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Era 12 of 12 · from 1950 to today

Today

From 1950 to today the world changes at a speed never seen before. Human beings leave the Earth, walk on the Moon and build a station in space. Computers, the internet and smartphones transform the way we study, work and spend time together. In Europe, after centuries of wars, many countries choose to unite and work together in peace. But great shared challenges remain, such as climate change, economic crises and pandemics.

In Italian schools it is usually studied in lower secondary year 3

Go to the 25 events Quiz on this era Printable worksheet
Illustration of the era Today
Illustration created with AI for Storiascopio

The 25 events, in time order

  1. science and technologyThe double helix of DNA1953
  2. science and technologyThe polio vaccine1955
  3. politicsBirth of the European Community1957
  4. science and technologyThe first artificial satellite1957
  5. peopleThe first human in space1961
  6. artPop artabout 1962
  7. artThe Beatles1963
  8. peopleMartin Luther King and civil rights1963
  9. science and technologyThe Moon landing1969
  10. science and technologyThe internet's first ARPANET links1969
  11. daily lifeEarth Day and the environmental movement1970
  12. science and technologyThe personal computer1977
  13. politicsThe fall of the Berlin Wall1989
  14. science and technologyThe World Wide Web1991
  15. politicsThe European Union1993
  16. peopleNelson Mandela becomes president1994
  17. science and technologyThe International Space Station1998
  18. daily lifeEuro notes and coins arrive2002
  19. science and technologyThe modern smartphone2007
  20. daily lifeThe global financial crisis2008
  21. peopleMalala wins the Nobel Peace Prize2014
  22. politicsThe Paris Agreement on climate2015
  23. science and technologyThe first image of a black hole2019
  24. daily lifeThe COVID-19 pandemic2020
  25. science and technologyThe Webb telescope starts observing2022
The double helix of DNA: Cambridge and London, EnglandThe polio vaccine: Pittsburgh, United StatesBirth of the European Community: Capitoline Hill, Rome, ItalyThe first artificial satellite: Baikonur (now Kazakhstan)The first human in space: Baikonur (now Kazakhstan) and Earth orbitPop art: United States (New York and Los Angeles) and Great BritainThe Beatles: Liverpool, EnglandMartin Luther King and civil rights: Washington, United StatesThe Moon landing: Sea of Tranquillity, the Moon (launched from Kennedy Space Center, Florida)The internet's first ARPANET links: Los Angeles and Menlo Park, California, United StatesEarth Day and the environmental movement: United States, then the whole worldThe personal computer: California, United States (and earlier Ivrea, Italy)The fall of the Berlin Wall: Berlin, GermanyThe World Wide Web: CERN, Geneva, SwitzerlandThe European Union: Maastricht, NetherlandsNelson Mandela becomes president: Pretoria, South AfricaThe International Space Station: In orbit around the Earth (first module launched from Baikonur)Euro notes and coins arrive: Frankfurt (European Central Bank) and the euro countriesThe modern smartphone: San Francisco, United StatesThe global financial crisis: New York, United States (and then the whole world)Malala wins the Nobel Peace Prize: Swat Valley, Pakistan (prize presented in Oslo)The Paris Agreement on climate: Le Bourget, Paris, FranceThe first image of a black hole: Galaxy M87, observed by eight radio telescopes around the world (including ALMA, in Chile)The COVID-19 pandemic: The whole world (World Health Organization, Geneva)The Webb telescope starts observing: Launched from Kourou (French Guiana); works 1.5 million km from the Earth
Map of the events: Today

Did you know?

  • The footprints the astronauts left on the Moon are still there: with no wind or rain, they could last for millions of years.
  • The first message sent over ARPANET was supposed to be the word LOGIN, but the system crashed after two letters: only ‘LO’ arrived.
  • The International Space Station goes all the way round the Earth in about 90 minutes: the people on board see about 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets every day.

Test yourself

Ten questions on the era: multiple choice, before or after, put in order, match.

Quiz: Today
Photo of Ciro Simone Irmici

Who's behind this

Ciro Simone Irmici

I'm Ciro Simone Irmici and I build free websites for learning and playing. I built Storiascopio with artificial intelligence and I check every card and every source myself. I'm not a historian: if you find a mistake or would like one more event for your class, write to me.

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