Foreword Chapter 1 Nothing to Something 13.8 billion-450 million years ago The beginning of the universe, life and everything Chapter 2 Land Ahoy 480 million-252 million years ago Creatures wriggle out of the seas and forests cover the land Chapter 3 Dinosaurs to Apes 252 million-6 million years ago Terrible lizards and what comes after Chapter 4 Hands Free 5 million-12,000 years ago Walking apes to migrating humans Chapter 5 Seeds of Change 38,000 BCE to 2000 BCE Farming, writing and trade Chapter 6 Cities and Civilizations Everywhere 3300 BCE to 1200 BCE Complex societies emerge around the world Chapter 7 The Rise of Religions 30,000 years ago to 100 CE Spiritual life blooms Chapter 8 New Ideas Abound 1400 BCE to 200 BCE Democracy, Science, and Philosophy Chapter 9 Christianity and Islam Make their Mark 30-1000 CE Cultures collide and fuse, building the world we know today Chapter 10 Ingenuity 800-1280 CE Inventions, Climate and the Struggle for Power Chapter 11 The Global Middle Ages 1220-1521 Rich cultures around the world Chapter 12 Colonialism takes off 1415-1621 One person's miracle is another's disaster Chapter 13 Revolutions All Around 1543-1905 Science, Freedom and Robots Chapter 14 World at War 1845-1945 When everyone was fighting everyone else Chapter 15 Marching Towards the Millennium 1945-2000 The Cold War, Human Rights, and the Dawn of the Digital Age Chapter 16 To Be Continued. 2000-the present Plastics, viruses and finding our way to a bright future.