What are the 1,000 events, through all time and from all places, that have been most influential in shaping the world in which we live today? From that starting point, the book"s creators - a team of veteran writers and editors - have developed a volume rich in content and visuals. Every spread pops off the page with passages to ponder and pictures to evoke the scene. A reader can open this book anywhere and find fascinating tidbits of world history embellished with quick-read biographies, first-person accounts, and landmark artworks, portraits, and photos.From "Life Begins" (Event number 1) through "First Abstract Painting" and "Morse Sends Telegraph" (Events numbered 506 and numbered 507) to Event number 1000. Special sidebar features cut through the chronology of this book, enriching its contents. "Footnotes" pull out fascinating details from many of the most important events. "Connections" - essays on topics such as the domestication of horses, global navigation, importation of New World food plants into Europe, photography, and planetary exploration - show how no event stands alone in its time but all link through the eras and the centuries.