William Playfair, a Scottish political economist working in the 1780s and 1800s, is widely regarded as the inventor of many common charts. His Commercial and Political Atlas of 1786 used line graphs and what is considered the first bar chart to show trade and population data. His Statistical Breviary of 1801 included the first pie chart, which showed the land proportions of the Turkish Empire's territories. His 1805 book was titled after Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations and argued that wealth moves between nations over time. Playfair also had a colourful career as a banker, engineer and inventor, and he was involved in the Scioto land scandal in America. Later, in 1793, he proposed printing counterfeit French assignats to undermine France's currency.

Israeli reports also say the cabinet directed the military to prepare for a possible new attack on Iran.

Angkor, near Siem Reap in northern Cambodia, was the capital of the Khmer Empire, which ruled much of mainland Southeast Asia between roughly the 9th and 15th centuries. At its height the city spread across about 3,000 square kilometres, making it the largest pre-industrial city on Earth by area. Its growth depended on water: huge reservoirs called barays, along with canals and embankments, stored monsoon rain and carried it to rice fields. That system let farmers harvest more than once a year and fed a very large population through the dry season. The temple complex of Angkor Wat, built in the early 12th century, is the best-known monument and still stands at the heart of the park.