much of this would've evolved over time from the 1770s to the 1970s as transportation and communication improved and as the belief in a right and responsibility to be politically informed was cemented and extended to more groups, not to mention differences in proximity as a factor, so I am not expecting one neat and tidy answer. If my question's scope is too large, then I would be most interested in knowing how this functioned during the Cold War era with particular emphasis on rural America.

So I saw something about about the Siege of Vienna recently and how that was the extent of their penetration into Europe proper. This then made me think, as they controlled all of the Balkans, Greece and the majority of the rest of the Adriatic and Eastern Med, they'd be well placed. Was there any reason they didn't make any attempt besides raiding of the Italian coasts by themselves and their Barbary allies? I could see maybe some European super coalition perhaps forming as we sought of see around Lepanto but that's about it.

With so many islands in the Caribbean, why sea-faring comparable to Mediterranean one with proper use of sails and larger vessels was not developed in pre-Columbian times? Clinker planks require iron or copper rivets (iron was not available, but copper was), and they could have also used wood and rope techniques or something similar to Phoenician joint?

How has Justinian’s code influenced the US bill of rights? I’ve seen mention about rights during trials and innocence until proven guilty, but after hours of searching, I can’t find anything connecting the two that isn’t a shallow connection.

Sorry for the timeline I chose. I just mean generally before like 1500AC. Were there any recounts of soldiers being scared? Such as writings, or paintings? Surely we're no different now than we were back then. Also, are there any counts of post-war feelings/emotions/PTSD? Possibly talked about by doctors? Such as having nightmares of killing villages of people, babies, unarmed women, etc.? Thanks, it just crossed my mind and I realized I've never heard of PTSD or people being scared way back with the romans or Greeks or Persians. Thanks in advance.

Growing up in the US in the 90s, The Talk was a fairly consistent and important milestone in every 10-13 year old's (at least the boys) life. Is this common anywhere else? Is it mainly a byproduct of the white, middle class upbringing of myself and my childhood friends? If it is more widespread, was it seen as controversial, or beneficial by religious figures and psychologists?

I mean, how where they written in hittite language?
I know it's a rather specific question. I hope someone with some knowledge of hittite language can help me out. Thank you in advance!

I’ve seen many times that Mohawk ironworkers did much of the work on NYC’s skyscrapers because they have no natural fear of heights. I’m wondering if that’s at all true, and where that idea came from.

One of the primary reasons of the gulf war is that Kuwait exceed it oil quota production thereby making Oil price low(to the benefit of Kuwait oversea companies),But why didn't they decrease their production when Saddam ask them to?

Hi Historians!

My niece is becoming very interested in studying history, and I remember fondly reading GG&S back in the day and obtaining a new way of thinking about systemic factors throughout historical events.

I would purchase GG&S for her to read but... I feel like contemporary historians may be past it in terms of advancement, and I was looking for a similar book that's perhaps more in vogue.

Any recommendations?

Spoilers I guess although I'll momentarily state why it does not matter.

"The Most dangerous Game" is a short story by Richard Connell where a big white hunter, Sanger Rainsford, washes up on the shore of a private island after a boating accident and meets its owner, General Zaroff. The general is a shifty but polite character who introduces himself as a fellow hunter and claims to be after the titular "most dangerous game". After a lot of dialog it is finally revealed that he is actually hunting human beings, and Rainsford gets picked to be the next prey. The hunt itself takes only a few pages, during which Rainsford outsmarts his pursuers, confronts Zaroff, and kills him.

It's a relatively famous story (especially as short stories from the 20s go) and has had several acknowledged and unacknowledged adaptations, although many of them focus more on the hunt and less on the mystery.

This means the modern reader probably knows what it's about before reading it, or can guess it fairly easily. This makes the bulk of the story, where Connell beats around the bush of what Zaroff is hunting, while dropping several fairly obvious hints, seem weird or even comical.

My question is how presentist is that view? Did the readers at the time find the revelation legitimately surprising, like, say, more recent audiences were mostly blindsided by the end of "The Usual Suspects" or some of the events in "A Song of Ice and Fire" ? Or did people immediately get the human hunt angle, and enjoy seeing Rainsford bumble around as a kind of dramatic irony ?

I’m sure that Fiction stories existed at the time and much of fiction is based on our experience in the real world.

I’m sure that the attitude of the slaves themselves in the books were dependent on the author and their background, but what are some examples from the time?

So I see these two martial arts/ceremonies mentioned as an origin of both sumo and aki-jutsu. But they are also sometimes refrenced as being more similar to greek pankration or at least a more mixed style of both striking as well as grappling. So I was wondering if we have any evidence or an educated guess what they would look like.