The wise men were likely accomplished Greek astrologers, watching the stars for signs of a king’s birth. Technical terms used in the Bible’s description point to a real astronomical event.
What’s the betting that Agilkia makes it into the baby name charts in 2015? This romantic, lyrical word is the name of an island in the Egyptian Nile, but it’s also just been given to the patch of Comet…
Australian rock art is under threat from both natural and cultural forces impacting on sites. But what saddens me the most is that there is so much government lethargy in Australia when it comes to documenting…
To understand where we are, we must remember where we’ve been. This is one central theme that emerges from the work of new Nobel laureates John O’Keefe and May-Britt and Edvard Moser, whose neuroscientific…
The current understanding of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is like an academic echo of the famous song Universal Soldier. The song imagines the warrior as timeless, unchanging, universal. According…
The September 4 live transmission of Euripides’ Medea will have brought an ancient Greek tragedy to thousands of viewers. And it’s quite a play. Spurned by her husband Jason, Medea commits unspeakable…
Augustus, who died 2000 years ago, was the first emperor of Rome. He brought peace after the turmoil in the republic after the assassination of Julius Caesar when he defeated the forces of Antony and Cleopatra…
Archaeologists have just discovered Greece’s largest ancient tomb. As well as attracting international media attention, the find has also had high-level political interest within Greece – the country’s…
The Scottish referendum has caused the ancient Roman frontier of Hadrian’s Wall to take on new significance, and is inspiring both those who support and oppose independence. This was particularly seen…
“God save the Wurst: Conchita rockte London” – at least, so said the Austrian free newspaper Heute. Conchita Wurst continues to follow her Eurovision win with TV interviews and club openings, and is joining…
Take one brooding hunk, enslaved as a gladiator after the brutal slaughter of his family, who seeks revenge against the evil Roman empire. Lay on plenty of set-piece spectacular arena battles through which…
When we think of heroes of the summer Olympics, we tend to remember the great achievements: those who broke records and won clutches of medals, people like Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps. But at the winter…
As Julian Assange remains inside the Ecuadorian embassy in London and Edward Snowden, last thought to be Venezuela-bound, attempts to avoid capture by an enraged United States, the grant of asylum has…