There were robber barons aplenty in the Middle Ages. They held their people to ransom and pressed the last copper penny out of them. Now they seem make a spectacular come-back. The case in question deals with a fraudulent Indian owned airline.

Willhelm Lamszus wrote a disturbing prophecy with his bestseller "The Human Slaughterhouse – Pictures of the Coming War". In 1912, the German teacher anticipated the horrors of World War I in his novel.

We know that 19th century historians stylized Frederic II into an epitome of tolerance and diplomacy. This was just the end of centuries of history writing based on the assumption that he had been on friendly terms with Muslim rulers, an avid scholar of all things Arab, and accepting Islam as a religion equal to Christianity.

Wily marketers offer expensive food supplements claiming that they are good for your joints. These products all share the common ingredient of gelatine, jelly, or collagen. Gummy bears and Jelly Beans also contain gelatine. May it be concluded that they are good for your joints, too? None of the candy producers ever made such a claim, but maybe they are missing out on something.

Nicolas Copernicus was born in 1473 in the city of Toru? as the son of Nicolas Koppernigk and Barbara Watzenrode; the city is situated in the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Voivodeship of modern Poland. In 1473, the city was called Thorn (in German); it was a member of the Hanseatic League. Until 1466, it had been part of the independent state of the Teutonic Knights in Prussia and the Che?mno Land (Kulmerland in German).

Ikea is engaged in destroying primeval forests in Russia. It has the blessing of Russia, no doubt, but it also has the blessing of the eco-label FSC. Ikea and the FSC have come under attack over label fraud in connection with the goings-on in Karelia. Both deny any wrongdoing. Consumers might have another opinion.

In Siberia, scientists believe in the existence of the Yeti. Locally, the creatures are known as Almas. An international Yeti conference convened in Siberia is set to prove the existence of the snow people. Sceptics are not welcome at the conference.