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Great Events from History: The 20th Century Contents by Geographic Region Afghanistan Dec. 24-27, 1979: Soviet Union Invades Afghanistan 1988: Osama Bin Laden Forms al-Qaeda 1989: Soviet Troops Leave Afghanistan Sept. 27, 1996: Taliban Begins Suppression of Human Rights in Afghanistan Feb. 23, 1998: Osama Bin Laden Declares Jihad Against "Jews and Crusaders" Africa Jan., 1971-Apr., 1979: Amin Regime Terrorizes Uganda Jan. 15, 1971: Dedication of Egypt's Aswan High Dam 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine May-Aug., 1972: Burundi Commits Genocide of Hutu Majority July 5, 1973: Habyarimana Overthrows President Kayibanda Oct. 6-26, 1973: Yom Kippur War 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Feb., 1974: Military Junta Comes to Power in Ethiopia Oct. 30, 1974: Ali and Foreman Rumble in the Jungle Nov., 1974: Anthropologists Discover the Early Hominid "Lucy" 1975: U.N. Global Environment Monitoring System Is Inaugurated May 28, 1975: Formation of the Economic Community of West African States Nov. 6-13, 1975: Dispute over the Western Sahara Erupts in the Green March June 16, 1976: South African Government Suppresses Soweto Student Rebellion July 4, 1976: Israeli Raid on Entebbe Sept. 8, 1976: Ebola Epidemic Kills First of Many in Africa Mar. 8, 1977, and May 11, 1978: Angolan Rebels Invade Shaba Province July 23, 1977-Mar. 15, 1978: Ogaden War Between Somalia and Ethiopia Sept., 1977: South African Government Kills Biko Oct., 1977: Last Natural Case of Smallpox Occurs Apr. 11, 1979: Idi Amin Flees Uganda Mar. 4, 1980: Zimbabwe Gains Independence June, 1981: Organization of African Unity Adopts the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights July 19-Sept. 12, 1981: South African Rugby Team Tour Provokes Protests 1983: Sudanese Civil War Resumes Jan., 1983: Nigeria Expels West African Migrant Workers Dec. 31, 1983: Nigerian Military Topples President Shagari Mar. 16, 1984: South Africa and Mozambique Sign Nkomati Accord Oct., 1984: Ethiopia Resettles Famine Victims from the North to Southern Ethiopia Nov. 21, 1984-Jan. 5, 1985: Evacuation of Ethiopian Jews to Israel Dec. 27, 1985: Fossey Is Murdered over Efforts to Protect Mountain Gorillas Jan. 25, 1986: Museveni Captures Kampala Aug. 21, 1986: African Lake Emits Toxic Gas Nov. 6, 1986: Chissano Succeeds Machel in Mozambique Dec. 10, 1986: Soyinka Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature 1987: South African Black Workers Strike 1988: Sudanese Civil War Uses Hunger as a Weapon Dec. 22, 1988: Namibia Is Liberated from South African Control 1989: Kenyan Government Cracks Down on Dissent July 18, 1989: Kenyan President Burns a Fortune in Ivory Dec. 24, 1989-July 19, 1997: Liberian Civil War 1990's: Algeria and Egypt Crack Down on Islamic Militants Feb. 11, 1990: Mandela Is Freed June 12, 1990: Algeria Holds Its First Free Multiparty Elections Feb. 1, 1991: De Klerk Promises to Topple Apartheid Legislation Aug., 1991: African Countries Begin to Revive Democratization Dec. 9, 1992: U.S. Marines Enter Somalia Dec. 16, 1992: U.N. Security Council Brokers Peace in Mozambique May 24, 1993: Eritrea Secedes from Ethiopia Oct. 21, 1993: Burundian President Is Assassinated Apr. 6-July, 1994: Rwandan Genocide 1995: South Africa Establishes a Truth and Reconciliation Commission Nov. 10, 1995: Nigeria Hangs Saro-Wiwa and Other Rights Advocates Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa May, 1996: Sudan Expels Osama Bin Laden Dec. 8, 1996: Rawlings Wins Reelection to Ghana's Presidency Nov. 17, 1997: Temple of Hatshepsut Massacre Dec. 16, 1997: Mandela Makes Way for Mbeki 1998: AIDS Devastates Africa May 6, 1998-Dec. 12, 2000: Eritrean-Ethiopian War Aug. 7, 1998: Terrorists Bomb U.S. Embassies in East Africa Sept., 1998: U.N. Tribunal Convicts Rwandans of Genocide Dec. 6, 1998: Bongo Wins Fair Elections in Gabon May 29, 1999: Democracy Returns to Nigeria July 10, 1999: Six African Nations Sign the Lusaka Peace Accord Dec. 24, 1999: Guéï Coup in Ivory Coast Feb., 2000: Land Reform Sparks Controversy in Zimbabwe Mar. 19, 2000: Wade Ends Socialist Dominance in Senegal July 11, 2000: Organization of African Unity Moves to Establish the African Union Albania 1990: Albania Opens Its Borders to Foreign Nationals Algeria 1990's: Algeria and Egypt Crack Down on Islamic Militants June 12, 1990: Algeria Holds Its First Free Multiparty Elections Angola 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Antarctica May 16, 1985: Researchers Discover a Hole in the Ozone Layer Jan. 14, 1998: Protocol on Antarctic Environmental Protection Enters into Force Argentina 1976-1979: Argentina Conducts a "Dirty War" Against Leftists Apr. 2-June 14, 1982: Falkland Islands War Dec. 9, 1985: Argentine Leaders Are Convicted of Human Rights Violations Mar. 17, 1992, and July 18, 1994: Terrorists Attack Israeli Embassy and Jewish Center in Argentina Armenia Feb., 1988: Ethnic Riots Erupt in Armenia Dec. 7, 1988: Armenian Earthquake Leads to Calls for Building Reform Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Australia/New Zealand 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine Nov. 11, 1975: Australian Constitutional Crisis July 19-Sept. 12, 1981: South African Rugby Team Tour Provokes Protests 1982-1989: Astronomers Discover an Unusual Ring System of Planet Neptune Feb. 4, 1985: New Zealand Closes Ports to U.S. Nuclear Warships July 10, 1985: French Agents Sink the Rainbow Warrior 1988: Graf Wins Golden Grand Slam Austria June 18, 1979: SALT II Is Signed June 8, 1986: Election of Waldheim as President of Austria Stirs Controversy June 14-25, 1993: World Conference on Human Rights Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Azerbaijan Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Bahrain Aug. 15 and Sept. 3, 1971: Bahrain and Qatar Achieve Independence Balkans 1974: Medical Group Exposes Torture in Greece and Chile Nov. 24, 1977: Dissident Writer Mihajlov Is Released from Yugoslavian Prison May 4, 1980: Death of Tito Oct. 18, 1981: Greek Socialists Win Parliamentary Majority July-Nov., 1988: Ethnic Violence Erupts in Yugoslavian Provinces July 2, 1989: Papandreou Leaves Office in Disgrace Dec. 25, 1989: Ceausescu Is Overthrown in Romania 1990: Albania Opens Its Borders to Foreign Nationals June 25, 1991: Civil War Begins in Yugoslavia Oct.-Nov., 1991: Yugoslav Army Shells Dubrovnik Feb. 21, 1992: United Nations Authorizes Troop Deployment to the Balkans Feb. 13, 1995: Serbs Face Charges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia Jan., 1997: Archaeologists Announce the Discovery of Aristotle's Lyceum Oct. 12, 1999: World's Six Billionth Person Is Born Jan. 14, 2000: Hague Court Convicts Bosnian Croats of 1993 Massacre Baltic States Feb. 4, 1989: Soviet Farmers Gain Control of Land and Crop Selection Mar. 11, 1990: Lithuania Declares Independence from the Soviet Union Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Bangladesh Mar. 26-Dec. 16, 1971: Bangladesh Secedes from Pakistan Dec., 1991-1992: Muslim Refugees Flee Persecution in Myanmar 1996: Hopes for Democracy in Bangladesh Rise Belarus Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Belgium July 31, 1973: European Space Agency Is Formed Aug. 25, 1984: Radioactive Cargo Sinks in the North Sea Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro July 17-19, 2000: "Blood Diamonds" Attract World Scrutiny Belize June, 1980: Radar Reveals Canals at Mayan Agricultural Centers Benin 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Bolivia Aug. 18, 1971: Bánzer Seizes Power in Bolivian Coup Aug. 29, 1996: Dam Burst Contaminates the Pilcomayo River Bosnia and Herzegovina July-Nov., 1988: Ethnic Violence Erupts in Yugoslavian Provinces June 25, 1991: Civil War Begins in Yugoslavia Feb. 21, 1992: United Nations Authorizes Troop Deployment to the Balkans Oct. 12, 1999: World's Six Billionth Person Is Born Botswana 1998: AIDS Devastates Africa Brazil 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine Mar. 15, 1985: Democracy Returns to Brazil Sept. 21-Oct. 1, 1987: Radioactive Powder Injures Hundreds of Brazilians Oct. 12, 1988: Brazilian President Announces Plans to Protect Rain Forests June 3-14, 1992: Earth Summit Convenes in Rio de Janeiro July 23-24 and Aug. 29-30, 1993: Brazilian Police Massacre Slum Dwellers Jan. 1, 1995-Jan. 1, 2003: Cardoso Brings Prestige to Brazilian Presidency Burkina Faso Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Burma Aug. 8, 1988: Auspicious Day of 8/8/88 Turns Deadly in Rangoon Dec., 1991-1992: Muslim Refugees Flee Persecution in Myanmar Jan.-Mar., 1997: Karen Refugee Crisis Burundi May-Aug., 1972: Burundi Commits Genocide of Hutu Majority Oct. 21, 1993: Burundian President Is Assassinated Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Cambodia Apr. 17, 1975: Khmer Rouge Comes to Power in Cambodia Nov. 10, 1981: "Yellow Rain" Hearing Sept., 1989: Vietnamese Troops Withdraw from Cambodia July 26, 1998: Hun Sen Wins Cambodian Elections Cameroon Aug. 21, 1986: African Lake Emits Toxic Gas Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Canada 1971: Canadian Activists Found Greenpeace Apr. 1-13, 1972: Professional Baseball Players Go on Strike Apr. 15, 1972: Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement Is Signed Jan. 14, 1974-Oct. 22, 1975: World Football League's Challenge to the National Football League Fails Feb. 27, 1976: Inuit File Claim to a Section of Canadian Territory July 18, 1976: Comaneci Receives the First Perfect Score in Olympic Gymnastics Aug., 1977: Watson Founds the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society Aug. 10, 1977: Canada's Human Rights Act Jan. 24, 1978: Radioactive Satellite Fragments Land in Canada Apr. 10, 1978: Canada's Immigration Act of 1976 May 23, 1979: Clark Is Elected Canada's Prime Minister Apr. 17, 1982: Canada's Constitution Act Apr. 17, 1982: Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms Is Enacted Sept. 14, 1984: Mulroney Era Begins in Canada Jan., 1986: United States and Canada Issue a Joint Report on Acid Rain June, 1987: Ontario's Pay Equity Act June, 1988: Canada Passes the Tobacco Products Control Act June 22, 1990: Meech Lake Accord Dies July 23, 1990: Spotted Owl Prompts Old-Growth Timber Controversy July 25, 1990: Bloc Québécois Forms Oct. 26, 1992: Defeat of the Charlottetown Accord June 25, 1993: Campbell Becomes Canada's First Woman Prime Minister Nov. 4, 1993: Chrétien Takes Charge in Canada June 29, 2000: Canadian Parliament Passes the Clarity Act Aug. 9, 2000: Bridgestone/Firestone Announces Massive Recall Cape Verde 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Central African Republic Aug., 1991: African Countries Begin to Revive Democratization Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Central America 1978-1985: Guatemalan Death Squads Target Indigenous Indians Mar. 16 and Apr. 18, 1978: Panama Canal Treaties July 17, 1979: Somoza Is Forced Out of Power in Nicaragua Mar. 24, 1980: Archbishop Romero Is Assassinated June, 1980: Radar Reveals Canals at Mayan Agricultural Centers Dec. 20, 1989: United States Intervenes in Panama Feb. 25, 1990: Sandinistas Are Defeated in Nicaraguan Elections Dec. 29, 1996: Guatemalan Peace Accords End Civil War Oct. 29-Nov. 3, 1998: Hurricane Mitch Floods Central America Mar. 12, 2000: FMLN Wins Legislative Elections in El Salvador Central Asia Apr. 19, 1971: Russians Launch the Salyut Space Station May 19, 1971-Mar., 1972: Mars 2 Is the First Spacecraft to Impact Mars 1973-1975: The Gulag Archipelago Exposes Soviet Atrocities July 15-24, 1975: Apollo-Soyuz Test Project Oct. 22, 1975: Soviet Venera Spacecraft Transmit the First Pictures from the Surface of Venus Sept. 6-12, 1978: International Health Conference Adopts the Declaration of Alma-Ata Nov. 20, 1981: Soviets Begin Construction of Siberian Gas Pipeline July 25 and Oct. 11, 1984: Two Women Walk in Space Feb. 20, 1986: First Permanently Manned Space Station Is Launched Dec. 17-19, 1986: Kazakhstan Muslims Riot Against Russians Feb., 1988: Ethnic Riots Erupt in Armenia Dec. 7, 1988: Armenian Earthquake Leads to Calls for Building Reform Feb. 12, 1991: Mongolia Sheds Communism Mar., 1991: Supreme Soviet Declares the Aral Sea a Disaster Area Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union May 14-Dec. 8, 1995: New Panchen Lama Is Named Nov. 2, 2000: International Space Station Is Manned Chad Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Chile 1973: ITT Actions Cause Suspicion of Involvement in a Chilean Coup Sept. 11, 1973: Chilean Military Overthrows Allende 1974: Medical Group Exposes Torture in Greece and Chile 1982-1989: Astronomers Discover an Unusual Ring System of Planet Neptune Jan., 1983: National Commission Against Torture Studies Human Rights Abuses Feb. 23, 1987: Supernova 1987A Corroborates Theories of Star Formation Dec. 14, 1989: Chilean Voters End Pinochet's Military Rule China 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine Feb. 21, 1972: Nixon Opens Trade with China Mar., 1974: Clay Soldiers Are Discovered in China July 28, 1976: Deadly Earthquake Strikes China Sept. 9, 1976: Death of Mao Zedong Leads to Reforms in China Spring, 1978: China Promises to Correct Human Rights Abuses Jan. 1, 1979: United States and China Establish Full Diplomatic Relations Aug. 11, 1979: China Announces Birthrate Reduction Plans Oct. 16, 1980: China Conducts Atmospheric Nuclear Test June 4, 1989: China Crushes Prodemocracy Demonstration in Tiananmen Square July 28, 1989: Chinese Top Leadership Changes as Jiang Zemin Takes the Party Chair 1990: Avon Begins Operations in China Jan. 13, 1992: Japan Admits to Sex Slavery During World War II Dec. 14, 1994: Premier Li Peng Announces the Three Gorges Dam Project May 14-Dec. 8, 1995: New Panchen Lama Is Named July 21, 1995-Mar. 23, 1996: Third Taiwan Strait Crisis Aug. 7, 1998: Chang River Breaks Through Its Main Bank July 20, 1999: China Suppresses Falun Gong Religious Group Nov. 15, 1999: United States and China Sign Trade Deal Colombia 1976: Colombian Guerrilla War Begins 1989-1990: Colombian Presidential Candidates Are Killed Dec. 29, 1996: FARC Offensive Intensifies the Guerrilla War in Colombia Congo, Democratic Republic of the Oct. 30, 1974: Ali and Foreman Rumble in the Jungle Sept. 8, 1976: Ebola Epidemic Kills First of Many in Africa Mar. 8, 1977, and May 11, 1978: Angolan Rebels Invade Shaba Province Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Congo, Republic of the Aug., 1991: African Countries Begin to Revive Democratization Costa Rica Oct. 29-Nov. 3, 1998: Hurricane Mitch Floods Central America Côte d'Ivoire 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine Dec. 24, 1999: Guéï Coup in Ivory Coast Croatia July-Nov., 1988: Ethnic Violence Erupts in Yugoslavian Provinces June 25, 1991: Civil War Begins in Yugoslavia Oct.