lets get clear that anthropology is not my best subject, and nice to have info (with refs) if anyone knows i am wrong,

i find the anthropological timeline makes clear how much has happened recently ...

as far as i know,

13,700,000,000 years ago : BANG
..4,500,000,000 Earth formed
..3,700,000,000 amoebas formed
.......65,000,000 the last dinosaur died
.........4,000,000 homo like species started
............400,000 - 150,000 fire controlled (human life started being fun)
..............50,000 neanderthal died out (very last fossil 35,000)
..............40,000 invention of bow and arrow
12,000 years ago we started farming, wheat and barley (weizen gerste) -(also linseed for lamp oil and clothes)
10,000 melting copper,later +tin=bronze,
5,000 pyramids stonehenge (Maya Inca ca.4,000yrs. later)
4,000 first books (vedas, old testament, i ching)
3,000 years ago, the beginning of military warfare -(so it seems the incresed population was first used for building)
2,600 - 1,400 yrs ago buddha jesus mohammed

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and then as i understand it ...

AD 325 the Christian Catholic church suddenly became the official religion of the roman empire - then took over the remains of the roman empire - and slowed all progress in europe. Meanwhile Islamic medicine, astronomy and philosophy flourished.

In modern Europe from 1450 onwards the printing press, Luther and horny Henry VIII opened up the way to freedom of thought and belief.

Imparticularly, Gutenberg's printing press revolutionised the expression and definition of information based on anything which could be written, (pictures couldnt be copied as easily)

The written word led to an unprecedented and mind boggling list of developments and revolutions over the next few hundred years.

Until around 1920 where in West Europe everyone receives some sort of schooling, the opportunity to develop freedom of thought, and the right to vote.

(The ideal of freedom of thought had already existed in ancient Greece ancient China etc. but only the rich and priviledged were allowed to learn to read and think freely.)

_________________________________________

NOW

This very large group of individuals is a new thing on planet earth ... for millions of years it was not like this ... more people lived in the 20th century than in all the time before added together.

The cutural mixing we experience now will only happen once in the history of our planet ... it is an important, actually the MOST IMPORTANT CROSSING POINT HUMANS WILL EVER MAKE (until we meet aliens?) ... it will ONLY HAPPEN ONCE in our history ... and we are doing it NOW ...

(it is happening at the same time as internet)