I have recently read Robert D. Kaplan's book, "Asia's Cauldron," about the the current political climate in the South China Sea, (SCS), and I have become fascinated with the region. Any reccomendations for good litterature on the history of: -Trade and/or politics in the SCS -Southern China, Vietnam, the Philippines and other nations in the SCS -The geography and/or military situation in the SCS.

I realize this is an extremely broad request but all recommendations are appreciated! I am planning to go back to school for a doctorate and I am considering this as a potential region to study.

Kab Kuh Kraahb, Dave in Thailand.

Sorry about formatting, wrote post on my android

I am curious on how warfare was conducted between the Native American tribes in North America. For example, they didn't use line infantry, or Roman formations, so how did they go into battle? What kind of weapons did they use? Armor? I have heard of the Iroquois League, and I know they had complex governments, so did they have rules of warfare/treaties like we would imagine them today?

Were there also Big Companies, like Comcast, who were advocates for keeping these services private?

How did navies, now with access to cannons, shift their defense and attack strategies from how they fought before? And what was naval warfare like before the development of artillery? Did naval artillery make naval warfare more effecient/advantageous?

The Romans and Greeks considered themselves superior to other peoples (Gauls, Macedonians) and also admired great civilizations (Egypt, Persia). Did Africans living in African empires and kingdoms consider themselves superior to others or were they aware they were not as advanced as other non-African civilizations?

I've previously read a little about the Inca and Spanish colonialists. However, I find myself now far more interested in the smaller indigenous groups that existed in Argentina. I've been through some Wikipedia articles already but still have a multitude of questions. For example:

What plants and animals were native to Argentina before colonialists arrived?

How were these used by the indigenous people in there day to day life?

I understand if some of this information isn't available, due to lost documentation, but any assistance is greatly appreciated.

I'm not incredibly familiar with ecclesiastical terminology and everything I'm reading seems to conflict. Is this anyone's area of expertise?

Would love some explanations as to exactly what was at stake through the Investiture Conspiracy and what the results of the Concordat and the Council were.

I know that the colonials invaded Quebec and otherwise extended an invitation to join the war, but, beyond Quebec's French heritage, why didn't Canada join the 13 colonies? Were there significant differences between those colonies and those that would become Ontario, the Maritime provinces, etc., in the colonial era?

There's several names which were originally male names but are now considered exclusively female (for example Leslie and Ashley), but I'm not aware of any that went the other way. Have there been any or has it been exclusively a one way street?

If you aren't into 90s hip-hop, you may not be aware that the Nation of Gods and Earths were extremely influential on hip-hop in general. Artists like Nas, the whole Wu-Tang Clan, Rakim, Busta Rhymes, Black Thought (from the Roots), Guru, Big Daddy Kane, LL Cool J, MF Doom, Talib Kweli, and possibly even Jay-Z, were all members.

I have never quite understood how what seems to be such a weird "cult" became so engrained in hip-hop. For example, they believe that the "asiatic black man" is god, they consider themselves scientists, have their own "supreme alphabet", and often conduct "supreme mathematics" when they see each other. It would seem like this type of organization would not have that many followers, but when you listen to 90s hip-hop, it seems like it was really popular in NYC. I'm curious to how prevalent were these beliefs in NYC in the 90s and why did so many rappers come from this weird organization rather than more normal religious backgrounds that would seem to appeal to wider audiences?

Well about this time last year in AP European History we were learning about WW1. Our teacher was talking about how German troops asked Belgium to walk through their country to ambush France. They agreed, but when Germany entered the country he said they launched a surprise attack on Germans, but they quickly destroyed the Belgian forces and then proceeded to murder the Belgian people, burn their towns, and rape their women. However today in AP US History we were again learning about WW1, however this time when describing the intricacies how the war started she began to talk about how Britain was trying to gain support from the public for a war with Germany. She stated they used the propaganda of Germany invading Belgium as reason enough to get the public to find war reasonable. However she claims that Belgium remained completely neutral in the war and that the Germans never attacked anyone in Belgium. So what really happened, is it all propaganda or?

Separation as in huge cultural differences between the two halves and maybe some conflicts

I've just learned about Cerro Rico, I would love to learn more about the mountain\mining operations there.... any book recommendations?

The rowers in Triremes would take up a large amount of space and require both rest and provisions for themselves. The Ancients did have sails and triremes also had sails. These were removed during battle, but still seemingly not used to their full potential. Why did they never further develop sail boats to travel over long distances?

Where did they go and did they see combat? I am asking because I am researching Whitcomb L. Judson, the guy who is credited with the invention of the zipper, and i have seen multiple references to his enlisting with the 42 Illinois Cavalry in 1861.