-Nov., 1991: Yugoslav Army Shells Dubrovnik Feb. 21, 1992: United Nations Authorizes Troop Deployment to the Balkans Cuba Apr. 1-Sept. 25, 1980: Mariel Boatlift Cyprus July 15, 1974: Cyprus Crisis Erupts Czech Republic Nov. 17-Dec. 29, 1989: Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia Feb. 26, 1990: Soviet Troops Withdraw from Czechoslovakia July 1, 1991: Dissolution of the Warsaw Pact Jan. 1, 1993: Czechoslovakia Splits into Two Republics Denmark 1974: Medical Group Exposes Torture in Greece and Chile East Asia 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine Feb. 21, 1972: Nixon Opens Trade with China May 15, 1972: United States Hands Okinawa to Japan Mar., 1974: Clay Soldiers Are Discovered in China May, 1975: Sony Introduces the Betamax Oct. 10, 1975: Tokyo Declaration Forbids Medical Abuses and Torture July 28, 1976: Deadly Earthquake Strikes China Sept. 9, 1976: Death of Mao Zedong Leads to Reforms in China Spring, 1978: China Promises to Correct Human Rights Abuses Jan. 1, 1979: United States and China Establish Full Diplomatic Relations July 1, 1979: Sony Introduces the Walkman Aug. 11, 1979: China Announces Birthrate Reduction Plans Oct. 26, 1979: South Korean President Is Assassinated 1980's-1990's: Rise of Video and Computer Games 1980: Japan Becomes the World's Largest Automobile Producer Oct. 16, 1980: China Conducts Atmospheric Nuclear Test 1982-1983: Compact Disc Players Are Introduced 1984: Introduction of Optical Discs for Data Storage Sept. 26, 1984: Britain Signs Agreement to Leave Hong Kong in 1997 Late 1984: Hong Kong's Citizens Prepare for Chinese Takeover 1986: Kamiokande Neutrino Telescope Begins Operation Mar. 8, 1986: Space Probes Begin Examination of Comet Halley 1988: Graf Wins Golden Grand Slam Oct., 1988: Recruit Scandal Surfaces in Japan June 4, 1989: China Crushes Prodemocracy Demonstration in Tiananmen Square July 28, 1989: Chinese Top Leadership Changes as Jiang Zemin Takes the Party Chair 1990: Avon Begins Operations in China Oct., 1991: Iijima Reports the Production of Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes Jan. 13, 1992: Japan Admits to Sex Slavery During World War II July 8, 1994: Kim Jong-il Succeeds His Father in North Korea Dec. 14, 1994: Premier Li Peng Announces the Three Gorges Dam Project 1995-1998: Famine Strikes North Korea Jan. 17, 1995: Kobe Earthquake Kills Thousands Mar. 20, 1995: Terrorists Use Sarin Gas in Tokyo Subway Attack May 14-Dec. 8, 1995: New Panchen Lama Is Named July 21, 1995-Mar. 23, 1996: Third Taiwan Strait Crisis Jan. 30, 1996: Comet Hyakutake Is Discovered May 10, 1996: Vietnamese Refugees Riot in Hong Kong July 1, 1997: Hong Kong Becomes Part of the People's Republic of China July 1, 1997: Japan Enacts a Law to Protect the Ainu People Dec. 1-11, 1997: Kyoto Conference on Greenhouse Gases Dec. 16, 1997: First Cases of Avian Flu Are Reported Dec. 24, 1997: Japanese Magnetic Train Reaches Record Speed Apr. 5, 1998: Opening of the World's Largest Suspension Bridge Aug. 7, 1998: Chang River Breaks Through Its Main Bank July 20, 1999: China Suppresses Falun Gong Religious Group Nov. 15, 1999: United States and China Sign Trade Deal East Timor 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Dec. 8, 1975: East Timor Declares Independence but Is Annexed by Indonesia Aug. 30, 1999: Voters in East Timor Vote for Independence Ecuador 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine 1977: Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vents and New Life-Forms Are Discovered Egypt Jan. 15, 1971: Dedication of Egypt's Aswan High Dam Oct. 6-26, 1973: Yom Kippur War 1990's: Algeria and Egypt Crack Down on Islamic Militants Nov. 17, 1997: Temple of Hatshepsut Massacre El Salvador Mar. 24, 1980: Archbishop Romero Is Assassinated Oct. 29-Nov. 3, 1998: Hurricane Mitch Floods Central America Mar. 12, 2000: FMLN Wins Legislative Elections in El Salvador England Feb. 4, 1971: Rolls-Royce Declares Bankruptcy Aug. 4, 1971: Audiences Embrace Mortimer's A Voyage Round My Father Nov. 8, 1971: Led Zeppelin Merges Hard Rock and Folk Music Jan. 1, 1972-June 30, 1984: World Fertility Survey Is Conducted Apr. 10, 1972: Nations Agree to Rules on Biological Weapons Apr. 19, 1972: Hounsfield Introduces the CAT Scan 1973: Schumacher Publishes Small Is Beautiful Feb., 1973: Ecology Party Is Founded in Great Britain 1974-1976: Punk's Antifashion Style First Appears June 17, 1974: IRA Terrorists Bomb British Parliament Nov., 1975-Jan., 1978: Sex Pistols Spark Punk Rock's Musical Insurrection 1976: Kibble Proposes the Theory of Cosmic Strings Jan. 21, 1976: Concorde Flies Passengers at Supersonic Speeds Feb. 12, 1976: IRA Prisoner Dies After Hunger Strike 1977-2000: Fiber-Optics Revolution July 25, 1978: Brown Gives Birth to the First "Test-Tube Baby" 1979: Lovelock Publishes Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth May 4, 1979: Thatcher Becomes First Woman to Serve as British Prime Minister 1980: Berg, Gilbert, and Sanger Develop Techniques for Genetic Engineering July 19, 1982: Great Britain Announces Plans to Privatize British Telecom Oct., 1983: Amnesty International Works to Prevent Torture Oct., 1983: Europeans Demonstrate Against Nuclear Weapons Mar. 10, 1984: Willadsen Clones the First Farm Animal by Nuclear Transfer Sept. 26, 1984: Britain Signs Agreement to Leave Hong Kong in 1997 Mar. 6, 1985: Jeffreys Discovers the Technique of Genetic Fingerprinting July 13, 1985: Live Aid Generates Millions for Famine Relief Sept. 15, 1985: Europe Takes the Ryder Cup 1987-1990: Search for the Gene That Begins Male Development 1988: Graf Wins Golden Grand Slam 1989: Amnesty International Exposes the Cruelty of the Death Penalty Nov., 1989: Ford Buys Jaguar Mar. 31, 1990: British Riot Over the Poll Tax June 29, 1990: U.N. Agreement Protects Ozone Layer Nov. 28, 1990: Major Succeeds Thatcher as British Prime Minister May 6, 1994: Opening of the Channel Tunnel Mar. 20, 1996: Britain Announces Human Cases of Mad Cow Disease May 1, 1997: Labor Party Wins Majority in British National Elections May 22-June 12, 1997: Globe Theatre Opens in London June 30, 1997: Harry Potter Resuscitates Reading May 6, 1998: Daimler-Benz Buys Chrysler June 21, 1998: Druids Celebrate the Summer Solstice Dec. 10, 1998: First Genetic Map of an Animal Reported Eritrea May 24, 1993: Eritrea Secedes from Ethiopia May 6, 1998-Dec. 12, 2000: Eritrean-Ethiopian War Estonia Feb. 4, 1989: Soviet Farmers Gain Control of Land and Crop Selection Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Ethiopia 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine Feb., 1974: Military Junta Comes to Power in Ethiopia Nov., 1974: Anthropologists Discover the Early Hominid "Lucy" July 23, 1977-Mar. 15, 1978: Ogaden War Between Somalia and Ethiopia Oct., 1984: Ethiopia Resettles Famine Victims from the North to Southern Ethiopia Nov. 21, 1984-Jan. 5, 1985: Evacuation of Ethiopian Jews to Israel Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa May 6, 1998-Dec. 12, 2000: Eritrean-Ethiopian War Europe 1970's: Spanish Art Thrives After Years of Suppression 1971: Direct Transoceanic Dialing Begins Feb. 4, 1971: Rolls-Royce Declares Bankruptcy Feb. 7, 1971: Swiss Women Gain the Right to Vote Aug. 4, 1971: Audiences Embrace Mortimer's A Voyage Round My Father Nov. 8, 1971: Led Zeppelin Merges Hard Rock and Folk Music Jan. 1, 1972-June 30, 1984: World Fertility Survey Is Conducted Jan. 30, 1972: "Bloody Sunday" in Northern Ireland Apr. 10, 1972: Nations Agree to Rules on Biological Weapons Apr. 19, 1972: Hounsfield Introduces the CAT Scan May 26, 1972: SALT I Is Signed June 5-16, 1972: United Nations Holds an Environmental Conference in Stockholm Sept. 1, 1972-June 2, 1976: Cod Wars Sept. 5-6, 1972: Arab Terrorists Murder Israelis at Munich Olympics Sept. 10, 1972: U.S. Loss to the Soviet Union Sparks Basketball Controversy 1973: Schumacher Publishes Small Is Beautiful 1973-1975: The Gulag Archipelago Exposes Soviet Atrocities Feb., 1973: Ecology Party Is Founded in Great Britain Feb., 1973-Mar., 1974: Organic Molecules Are Discovered in Comet Kohoutek May 26, 1973-Dec. 26, 1991: Détente with the Soviet Union June 21, 1973: East and West Germany Establish Diplomatic Relations July, 1973: Northern Ireland Witnesses Passage of the Emergency Provisions Act July 31, 1973: European Space Agency Is Formed Nov. 23, 1973: West Germany Bans Immigration of Workers from Outside the EEC 1974: D'Eaubonne Coins the Term "Ecofeminism" 1974: Medical Group Exposes Torture in Greece and Chile 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies 1974-1976: Punk's Antifashion Style First Appears Feb. 13, 1974: Soviet Union Expels Solzhenitsyn June 17, 1974: IRA Terrorists Bomb British Parliament July 15, 1974: Cyprus Crisis Erupts Sept. 28, 1974: Dalí Museum Opens in Spain Nov. 16, 1974: U.N. Declaration on Hunger and Malnutrition May, 1975: Sony Introduces the Betamax Aug. 1, 1975: Helsinki Accords Offer Terms for International Cooperation Nov., 1975-Jan., 1978: Sex Pistols Spark Punk Rock's Musical Insurrection Nov. 20, 1975: Death of Franco Dec. 10, 1975: Sakharov Is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 1976: Kibble Proposes the Theory of Cosmic Strings Jan. 21, 1976: Concorde Flies Passengers at Supersonic Speeds Feb. 12, 1976: IRA Prisoner Dies After Hunger Strike July 10, 1976: Italian Factory Explosion Releases Dioxin July 25, 1976: Einstein on the Beach Introduces Minimalist Music to Mainstream Audiences 1977-1981: Soviet Citizen Group Investigates Political Abuses of Psychiatry 1977-2000: Fiber-Optics Revolution Jan. 31, 1977: Pompidou Center Opens in Paris Feb.-Mar., 1977: Soviets Crack Down on Moscow's Helsinki Watch Group May, 1977: World Health Organization Sets a Goal of Health for All June 15, 1977: Spain Holds Its First Free Elections Since the Civil War Sept. 16, 1977: Gruentzig Uses Angioplasty to Unclog Diseased Arteries Nov. 24, 1977: Dissident Writer Mihajlov Is Released from Yugoslavian Prison Dec. 10, 1977: Amnesty International Is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1977: Two Founders of Peace People Receive the Nobel Peace Prize 1978-1981: Rohrer and Binnig Invent the Scanning Tunneling Microscope Jan. 18, 1978: European Court of Human Rights Rules on Mistreatment of Prisoners Mar. 16, 1978: The Amoco Cadiz Runs Aground Mar. 16-May 9, 1978: Terrorists Kidnap and Murder Former Italian Prime Minister May 22, 1978: Italy Legalizes Abortion July 25, 1978: Brown Gives Birth to the First "Test-Tube Baby" Aug.