One of my favourite cartoons shows an elderly, professorial-looking man talking to a much younger fellow, possibly a student. “Those who don’t study history,” says the old guy, “are doomed to repeat it.” He then adds, “Yet those who do study history are doomed to stand by helplessly while everyone else repeats it.” Like many jokes, this one works because it contains a kernel of truth.
China is now a global power, something scarcely imaginable just a few decades ago.Its power sometimes stems from cooperation with the wider world, such as signing up to the Paris climate agreement.Or sometimes it means competition with it, such as the Belt and Road Initiative, a network of construction projects in more than 60 countries that has brought investment to many parts of the world deprived of western loans.Yet there is also a highly confrontational tone to much of China's globa
An Indonesian cave painting that depicts a prehistoric hunting scene could be the world's oldest figurative artwork dating back nearly 44,000 years, a discovery that points to an advanced artistic culture, according to new research.Spotted two years ago on the island of Sulawesi, the 4.5 metre (13 foot) wide painting features wild animals being chased by half-human hunters wielding what appear to be spears and ropes, said the study published in the journal Nature on Wednesday.Using datin
From the 1945 Brunei-Australia Memorial in Brunei to the Cu Chi Tunnels in Vietnam, Southeast Asia has more than its fair share of dark tourism sites. World War II, the Khmer Rouge and a multitude of natural disasters have seen the creation of dozens of museums, monuments and memorials dedicated to providing the public with a deeper understanding and greater reverence of these key events.However, discussing the merits of sites which sell themselves on tragedy – such as the “Killing f
