historical perspective

How propaganda has influenced people in the past and present.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, the Serbian literature generally referred to Albanians an uncivilized nation. Such an image of them was created by anti-Albanian politics and propaganda of the ruling regimes, and some well-known writers also succumbed to this. [...] There is a strong desire to raise the level of knowledge about one another, which is worryingly low, and therefore subject to all possible disinformation, stereotypes, conspiracy theories.

In this episode of Science in the Golden Age, theoretical physicist Jim al-Khalili guides us through a journey of discovery where he highlights the links between medical research in the Golden Age of Science during the ninth and 14th centuries and the modern practise of medicine today.

The effectiveness of official development aid is the subject of heated debate. This column argues that aid affects recipient economies in extremely complex ways and through multiple and changing channels. Moreover, this is a two-way relationship – realities in recipient countries affect the actions of aid agencies.