-Dec., 1978: World Conference Condemns Racial Discrimination Oct. 16, 1978: John Paul II Becomes Pope Dec. 10, 1978: Sadat and Begin Receive the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1978: Singer Is Awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature 1979: Lovelock Publishes Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth May 4, 1979: Thatcher Becomes First Woman to Serve as British Prime Minister June 18, 1979: SALT II Is Signed Aug., 1979: Ancient Sanctuary Is Discovered in El Juyo Cave Dec. 10, 1979: Mother Teresa Is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize 1980: Basques Are Granted Home Rule but Continue to Fight for Independence 1980: Berg, Gilbert, and Sanger Develop Techniques for Genetic Engineering 1980: Four Modern Masters Affirm Germany's Place in the Art World 1980: Mediterranean Nations Sign Antipollution Pact Feb. 5, 1980: Von Klitzing Discovers the Quantized Hall Effect Mar. 21, 1980, and May 8, 1984: Olympic Boycotts May 4, 1980: Death of Tito June 6, 1980: Scientists Find Evidence of an Asteroid Impact at the End of the Cretaceous Period June 24, 1980: Soviet Union Passes Environmental Legislation Aug., 1980: Solidarity Leads Striking Polish Workers Mar. 1, 1981: Sands Begins Hunger Strike May 10, 1981: Mitterrand Is Elected to the French Presidency May 21, 1981: World Health Organization Adopts a Code on Breast-Milk Substitutes Oct. 18, 1981: Greek Socialists Win Parliamentary Majority Dec. 13, 1981: Poland Imposes Martial Law and Bans Solidarity 1982: Baulieu Develops a Pill That Induces Abortion 1982-1983: Compact Disc Players Are Introduced 1982-1983: Daffos Uses Umbilical Cord Puncture to Diagnose Fetal Disease July 19, 1982: Great Britain Announces Plans to Privatize British Telecom Oct. 1, 1982: Kohl Becomes Chancellor of West Germany 1983: Rubbia and van der Meer Isolate the Intermediate Vector Bosons Mar., 1983: West German Green Party Gains Seats in Parliament July 21, 1983: Martial Law Ends in Poland Oct., 1983: Amnesty International Works to Prevent Torture Oct., 1983: Europeans Demonstrate Against Nuclear Weapons Dec. 28, 1983: United States Announces Its Withdrawal from UNESCO 1984: Introduction of Optical Discs for Data Storage Mar. 10, 1984: Willadsen Clones the First Farm Animal by Nuclear Transfer Aug. 25, 1984: Radioactive Cargo Sinks in the North Sea Sept. 26, 1984: Britain Signs Agreement to Leave Hong Kong in 1997 Dec. 10, 1984: Tutu Receives the Nobel Peace Prize Mar. 6, 1985: Jeffreys Discovers the Technique of Genetic Fingerprinting Mar. 11, 1985: Gorbachev Initiates a Policy of Glasnost Sept. 15, 1985: Europe Takes the Ryder Cup Sept. 22-Oct. 7, 1985: Christo Wraps the Pont Neuf Nov. 15, 1985: Anglo-Irish Agreement Is Signed Nov. 19-21, 1985: U.S.-Soviet Summit Dec., 1985: European Nations Open Superphénix Jan., 1986: Bednorz and Müller Discover a High-Temperature Superconductor Jan. 1, 1986: Portugal and Spain Enter the European Community Feb. 28, 1986: European Economic Community Adopts the Single European Act Feb. 28, 1986: Palme Is Assassinated Mar. 8, 1986: Space Probes Begin Examination of Comet Halley Apr. 26, 1986: Soviet Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Undergoes Meltdown June 8, 1986: Election of Waldheim as President of Austria Stirs Controversy Nov. 1, 1986: Swiss Warehouse Fire Causes Toxic Spill into the Rhine Dec. 9, 1986: Opening of the Musée d'Orsay Dec. 10, 1986: Soyinka Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Dec. 10, 1986: Wiesel Receives the Nobel Peace Prize Apr. 27, 1987: Our Common Future Is Published May 11, 1987: Barbie Is Tried for Nazi War Crimes Dec. 10, 1987: Arias Sánchez Receives the Nobel Peace Prize 1988: Graf Wins Golden Grand Slam Mar. 4, 1988: Pei Creates a New Entrance to the Louvre June 30, 1988: Excommunication of Archbishop Lefebvre July-Nov., 1988: Ethnic Violence Erupts in Yugoslavian Provinces Nov., 1988: United Nations Creates a Panel to Study Climate Change Dec. 10, 1988: Mahfouz Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Dec. 21, 1988: Pan Am Flight 103 Explodes over Lockerbie 1989: Amnesty International Exposes the Cruelty of the Death Penalty 1989: Hungary Adopts a Multiparty System Feb. 4, 1989: Soviet Farmers Gain Control of Land and Crop Selection June-Sept., 1989: Poland Forms a Non-Communist Government July 2, 1989: Papandreou Leaves Office in Disgrace Nov. 9, 1989: Fall of the Berlin Wall Nov. 17-Dec. 29, 1989: Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia Dec. 8, 1989: Pope John Paul II Issues an Environmental Message Dec. 10, 1989: Tibet's Dalai Lama Receives the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 25, 1989: Ceausescu Is Overthrown in Romania 1990: Albania Opens Its Borders to Foreign Nationals Jan., 1990: Poland Begins Switching to a Market Economy Feb. 26, 1990: Soviet Troops Withdraw from Czechoslovakia Mar. 6, 1990: Soviet Parliament Allows Private Ownership Mar. 11, 1990: Lithuania Declares Independence from the Soviet Union Mar. 31, 1990: British Riot Over the Poll Tax June 8-July 8, 1990: West Germany Wins a Third FIFA World Cup June 29, 1990: U.N. Agreement Protects Ozone Layer July 16, 1990: Gorbachev Agrees to Membership of a United Germany in NATO Nov. 28, 1990: Major Succeeds Thatcher as British Prime Minister 1991-1993: Development of HTML May 5, 1991: Swiss Banks End Secret Accounts June 25, 1991: Civil War Begins in Yugoslavia July 1, 1991: Dissolution of the Warsaw Pact July 1, 1991: Sweden Applies for Membership in the European Community Sept., 1991-Nov., 1992: Immigrants in Germany Become Targets of Violence Oct.-Nov., 1991: Yugoslav Army Shells Dubrovnik Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Dec. 10, 1991: Gordimer Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Feb. 21, 1992: United Nations Authorizes Troop Deployment to the Balkans Apr. 12, 1992: Euro Disneyland Opens 1993: Norway Resumes Whaling in Defiance of International Ban Jan. 1, 1993: Czechoslovakia Splits into Two Republics Jan. 3, 1993: United States and Russia Reach Nuclear Arms Reduction Agreement Jan. 5, 1993: Braer Runs Aground May 27, 1993: Bomb Damages the Uffizi Gallery June 14-25, 1993: World Conference on Human Rights Nov. 1, 1993: Unification of the European Market Dec. 15, 1993: Ulster Peace Accord Jan. 22, 1994: Schindler's List Begins Reaping Accolades Mar., 1994: Italy's Voters Move Right May 6, 1994: Opening of the Channel Tunnel Sept. 28, 1994: Ferry Sinks in the Baltic Oct. 21, 1994: U.S.-North Korea Pact Dec. 10, 1994: Oe Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Dec. 11, 1994: Russian Troops Invade Chechnya Feb. 13, 1995: Serbs Face Charges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia Mar. 30, 1995: National Library of France Opens May 17, 1995: Chirac Takes Office as President of France Sept. 5, 1995-Jan. 27, 1996: France Resumes Nuclear Testing Dec. 10, 1995: Heaney Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Mar. 20, 1996: Britain Announces Human Cases of Mad Cow Disease June 10, 1996: Center-Right Government Takes Over in Spain July 5, 1996: Wilmut Clones the First Large Mammal from an Adult Cell Dec. 10, 1996: Szymborska Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Jan., 1997: Archaeologists Announce the Discovery of Aristotle's Lyceum May 1, 1997: Labor Party Wins Majority in British National Elections May 22-June 12, 1997: Globe Theatre Opens in London May 27, 1997: NATO and Russia Sign Cooperation Pact June 30, 1997: Harry Potter Resuscitates Reading Aug. 31, 1997: Princess Diana Dies in a Car Crash Dec. 10, 1997: Land Mine Activist Receives Nobel Peace Prize 1998: Reparations Funds for Holocaust Victims Are Established Feb. 28, 1998-June 9, 1999: Kosovo Conflict Escalates Apr. 10, 1998: Good Friday Agreement Apr. 25, 1998: Los Frailes Tailings Pond Dam Ruptures in Spain May 6, 1998: Daimler-Benz Buys Chrysler May 22-Sept. 30, 1998: World's Exposition 1998 June 21, 1998: Druids Celebrate the Summer Solstice July 17, 1998: Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court Is Adopted Aug. 15, 1998: Omagh Car Bombing Oct. 27, 1998: Schröder Replaces Kohl as German Chancellor Nov. 1, 1998: Europe Celebrates the Restructuring of the European Court of Human Rights Dec. 10, 1998: First Genetic Map of an Animal Reported Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Mar. 24-26, 1999: Fire Disaster Closes Mont Blanc Tunnel May 28, 1999: Restored Last Supper Goes on Display July 25, 1999: Armstrong Wins His First Tour de France Aug. 7, 1999: Second Chechen War Erupts Aug. 16, 1999: Putin Becomes Russian Prime Minister Oct. 12, 1999: World's Six Billionth Person Is Born Jan. 14, 2000: Hague Court Convicts Bosnian Croats of 1993 Massacre July 17-19, 2000: "Blood Diamonds" Attract World Scrutiny Aug. 12, 2000: Russian Submarine Sinks Finland Aug. 1, 1975: Helsinki Accords Offer Terms for International Cooperation Sept. 28, 1994: Ferry Sinks in the Baltic Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro France 1974: D'Eaubonne Coins the Term "Ecofeminism" Jan. 21, 1976: Concorde Flies Passengers at Supersonic Speeds July 25, 1976: Einstein on the Beach Introduces Minimalist Music to Mainstream Audiences Jan. 31, 1977: Pompidou Center Opens in Paris Jan. 18, 1978: European Court of Human Rights Rules on Mistreatment of Prisoners Mar. 16, 1978: The Amoco Cadiz Runs Aground Feb. 5, 1980: Von Klitzing Discovers the Quantized Hall Effect May 10, 1981: Mitterrand Is Elected to the French Presidency 1982: Baulieu Develops a Pill That Induces Abortion 1982-1983: Daffos Uses Umbilical Cord Puncture to Diagnose Fetal Disease Dec. 28, 1983: United States Announces Its Withdrawal from UNESCO Sept. 22-Oct. 7, 1985: Christo Wraps the Pont Neuf Dec., 1985: European Nations Open Superphénix Dec. 9, 1986: Opening of the Musée d'Orsay May 11, 1987: Barbie Is Tried for Nazi War Crimes 1988: Graf Wins Golden Grand Slam Mar. 4, 1988: Pei Creates a New Entrance to the Louvre 1990's: Disney Emerges as an Architectural Patron Apr. 12, 1992: Euro Disneyland Opens May 6, 1994: Opening of the Channel Tunnel Mar. 30, 1995: National Library of France Opens May 17, 1995: Chirac Takes Office as President of France Sept. 5, 1995-Jan. 27, 1996: France Resumes Nuclear Testing May 27, 1997: NATO and Russia Sign Cooperation Pact Aug. 31, 1997: Princess Diana Dies in a Car Crash Nov. 1, 1998: Europe Celebrates the Restructuring of the European Court of Human Rights Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Mar. 24-26, 1999: Fire Disaster Closes Mont Blanc Tunnel July 25, 1999: Armstrong Wins His First Tour de France Gabon Dec. 6, 1998: Bongo Wins Fair Elections in Gabon Georgia Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Germany Sept. 5-6, 1972: Arab Terrorists Murder Israelis at Munich Olympics Sept. 10, 1972: U.S. Loss to the Soviet Union Sparks Basketball Controversy Feb., 1973-Mar., 1974: Organic Molecules Are Discovered in Comet Kohoutek June 21, 1973: East and West Germany Establish Diplomatic Relations Nov. 23, 1973: West Germany Bans Immigration of Workers from Outside the EEC Oct. 1, 1982: Kohl Becomes Chancellor of West Germany Mar., 1983: West German Green Party Gains Seats in Parliament Oct., 1983: Europeans Demonstrate Against Nuclear Weapons Nov. 9, 1989: Fall of the Berlin Wall Sept., 1991-Nov., 1992: Immigrants in Germany Become Targets of Violence 1998: Reparations Funds for Holocaust Victims Are Established Oct. 27, 1998: Schröder Replaces Kohl as German Chancellor Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Ghana Aug., 1991: African Countries Begin to Revive Democratization Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Dec. 8, 1996: Rawlings Wins Reelection to Ghana's Presidency Greece 1974: Medical Group Exposes Torture in Greece and Chile Oct. 18, 1981: Greek Socialists Win Parliamentary Majority July 2, 1989: Papandreou Leaves Office in Disgrace Jan., 1997: Archaeologists Announce the Discovery of Aristotle's Lyceum Grenada Oct. 25-Nov. 2, 1983: United States Invades Grenada Guatemala 1978-1985: Guatemalan Death Squads Target Indigenous Indians June, 1980: Radar Reveals Canals at Mayan Agricultural Centers Dec. 29, 1996: Guatemalan Peace Accords End Civil War Oct. 29-Nov. 3, 1998: Hurricane Mitch Floods Central America Guinea 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Guinea-Bissau 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Aug., 1991: African Countries Begin to Revive Democratization Guyana Nov. 18, 1978: People's Temple Members Commit Mass Suicide Haiti Apr. 21, 1971: Baby Doc Succeeds Papa Doc in Haiti Dec. 16, 1990: Aristide Wins First Democratic Election in Haiti July 31, 1994: United Nations Authorizes the Use of Force in Haiti Honduras Oct. 29-Nov. 3, 1998: Hurricane Mitch Floods Central America Hong Kong Sept. 26, 1984: Britain Signs Agreement to Leave Hong Kong in 1997 Late 1984: Hong Kong's Citizens Prepare for Chinese Takeover May 10, 1996: Vietnamese Refugees Riot in Hong Kong July 1, 1997: Hong Kong Becomes Part of the People's Republic of China Dec. 16, 1997: First Cases of Avian Flu Are Reported Hungary 1989: Hungary Adopts a Multiparty System Iceland Sept. 1, 1972-June 2, 1976: Cod Wars India Mar. 27, 1973: Chipko Movement Protects India's Forests 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies May 18, 1974: India Joins the Nuclear Club 1976: India Adopts Compulsory Birth Control Mar. 24, 1977: Desai Unseats Gandhi as Prime Minister of India June 3-6, 1984: Sikhs and Indian Government Clash at the Golden Temple Oct. 31, 1984: Indira Gandhi Is Assassinated Dec. 3, 1984: Toxic Gas Leaks from a Union Carbide Plant in Bhopal, India 1989: Kashmir Separatists Demand an End to Indian Rule May 14-Dec. 8, 1995: New Panchen Lama Is Named