How should you separate dimension tables from fact tables if you are not building a data warehouse?

Firstly, I see no issue in describing these as Dimension and Fact tables outside of a warehouse :).

If you want to be efficient and keep a history, do these things. There are multiple solutions to this problem, but this is the one that I keep going back to.

I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.