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20th century AD

(19th century - 20th century - 21st century - more centuries)

Decades: 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s

As a means of recording the passage of time, the 20th Century was that century which lasted from 1901-2000. Colloquially, this is often known as the nineteen hundreds, referring to the years 1900 to 1999.

The twentieth century was remarkable due to the technological, medical, social, ideological, and international innovations, and due to the rise of war, genocide, and democide on an unprecedented scale. The trends of mechanization of goods & services and networks of global communication which were begun in the 19th century continued at an ever increasing pace in the 20th. Virtually every aspect of life in virtually every human society changed in some fundamental way during the twentieth century.

Important developments, events and achievements

Science and Technology

The assembly line and mass production of motor vehicles and other goods allowed manufacturers to produce more and cheaper products. This allowed the automobile to become the most important means of transportation.
The invention of heavier-than-air flying machines and the jet engine allowed for the world to become "smaller". Space flight increased knowledge of the rest of the universe and allowed for global real-time communications via geosynchronous satellites.
Mass media technologies such as film, radio, and television allow the communication of political messages and entetainment with unprecedented impact
mass availability of the telephone and later, the computer, especially through the Internet, provides people with new opportunities for near-instantaneous communication
applied electronics, notably in its miniaturized form as integrated circuits, made possible the above mentioned rise of mass media, telecommunications, ubiquitous computing, and all kinds of "intelligent" appliances; as well as many advances in natural sciences such as physics, by the use of steadily growing calculation power (see supercomputer).
The development of Nitrogen fertilizer, pesticides and herbicides resulted in significantly higher agricultural yield.
Advances in fundamental physics through the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics lead to the development of nuclear weapons, nuclear energy, and the laser.
The big bang model of cosmology was developed.
Inventions such as the washing machine and air conditioning led to an increase in both the quantity and quality of leisure time for the middle class in Western societies.

Wars and Politics

Rising nationalism and increasing national awareness were among the causes of World War I, the first of two wars to involve all the major world powers including Germany, France, Italy, the United States and the British Commonwealth. World War I led to the creation of many new countries, especially in Eastern Europe.
The economic and political aftermath of World War I led to the rise of Fascism and Nazism in Europe, and shortly to World War II. This war also involved Asia and the Pacific, in the form of Japanese aggression against China and the United States. While the First World War mainly cost lives among soldiers, civilians suffered greatly in the Second -- from the bombing of cities on both sides, and in the unprecedented German genocide of the Jews and others, known as the Holocaust.
Unhappiness in Russia led to the rise of Communism and the Russian Revolution. After the Soviet Union's involvement in World War II, Communism became a major force in global politics, spreading all over the world: notably, to Eastern Europe, China, Indochina and Cuba. This led to the Cold War with the western world, led by the United States.
The "fall of Communism" in the late 1980s left the United States as the world's only superpower. It also led to the dissolution of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia into successor states, many rife with ethnic nationalism.
Through the League of Nations and, after World War II, the United Nations, international cooperation increased. Other efforts included the formation of the European Union, leading to a common currency in much of Western Europe, the euro.
The end of colonialism led to the independence of many African and Asian countries. During the Cold War, many of these aligned with the USA, the USSR, or China for defense.
The creation of Israel, a Jewish state in a mostly Arab region of the world, fueled many conflicts in the region, which were also influenced by the vast oil fields in many of the Arab countries.

Five overall worst atrocities of the 20th century

(measured in numbers of people killed; also see [1])

World War II and regime of Adolf Hitler (1937-1945), over 50 million dead, including the Holocaust, killing two-thirds of the Jewish population of Europe (6 million).
Regime of Mao Zedong and Chinese famine (1949-1976), over 48 million dead.
Regime of Joseph Stalin (1924-1953), over 20 million dead.
World War I (1914-1918), over 15 million dead.
Russian Civil War (1918-1921), over 8.5 million dead.

Culture and Entertainment

Movies, music and the media had a major influence on fashion and trends in all aspects of life. As many movies and music originate from the United States, American culture spread rapidly over the world.
After gaining political rights in the United States and much of Europe in the first part of the century, women became more independent throughout the century.
Modern art developed new styles such as expressionism, cubism, and surrealism.
The automobile provided vastly increased transportation capabilities for the average member of Western societies in the early to mid-century, spreading even further later on. City design throughout most of the West became focused on transport via car. The car became a leading symbol of modern society, with styles of car suited to and symbolic of particular lifestyles.
Sports became an important part of society, becoming an activity not only for the privileged. Watching sports, later also on television, became a popular activity.

Highest grossing films of the 20th century

Titanic (1997)
Star Wars (1977)
Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (1999)
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)
Jurassic Park (1993)

Most critically acclaimed films

Longest running television programs

Today Show (1952- )
Coronation Street (1960- )
Sábado Gigante (1962- )
Sesame Street (1969- )
Gunsmoke (1955-1975)
Saturday Night Live (1975- )
The Simpsons (1989- )
Law & Order (1990- )

Disease and Medicine

Though modern medicine is better than ever, an influenza pandemic kills 25 million in 1918-1919 (the Spanish Flu), while AIDS, killing many, especially in developing countries, remains uncurable.
Advances in medicine, such as the invention of antibiotics, decreased the number of people dying from diseases. Contraceptive drugs and organ transplantation were developed. The discovery of DNA molecules and the advent of molecular biology allowed for cloning and genetic engineering.

Natural Resources and the Environment

The widespread use of petroleum in industry -- both as a chemical precursor to plastics and as a fuel for the automobile and airplane -- led to the vital geopolitical importance of petroleum resources. The Middle East, home to many of the world's oil deposits, became a center of geopolitical and military tension throughout the latter half of the century.
A vast increase in fossil fuel consumption leads to depletion of natural resources, while air pollution possibly leads to global warming and the ozone hole. The problem is increased by world-wide deforestation, also causing a loss of biodiversity. The problem of a depletion of natural resources is decreased by advances in drilling technology which led to a net increase in the amount of fossil fuel that is readily obtainable at the end of the century, as compared with the amount considered obtainable at the beginning of the century.