May 11 and 13, 1998: India Conducts Nuclear Tests Indonesia June-Oct., 1997: Indonesian Forest Fires Devastate Southeast Asia May 21, 1998: Suharto Resigns, Making Way for Habibie Iran Mar. 20, 1973: Iran Announces Nationalization of Foreign Oil Interests Jan., 1978-1980: Iranian Revolution 1979-1985: Iran Uses Executions to Establish New Order Nov. 4, 1979-Jan. 20, 1981: Iranian Revolutionaries Hold Americans Hostage Sept. 22, 1980-Aug. 8, 1988: Iran-Iraq War July 3, 1988: USS Vincennes Shoots Down Iranian Civilian Plane Feb. 14, 1989: Iran Issues a Fatwa Against Salman Rushdie June 21, 1990: Massive Quake Rocks Iran Iraq Dec. 27, 1971: Fungicide-Tainted Grain Poisons Thousands of Iraqis July 16, 1979: Saddam Hussein Takes Power in Iraq Sept. 22, 1980-Aug. 8, 1988: Iran-Iraq War June 7, 1981: Israel Destroys Iraqi Nuclear Reactor Apr., 1987-Sept., 1988: Iraq Uses Poison Gas Against Kurds Aug. 2, 1990: Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait Jan. 17-Feb. 28, 1991: Persian Gulf War Dec. 16-19, 1998: Iraq Disarmament Crisis Climaxes in Air Strikes Ireland Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Ireland, Northern Jan. 30, 1972: "Bloody Sunday" in Northern Ireland July, 1973: Northern Ireland Witnesses Passage of the Emergency Provisions Act Mar. 1, 1981: Sands Begins Hunger Strike Nov. 15, 1985: Anglo-Irish Agreement Is Signed Dec. 15, 1993: Ulster Peace Accord Apr. 10, 1998: Good Friday Agreement Aug. 15, 1998: Omagh Car Bombing Israel Oct. 6-26, 1973: Yom Kippur War Nov. 19-21, 1977: Sadat Becomes the First Arab Leader to Visit Israel 1987-1988: Scientists Date a Homo sapiens Fossil at Ninety-Two Thousand Years Dec., 1987: Palestinian Intifada Begins Apr. 18, 1988: Israel Convicts Demjanjuk of Nazi War Crimes Nov. 4, 1995: Rabin Is Assassinated May 17, 1999: Barak Takes Charge in Israel Italy Nov. 16, 1974: U.N. Declaration on Hunger and Malnutrition July 10, 1976: Italian Factory Explosion Releases Dioxin Mar. 16-May 9, 1978: Terrorists Kidnap and Murder Former Italian Prime Minister May 22, 1978: Italy Legalizes Abortion 1980: Four Modern Masters Affirm Germany's Place in the Art World June 6, 1980: Scientists Find Evidence of an Asteroid Impact at the End of the Cretaceous Period Oct., 1983: Europeans Demonstrate Against Nuclear Weapons Dec. 8, 1989: Pope John Paul II Issues an Environmental Message June 8-July 8, 1990: West Germany Wins a Third FIFA World Cup May 27, 1993: Bomb Damages the Uffizi Gallery Mar., 1994: Italy's Voters Move Right July 17, 1998: Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court Is Adopted Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Mar. 24-26, 1999: Fire Disaster Closes Mont Blanc Tunnel May 28, 1999: Restored Last Supper Goes on Display Jamaica Mar. 2, 1972: Manley Becomes Prime Minister of Jamaica Feb., 1975: Marley's Natty Dread Establishes Reggae's Popularity May, 1979: U.N. Declaration Condemns Apartheid Japan May 15, 1972: United States Hands Okinawa to Japan May, 1975: Sony Introduces the Betamax Oct. 10, 1975: Tokyo Declaration Forbids Medical Abuses and Torture July 1, 1979: Sony Introduces the Walkman 1980's-1990's: Rise of Video and Computer Games 1980: Japan Becomes the World's Largest Automobile Producer 1982-1983: Compact Disc Players Are Introduced 1984: Introduction of Optical Discs for Data Storage 1986: Kamiokande Neutrino Telescope Begins Operation Mar. 8, 1986: Space Probes Begin Examination of Comet Halley Oct., 1988: Recruit Scandal Surfaces in Japan Oct., 1991: Iijima Reports the Production of Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes Jan. 13, 1992: Japan Admits to Sex Slavery During World War II Jan. 17, 1995: Kobe Earthquake Kills Thousands Mar. 20, 1995: Terrorists Use Sarin Gas in Tokyo Subway Attack Jan. 30, 1996: Comet Hyakutake Is Discovered July 1, 1997: Japan Enacts a Law to Protect the Ainu People Dec. 1-11, 1997: Kyoto Conference on Greenhouse Gases Dec. 24, 1997: Japanese Magnetic Train Reaches Record Speed Apr. 5, 1998: Opening of the World's Largest Suspension Bridge Kazakhstan Apr. 19, 1971: Russians Launch the Salyut Space Station May 19, 1971-Mar., 1972: Mars 2 Is the First Spacecraft to Impact Mars July 15-24, 1975: Apollo-Soyuz Test Project Oct. 22, 1975: Soviet Venera Spacecraft Transmit the First Pictures from the Surface of Venus Sept. 6-12, 1978: International Health Conference Adopts the Declaration of Alma-Ata July 25 and Oct. 11, 1984: Two Women Walk in Space Feb. 20, 1986: First Permanently Manned Space Station Is Launched Dec. 17-19, 1986: Kazakhstan Muslims Riot Against Russians Mar., 1991: Supreme Soviet Declares the Aral Sea a Disaster Area Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Nov. 2, 2000: International Space Station Is Manned Kenya 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine 1975: U.N. Global Environment Monitoring System Is Inaugurated June, 1981: Organization of African Unity Adopts the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights 1989: Kenyan Government Cracks Down on Dissent July 18, 1989: Kenyan President Burns a Fortune in Ivory Aug. 7, 1998: Terrorists Bomb U.S. Embassies in East Africa Koreas Oct. 26, 1979: South Korean President Is Assassinated 1988: Graf Wins Golden Grand Slam Jan. 13, 1992: Japan Admits to Sex Slavery During World War II July 8, 1994: Kim Jong-il Succeeds His Father in North Korea 1995-1998: Famine Strikes North Korea Kuwait Oct. 17, 1973-Mar. 18, 1974: Arab Oil Producers Curtail Oil Shipments to Industrial States Aug. 2, 1990: Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait Jan. 17-Feb. 28, 1991: Persian Gulf War Jan. 27-Nov. 7, 1991: Iraq Burns Kuwaiti Oil Wells Kyrgyzstan Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Laos Nov. 10, 1981: "Yellow Rain" Hearing Latvia Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Lebanon Mar. 14, 1978: Israel Invades Southern Lebanon Sept. 16-18, 1982: Palestinians Are Massacred in West Beirut Fall, 1982: Pro-Iran Radicals Form Hezbollah Jan. 20, 1987: Waite Is Kidnapped in Lebanon May, 1992: Hariri Begins Reconstruction of Lebanon Liberia Dec. 24, 1989-July 19, 1997: Liberian Civil War Lithuania Mar. 11, 1990: Lithuania Declares Independence from the Soviet Union Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Luxembourg Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Macedonia July-Nov., 1988: Ethnic Violence Erupts in Yugoslavian Provinces Feb. 21, 1992: United Nations Authorizes Troop Deployment to the Balkans Madagascar Aug., 1991: African Countries Begin to Revive Democratization Malawi Aug., 1991: African Countries Begin to Revive Democratization Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa 1998: AIDS Devastates Africa Malaysia Apr. 13, 1981: Mahathir Begins Rule in Malaysia June-Oct., 1997: Indonesian Forest Fires Devastate Southeast Asia Aug. 28, 1999: Petronas Twin Towers Open Mali Aug., 1991: African Countries Begin to Revive Democratization Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Melanesia May 14, 1987: Fiji's Elected Government Is Ousted by the Military Mexico June 19-July 2, 1975: World Conference on Women Sets an International Agenda Mar. 22, 1980: Mexico Controls Huge Leak in Offshore Oil Well Apr., 1980: Foreman Founds Earth First! Aug. 6-14, 1984: United Nations Holds a Population Conference Sept. 19, 1985: Earthquake Devastates Mexico City Jan. 31, 1995: United States Bails Out Mexico July 2, 2000: PRI Rule Ends in Mexico Aug. 9, 2000: Bridgestone/Firestone Announces Massive Recall Middle East Jan. 15, 1971: Dedication of Egypt's Aswan High Dam Aug. 15 and Sept. 3, 1971: Bahrain and Qatar Achieve Independence Dec. 27, 1971: Fungicide-Tainted Grain Poisons Thousands of Iraqis Mar. 20, 1973: Iran Announces Nationalization of Foreign Oil Interests Oct. 6-26, 1973: Yom Kippur War Oct. 17, 1973-Mar. 18, 1974: Arab Oil Producers Curtail Oil Shipments to Industrial States July 15, 1974: Cyprus Crisis Erupts Mar. 25, 1976: Assassination of King Faisal Nov. 19-21, 1977: Sadat Becomes the First Arab Leader to Visit Israel 1978-1980: Syrian Bar Association Demands Political Reform in Syria Jan., 1978-1980: Iranian Revolution Mar. 14, 1978: Israel Invades Southern Lebanon 1979-1985: Iran Uses Executions to Establish New Order July 16, 1979: Saddam Hussein Takes Power in Iraq Nov. 4, 1979-Jan. 20, 1981: Iranian Revolutionaries Hold Americans Hostage Jan. 9, 1980: Saudi Arabia Beheads Sixty-Three Persons for Attack on Mecca Sept. 22, 1980-Aug. 8, 1988: Iran-Iraq War May 25, 1981: Saudi Arabia Establishes Gulf Cooperation Council June 7, 1981: Israel Destroys Iraqi Nuclear Reactor Sept. 16-18, 1982: Palestinians Are Massacred in West Beirut Fall, 1982: Pro-Iran Radicals Form Hezbollah 1987-1988: Scientists Date a Homo sapiens Fossil at Ninety-Two Thousand Years Jan. 20, 1987: Waite Is Kidnapped in Lebanon Apr., 1987-Sept., 1988: Iraq Uses Poison Gas Against Kurds Dec., 1987: Palestinian Intifada Begins Apr. 18, 1988: Israel Convicts Demjanjuk of Nazi War Crimes July 3, 1988: USS Vincennes Shoots Down Iranian Civilian Plane Feb. 14, 1989: Iran Issues a Fatwa Against Salman Rushdie 1990's: Algeria and Egypt Crack Down on Islamic Militants May 22, 1990: Merging of the Two Yemens June 21, 1990: Massive Quake Rocks Iran Aug. 2, 1990: Iraqi Invasion of Kuwait Jan. 17-Feb. 28, 1991: Persian Gulf War Jan. 27-Nov. 7, 1991: Iraq Burns Kuwaiti Oil Wells May, 1992: Hariri Begins Reconstruction of Lebanon Nov. 4, 1995: Rabin Is Assassinated Nov. 17, 1997: Temple of Hatshepsut Massacre Dec. 16-19, 1998: Iraq Disarmament Crisis Climaxes in Air Strikes May 17, 1999: Barak Takes Charge in Israel Oct. 12, 2000: Terrorists Attack USS Cole Moldavia Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Mongolia Feb. 12, 1991: Mongolia Sheds Communism Morocco Nov. 6-13, 1975: Dispute over the Western Sahara Erupts in the Green March Mozambique 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Mar. 16, 1984: South Africa and Mozambique Sign Nkomati Accord Nov. 6, 1986: Chissano Succeeds Machel in Mozambique Aug., 1991: African Countries Begin to Revive Democratization Dec. 16, 1992: U.N. Security Council Brokers Peace in Mozambique Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Namibia Dec. 22, 1988: Namibia Is Liberated from South African Control Netherlands Oct., 1983: Europeans Demonstrate Against Nuclear Weapons Feb. 28, 1986: European Economic Community Adopts the Single European Act Nov. 1, 1993: Unification of the European Market Feb. 13, 1995: Serbs Face Charges at the International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Jan. 14, 2000: Hague Court Convicts Bosnian Croats of 1993 Massacre Nicaragua July 17, 1979: Somoza Is Forced Out of Power in Nicaragua Feb. 25, 1990: Sandinistas Are Defeated in Nicaraguan Elections Oct. 29-Nov. 3, 1998: Hurricane Mitch Floods Central America Niger Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa Nigeria May 28, 1975: Formation of the Economic Community of West African States Jan., 1983: Nigeria Expels West African Migrant Workers Dec. 31, 1983: Nigerian Military Topples President Shagari Dec. 10, 1986: Soyinka Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Nov. 10, 1995: Nigeria Hangs Saro-Wiwa and Other Rights Advocates Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa May 29, 1999: Democracy Returns to Nigeria North America 1970's: Drive-Through Services Proliferate 1970's: Growth of Organic Farming 1970's: Retailers Control Inventory Shrinkage with Computer Technology 1970's: Women's Military Roles Expand 1971: Canadian Activists Found Greenpeace 1971: Direct Transoceanic Dialing Begins 1971: Earthwatch Is Founded 1971: Federal Trade Commission Begins to Endorse Comparative Advertising 1971: New York State Allows Offtrack Betting 1971: Paclitaxel Is Extracted from Pacific Yew Trees 1971: United States Suffers Its First Trade Deficit Since 1888 1971-1974: Civil Rights Groups Investigate the FBI and CIA Jan.-Mar., 1971: Animal Welfare Institute Launches the "Save the Whales" Campaign Jan. 12, 1971: Relevance Programs Change Entertainment Standards Jan. 12, 1971-Sept. 16, 1976: All in the Family Confronts Controversial Issues Feb. 10, 1971: Guare's The House of Blue Leaves Joins Naturalistic and Nonrepresentational Theater Mar. 8, 1971: U.S. Supreme Court Bans Discrimination in Hiring Mar. 12, 1971: Incarcerated Mental Patients Gain Right to Treatment Apr. 20, 1971: U.S. Supreme Court Endorses Busing to End School Segregation May 18, 1971: U.S. Advertising Industry Organizes Self-Regulation May 30, 1971-Oct. 27, 1972: Mariner 9 Is the First Spacecraft to Orbit Another Planet June 26-30, 1971: Pentagon Papers Case June 28, 1971: U.S. Supreme Court Establishes the Lemon Test June 30, 1971: U.S. Voting Age Is Lowered to Eighteen July 1, 1971: Independent Agency Takes Over U.S. Postal Service Aug. 1, 1971-Aug. 29, 1977: The Sonny and Cher Comedy Hour Brings Glitz to Television Aug. 15, 1971: Devaluation of the Dollar Sept. 9-13, 1971: Prisoners Riot Against Conditions in Attica Oct., 1971: Commoner Publishes The Closing Circle Oct. 12, 1971: Jesus Christ Superstar Establishes the Rock Opera Oct. 25, 1971: People's Republic of China Is Seated at the United Nations Nov.