A rainbow is seen near a cloud south of Corvallis, Ore., Monday, May 19, 2014. (Photo by Andy Cripe/AP Photo/The Corvallis Gazette-Times)

Russian model Irina Shayk early May 2023 snapped a selfie before she broke “all the rules” at Met Gala. (Photo by irinashayk/Instagram)

An Indian villager tries to tame a bull during a traditional bull-taming festival called “Jallikattu”, in the village of Palamedu, near Madurai, Tamil Nadu state, India, Monday, January 15, 2018. Jallikattu involves releasing a bull into a crowd of people who attempt to grab it and ride it. (Photo by R. Parthibhan/AP Photo)

A pro-independence protester sits in front of Catalonia's regional parliament as lawmakers vote inside, in Barcelona, January 16, 2014. (Photo by Albert Gea/Reuters)

Last Friday, in Afghanistan's mountainous northeastern province of Badakhshan, an enormous landslide took place, burying much of a small village, and killing hundreds. Officials say that at least 300 residents of Abi Barik village were killed, but are uncertain about exact numbers, cautioning that the final number could be 500 or more. Rescue teams gave up hope on Saturday of finding any survivors, focusing energy on helping the hundreds suddenly made homeless. Many of the surviving families have struggled to get aid. Some have gone to nearby villages to stay with relatives or friends, while others have slept in tents provided by aid groups.

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.

Britain Horse Racing, Royal Ascot, Ascot Racecourse on June 17, 2016. Chelsea pensioners with a racegoer posing between them. (Photo by Toby Melville/Reuters/Livepic)

Members of Germany's elite police unit, the Spezialeinsatzkommando, or SEK, demonstrate an abseil deployment from a helicopter during a media event on March 20, 2012 in Minden, Germany. The SEK is the special response team of Germany's state police force and typically deploys in high-risk situations, such as bank robberies, hostage takings and the arrest of armed and dangerous fugitives. (Photo by Thomas Starke/Getty Images)