The Times of India

Stanley Milgrams obedience experiments revealed how ordinary people could follow authority to disturbing extremes, with many participants administering what they believed were harmful shocks. Inspired by the Holocaust, the study became a landmark in psychology while raising serious ethical concerns. Decades later, its findings remain debated, with critics arguing the results reflect pressure, context, and interpretation as much as obedience.

Peaky Blinders blends real history with fiction, drawing inspiration from Birmingham's street gangs and figures like Billy Kimber and Oswald Mosley. While the Shelby family is fictional, the show incorporates real elements of early 20th-century crime and political tensions. However, its portrayal of a vast, sophisticated criminal empire departs significantly from the more localized, fragmented reality of the original Peaky Blinders.

Between 1919 and 1920, John B. Watson and Rosalie Rayner conducted a controversial experiment at Johns Hopkins, conditioning fear in an infant who could not consent. Exposed to a white rat and loud noises, the child developed lasting fear responses that spread to other objects. By todays ethical standards, the study is condemned as one of psychologys darkest episodes, highlighting the dangers of harming vulnerable participants.

Londons Museum of Edible Earth invites visitors to taste soil from around the world, exploring the ancient practice of geophagy. The exhibition blends science, culture and art to explain why people have consumed earth for centuries. Through curated samples and research-backed insights, it challenges modern ideas of food while highlighting sustainability and humanitys deep connection to the planet.

The drowning of 61-year-old Robert Smith during a livestreamed baptism in Birmingham has led to a criminal case against pastor Cheryl Bartley, who faces a charge of gross negligence manslaughter. Smith, a long-time church member living with Parkinsons disease, had travelled for the ceremony. Bartley is due to appear at Birmingham Magistrates Court on 14 May as the case moves forward.