When did cigarettes become mainstream? Cigarettes increased in popularity after their manufacture was automated, but they became mainstream after World War 1. Tobacco wasn’t known in Europe until the Spanish brought it back from South America in the 15th century. Before tobacco arrived, people in Europe had other drugs to smoke, but they were more
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Why did people stop using castles? People stopped using castles because they were hard to defend as warfare changed, feudalism ended, they were expensive, and they were not very comfortable. Castles evolved from forts, which in turn evolved from rough fortifications. In fact, the word castle comes from the Latin word “castrum”, which means “fortified
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What is the bullwhip effect? The bullwhip effect is where a small change in consumer spending can lead to a very large fluctuation down the supply line. It is one of the causes of overproduction and waste. It is called the bullwhip effect because a small flick on the handle of a whip can lead
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Why did Copernicus decide that the sun was at the center of the solar system? Copernicus decided that the sun was at the center of the solar system because it made the most sense when he observed the motion of the other planets. Nicolaus Copernicus was born in Poland in 1473. He was very well
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What is pasteurization? Pasteurization is the process of heating food to reduce harmful microbes and slow spoilage, giving it a longer shelf life. The process is named after Louis Pasteur, although people had been using heat to preserve food and drink long before him. We tend to associate pasteurization with the milk industry, but all
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What happened to JFK’s sister? JFK’s sister, Rosemary Kennedy, was permanently incapacitated by a failed lobotomy in 1941, leaving her with the mental age of a two-year-old. Rosemary Kennedy was the third of nine children born to Joseph P. Kennedy and his wife Rose Fitzgerald. They are known as the Kennedy family, and Rosemary was
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How does slipstreaming work? Slipstreaming works because one vehicle drives closely behind another so that it can ride in the low-pressure wake that follows the first vehicle, reducing the air resistance and reducing the amount of power needed. Unless you are moving in a vacuum, you are going to come up against air resistance. We
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What was the gold standard? The gold standard was a system that tied the value of a country’s currency to a fixed amount of gold. It is often said that it ended in 1971, because that was when the United States stopped converting dollars into gold for foreign governments and central banks, which was the
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Why is Savile Row in central London famous for tailors? It became the centre for high-quality, custom-made men’s suits in the 19th century, as famous tailoring houses established themselves there and drew others in. Henry Poole & Co began in 1806, but it did not move onto Savile Row itself until 1846, which is when
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Why do apples ripen other fruits? Apples ripen other fruits because they release ethylene gas. If you have a bowl of fruit on your table, you may find that all of the fruit ripens much faster if you have apples in the bowl. You can also ripen fruit like avocados more quickly if you put
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