Poor Divine


Why North England Is Poor

Tom Forth | 26th January 2025

A little over a century ago, the north of England was one of the richest places in the world. Today, it is "very poor by North European standards", overtaken in the last decade by East Germany and Poland. Reasons for this include: the Norman conquest, the centuries-long ban on founding new universities in the region, and the privatisation and centralisation of industrial assets under Thatcher (8,000 words)

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The Divine Engineer Of Ancient Sichuan

Jonah Dunch | Chris Arnade Walks The World | 31st January 2025

The Dujiangyan irrigation system, built in around 256 BCE and still in use today, is a survival of the old China: "The China of awesome empire and ancient gods." Above Chengdu stands a temple to Li Bing, the engineer who "defeated the god" of the Min River. He did this either in a duel or by building a series of clever levees and islands to redirect the stream, depending on your taste in mythology (2,800 words)

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