A mid nineteenth century Japanese scroll known as He gassen shows groups locked in exaggerated “fart battles”. Often dismissed as crude humour, some believe it carried subtle satire about society and change in Edo period Japan.

For nearly 30 years after World War II ended, Japanese soldier Hiroo Onoda continued fighting in the jungles of Lubang Island in the Philippines. Convinced the war had not ended, he finally surrendered in March 1974 after receiving a direct order from his former commander.

In 1978, Soviet geologists discovered a family living 250km from civilisation in the Siberian taiga. The Lykovs had fled religious persecution in 1936 and survived famine, isolation and brutal winters for 40 years. One of them still lives there today.