6,000,000 BC Humans are thought to have evolved.
3,400 BC Egyptian Numbers. Egyptians adopted a special symbol for the number ten. Previously, numbering had been limited to systems of straight lines, each representing one item.*
3,000 BC Sumerian Cuneiform. Having learned to write using simple images for nouns, adjectives, and verbs, Sumerians tackled more complex concepts using homonyms. (In English, an example would be the use of "bee" and "leaf" to represent "belief.") These combined characters were simplified into single images known as phonograms. The term cuneiform is applied to a mode of writing which uses wedge-shaped strokes to inscribe clay, stone, metals, wax, and other materials.*
1,800 BC Stonehedge. Stonehenge, a circular group of huge stone pillars, is one of the most intriguing monuments of ancient times. It was built in England between 3000 and 1000 BC. The main ring of stones was erected around 1800 BC. Although no records survive to explain the significance of the monument, it was most likely a center for religious devotions and astronomical observations.*
1,600 BC The Greek Language. The ancient Greek language, the source of many English words, existed by 1000 BC. Like many other ancient languages, including Sanskrit, Latin, and Hittite-as well as modern languages, including English, French, German, Swedish, and Russian-Greek evolved from a family of languages linguists now refer to as Indo-European. Indo-European languages resemble those spoken in modern India and Iran. They were the languages of a group of nomadic peoples from central Asia who settled throughout Europe.*
1,400 BC Syllabic Writing. By 1400 BC the most advanced forms of cuneiform writing represented syllables rather than things or ideas. This meant fewer and simpler characters, making reading and writing easier. In the advanced Syrian Ugaritic script of this time, vowel signs-the next major advancement in writing-began to appear.*
400 BC Socrates. Socrates was a Greek philosopher and teacher who lived in Athens, Greece, in the 400s BC. He profoundly altered Western philosophical thought through his influence on his most famous pupil, Plato, who passed on Socrates's teachings in his writings known as dialogues. Socrates taught that every person has full knowledge of ultimate truth contained within the soul and needs only to be spurred to conscious reflection in order to become aware of it. His criticism of injustice in Athenian society led to his prosecution and a death sentence for allegedly corrupting the youth of Athens.*
300 BC Euclid. Euclid, Greek mathematician, whose chief work, Elements, is a comprehensive treatise on mathematics in 13 volumes on such subjects as plane geometry, proportion in general, the properties of numbers, incommensurable magnitudes, and solid geometry.*
105 AD Paper. The first paper, probably made of bark from the mulberry tree, was fabricated by Cai Lun, a eunuch in the Chinese court. The invention of paper facilitated writing and made possible the invention of paper money. Rag paper was slow to reach Europe, where papyrus and parchment were used until well after 1000. Only in the 12th century did paper mills appear in Europe.*
190 AD PI. In 190 the Chinese calculated pi to five places: 3.14159. This elusive figure, the number by which the diameter of any circle is multiplied to determine its circumference, had fascinated Greek mathematicians as well. Early Greek calculations had determined that pi is roughly 3 1/7. Modern computers have calculated pi to more than 100 million decimal places.*
900 AD Polyphony. By the year 900 polyphony had become a common musical form in Europe. Polyphony consists of two or more melodies taking place at the same time. The Musica enchiriadis, a guidebook for singers, was written around 900.*
1400 AD Leonardo da Vinci. Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), Florentine artist, one of the great masters of the High Renaissance, celebrated as a painter, sculptor, architect, engineer, and scientist. His profound love of knowledge and research was the keynote of both his artistic and scientific endeavors. His innovations in the field of painting influenced the course of Italian art for more than a century after his death, and his scientific studies-particularly in the fields of anatomy, optics, and hydraulics-anticipated many of the developments of modern science.*
1440 - 1537 AD Inca Empire.
1455 AD Gutenberg Bible. In 1455 the Gutenberg Bible-the first ever printed with moveable metal type-was published in Mainz, Germany. German printer Johann Gutenberg (circa 1400-68).*
1500 AD Copernican System. The ancient Greeks and Romans, the peoples of the African kingdoms, the native Americans, and the ancient Chinese all shared the common belief that the earth was the center of the universe. This belief is called the geocentric theory. In 1543, after 25 years of work, Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus forced men and women to rethink their place in the solar system. His book, On the Revolution of the Celestial Spheres, ventured the revolutionary idea that earth travels around the sun-the heliocentric theory. The book aroused a storm of protest from scientists and the church.*
1685 AD Handel. German-born George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) is known as one of the best composers of the late baroque period. Handel's works include Agrippina (1709) and Water Music (1717). He is best known for his oratorio, Messiah, which was first presented in Ireland in 1742. Today the oratorio is presented throughout the world during the Christmas season.*
1685 AD Bach. Johann Sebastian Bach was born in 1685 in Germany. The most famed member of a notable musical family, Bach was the foremost baroque composer. He is especially known for his religious music, including The Passion of St. John and The Passion of St. Matthew.*
1756 AD Mozart. In 1756 Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria. One of the greatest composers in Western music tradition, Mozart began composing at age five. By the time he was 13, he had written sonatas, operettas, and symphonies. His works include The Marriage of Figaro (1786), Don Giovanni (1787), and The Magic Flute (1791). Despite his later fame, Mozart died in poverty in 1791 and was buried in a pauper's grave. Of his own talent he is said to have remarked: "Neither a lofty degree of intelligence nor imagination nor both together go to the making of genius. Love, love, love, that is the soul of genius."*
1770 AD Beethoven. Ludwig van Beethoven, one of the world's greatest composers, was unable to hear his own music for much of his adult life. Born in Bonn, Germany, in 1770, Beethoven began to lose his hearing in 1802. By 1817 he was totally deaf. Beethoven moved beyond classical conventions with works like his Third Symphony, known as Eroica and his Ninth (or Choral) Symphony. The Ninth Symphony, composed in 1824, begins with "void music" which may have originated in the silence and gloom of Beethoven's own deafness, but the symphony then explodes with a wonderful array of sounds. One of the most beautiful pieces of music ever composed, the Ninth Symphony concludes with a choral rendition of the German poet Friedrich von Schiller's "Ode to Joy."*
1859 AD Darwin. In 1859 Charles Darwin published a book commonly known as The Origin of Species, one of the most influential books ever written. In this and a subsequent volume, The Descent of Man (1871), Darwin set forth the theory of evolution, which held that man had descended from more primitive life forms. His work appeared to challenge the existence of God, although later writers suggested that evolution had been "God's way" of creating humanity.*
*Microsoft® Encarta® Encyclopedia 99. © 1993-1998 Microsoft Corporation.
Last modified: Thu Dec 16 10:02:12 EST 1999