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Leviathan
Thomas Hobbes, and English philosopher, publishes a book depicting his ideals on a social contrast and a commonwealth. -
1660: Spontaneous Generation
New instruments that magnify allow for people to find out about cells and how they reproduce -
Black Plague
2/3 of England is evacuated to escape the deadly disease -
Linnaeus
Linnaeus attempts and succeeds in documenting the different classes of organisms on Earth, setting example for Darwin later on. -
S. Carolina Slave Revolt
75 slaves with liberated weaponry run off to Florida; the resistance was crushed by the S. Carolina militia. -
Comte de Buffon
Buffon proposes that living things evolve by observing natural laws. -
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Rousseau's Discourse on the Origins of Inequality is published -
Zoonomania
Erasmus Darwin, grandfather to Charles, pens book questioning whether humans evolved from cells. -
Inoculation in England
Edward Jenner tests vaccines against smallpox, though he does not not know how it works. -
Lamarck
Lamarck proposes that living things become more complex when they evolve over time. -
Napoleon
Napoleon's deadly march into Russia is not faring well, and many of his troops are freezing to death before they reach their destination. -
Cuvier
The construction of canals, etc. has caused the discovery of lost species, and Cuvier proposes that catastrophes eliminated these organisms. -
Mexican Affairs
Mexico, interested in populating Texas, allows Stephen F. Austin to sell plots of land to settlers. -
Lyell
Lyell argues the age of the Earth, hinting that slow-moving, gradual processes shape Earth's geology. -
Indian Removal Act
Andrew Jackson puts the Indian Removal Act into action, making more room for settlers to stay. -
Beagle Sets Sail
Darwin's 5-year journey begins, where he will gather crucial information about what he will soon theorize. -
Tempo Famine
Too much rain leads to Japanese famine that ends prosperity for a while, and causes around 300,000 deaths. -
Darwin's Secret Journals
Darwin puts his most controversial theory of the Galapagos Islands' finches in separate notebooks, reluctant to share the information. -
Rubber
Charles Goodyear invents vulcanization, allowing for manmade production of rubber. -
Vestiges of Natural History
Robert Chambers anonymously publishes book on evolutionary ideas to avoid attack, and is met with incredible opposition. -
Annexation of Texas
US approves of annexation of Texas; Mexico breaks relations with the US. -
Lord Kelvin
William Thompson guesses the age of the Earth to be around 100 million years old. -
Gold
California Gold Rush starts, and thousands of immigrants flood to the state in hopes of finding a better life. -
Neanderthal
Fossil skull is found in Neander Valley, Germany. The head looks extremely similar to those of human remains. -
Dred Scott Case
The Supreme Court rules that slaves, free or not, do not hold rights as a person and therefore have no right to appeal to court. -
Flint Tools Discovered
With tools now uncovered, scientists began to think about the mental and physical capabilities of our ancestors. -
Rabbits
Imported rabbits in Australia causes massive destruction to ecological balance in the area. -
Origin of Species
Darwin publishes his theory of evolution through natural selection, and starts a storm of discussion on the subject. -
Russian Serfs
Tsar Alexander II issues his proclamation ending serfdom. -
Theory of Evolution Accepted
Prominent scientists begin to accept the work, though some still question it. -
Tree Dating
Approximating a tree's age by the amount of their rings begins. -
Fossil Display
Museum of Natural History opens in the US, displaying fossils and making evolutionary studies a popular subject. -
Japanese Begins Industrializing
The Meiji government sends out diplomats to the West, hoping to find out more about the innovations and banking and agricultural techniques. -
Descent of Man
Darwin publishes his second book, giving a continuation to his theories and linking them to the evolution of mankind. -
Diamonds
South Africa becomes the largest diamond producer in the world. -
Horse Fossils
The discovery of horse fossils links them back to a common ancestor with 4 toes. -
Bismarck
Interested in world peace, Bismarck forms defensive alliance Germany with Austria-Hungary. -
Social Darwinism
Theories of competition to survive in a social setting are surfacing in Europe, eventually inspiring individuals like Hitler. -
Famous Europeans
Karl Marx dies, John Maynard Keynes and Benito Mussolini are born. -
Radioactivity
Antoine H. Becquerel uses radioactivity found in the Earth to approximate our planet's age. -
First US Subway
The first underground railway system is established in Boston, Massachusetts. -
Piltdown Man
Another fossil skull is found that starts debate on the "missing link" between man and primate. The skull is later found to be fake. -
World War 1
World War 1 begins -
Scopes Trial
Famous case tried in the Supreme Court arguing whether or not evolution should be taught in schools in the US. -
Communists vs. Nationalists
The Kuomintang wages war on Chiang Kai-Shek. -
Scopes Myth
The Scopes Trial is parodied and poked fun at, misleading the public. -
Hitler
Hitler is named Chancellor of Germany, and promises to bring his country to glory and victory against the failures of the first world war. -
Neo-Darwinism
Innovative ideas have been placed on Darwin's theories, with genetics leading the way in understanding how organisms became the way they are. -
D-Day
Allied Forces enter France, taking control of the control of the country and establishing a 2-front war against the Axis. -
DDT
The overuse of this pesticide has produced DDT-resistant bug species, that foreshadow antibiotic-resistant superbugs we see today. -
World War 2 Ends
Japan surrenders after Fat Man and Little Boy bombs are dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. -
DNA
DNA double-helix structure has been discovered, allowing for understanding of how genomes work. -
Cuban Missile Crisis
John F. Kennedy manages to stop the Cold War from escalating, and turning back the ships carrying missiles to Cuba before another war could erupt. -
Humans and Apes
DNA between man and primates, namely apes, have been found to have extremely similar correlations between them. -
Floppy disk
The floppy disk in the computer is introduced, allowing for new storage technology to hit the markets -
Lucy
A 4-million-year-old skeletal remains of the oldest common ancestor of humans documented is found, named Lucy after the Beatles' song. -
Chinese Wonder
The terracotta army found in Xi-An, China, bears witness to the dedication of the Chinese towards their emperor. -
Sociobiology
A new branch of science is formed that studies evolution's effects on human behavior. -
Apple
First Apple computer is founded. -
DNA Codes
DNA sequencing technology greatly advances, making gene documentation easier and inexpensive compared to before. -
World Trade Center
The Twin Towers are bombed, and a devastated nation begins its fight with radical terrorism. -
Human Genome
1st draft of the human genome is documented, giving scientists insight on how we correspond with the many other diverse species on Earth.
