Since its independence from France in 1946, Syria has been rocked by periods of political instability. As the colonial hold of the great powers began to fade and the region witnessed a wave of Arab nationalism, which shifted Syria through a succession of military coups. However, in 1970, Hafez al-Assad, an ambitious minister of defence, seized control. … Continue reading »
I truly, wholeheartedly, passionately love books, soI jumped at the opportunity to watch this BBC special when I had the chance to. The Machine That Made Us is a documentary in which Stephen Fry examines the story behind the first media entrepreneur, printing press inventor Johann Gutenberg, to find out why he did it and how, a … Continue reading »
Found some shocking images taken from London’s Great Smog of ’52 which i had no idea happened. The whole ordeal lasted for four brutal days as the city of London was flooded with poisons smog; a haze so heavy it reduced visibility to only a few meters. This phenomena was the cause of over 12,000 … Continue reading »
Very interesting drawings by 14th century gun-master Martin Merz; I’ve got to say, that’s one bad ass title to hold. He served Frederick I, the ruler of Elector Palatinate, which was the historical territory of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1469 he became the supreme canon master of Frederick’s entire army and remained in service … Continue reading »
A documentary series exploring the history of design. The first episode of this new series tells the fascinating story of the birth of industrial design. Alongside the celebrated names, from Wedgwood to William Morris, it also explores the work of the anonymous designers responsible for prosaic but classic designs for cast-iron cooking pots to sheep … Continue reading »
In the course of our 170 year relationship, photography has delighted us, served us, moved us, outraged us and occasionally disappointed us. But mainly, it has intrigued us by showing the secret strangeness that lies beneath the world of appearances. And that is photography’s true genius. Follow the story of photography in BBC Four’s six-part … Continue reading »
The iPhone might be at the cutting edge of technology but it took a long time and many innovations to get there, take a trip through history and explore the people and technology that contributed to the iPhone becoming what it is today. This nifty little short was created by Drew Stearne. Continue reading »