-Dec., 1971: Tomlinson Sends the First E-Mail Nov. 8, 1971: Led Zeppelin Merges Hard Rock and Folk Music Nov. 15, 1971: Intel Introduces the First "Computer on a Chip" Dec. 18, 1971: Native Alaskans Are Compensated for Their Land Dec. 20, 1971: United Nations Declares Rights for the Mentally Retarded 1972: AFL-CIO Recognizes the United Farm Workers 1972: Club of Rome Issues The Limits to Growth 1972: Star Trek Becomes a Cult Classic Feb. 21, 1972: Nixon Opens Trade with China Mar. 1, 1972: U.S. Congress Updates Water Pollution Law Mar. 2, 1972-Jan. 22, 2003: Pioneer 10 Explores Jupiter and the Outer Planets Mar. 15, 1972-Dec. 20, 1990: Coppola's Godfather Trilogy Explores Organized Crime Spring, 1972: Nike Produces Its First Running Shoe Mar. 22, 1972-June 30, 1982: ERA Passes Congress but Falls Short of Ratification Mar. 24, 1972: U.S. Congress Mandates Equal Employment Opportunity Apr., 1972: Ward and Dubos Publish Only One Earth Apr. 1-13, 1972: Professional Baseball Players Go on Strike Apr. 10, 1972: Nations Agree to Rules on Biological Weapons Apr. 15, 1972: Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement Is Signed Apr. 19, 1972: Environmentalists Are Defeated in Sierra Club v. Morton May, 1972: Trudeau's Doonesbury Offers Political Commentary May 15, 1972: U.S. Supreme Court Protects Home Schooling June 17, 1972-Aug. 9, 1974: Watergate Affair June 29, 1972: U.S. Supreme Court Abolishes the Death Penalty July 23, 1972: Launch of the First Earth Resources Technology Satellite Sept., 1972: Gell-Mann Formulates the Theory of Quantum Chromodynamics Sept. 17, 1972-Feb. 28, 1983: M*A*S*H Reflects Antiwar Sentiments Sept. 21, 1972: Texas Instruments Introduces the Pocket Calculator Sept. 23, 1972: Janowsky Publishes His Theory of Manic Depression Oct. 1, 1972: Oregon Bans Nonrefillable Bottles Oct. 6-Nov. 8, 1972: Trail of Broken Treaties Oct. 21, 1972: U.S. Congress Expands Pesticide Regulations Oct. 27, 1972: U.S. Congress Protects Coasts and Marine Sanctuaries Oct. 27, 1972: U.S. Government Regulates Noise Pollution Oct. 28, 1972: Nixon Signs Law to Protect Consumer Safety Dec. 31, 1972: U.S. Government Bans DDT 1973: Cohen and Boyer Develop Recombinant DNA Technology 1973: Invention of the Plastic Soda Bottle 1973-1975: The Gulag Archipelago Exposes Soviet Atrocities Jan., 1973: Cousteau Society Is Founded Jan. 22, 1973: U.S. Supreme Court Expands Women's Reproductive Rights Feb. 27-May 8, 1973: Native Americans Occupy Wounded Knee Mar., 1973: Pynchon's Gravity's Rainbow Is Published Mar. 1, 1973: Tharp Stages Deuce Coupe for the Joffrey Ballet Mar. 3, 1973: International Convention Protects Endangered Species Apr. 3, 1973: First Cellular Phone Call Apr. 4, 1973: Opening of the World Trade Center Apr. 17, 1973: Federal Express Begins Operations May 14, 1973-Feb. 8, 1974: Skylab Inaugurates a New Era of Space Research May 26, 1973-Dec. 26, 1991: Détente with the Soviet Union June 9, 1973: Secretariat Wins the Triple Crown Aug., 1973: Wonder Releases Innervisions Sept. 20, 1973: Tennis's Battle of the Sexes Sept. 26, 1973: U.S. Congress Responds to Demands of Persons with Disabilities Nov. 3, 1973-Mar. 24, 1975: Mariner 10 Uses the Gravitational Pull of One Planet to Reach Another Nov. 7, 1973: U.S. Congress Overrides Presidential Veto to Pass the War Powers Act Nov. 30, 1973: United Nations Sanctions South Africa for Apartheid Dec., 1973-June, 1974: Rowland and Molina Theorize That Freon Causes Ozone Depletion Dec. 15, 1973: American Psychiatric Association Delists Homosexuality as a Psychiatric Disorder Dec. 26, 1973: The Exorcist Epitomizes 1970's Horror Films Dec. 28, 1973: U.S. Congress Protects Endangered Species Dec. 29, 1973: Nixon Signs HMOs into Law 1974: Automakers Introduce the Catalytic Converter 1974: Heilbroner Predicts Growth Limits 1974: United States Plans to Cut Dependence on Foreign Oil 1974: Worldwatch Institute Is Founded 1974-1980: Sick Building Syndrome Is Recognized Jan. 14, 1974-Oct. 22, 1975: World Football League's Challenge to the National Football League Fails Jan. 15, 1974-July 12, 1984: Happy Days Exemplifies Escapist Television Jan. 21, 1974: U.S. Supreme Court Mandates Bilingual Education Jan. 31, 1974: U.S. Congress Protects Children Against Abuse Feb. 13, 1974: Soviet Union Expels Solzhenitsyn Apr., 1974: Optical Pulses Shorter than One Trillionth of a Second Are Produced Apr., 1974: Pirsig Publishes Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance Apr. 8, 1974: Aaron Breaks Ruth's Home Run Record June, 1974: Tunable, Continuous-Wave Visible Lasers Are Developed June 26, 1974-2000: Use of Bar Codes Proliferates Aug. 9, 1974: Nixon Resigns from the U.S. Presidency Aug. 17, 1974: U.S. Congress Revises Resource Management Aug. 19, 1974: United States Grants Amnesty to Vietnam War Draft Evaders Sept. 2, 1974: U.S. Congress Protects Employee Benefits Oct. 2, 1974: Robinson Becomes Baseball's First African American Manager Oct. 23, 1974: U.S. Congress Creates the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Nov., 1974: Discovery of the J/psi Subatomic Particle Nov., 1974: Dog Soldiers Portrays Vietnam in Fiction Nov. 13, 1974: Silkwood Becomes a Symbol for the Antinuclear Movement Dec. 16, 1974: U.S. Congress Requires Safe Drinking Water Mid-1970's: Denim Jeans Become Accepted as Fashion 1975: Atlantic Salmon Return to the Connecticut River 1975: The Monkey Wrench Gang Advocates "Ecotage" 1975-1976: Players Challenge Baseball's Reserve Clause 1975-1978: Silverman Rescues ABC Television's Ratings 1975-1979: Violent Action-Adventure Television Series Flourish Jan. 3, 1975: U.S. Congress Expands Eastern Wilderness Jan. 3, 1975: U.S. Congress Protects Public Against Hazardous Waste in Transit Jan. 4, 1975: U.S. Congress Requires Product Warranties Jan. 5, 1975: The Wiz Brings African American Talent to Broadway Jan. 18, 1975-July 23, 1985: The Jeffersons Signals Success of Black Situation Comedies Mar. 11, 1975: Southern Schools Are Found to Be the Least Racially Segregated May, 1975: Sony Introduces the Betamax May 23, 1975: Joplin's Treemonisha Is Staged by the Houston Opera June 19-July 2, 1975: World Conference on Women Sets an International Agenda June 20, 1975: Jaws Prompts a Wave of Special-Effects Films July 3, 1975: Civil Service Decides That Gays Are Fit for Public Service July 15-24, 1975: Apollo-Soyuz Test Project Aug. 6, 1975: U.S. Congress Bans Literacy Tests for Voting Aug. 25, 1975: Springsteen's Born to Run Revives Mainstream Rock Oct. 8, 1975: U.S. Congress Admits Women to Armed Services Academies Oct. 11, 1975: Saturday Night Live Is First Broadcast Oct. 28, 1975: U.S. Congress Prohibits Discrimination in the Granting of Credit Nov. 10, 1975: Sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald Nov. 10, 1975: U.N. Resolution Denounces Zionism Nov. 19, 1975: Forman Adapts One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest for Film Nov. 29, 1975: U.S. Law Provides for Public Education of Disabled Children Dec. 9, 1975: United Nations Adopts a Declaration on Disabled Persons' Rights Dec. 9, 1975: United Nations Issues a Declaration Against Torture Dec. 31, 1975: Hells Canyon Is Preserved as a National Recreation Area 1976: Speech Recognition Machines Master One Thousand Words 1976-2000: Mutual Funds Spark Growth of Individual Investments Jan. 12, 1976: Wanted! The Outlaws Revitalizes Country Music Feb. 27, 1976: Inuit File Claim to a Section of Canadian Territory Mar. 4, 1976: First Cray-1 Supercomputer Is Shipped to the Los Alamos National Laboratory Apr.-June, 1976: Shange's for colored girls . . . Presents the Black Female Psyche Apr. 1, 1976: Jobs and Wozniak Found Apple Computer Apr. 7, 1976: Genentech Is Founded June 5, 1976: Teton Dam Collapses July 1, 1976: Smithsonian Opens the National Air and Space Museum July 2, 1976: U.S. Supreme Court Reinstates the Death Penalty July 12, 1976: Price Club Introduces the Warehouse Club Concept July 18, 1976: Comaneci Receives the First Perfect Score in Olympic Gymnastics July 20-Sept. 3, 1976: Viking Spacecraft Send Photographs to Earth from Mars July 27, 1976: Mysterious Legionnaires' Disease Strikes Sept., 1976: Land Institute Is Founded to Develop Alternative Grains Oct. 11, 1976: EPA Is Charged with Regulating Toxic Chemicals Oct. 12, 1976: United States Bans PCBs Oct. 19, 1976: Expanded Copyright Law Reflects New Technology Oct. 21, 1976: "Cradle-to-Grave" Legislation Covers Hazardous Wastes Oct. 21, 1976: Sears Agrees to an FTC Order Banning Bait-and-Switch Tactics Oct. 21, 1976: U.S. Congress Secures Lands in the Public Domain Oct. 22, 1976: U.S. Congress Limits Forest Clear-Cutting Nov. 2, 1976: Atlantic City Legalizes Casino Gambling Nov. 2, 1976: Carter Is Elected President Dec., 1976: Murdoch Extends His Media Empire to the United States Dec. 15, 1976: The Argo Merchant Spills Oil off the New England Coast 1977: Berry Publishes The Unsettling of America 1977: Heeger and MacDiarmid Discover Conducting Polymers 1977: Kohlberg Kravis Roberts Pioneers the Leveraged Buyout 1977: Researchers Develop an Integrated Solar Energy System 1977-1981: Carter Makes Human Rights a Central Theme of Foreign Policy 1977-2000: Fiber-Optics Revolution Jan. 1, 1977: Means Is Ordained by the American Episcopal Church Jan. 23-30, 1977: Roots Dramatizes the African American Experience Mar. 10-11, 1977: Astronomers Discover the Rings of Uranus Apr., 1977: Apple II Becomes the First Successful Preassembled Personal Computer Apr. 20, 1977: Allen's Annie Hall Captures Complexities of 1970's Life May 11, 1977: First Commercial Test of Fiber-Optic Telecommunications May 25, 1977-May 25, 1983: Star Wars Trilogy Redefines Special Effects July 28, 1977: Alaskan Oil Pipeline Opens Aug., 1977: Watson Founds the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society Aug. 3, 1977: U.S. Government Regulates Strip Mining Aug. 4, 1977: U.S. Congress Creates the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Aug. 7, 1977: Clean Air Act Is Revised Aug. 10, 1977: Canada's Human Rights Act Aug. 20, 1977-Oct. 2, 1989: Voyagers 1 and 2 Explore the Outer Planets Aug. 31, 1977: Declaration of Hawaii Addresses the Misuse of Psychiatry Nov. 4, 1977: United Nations Imposes an Arms Embargo on South Africa Dec. 16, 1977: Saturday Night Fever Depicts the Disco Craze 1978: AT&T Building Exemplifies Postmodernism 1978: Volkswagen Opens the First Foreign-Owned U.S. Auto Plant Jan. 1, 1978: Consumer Product Safety Commission Bans Lead Paints Jan. 24, 1978: Radioactive Satellite Fragments Land in Canada Jan. 26, 1978: International Ultraviolet Explorer Is Launched Feb., 1978: Global Positioning System Becomes Operational Feb., 1978: Trigger Prices Protect the U.S. Steel Industry Mar. 16 and Apr. 18, 1978: Panama Canal Treaties Mar. 17, 1978: Chlorofluorocarbons Are Banned in the United States Apr. 2, 1978-May 3, 1991: Dallas Popularizes the Prime-Time Soap Opera Apr. 10, 1978: Canada's Immigration Act of 1976 May 3, 1978: Sun Day Celebration Promotes Solar Energy June 8, 1978: Mormons Approve Ordination of Black Men of African Descent June 15, 1978: U.S. Supreme Court Protects the Snail Darter June 27, 1978-1979: Shepard's Buried Child Promotes Off-Broadway Theater June 28, 1978: U.S. Supreme Court Bans Racial Quotas in College Admissions Aug. 7, 1978: Toxic Waste Is Discovered at Love Canal Aug. 11, 1978: U.S. Congress Protects Native American Religious Practices Sept. 5-17, 1978: Camp David Accords Oct., 1978: Eisner's A Contract with God Is the First Graphic Novel Oct. 17, 1978: U.S. Congress Requires Ships to Safeguard Marine Environment Oct. 24, 1978: Deregulation of the U.S. Airline Industry Oct. 31, 1978: U.S. Congress Protects Pregnant Employees Nov., 1978: FTC Conducts Hearings on Ads Aimed at Children Nov. 9, 1978: U.S. Congress Lifts Regulations from Public Utilities Jan. 1, 1979: United States and China Establish Full Diplomatic Relations Mar., 1979: Scientists Correlate Lead Exposure with Intelligence Mar. 1, 1979: Sondheim Uses Operatic Techniques in Sweeney Todd Mar. 4-7, 1979: First Ring Around Jupiter Is Discovered Mar. 28, 1979: Three Mile Island Accident Apr. 5, 1979: Carter Orders Deregulation of Oil Prices May 23, 1979: Clark Is Elected Canada's Prime Minister June 2, 1979: Sagebrush Rebellion Begins June 27, 1979: U.S. Supreme Court Rules on Affirmative Action Programs Aug. 15, 1979: Apocalypse Now Expresses Antiwar Cynicism Sept. 12, 1979: United Nations Issues a Conduct Code for Law-Enforcement Officials Oct., 1979: VisiCalc Spreadsheet Software Is Marketed Oct. 14, 1979: Gay Rights March in Washington Dec. 18, 1979: U.N. Convention Condemns Discrimination Against Women 1980's: American Firms Adopt Japanese Manufacturing Strategies 1980's: CAD/CAM Revolutionizes Engineering and Manufacturing 1980's: Decline of the Big Three Networks 1980's: Electronic Technology Creates the Possibility of Telecommuting 1980's: Female