Shi'ite fighters launch a rocket during clashes with Islamic State militants on the outskirts of al-Alam March 8, 2015. Thaier Al-Sudani: “It was me and a few other Iraqi journalists working for local outlets. We went to the frontlines in coordination with the Iraqi government forces and supporting militias. The press officer would come in the morning and take us to the frontline in a convoy. Whenever an area was won from Islamic State, the fighters would chant and pray and show victory signs. Most of the areas we were in didn't have residents, so after the battle they would resemble ghost towns; nothing but burnt cars and charred bodies of Islamic State fighters. Al-Alam was an exception as it had some residents who chanted for the government forces after their victory”. (Photo by Thaier Al-Sudani/Reuters)

Dolenjashvili is a Georgian painter often working in a monochrome technique. He is a Meritorious Artist of Georgia and an honorary member of Russian Academy of Arts.

Visitors take photos of a child dressed in a traditional costume before a folk performance in Panyu, Guangdong province, China on April 20, 2018. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

Rishikis from Japan's Sumo Kyokai, Daisuke Kitanowaka, right, and Akira Fukutsuumi pose for a photo call outside of London's Royal Albert Hall in London, Wednesday, December 4, 2024 where the UK's second ever official basho will take place in October of next year. (Photo by Thomas Krych/AP Photo)

Soap Bubble Structures by Kym Cox. Bubbles optimise space and minimise their surface area for a given volume of air. This phenomenon makes them a useful tool in many areas of research, in particular, materials science and “packing” – how things fit together. Bubble walls drain under gravity, thin at the top, thick at the bottom, which interferes with travelling lightwaves to create bands of colour. Black spots show the wall is too thin for interference colours, indicating the bubble is about to burst. (Photo by Kym Cox/2019 Science Photographer of the Year/RPS)

Do you think that history is a science? Well, not exactly. First, and foremost, history is the state's “legend of wars”, it’s official regalia. Of course, public historians are not interested in scientific truth – quite the opposite. In this respect, any attempt to present a state’s history as altruistic and benevolent as possible is welcomed and encouraged – as opposed to any revisionism attempts that may be more accurate. In this matter, Chinese have surpassed us all – they revised in highly creative manner (but rather shamelessly) the technology already invented by Europeans, a process that resulted in oldest state on the planet. Here is an interesting paradox: ask any sinologist about the Middle Kingdom during second century B.C., and he will describe it to you in such a vivid manner as if he has been living there all his life – but as soon as you will ask him to describe Chinese history in the 19-20th centuries… let's say, his eagerness will be greatly diminished. However, we will discuss China in a different article, and in the meantime we will try to understand how exactly historic “legend of wars” is formed and functions – based on a specific and well-known example. A great example is Ferdinand Magellan's first voyage around the world.

The beautiful shots were taken by photographer Amos Chapple using a camera mounted to a quadcopter drone. This enabled him to capture these unusual aerials showing some of Europe’s sights like they’ve never been seen before. Travelling across the continent he took photos everywhere from France and Germany to Spain and Russia. Photo: Clouds swirl through the pillars of Sagrat Cor Church, high on a hill above Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Amos Chapple/Rex Features)

An Indonesian vendor fixes a headscarf on a mannequin at a market in Jakarta in this December 21, 2006 file photo. (Photo by Reuters/Beawiharta)