History: Tackling Research Problems Quiz

Answer: By finding out more about her life

For the purposes of writing a quiz a web search "Elena Cornoro-Piscopia" will confirm the awards and the date and give further information on her remarkable life. When doing research, it's best to start by homing in what's most relevant, rather than examining background issues.

In this case her life has been quite thoroughly researched. For the curious: as far as is known, Elena Cornoro-Piscopia was indeed the first woman to receive an award of any kind from a university. Her achievement is commemorated in a stained glass window at Vassar College and by a statue in the University of Padua itself.

This award was made on a "one-off" basis and it wasn't till 1732 that any other woman was awarded a degree - the doctorate awarded to Laura Bassi Verati at Bologna in 1732.

Answer: To find out which date the Armenian Apostolic Church recognizes

In general, those most directly concerned are most reliable on matters of factual information (unless there is a good reason to assume otherwise). At the very least, one needs to find out what they have to say. In this case, a websearch of the kind "Armenia conversion" will lead you to websites about the 1,700th anniversary commemorations in 2001 of the adoption of Chistianity by Armenia in 301. If you decide to put the question in a quiz it would be sensible to word along these lines: "Which date do Armenians regard as ...?" It's possible that the Armenian Apostolic Church has chosen an "accepted date" and that the actual date cannot be established, barring some unexpected breakthrough in research.

In such circumstances one has to settle for the best date available and add a note on the difficulty.

Answer: Find out if Lloyd George did anything in 1921 that might be called "appeasement" of Germany

In 1921 Lloyd George expressed some misgivings about the Treaty of Versailles but did not do anything to try to change the treaty.

In fact, a number of important revisions were made to the treaty later in the 1920s, especially in respect of reparations and Germany was admitted to the League of Nations with effect from 1926. The term "appeasement" in its modern, derogatory sense dates from c. 1940. Most historians writing about the history of "appeasement" do, in fact, discuss the background, but to treat Lloyd George's 1921 misgivings about the Paris Peace Settlement as "appeasement" is an eccentric view.

Answer: To find recent articles that expressly discuss such discrepancies

Not suprisingly, many of the figures seem to be been manipulated for political purposes. However, some scholars believe they have been able to narrow the discrepancies.

Answer: Evidence that Keynes published nothing specifically "Keynesian" during Lenin's lifetime

Always use your reasoning powers. In fact, John Maynard Keynes (1883-1946) first became known internationally for his book "The Economic Consequences of the Peace" (1919) which criticizes the Versailles Treaty perceptively and very ably. The first of his "Keynesian" economic articles, arguing a case for counter-cyclical government intervention in the economy only started to appear in the mid 1920s.

As Lenin died in January 1924, he quite simply didn't the have the opportunity to "approve of Keynes" in the sense suggested.

Incidentally, Keynes wasn't flattering about Lenin, either.

Answer: Hitherto neglected areas

This is not surprising. In many areas of history - those that have long been considered important - there is plenty of published research, and factual inaccuracies are much less likely, if only because they reflect badly on the author, even if they are an honest slip. Who, for example, wants to be seen to get the dates of the American Civil War or World War I wrong?

Answer: Until after the French Revolution (1789) different laws applied in different parts of France

In fact before the French Revolution, Northern France had a legal system based on common law, while Southern France had a codified system based on Roman law. Moreover, many provinces, such as Brittany, the Franche-Comté and Lorraine had their own legal codes.

As if that weren't complicated enough, some districts - for example, Bordeaux and the surrounding area - had their own jurisdictions. To cap it all, Roman law could sometimes be used in Northern France.

Answer: Trying to discover what "wife selling" really involved

It was a form of divorce, and was roundly condemned by the Church of England. "Wife selling" required the consent of all three parties - the husband, the wife and the purchaser, and conditions of various kinds could be attached. The sum of money involved was usually only nominal - enough to celebrate the event with a few drinks and a meal.

The point of the public sale wasn't to humiliate the wife but to ensure maximum publicity for the event at local level, so that the ex-husband couldn't be held liable for his former wife's debts, for example. Nevertheless, the practice of "wife selling" looked utterly barbaric, akin to buying and selling slaves.

Not surprisingly, it didn't survive long into Victorian times, though there is a case on record dating from 1898.

Answer: All of these reasons

Claims about "hereditary enmity" between nations should never be accepted without first looking for contrary evidence: for the most part they are mischievous. It is true that in the period 1689-1815 England/Britain and France fought a series of wars, and were never allies, but since 1815 things have been very different.

Answer: Yes

Some prior knowledge is a prerequisite for evaluating your findings (and arguably for knowing what questions to ask in the first place). This is not, however, a peculiarity of the study of history, but applies to all subjects. As your experience of research grows, you should find that the activity becomes easier, especially if you manage to develop an instinct or "feel" for it.