Directors Attain Prominence 1980's: Madonna Revolutionizes Popular Fashion 1980's: Marsalis Revives Acoustic Jazz 1980's: Radon Is Recognized as an Indoor Air Hazard 1980's: Schnabel Emerges as a Celebrity Artist 1980's: U.S. Regional Branch Banking Is Approved 1980's: Video Rental Outlets Gain Popularity 1980's-1990's: Innovative Black Filmmakers Achieve Success 1980's-1990's: Rise of Video and Computer Games 1980: Berg, Gilbert, and Sanger Develop Techniques for Genetic Engineering 1980: Inflationary Theory Explains the Early Universe 1980: Japan Becomes the World's Largest Automobile Producer 1980: People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Is Founded Jan., 1980-Mar., 1983: Presidential Advisory Commission Studies Medical and Research Ethics Jan. 1, 1980-Jan. 1, 1995: Larson's The Far Side Comic Strip Is Published Jan. 7, 1980: U.S. Government Bails Out Chrysler Corporation Jan. 14, 1980: Griess Constructs "the Monster," the Last Sporadic Group Feb., 1980-Mar. 11, 1982: Abscam Affair Feb. 22, 1980: U.S. Hockey Team Upsets Soviets Mar. 21, 1980, and May 8, 1984: Olympic Boycotts Mar. 22, 1980: Mexico Controls Huge Leak in Offshore Oil Well Mar. 31, 1980, and Oct. 15, 1982: U.S. Congress Deregulates Banks and Savings and Loans Apr., 1980: Foreman Founds Earth First! Apr. 1-Sept. 25, 1980: Mariel Boatlift May, 1980: Pluto's Atmosphere Is Discovered May 17-19, 1980: Rioters Protest Miami Police Brutality May 18, 1980: Mount St. Helens Erupts June 1, 1980: Cable News Network Debuts June 16, 1980: U.S. Supreme Court Grants a Patent for a Living Organism June 16, 1980: U.S. Supreme Court Rules on Water Rights June 30, 1980: Paraguayan Torturer Is Convicted of Violating the Law of Nations July 24, 1980: The Global 2000 Report Is Issued Fall, 1980: Baryshnikov Becomes Artistic Director of American Ballet Theatre Nov. 4, 1980: Reagan Is Elected President Dec. 2, 1980: U.S. Congress Protects Alaskan Lands and Wildlife Dec. 8, 1980: Assassination of John Lennon Dec. 11, 1980: Superfund Is Established to Pay for Hazardous-Waste Cleanup Dec. 22, 1980: U.S. Congress Addresses "Low-Level" Nuclear Waste 1981: Activists Oppose Deployment of the MX Missile 1981: Citizens' Clearinghouse for Hazardous Waste Is Founded 1981: Missouri Program Promotes Parental Involvement in Education 1981: The Ultimate Resource Argues in Favor of Population Growth 1981-1982: Geneticists Create Giant Mice Jan. 15, 1981-May 19, 1987: Hill Street Blues Defines Hard-Reality Television Jan. 21, 1981: The Group of Ten Meets for the First Time Feb., 1981: Watt Announces Expansion of Energy Leasing on the Outer Continental Shelf Mar., 1981: Federal Regulators Authorize Adjustable-Rate Mortgages Mar. 30, 1981: Hinckley Attempts to Assassinate President Reagan May, 1981-June, 1981: Bell Labs Improves Solar Cells June, 1981: Cassinelli and Associates Discover the Most Massive Star Known June 5, 1981: U.S. Centers for Disease Control Recognizes AIDS July 10, 1981: Brown Orders Medfly Spraying in California July 26, 1981: San Diego Trolley Opens Aug. 1, 1981: MTV Revolutionizes American Popular Culture Aug. 3, 1981: Air Traffic Controllers Declare a Strike Aug. 10, 1981: The United States Announces Production of Neutron Bombs Aug. 12, 1981: IBM Introduces Its Personal Computer Aug. 13, 1981: Reagan Promotes Supply-Side Economics Aug. 15, 1981: EWTN Begins Religious Broadcasting Sept., 1981: Clewell Performs Surgery on a Fetus to Correct Hydrocephalus Sept. 25, 1981: O'Connor Is the First Woman to Serve as Supreme Court Justice Oct. 4-10, 1981: New Dance U.S.A. Festival Nov. 10, 1981: "Yellow Rain" Hearing Nov. 12-14, 1981: Columbia's Second Flight Proves the Practicality of the Space Shuttle Nov. 25, 1981: United Nations Votes to Protect Freedom of Religion and Belief 1982: Cech Demonstrates That RNA Can Act as an Enzyme 1982: Peters Gains Prominence as a Writer on Management 1982-1983: Compact Disc Players Are Introduced 1982-1989: Astronomers Discover an Unusual Ring System of Planet Neptune Jan. 8, 1982: AT&T Undergoes Divestiture Mar. 12, 1982: "MASTER HAROLD" . . . and the Boys Examines Apartheid Apr. 12, 1982: Solar One Begins Operation in the Mojave Desert Apr. 17, 1982: Canada's Constitution Act Apr. 17, 1982: Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms Is Enacted May 12, 1982: Braniff International Suspends Flight Operations May 14, 1982: Eli Lilly Releases the First Commercial Genetically Engineered Medication June, 1982: Release of Blade Runner Heralds a Science-Fiction Classic June 10, 1982: Fierstein's Torch Song Trilogy Meets with Unexpected Success June 11, 1982: E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial Opens to Great Success June 15, 1982: U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Right of Noncitizens to Social Services Sept., 1982: Seven People Die After Taking Cyanide-Laced Tylenol Sept. 15, 1982: USA Today Is the First National Newspaper Oct. 1, 1982: EPCOT Center Opens Dec., 1982: Thriller Marks Jackson's Musical Coming-of-Age Dec. 2, 1982: DeVries Implants the First Jarvik-7 Artificial Heart Dec. 18, 1982: United Nations Issues Principles of Medical Ethics Dec. 20, 1982: United Nations Responds to the Homeless Crisis Dec. 21, 1982: U.S. Congress Addresses "High-Level" Nuclear Waste Dec. 23, 1982: Dioxin Contamination Forces Evacuation of Times Beach 1983-1984: Festivals Mark a Peak in the Dance Created by Black Artists Jan.-Oct., 1983: First Successful Human Embryo Transfer Jan. 11, 1983: Payment-in-Kind Program Compensates U.S. Farmers to Abstain from Planting Feb. 3, 1983: Anderson's United States Popularizes Performance Art Mar. 16, 1983: Workers Buy Weirton Steel Spring, 1983-Sept., 1986: Mullis Develops the Polymerase Chain Reaction Mar. 23, 1983: Reagan Proposes the Strategic Defense Initiative Apr. 4, 1983: Tracking and Data-Relay Satellite System Revolutionizes Space Communications May 17, 1983: Government Reveals Oak Ridge Mercury Releases Sept., 1983: Murray and Szostak Create the First Artificial Chromosome Sept. 24, 1983: Continental Airlines Declares Bankruptcy Nov., 1983: Aspartame Is Approved for Use in Carbonated Beverages Nov. 3, 1983: Jackson Becomes the First Major Black Candidate for U.S. President Nov. 28, 1983: Spacelab 1 Is Launched Aboard the Space Shuttle 1984: "Deep Ecology" Platform Is Drafted 1984: Introduction of Optical Discs for Data Storage 1984: Limbaugh Begins Talk Radio in Sacramento 1984: Lovejoy Proposes the Debt-for-Nature Swap 1984: Sibley and Ahlquist Discover Human-Chimpanzee Genetic Relationship Jan. 24, 1984: Introduction of the Apple Macintosh Feb. 8, 1984: Pennzoil Sues Texaco for Interfering in Getty Oil Deal Apr. 6-Sept. 9, 1984: Project Displays Hominid Heritage May 4, 1984: Sixteen Candles Starts a Wave of Teen Films June 12, 1984: U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Seniority Systems July 12, 1984: New York State Imposes the First Mandatory Seat-Belt Law July 25 and Oct. 11, 1984: Two Women Walk in Space July 26, 1984: U.S. Government Bails Out Continental Illinois Bank Aug. 6-14, 1984: United Nations Holds a Population Conference Aug. 17, 1984: U.S. Court of Appeals Upholds the Navy's Ban on Homosexuality Sept. 14, 1984: Mulroney Era Begins in Canada Sept. 20, 1984-Apr. 30, 1992: The Cosby Show Makes Television History Oct., 1984: American Psychiatric Association Addresses the Homeless Mentally Ill Dec. 14, 1984: Simon's Biloxi Blues Emphasizes Serious Themes 1985: Construction of the Keck Telescope Begins in Hawaii 1985: Ecodefense Advocates "Monkeywrenching" 1985: Yugo Begins Selling Cars in the United States 1985-1987: Rainforest Action Network Boycotts Burger King 1985-1991: Minnesota Gives Parents Broader Choices in Public Education Mar. 15, 1985: Kesterson National Wildlife Refuge Is Closed Apr. 23, 1985: Coca-Cola Introduces a New Formula May 12, 1985: First Woman Conservative Rabbi Is Ordained July 1, 1985: Home Shopping Service Is Offered on Cable Television July 13, 1985: Live Aid Generates Millions for Famine Relief Sept. 1, 1985: Ballard Discovers the Lost Ship Titanic Sept. 19, 1985: Earthquake Devastates Mexico City Oct., 1985: Tevatron Particle Accelerator Begins Operation at Fermilab Nov. 20, 1985: Microsoft Releases the Windows Operating System Winter, 1985: Manville Offers $2.5 Billion to Victims of Asbestos Dust Dec. 23, 1985: U.S. Congress Revamps Farm Policy 1986: U.S. Supreme Court Upholds Goals, Not Quotas, to Remedy Discrimination 1986-1987: Tully Discovers the Pisces-Cetus Supercluster Complex Jan., 1986: United States and Canada Issue a Joint Report on Acid Rain Jan. 1, 1986: U.S. Government Tightens Restrictions on Lead Jan. 28, 1986: Challenger Accident Feb. 26, 1986: Warren Is Named First Poet Laureate of the United States May 12, 1986: Insider Trading Scandals Mar the Emerging Junk Bond Market June, 1986: Akalaitis's Green Card Confronts Audiences with Harsh Realities July, 1986: FDA Approves a Genetically Engineered Vaccine for Hepatitis B July, 1986: Rap Goes Platinum with Run-D.M.C.'s Raising Hell Aug. 17, 1986: Pixar Studios Creates Its First Virtual Studio Film Oct., 1986: Discovery of a Gene That Suppresses Retinoblastoma Oct. 9, 1986: Fox Television Network Goes on the Air Oct. 17, 1986: U.S. Congress Requires Governments to Inform the Public About Toxic Pollutants Nov. 6, 1986: U.S. Congress Enacts Major Immigration Reform Nov. 13, 1986-May 4, 1989: Iran-Contra Scandal Nov. 22, 1986: Tyson Becomes Youngest World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Dec. 3, 1986: Boston Celtics Sell Shares in the Team Dec. 14-23, 1986: Voyager Circumnavigates the Globe Without Refueling Dec. 24, 1986: Platoon Explores the Vietnam Experience 1987: McToxics Campaign Begins 1987-1990: Search for the Gene That Begins Male Development Jan. 1, 1987: Cann Postulates the African Eve Jan. 15, 1987: Vons Opens Its First Tianguis Marketplace Mar.-May, 1987: Garbage Barge Mobro Cruises U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coasts Apr. 22, 1987: U.S. Supreme Court Upholds the Constitutionality of Capital Punishment Apr. 24, 1987: Genetically Altered Bacteria Are Released into the Environment May, 1987: National Museum of Women in the Arts Opens Amid Controversy May 4, 1987: U.S. Supreme Court Rules That Laws Can Force Groups to Admit Women June, 1987: Ontario's Pay Equity Act June 29, 1987: Florida Passes the Surface Water Improvement and Management Act July 22, 1987: U.S. Congress Appropriates Funds for the Homeless Aug. 20, 1987: U.S. Government Introduces the Baldrige Award Aug. 31, 1987: FDA Approves the First Cholesterol-Lowering Drug Sept., 1987: Miller Discovers a Dinosaur Egg Containing the Oldest Known Embryo Oct. 19, 1987: U.S. Stock Market Crashes on "Black Monday" Oct. 22, 1987: Adams's Nixon in China Premieres Nov. 11, 1987: Van Gogh's Irises Sells for $53.9 Million Dec. 8, 1987: Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty Dec. 11, 1987: A. H. Robins Must Compensate Women Injured by the Dalkon Shield Dec. 22, 1987: Yucca Mountain Is Designated a Radioactive Waste Repository Dec. 29, 1987: FDA Approves Prozac as an Antidepressant Dec. 29, 1987: U.S. Congress Prohibits Marine Plastics Dumping 1988: Doppler Radar Revolutionizes Weather Forecasting 1988: Erlich Develops DNA Fingerprinting from a Single Hair 1988: Graf Wins Golden Grand Slam 1988: New York Opens "Shock" Incarceration Camp for Female Prisoners Jan. 2, 1988: Tank Collapse Releases Fuel into the Monongahela River Mar., 1988: Oldest Known Galaxy Is Discovered Mar. 22, 1988: U.S. Congress Mandates Nondiscriminatory Practices by Recipients of Public Funds May, 1988: Patent Is Granted for Genetically Engineered Mice June, 1988: Canada Passes the Tobacco Products Control Act June 13, 1988: First Monetary Damages Are Awarded to the Estate of a Cigarette Smoker Summer, 1988: Fires Burn Much of Yellowstone National Park June 21, 1988: Who Framed Roger Rabbit Merges Animation with Live Action June 23-Aug. 30, 1988: Deconstructivists Exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art July, 1988: Medical Waste Washes onto U.S. Atlantic Beaches Aug. 10, 1988: U.S. Congress Formally Apologizes to Japanese Internees Sept., 1988: Prodigy Introduces Dial-Up Service Oct. 12, 1988: Global ReLeaf Program Is Initiated Oct. 13, 1988: U.S. Welfare Reform Links Assistance to Work Oct. 14, 1988: U.S. Law Mandates Use of Alternative Fuels Oct. 17, 1988: U.S. Law Supports Indian Gaming Oct. 24, 1988: BRAC Commission Is Established to Close U.S. Military Bases Nov., 1988: Construction Begins on the Superconducting Super Collider Nov. 8, 1988: Bush Is Elected President Dec., 1988: Drexel and Michael Milken Are Charged with Insider Trading Dec. 22, 1988: Namibia Is Liberated from South African Control 1989: Arnold and Gottlieb Publish The Wise Use Agenda 1989: Oregon Guarantees Basic Health Care for the Uninsured 1989: Robertson Founds the Christian Coalition 1989: U.S. Surgeon General Reports on Tobacco and Health Mar. 13-Apr. 15, 1989: United States Bans Chilean Fruit After Cyanide