Golden hamster stock of hamsters was exported from Syria to the United States in 1971, but apparently none of today's North American pets is descended from these (at least in the female line), because recent mitochondrial DNA studies have established that all domestic golden hamsters are descended from one female – probably the one captured in 1930 in Syria. Since the species was named, the genus "Cricetus" has been subdivided and this species (together with several others) was separated into the genus "Mesocricetus", leading to the currently accepted scientific name for the golden hamster of "Mesocricetus auratus". Following Professor Aharoni's collection in
The Hidden Hand: Middle East Fears of Conspiracy a conspiracy mentality, or adopt one for political purposes. The second part deals with the two grand conspiracy theories about imperialist and Zionist domination that prevail across the Middle East. Third is an analysis of the goals and style of Middle Eastern conspiracy theories. And the fourth part of the book discusses explores the causes and origin of the region's ubiquitous predilection for conspiracy theories. According to William B. Quandt, reviewing "Hidden Hand" in Foreign Affairs, Pipes points out that conspiracy theories rose to popularity in Middle Eastern politics only after the Middle East began its relative decline in power,