The Super Summary of World History - Alan Dale Daniel [4]
12. The Black Plague (AD 1341 China, 1347 Europe).
13. Pasteur’s theory of germs (AD 1864). Start of medical advances.
14. The Invention of Flight ( AD 1903). Leads to satellites, moon landing, jet aircraft etc.
15. The rise of Megacities (AD 1950).
16. The Invention of the Microprocessor (AD 1971, first types).
17. The Invention of the telephone (AD 1876). Leads to radio, TV, cell phones, etc.
18. Plato, Aristotle ( 429 BC). Philosophy begins.
19. The Theory of Relativity and Quantum Mechanics (AD 1905). Start of modern science.
20. The Invention of the Internet (AD 1974).
_______________________________________________________
21. The philosophic/religious Wars of Communism (1917)
Some of these items, such as the telephone, represent the start of a tremendous advance covering many areas. Religious events are excluded. Which was more important, the birth of Christ, Mohammad, Buddha, or Lao Zi? All this will depend upon one’s religious beliefs, so all of them are excluded.
In this study of history, I conclude that people are both rational and irrational. In matters of science, engineering, and basic economic decisions people are at least 80 percent rational; however, in matters of politics, religion, social interaction, philosophy, and law people are at least 80 percent irrational. This dualistic nature of humankind is the source of many problems, and it is seemingly part of our genes. In this case, rational means the actions (or events, or results) can be understood on many levels by most people, can be copied for the betterment of all (or the vast majority), and can be built upon for advancement. Irrational is the opposite in that the actions cannot be understood on any level by most people, and if copied or built upon would bring immense harm.
Throughout this history I have sacrificed exactness for readability. Many statements are “slam dunk,” such as, in the reign of Augustus, the Pax Romana ushered in two hundred years of peace. Well, in fact, it did not because there was at least one civil war within the empire and other minor wars on the boarders, but to go into all the detail would destroy the readability of the text and ruin the super summary concept.
I apologize for the quality of the maps herein. Please use the Internet references to see the maps (and photographs) in full color, and in a size that is easy to read. The Internet, especially Wikipedia and Olga’s Gallery (http://www.abcgallery.com), is a wonderful source for viewing historical art in full color.
Good reading!
AD2
Dedications
To: My Wife, Lori, who puts up with all this history stuff, and her grandson Zimri (Z-man) for all the joy he brings into our lives.
To: Clarice Young, who read over endless amounts of text looking for errors, and was good-natured about it. How do people do that? And to Charlie Young, whose thoughts helped me delve deeper into history.
To: Dr. Sally A. Schumacher, my high school history teacher who taught me to love history, and Mrs. Grey my grade school teacher who saved my academic life when she had the South High School counselors put me into college prep classes—over their objections.
To: Sam McCall, of Bakersfield Jr. College who taught me to look at the big picture in history, and to the entire staff of Bakersfield Jr. College who were nonpareil in their instruction of this struggling and starving student.
To: Rita Rowland, Gary Lack, Allen Shaw, Gary Fachin, Tim Otto, Trudy Slater, Debbie Lund (faithful secretary and proof reader), Christopher Noyes, the Gifford family who saved me from starving while I was in college, especially Gail, Glen Spickler who looked after me in times of need, the Honorable Richard Oberholzer, Milo Hall, Dennis Sherman, a Bible teaching pastor, Ralph Kahlen and his dad who told me about the Eastern Front in WWII, Connie L. Daniel (mother), James R. Daniel (father), James K. Daniel (son), Cristin Daniel (daughter), Charlie Daniel (brother), and other friends too numerous to mention who have supported my fascination