Scare Mar. 24, 1989: Exxon Valdez Oil Spill Apr. 9, 1989: NOW Sponsors a March for Abortion Rights Apr. 13, 1989: Lincoln Savings and Loan Declares Bankruptcy May 4, 1989-Oct. 12, 1994: Magellan Probe Maps Venus June, 1989: Helsinki Watch Proposes Reform of Refugee Laws June 14, 1989: Mapplethorpe's Photographs Provoke Controversy June 21, 1989: U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down Flag Desecration Law June 26, 1989: U.S. Supreme Court Rules on Execution of the Mentally Retarded and the Young June 30, 1989: Do the Right Thing Establishes Lee as a World-Class Director July 3, 1989: U.S. Supreme Court Upholds State Restrictions on Abortion July 23, 1989: Mexico Renegotiates Debt to U.S. Banks Sept., 1989: Sony Purchases Columbia Pictures Oct. 2, 1989: Texas's Method of Funding Schools Is Ruled Unconstitutional Oct. 24, 1989: Bakker Is Sentenced for Fraud and Conspiracy Nov., 1989: Ford Buys Jaguar Nov. 7, 1989: Wilder Becomes the First Elected Black Governor Nov. 20, 1989: United Nations Adopts the Convention on the Rights of the Child 1990's: Disney Emerges as an Architectural Patron 1990: "An Anti-Environmentalist Manifesto" Signals a Backlash 1990-1994: Discovery of Breast Cancer Genes 1990-1994: United Nations Admits Many New Members Jan. 14, 1990: The Simpsons Debuts, Anchoring the Fledgling Fox Network Feb. 16, 1990: Cisco Systems Goes Public Mar. 20, 1990: McCartney Conceives Promise Keepers Apr. 23, 1990: U.S. Government Authorizes Collection of Data on Crime Against Gays Apr. 24, 1990: NASA Launches the Hubble Space Telescope June 12, 1990: Lawsuits Against Mobil Draw Attention to "Green" Marketing June 22, 1990: Meech Lake Accord Dies June 25, 1990: U.S. Supreme Court Upholds the Right to Refuse Medical Treatment July 9-19, 1990: General Motors Sponsors a Solar-Powered Car Race July 23, 1990: Spotted Owl Prompts Old-Growth Timber Controversy July 25, 1990: Bloc Québécois Forms July 26, 1990: U.S. Congress Enacts Disability Rights Aug., 1990: Genetically Engineered Rabies Vaccine Is Released Aug. 18, 1990: U.S. Congress Passes Oil Spill Legislation Sept. 23-27, 1990: The Civil War Rivets the Attention of the United States Oct., 1990: "Killer Bees" Invade the United States Oct. 24, 1990: Debut of Baryshnikov's White Oak Dance Project Nov. 5, 1990: United States Makes Pollution Prevention a National Goal Nov. 15, 1990: U.S. Congress Approves More Clean Air Act Amendments Nov. 28, 1990: Environmentalists Defeat the Cross-Florida Barge Canal 1991-1992: Captive-Bred Condors and Ferrets Are Reintroduced into the Wild Jan. 23, 1991: Seinfeld Takes a Regular Slot on NBC Mar., 1991: Medical Researchers Test Promising Drugs for the Treatment of AIDS Mar. 28, 1991: U.S. Courts Restrict Rights to Photocopy Anthologies June, 1991: CDC Publicizes the Dangers of Secondhand Smoke July 1, 1991: Bush Nominates Second African American to the Supreme Court July 3, 1991: IBM and Apple Agree to Make Compatible Computers July 14, 1991: Pesticides Are Released into the Sacramento River Sept. 3, 1991: North Carolina Fire Points to Workplace Hazards Sept. 27, 1991: Bush Announces Nuclear Arms Reductions Nov. 7, 1991: U.S. Congress Strengthens Equal Opportunity Laws 1992: Audubon Society Opens Environmentally Responsible Headquarters Feb., 1992: Pequots Open Gaming Facility Feb., 1992: Yankee Rowe Nuclear Plant Is Shut Down Feb. 20, 1992: Perot Mounts a Third-Party Bid for the U.S. Presidency Apr. 29-May 1, 1992: Los Angeles Riots May 1, 1992: Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance Is Established June 24, 1992: Tailhook Scandal June 29, 1992: U.S. Supreme Court Restricts Abortion Rights Aug. 24, 1992: Hurricane Andrew Devastates Southern Florida Oct. 6, 1992: U.S. Government Facilities Must Comply with Environmental Standards Oct. 12, 1992: Columbus Day Debates Reflect Cultural Diversity Oct. 26, 1992: Defeat of the Charlottetown Accord Nov. 3, 1992: Clinton Wins the U.S. Presidency Dec. 31, 1992: United Nations Bans the Use of Drift Nets Jan. 3, 1993: United States and Russia Reach Nuclear Arms Reduction Agreement Jan. 4, 1993: Trojan Nuclear Plant Is Retired Feb. 5, 1993: U.S. Congress Guarantees Job Security During Family Emergencies Feb. 26, 1993: World Trade Center Bombing Mar. 22, 1993: Intel Introduces the Pentium Processor Apr.-Oct., 1993: Mississippi and Missouri Flooding Brings Misery to Middle America Apr. 3, 1993: Clinton Convenes the Forest Summit Apr. 19, 1993: Branch Davidians' Compound Burns Apr. 22, 1993: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Opens May 4 and Nov. 23, 1993: Kushner's Angels in America Premieres on Broadway June 25, 1993: Campbell Becomes Canada's First Woman Prime Minister Aug. 19, 1993: Mattel and Fisher-Price Form the World's Biggest Toy Company Sept. 16, 1993-May 13, 2004: Frasier Dominates Television Comedy Sept. 24, 1993: Myst Energizes the Computer Game Market Sept. 26, 1993: Crew of Biosphere 2 Exits After Two Years Oct. 13, 1993: Bell Atlantic and TCI Announce Merger Plans Oct. 26-Nov. 3, 1993: Fires Devastate Southern California Nov. 4, 1993: Chrétien Takes Charge in Canada Nov. 20, 1993: North American Free Trade Agreement Dec. 2-13, 1993: Astronauts Repair the Hubble Space Telescope Jan. 2, 1994-Jan. 1, 2002: Giuliani Administration Transforms New York City Jan. 17, 1994: Northridge Quake Rocks Los Angeles Jan. 22, 1994: Schindler's List Begins Reaping Accolades Mar. 1, 1994: U.S. Gun Control Legislation Takes Effect Apr. 14-16, 1994: Alexander Fights to Save the National Endowment for the Arts May, 1994: Genetically Engineered Food Reaches Supermarkets May 15, 1994: Andy Warhol Museum Opens May 23, 1994: Postmodernist Film Pulp Fiction Wins at Cannes June, 1994: Bald Eagle Is No Longer an Endangered Species June 12, 1994: Boeing's 777 Takes to the Skies July 16-22, 1994: Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 Collides with Jupiter Aug. 12, 1994-Apr. 2, 1995: Baseball Strike Forces Cancellation of the World Series Nov. 8, 1994: Oregon Voters Legalize Physician-Assisted Suicide Nov. 8, 1994: Republicans Regain Control of Congress Nov. 16, 1994: Law of the Sea Treaty Enters into Force Dec. 1, 1994: General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade Dec. 15, 1994: Release of Netscape Navigator 1.0 Mid-1990's: Cable Television Challenges Network Television Jan. 24-Oct. 3, 1995: O. J. Simpson Trial Jan. 31, 1995: United States Bails Out Mexico Feb. 15, 1995: Arrest of Hacker Kevin Mitnick Apr. 19, 1995: Bombing of the Oklahoma City Federal Building May 23, 1995: Sun Microsystems Introduces Java May 30, 1995: Popular Fiction Addresses the End Times June 12, 1995: U.S. Supreme Court Limits Racial Preferences in Awarding Government Contracts June 26, 1995: U.S. Supreme Court Rules on Random Drug Testing in Schools June 29, 1995: Space Shuttle Docks with Mir July, 1995: Amazon.com Sells Its First Book Online July, 1995: Venona Cables Are Declassified July 11, 1995: United States Recognizes Vietnam Sept. 6, 1995: Ripken Breaks Gehrig's Iron Man Record Sept. 15, 1995: DVD Technology Is Announced Oct. 16, 1995: Farrakhan Leads the Million Man March Nov. 21, 1995: Dayton Negotiations Produce Bosnian Peace Accord Dec. 2, 1995: NASA Launches the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory Dec. 7, 1995: Galileo Achieves Orbit Around Jupiter Jan. 3, 1996: U.S. Congress Reforms Law Regulating Telecommunications Feb. 10, 1996: Deep Blue Beats Kasparov in Chess May 20, 1996: U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down Colorado Antigay Law July 27, 1996: Centennial Olympic Park Bombing July 28, 1996: Kennewick Man Is Discovered Aug. 19, 1996: Green Party Nominates Nader for President Sept. 18, 1996: Grand Staircase-Escalante Is Declared a National Monument Oct. 12, 1996: Clinton Signs Legislation to Help Restore the Everglades Mar. 4, 1997: Clinton Rejects Federal Support for Human Cloning Mar. 23-25, 1997: Heaven's Gate Cult Members Commit Mass Suicide June 15, 1997: Tiger Woods Becomes World's Top-Rated Golfer June 30, 1997: Harry Potter Resuscitates Reading July 3, 1997: Mississippi Settles Lawsuit with Cigarette Makers July 4, 1997: Pathfinder Lands on Mars July 15, 1997: Murder of Gianni Versace Oct. 15, 1997: Cassini-Huygens Probe Is Launched Dec. 31, 1997: Microsoft Acquires Hotmail 1998: Brokaw Honors the Greatest Generation 1998: Sexual Molestation Scandal Rocks the Catholic Church Jan. 6, 1998-July 31, 1999: Lunar Prospector Mission Mar. 23, 1998: Titanic Ties an Oscar Record May 18, 1998: United States Sues Microsoft June 25, 1998: U.S. Supreme Court Rules That "Decency" Can Be Required for Federal Arts Grants June 25, 1998: U.S. Supreme Court Strikes Down the Line-Item Veto Sept. 7, 1998: Google Is Founded Sept. 8, 1998: McGwire Breaks Maris's Home Run Record Oct. 15-23, 1998: Wye River Accords Oct. 19, 1998: Earth Liberation Front Resorts to Arson Oct. 24, 1998: Deep Space 1 Is Launched Oct. 27, 1998: Reform of the Copyright Act Nov. 6, 1998: First Embryonic Stem Cell Line Is Derived Dec. 10, 1998: First Genetic Map of an Animal Reported Dec. 11, 1998-Jan. 3, 1999: Mars Climate Orbiter and Mars Polar Lander Are Launched and Lost Dec. 19, 1998: Clinton Is Impeached Mar. 28, 1999: Williams Sisters Meet in Historic Tennis Final Apr. 5, 1999: Scientists Announce Discovery of Enzyme Linked to Alzheimer's Disease Apr. 20, 1999: Columbine High School Massacre June 1, 1999: Napster Is Released July 23, 1999: NASA Launches the Chandra X-Ray Observatory July 23-25, 1999: Woodstock 1999 Ends in Violence Sept. 7, 1999: Viacom Announces Plans to Buy CBS Oct. 6, 1999: NFL Franchise Goes to Houston Nov. 30, 1999: Exxon-Mobil Merger Creates the World's Second-Largest Company Nov. 30, 1999: Rioters Disrupt World Trade Organization Meetings Dec., 1999: First Hybrid Car Appears on the U.S. Market Jan. 3, 2000: Peanuts Comic Strip Retires Feb. 11-22, 2000: Endeavour Maps Earth from Space Feb. 14, 2000: Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous Spacecraft Orbits a Small Body Mar. 14, 2000: King Releases the First E-Novel Mar. 31, 2000: Survivor Introduces Audiences to "Reality TV" Apr. 9-14, 2000: NASDAQ Dive Prompts Dot-Com Crash June 20, 2000: Scientists Release Evidence of Water on Mars June 26, 2000: Completion of the Sequencing of the Human Genome Is Announced June 28, 2000: U.S. Supreme Court Protects Restrictions on Membership in Private Groups June 29, 2000: Canadian Parliament Passes the Clarity Act July 1, 2000: Vermont's Civil Union Law Takes Effect July 2, 2000: PRI Rule Ends in Mexico Aug. 9, 2000: Bridgestone/Firestone Announces Massive Recall Sept. 6-8, 2000: United Nations Holds the Millennium Summit Nov. 7, 2000: Bush Election Stirs Political and Legal Controversy Dec. 11, 2000: U.S. Government Funds Everglades Restoration Norway Dec. 10, 1975: Sakharov Is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1977: Amnesty International Is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1977: Two Founders of Peace People Receive the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1978: Sadat and Begin Receive the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1979: Mother Teresa Is Awarded the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1984: Tutu Receives the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1986: Wiesel Receives the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1987: Arias Sánchez Receives the Nobel Peace Prize Dec. 10, 1989: Tibet's Dalai Lama Receives the Nobel Peace Prize 1993: Norway Resumes Whaling in Defiance of International Ban Dec. 10, 1997: Land Mine Activist Receives Nobel Peace Prize Oceania July 19-Sept. 12, 1981: South African Rugby Team Tour Provokes Protests 1982-1989: Astronomers Discover an Unusual Ring System of Planet Neptune Feb. 4, 1985: New Zealand Closes Ports to U.S. Nuclear Warships July 10, 1985: French Agents Sink the Rainbow Warrior May 14, 1987: Fiji's Elected Government Is Ousted by the Military Sept. 5, 1995-Jan. 27, 1996: France Resumes Nuclear Testing Pakistan Mar. 26-Dec. 16, 1971: Bangladesh Secedes from Pakistan July 5, 1977: Zia Establishes Martial Law in Pakistan Apr. 4, 1979: Pakistan Hangs Former Prime Minister Bhutto 1988: Osama Bin Laden Forms al-Qaeda Nov., 1988: Bhutto Becomes the First Woman Elected to Lead a Muslim Country Oct. 12, 1999: Musharraf Seizes Power in Pakistan Coup Panama Mar. 16 and Apr. 18, 1978: Panama Canal Treaties Dec. 20, 1989: United States Intervenes in Panama Paraguay June 30, 1980: Paraguayan Torturer Is Convicted of Violating the Law of Nations Mar. 26, 1991: Birth of the Southern Common Market May 9, 1993: Paraguay Embraces Democracy Peru 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine 1976: Peruvian Guerrilla War Begins Philippines Sept. 21, 1972: Marcos Declares Martial Law in the Philippines Aug. 21, 1983: Assassination of Philippine Opposition Leader Benigno Aquino Feb. 25, 1986: Marcos Flees the Philippines June 12-15, 1991: Eruption of Mount Pinatubo Poland Aug., 1980: Solidarity Leads Striking Polish Workers Dec. 13, 1981: Poland Imposes Martial Law and Bans Solidarity July 21, 1983: Martial Law Ends in Poland June-Sept., 1989: Poland Forms a Non-Communist Government Jan., 1990: Poland Begins Switching to a Market Economy Jan. 22, 1994: Schindler's List Begins Reaping Accolades Polynesia July 19-Sept. 12, 1981: South African Rugby Team Tour Provokes Protests 1982-1989: Astronomers Discover an Unusual Ring System of Planet Neptune Feb. 4, 1985: New Zealand Closes Ports to U.S. Nuclear Warships July 10, 1985: French Agents Sink the Rainbow Warrior Sept. 5, 1995-Jan. 27, 1996: France Resumes Nuclear Testing Portugal 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Jan. 1, 1986: Portugal and Spain Enter the European Community May 22-Sept. 30, 1998: World's Exposition 1998 Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Puerto Rico June 27-28, 1976: Canada Joins the G7 Qatar Aug. 15 and Sept. 3, 1971: Bahrain and Qatar Achieve Independence Romania Dec. 25, 1989: Ceausescu Is Overthrown in Romania Russia Apr. 10, 1972: Nations Agree to Rules on Biological Weapons May 26, 1972: SALT I Is Signed May 26, 1973-Dec. 26, 1991: Détente with the Soviet Union Feb. 13, 1974: Soviet Union Expels Solzhenitsyn 1977-1981: Soviet Citizen Group Investigates Political Abuses of Psychiatry Feb.