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Why do ice ages occur?

The Earth has gone through warm and cold periods during the billions of years of its existence. During ice ages, the polar regions of the Earth are cold, and there are large glaciers covering vast regions of the planet. Ice ages tend to occur for millions or even tens of millions of years, and generally happen every 200 million years or so.Scientists say that the present ice age that is being experienced by the planet has caused the retreating and advancement of glaciers more than 20 times. The existing climate is due to a warm interval between the periods of glacial advancement. What most peo..

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How did the United States acquire Hawaii?

The Newlands Resolution officially changed Hawaii from a sovereign nation to a U.S. territory, but the annexation process began years before.\nIn the early 1800s, missionaries from Europe and the U.S began interfering in native Hawaiian affairs and brought new diseases to the islands' populations. In 1887, non-native immigrants held King Kalakaua at gunpoint and forced him to sign a new constitution giving white immigrants more rights while stripping two-thirds of native Hawaiians of their right to vote. King Kalakaua's sister, Lili?uokalani, succeeded him on the throne after his dea..

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What are some facts about the Spanish flag?

The flag's official title, "Bandera de España" means Flag of Spain. It is colloquially known as "la Rojigualda" or the red-weld.\nOfficial protocol for the flag's display dictate that it can only be flown horizontally from public buildings, private homes, businesses, ships and town squares. It can also be flown during official ceremonies. It should be flown from sunrise to sunset. Government offices in Spain and abroad must fly the flag on a 24-hour basis. While being flown at night, it must be properly lit.\nAntonio Valdés y Bazán created 12 different flag designs for Charles II...

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Who colonized Mexico?

Cortes arrived on the Mexican shore and founded the Spanish city of Veracruz on April 22, 1519. From there, he and his army headed inland toward the renowned Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan, where they arrived in late 1519. Initially greeted with gifts by the Aztec emperor Moctezuma, Cortes and his men made camp in the capital city. When Cortes was called away to meet with royal envoys from Spain, his men became frightened of an attack from the Aztecs and conducted a massacre at Templo Mayor.\nWhen Cortes returned, Moctezuma met with him in the hopes of avoiding a full-scale war. The Aztec emper..

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Who were the authors of the Federalist Papers?

The men wrote the 85 essays between October 1787 and August 1788. Historians assume Hamilton wrote most of the papers. Madison wrote 29 or more and Jay wrote five. The Daily Advertiser, The New York Packet and The Independent Journal newspapers published the papers.\nThe authors urged citizens of New York State to ratify the U.S. Constitution, which needed the approval of nine of 13 states. They said the Constitution would help preserve the union and give the federal government the power it needed to act well in the national interest.\nSome observers feared a strong central government would be..

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Who invented the first train?

However, it was a little-known British engineer named Richard Trevithick who made the first fully functioning locomotive based on the principles of the steam engine in 1804. Earlier, steam was used during the industrial revolution in England to power other mechanical devices.\nThese trains used a steam locomotive that was based on the principles of the motive power of steam discovered by James Watt.

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What was the longest ruling Chinese dynasty?

The Zhou Dynasty followed the Shang Dynasty, which was the first era of Chinese history to be documented, due to the invention of the Chinese writing system during that time. Non-Chinese invaders and rebellious Chinese lords banded together in 771 B.C. and sacked the royal court and the capitol, leading to the establishment of a new capitol city in the east. Historians refer to the period prior to 771 B.C. as West Zhou and the period afterward as East Zhou. Due to the disintegration of the royal blood lines, the court lost its power, which led to the Warring States Period at the end of the Zho..

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What was Barack Obama's childhood like?

Obama was born on Aug. 4, 1961, in Honolulu, Hawaii, to Ann Durham and Barack Obama, Sr.\nObama did not have a strong relationship with his father. He left to study at Harvard University when his son was an infant, and the couple divorced when Obama was 2 years old. His father returned to Kenya in 1965. He died in a car accident in 1982 in Nairobi, Kenya.\nDurham was remarried in 1965 to Lolo Soetoro, a student from Indonesia. The family moved to Jakarta, Indonesia when Obama was 6 years old. His half sister, Maya Soetoro, was born there. When he was 10 years old, his mother sent him back to H..

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Who are the Gentiles?

The word "gentile" comes from the Latin term "gentilis," meaning "equivalent to," and refers to members of a clan or family. It came to be used in English beginning in the end of the 14th century. The King James Bible, which is used by many Christian denominations as of 2014, translates the Hebrew term "goyim" into "gentiles" 30 times.

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What kind of steering wheel does a pirate ship have?

This type of wheel was used on all ships of the period, not just the ones operated by pirates. There was no such thing as an actual pirate ship.That expression was used for any sea vessel whose crew engaged in piracy. Anything from a small boat to a huge frigate could be considered a pirate vessel. Pirates usually stole their ships.\nWhen the first steering helm was invented, it was recognized as a major milestone in the evolution of sea travel and ship construction and revolutionized nautical navigation. The helm replaced the exceedingly inefficient whip staff, which was the previous method o..

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