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Where does ink come from?

The earliest known inks in China, India and Egypt were made from plant dyes and ground minerals such as graphite. Inks have also been taken from cephalopods such as squid and cuttlefish. Animal glue and gum arabic were also often used as binding agents. Many different cultures came to the discovery of ink independently and there is a wide variety of unique formulas for it.\nModern inks can be roughly divided into those used with printers and those used for writing. Color printing inks are frequently made of linseed or soybean oil with natural pigments made up of salts containing dyes. These in..

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Where was the Mohawk tribe located?

The three main Mohawk tribes, the Wolf, Bear and Turtle, lived in communities similar to those of the Iroquois. They had local councils and village chiefs, and they lived in longhouses. The Mohawks had several yearly festivals that followed agricultural patterns. Some notable Mohawk people include Joseph Brant, a Mohawk leader and British officer; Hiawatha, the famous chief; and writer Pauline Johnson.

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What was the housing of the Ojibwa Indians?

To make a wigwam, the Ojibwa bent peeled green ironwood saplings into arches, used basswood fiber to form the saplings into a circular or oval shape and threaded birch bark strips, cedar bark or cattail mat around the saplings. Wigwams had a door and a hole on top, which provided ventilation. The Ojibwa only took the birch bark strips or rush mats with them if they moved, leaving the underlying structure behind. Some families lived in peak-roof long lodges that had doors at both ends. During the spring and summer, most Ojibwa lived in villages, and during the late fall and winter, they lived i..

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Who were the Sons of Liberty?

After the end of the French and Indian War in 1763, the British government found itself in debt. Reasoning that much of its debt came from defending the lightly taxed American Colonies, it introduced several taxes without parliamentary representation for the colonies. Boston tradesmen and shopkeepers, realizing these laws could put them out of business, banded together to fight the new tax laws through protests, rioting and looting tax assessors' offices and homes.

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What are some facts about the Anasazi?

Rancher Richard Wetherill explored some of the ancient Anasazi sites, including Mesa Verde, and gave the culture its current name, as he worked with local Navajos. The Anasazi culture is related to the Mogollon and Hohokam cultures, which also started settling in permanent towns during the first millennium. Mesoamerican civilizations may have influenced southwestern cultures to adopt agriculture and settle in permanent towns.\nThe Anasazi left a permanent mark on the landscape with grand cliff towns, and archaeologists also remark upon its beautiful basketry. By building towns in canyon walls ..

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How did Texas get its name?

The Caddo and Hasinais Indian tribes, along with other east Texas area tribes, had various spellings of the word "texas." "Tejas," "tayshas," "texias," "techan," "teysas" and "techas" are all alternate spellings of "texas." When Spanish explorers settled the area, they used the word to greet area tribes and thought it to mean "hello friend." The Texas state motto is "friendship" and is derived from the original meaning of the state's name.

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Who invented the sewing machine?

Howe secured his patent in 1846, but had difficulty securing investors for mass production. While Howe sought financing, Isaac Singer also created a lockstitch machine. Howe defended his patent in court for six years and finally won the case, forcing Singer and other inventors to pay Howe significant royalties. Howe opened a sewing-machine factory after the Civil War, and his machine received a gold medal at the 1867 Paris Exhibition.

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What was the significance of the Webster Hayne Debate?

The primary issue was the plan to limit the selling of land in the West, a plan proposed by a Senator from Connecticut but opposed by politicians from the Western states. In an attempt to align the South with the West and gain land for planting, Sen. Hayne began debating in favor of states' rights to do with their territory whatever they chose. Sen. Webster accused him of having ulterior motives to strengthen the South and its economy and began arguing that the United States was not a nation of states but of people. The people as a nation, not the state governments as individual entities,..

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Who invented plastic?

Prior to the development of Parkesine, a precursor of sorts in polystyrene was discovered by Eduard Simon in 1839. After the introduction of Parkesine, John Wesley Hyatt invented celluloid 1868. Celluloid was initially invented as part of an effort to develop an ivory substitute for billiard balls. In 1872, Eugen Baumann developed polyvinly chloride, a material more commonly known as PVC.

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Who invented chess?

The original terms and rules changed with each country to which chess spread. For instance, checkmate is the English version of "shah mat," which is Persian for "the king is finished." Additionally, the original English rules restricted the movements of many of the pieces. It wasn't until the 15th century, and Italy's influence, that pawns had the option to move two spaces on their first turn and queens turned into the most powerful piece on the board. Other changes followed from Italy's influence to create the modern version of chess known today.

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