-Mar., 1977: Soviets Crack Down on Moscow's Helsinki Watch Group Mar. 21, 1980, and May 8, 1984: Olympic Boycotts June 24, 1980: Soviet Union Passes Environmental Legislation Nov. 20, 1981: Soviets Begin Construction of Siberian Gas Pipeline Sept. 1, 1983: Soviet Jets Shoot Down Korean Air Lines Flight 007 Mar. 11, 1985: Gorbachev Initiates a Policy of Glasnost Mar. 8, 1986: Space Probes Begin Examination of Comet Halley Oct. 6, 1986: Soviet Nuclear Submarine Sinks in the Atlantic Mar. 6, 1990: Soviet Parliament Allows Private Ownership July 16, 1990: Gorbachev Agrees to Membership of a United Germany in NATO Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Jan. 3, 1993: United States and Russia Reach Nuclear Arms Reduction Agreement Dec. 11, 1994: Russian Troops Invade Chechnya Aug. 7, 1999: Second Chechen War Erupts Aug. 16, 1999: Putin Becomes Russian Prime Minister Aug. 12, 2000: Russian Submarine Sinks Rwanda July 5, 1973: Habyarimana Overthrows President Kayibanda Dec. 27, 1985: Fossey Is Murdered over Efforts to Protect Mountain Gorillas Apr. 6-July, 1994: Rwandan Genocide 1998: AIDS Devastates Africa São Tomé and Príncipe 1974: Portugal Grants Independence to Its African Colonies Saudi Arabia Mar. 25, 1976: Assassination of King Faisal Jan. 9, 1980: Saudi Arabia Beheads Sixty-Three Persons for Attack on Mecca May 25, 1981: Saudi Arabia Establishes Gulf Cooperation Council Jan. 17-Feb. 28, 1991: Persian Gulf War Scotland Dec. 21, 1988: Pan Am Flight 103 Explodes over Lockerbie Jan. 5, 1993: Braer Runs Aground July 5, 1996: Wilmut Clones the First Large Mammal from an Adult Cell Senegal 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine 1998: AIDS Devastates Africa Mar. 19, 2000: Wade Ends Socialist Dominance in Senegal Serbia and Montenegro July-Nov., 1988: Ethnic Violence Erupts in Yugoslavian Provinces June 25, 1991: Civil War Begins in Yugoslavia Feb. 21, 1992: United Nations Authorizes Troop Deployment to the Balkans Feb. 28, 1998-June 9, 1999: Kosovo Conflict Escalates Slovakia Nov. 17-Dec. 29, 1989: Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia Feb. 26, 1990: Soviet Troops Withdraw from Czechoslovakia Jan. 1, 1993: Czechoslovakia Splits into Two Republics Slovenia July-Nov., 1988: Ethnic Violence Erupts in Yugoslavian Provinces June 25, 1991: Civil War Begins in Yugoslavia Feb. 21, 1992: United Nations Authorizes Troop Deployment to the Balkans Somalia July 23, 1977-Mar. 15, 1978: Ogaden War Between Somalia and Ethiopia Oct., 1977: Last Natural Case of Smallpox Occurs Dec. 9, 1992: U.S. Marines Enter Somalia South Africa June 16, 1976: South African Government Suppresses Soweto Student Rebellion Sept., 1977: South African Government Kills Biko July 19-Sept. 12, 1981: South African Rugby Team Tour Provokes Protests Mar. 16, 1984: South Africa and Mozambique Sign Nkomati Accord 1987: South African Black Workers Strike Feb. 11, 1990: Mandela Is Freed Feb. 1, 1991: De Klerk Promises to Topple Apartheid Legislation 1995: South Africa Establishes a Truth and Reconciliation Commission Dec. 16, 1997: Mandela Makes Way for Mbeki South America Aug. 18, 1971: Bánzer Seizes Power in Bolivian Coup 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine 1973: ITT Actions Cause Suspicion of Involvement in a Chilean Coup June 27, 1973: Military Rule Comes to Democratic Uruguay Sept. 11, 1973: Chilean Military Overthrows Allende 1974: Medical Group Exposes Torture in Greece and Chile 1976: Colombian Guerrilla War Begins 1976: Peruvian Guerrilla War Begins 1976-1979: Argentina Conducts a "Dirty War" Against Leftists 1977: Deep-Sea Hydrothermal Vents and New Life-Forms Are Discovered Nov. 18, 1978: People's Temple Members Commit Mass Suicide 1982-1989: Astronomers Discover an Unusual Ring System of Planet Neptune Apr. 2-June 14, 1982: Falkland Islands War Jan., 1983: National Commission Against Torture Studies Human Rights Abuses Mar. 15, 1985: Democracy Returns to Brazil Dec. 9, 1985: Argentine Leaders Are Convicted of Human Rights Violations Feb. 23, 1987: Supernova 1987A Corroborates Theories of Star Formation Sept. 21-Oct. 1, 1987: Radioactive Powder Injures Hundreds of Brazilians Oct. 12, 1988: Brazilian President Announces Plans to Protect Rain Forests 1989-1990: Colombian Presidential Candidates Are Killed Dec. 14, 1989: Chilean Voters End Pinochet's Military Rule Mar. 26, 1991: Birth of the Southern Common Market Mar. 17, 1992, and July 18, 1994: Terrorists Attack Israeli Embassy and Jewish Center in Argentina June 3-14, 1992: Earth Summit Convenes in Rio de Janeiro May 9, 1993: Paraguay Embraces Democracy July 23-24 and Aug. 29-30, 1993: Brazilian Police Massacre Slum Dwellers Jan. 1, 1995-Jan. 1, 2003: Cardoso Brings Prestige to Brazilian Presidency Aug. 29, 1996: Dam Burst Contaminates the Pilcomayo River Dec. 29, 1996: FARC Offensive Intensifies the Guerrilla War in Colombia South Asia Mar. 26-Dec. 16, 1971: Bangladesh Secedes from Pakistan Apr., 1971: Sri Lankans Agitate for Political Reform Mar. 27, 1973: Chipko Movement Protects India's Forests May 18, 1974: India Joins the Nuclear Club 1976: India Adopts Compulsory Birth Control Mar. 24, 1977: Desai Unseats Gandhi as Prime Minister of India July 5, 1977: Zia Establishes Martial Law in Pakistan Apr. 4, 1979: Pakistan Hangs Former Prime Minister Bhutto Dec. 24-27, 1979: Soviet Union Invades Afghanistan July 23, 1983: Tamil Separatist Violence Erupts in Sri Lanka June 3-6, 1984: Sikhs and Indian Government Clash at the Golden Temple Oct. 31, 1984: Indira Gandhi Is Assassinated Dec. 3, 1984: Toxic Gas Leaks from a Union Carbide Plant in Bhopal, India 1987-1991: Government-Supported Death Squads Quash Sri Lanka Insurrection 1988: Osama Bin Laden Forms al-Qaeda Nov., 1988: Bhutto Becomes the First Woman Elected to Lead a Muslim Country 1989: Kashmir Separatists Demand an End to Indian Rule 1989: Soviet Troops Leave Afghanistan Dec., 1991-1992: Muslim Refugees Flee Persecution in Myanmar May 14-Dec. 8, 1995: New Panchen Lama Is Named 1996: Hopes for Democracy in Bangladesh Rise Sept. 27, 1996: Taliban Begins Suppression of Human Rights in Afghanistan Feb. 23, 1998: Osama Bin Laden Declares Jihad Against "Jews and Crusaders" May 11 and 13, 1998: India Conducts Nuclear Tests Oct. 12, 1999: Musharraf Seizes Power in Pakistan Coup Southeast Asia Aug. 20-21, 1971: Heavy Rains Flood the Red River Delta Sept. 21, 1972: Marcos Declares Martial Law in the Philippines Jan. 27, 1973: Vietnam Releases U.S. Prisoners of War Mar., 1973: U.S. Troops Leave Vietnam Apr. 17, 1975: Khmer Rouge Comes to Power in Cambodia May, 1975: Indo-Chinese Boat People Begin Fleeing Vietnam Dec. 8, 1975: East Timor Declares Independence but Is Annexed by Indonesia Feb. 17-Mar. 16, 1979: China Invades Vietnam Apr. 13, 1981: Mahathir Begins Rule in Malaysia Nov. 10, 1981: "Yellow Rain" Hearing Aug. 21, 1983: Assassination of Philippine Opposition Leader Benigno Aquino Feb. 25, 1986: Marcos Flees the Philippines Aug. 8, 1988: Auspicious Day of 8/8/88 Turns Deadly in Rangoon Sept., 1989: Vietnamese Troops Withdraw from Cambodia June 12-15, 1991: Eruption of Mount Pinatubo Dec., 1991-1992: Muslim Refugees Flee Persecution in Myanmar Jan.-Mar., 1997: Karen Refugee Crisis June-Oct., 1997: Indonesian Forest Fires Devastate Southeast Asia May 21, 1998: Suharto Resigns, Making Way for Habibie July 26, 1998: Hun Sen Wins Cambodian Elections Aug. 28, 1999: Petronas Twin Towers Open Aug. 30, 1999: Voters in East Timor Vote for Independence Soviet Union Apr. 19, 1971: Russians Launch the Salyut Space Station May 19, 1971-Mar., 1972: Mars 2 Is the First Spacecraft to Impact Mars 1972-1973: Worldwide Droughts Bring Famine Apr. 10, 1972: Nations Agree to Rules on Biological Weapons May 26, 1972: SALT I Is Signed 1973-1975: The Gulag Archipelago Exposes Soviet Atrocities May 26, 1973-Dec. 26, 1991: Détente with the Soviet Union Feb. 13, 1974: Soviet Union Expels Solzhenitsyn July 15-24, 1975: Apollo-Soyuz Test Project Oct. 22, 1975: Soviet Venera Spacecraft Transmit the First Pictures from the Surface of Venus 1977-1981: Soviet Citizen Group Investigates Political Abuses of Psychiatry Feb.-Mar., 1977: Soviets Crack Down on Moscow's Helsinki Watch Group Sept. 6-12, 1978: International Health Conference Adopts the Declaration of Alma-Ata Mar. 21, 1980, and May 8, 1984: Olympic Boycotts June 24, 1980: Soviet Union Passes Environmental Legislation Nov. 20, 1981: Soviets Begin Construction of Siberian Gas Pipeline Sept. 1, 1983: Soviet Jets Shoot Down Korean Air Lines Flight 007 July 25 and Oct. 11, 1984: Two Women Walk in Space Mar. 11, 1985: Gorbachev Initiates a Policy of Glasnost Feb. 20, 1986: First Permanently Manned Space Station Is Launched Mar. 8, 1986: Space Probes Begin Examination of Comet Halley Apr. 26, 1986: Soviet Chernobyl Nuclear Plant Undergoes Meltdown Oct. 6, 1986: Soviet Nuclear Submarine Sinks in the Atlantic Dec. 17-19, 1986: Kazakhstan Muslims Riot Against Russians Feb., 1988: Ethnic Riots Erupt in Armenia Dec. 7, 1988: Armenian Earthquake Leads to Calls for Building Reform Feb. 4, 1989: Soviet Farmers Gain Control of Land and Crop Selection Mar. 6, 1990: Soviet Parliament Allows Private Ownership Mar. 11, 1990: Lithuania Declares Independence from the Soviet Union July 16, 1990: Gorbachev Agrees to Membership of a United Germany in NATO Mar., 1991: Supreme Soviet Declares the Aral Sea a Disaster Area Dec., 1991: Dissolution of the Soviet Union Spain 1970's: Spanish Art Thrives After Years of Suppression Sept. 28, 1974: Dalí Museum Opens in Spain Nov. 20, 1975: Death of Franco June 15, 1977: Spain Holds Its First Free Elections Since the Civil War Aug., 1979: Ancient Sanctuary Is Discovered in El Juyo Cave 1980: Basques Are Granted Home Rule but Continue to Fight for Independence Jan. 1, 1986: Portugal and Spain Enter the European Community June 10, 1996: Center-Right Government Takes Over in Spain Apr. 25, 1998: Los Frailes Tailings Pond Dam Ruptures in Spain Jan. 1, 1999: Eleven European Nations Adopt the Euro Sri Lanka Apr., 1971: Sri Lankans Agitate for Political Reform July 23, 1983: Tamil Separatist Violence Erupts in Sri Lanka 1987-1991: Government-Supported Death Squads Quash Sri Lanka Insurrection Sudan 1983: Sudanese Civil War Resumes Nov. 21, 1984-Jan. 5, 1985: Evacuation of Ethiopian Jews to Israel 1988: Sudanese Civil War Uses Hunger as a Weapon Jan.-May, 1996: Meningitis Outbreak Proves Deadly in West Africa May, 1996: Sudan Expels Osama Bin Laden Sweden June 5-16, 1972: United Nations Holds an Environmental Conference in Stockholm Dec. 10, 1978: Singer Is Awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature Feb. 28, 1986: Palme Is Assassinated Dec. 10, 1986: Soyinka Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Dec. 10, 1988: Mahfouz Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature July 1, 1991: Sweden Applies for Membership in the European Community Dec. 10, 1991: Gordimer Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Dec. 10, 1994: Oe Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Dec. 10, 1995: Heaney Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Dec. 10, 1996: Szymborska Receives the Nobel Prize in Literature Switzerland Feb. 7, 1971: Swiss Women Gain the Right to Vote 1973-1975: The Gulag Archipelago Exposes Soviet Atrocities Feb. 13, 1974: Soviet Union Expels Solzhenitsyn May, 1977: World Health Organization Sets a Goal of Health for All Sept. 16, 1977: Gruentzig Uses Angioplasty to Unclog Diseased Arteries 1978-1981: Rohrer and Binnig Invent the Scanning Tunneling Microscope Aug.-Dec., 1978: World Conference Condemns Racial Discrimination 1980: Mediterranean Nations Sign Antipollution Pact May 21, 1981: World Health Organization Adopts a Code on |
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