The 21st Century has barely even begun, but it’s already generated a huge number of significant events in the history books. Here’s a look at some of the most important events of this century. Can you remember what you were doing when they happened?
1. September 11th WTC Attacks
September 11th 2001 saw four suicide attacks in the United States. The Islamist militant group known as al-Qaueda hijacked four passenger aircraft, and piloted two of those planes into the World Trade Center in New York City, causing the planes to collapse, and killing thousands of people.
The attacks had a huge economic and social impact, both in the United States, and around the world.
2. Solar Eclipse, 2010
The Solar Eclipse that took place on January 15th 2010 lasted for 11 minutes and eight seconds, making it the longest f the century. Thousands of pilgrims gathered on the banks of the Ganges River in India to view the eclipse, which they saw as a spiritual event. The eclipse was used as an opportunity for scientific education in China, and was the source of much excitement in Japan, as residents had not had the opportunity to see an eclipse in the past 46 years. Sadly, their view of this eclipse was marred by cloudy skies.
3. The Occupy Movement
The Occupy Movement started as a protest in Wall Street, but it didn’t take long for similar protests to spring up worldwide. Occupy London, England saw 3,000 protestors camping out in parks and on the streets, and Occupy Zagreb, Croatia saw a crowd of 10,000. The protests may have died down now, but many of the Occupy groups are still active, and meet regularly to organize focused actions and events. It’s hard to imagine the Occupy groups doing professional level event management in the UK, but they have gone from a group of protestors with tenuous links, to a serious activist organisation.
4. The End of the Space Shuttle Program
In July 2011, the Space Shuttle Program ended, with the Atlantis making one final voyage to the International Space Station. The launch was streamed online, but it was the in-person viewing figures that set records. Around one million people watched the shuttle take off in-person. That must have been a nightmare for event management services near the Kennedy Space Center!
5. The Large Hadron Collider
In 2010, the first high power collisions took place in the Large Hadron Collider. In 2012, physicists discovered what they believe to be the Higgs boson particle. At the time of writing, the data still needs more analysis before it can be confirmed, but the announcement of the discovery has inspired the world. Right now, the practical applications of the discovery of the Higgs Boson aren’t clear, but when they are discovered, we can be sure it will change the way we live.
The 21st century has seen tragedy, scientific discovery, natural wonders, and political protests already. We can only hope that the next several decades will see more progress, and more good news.
This article was written by Amy Fowler on behalf of AMA Events, experts in events management services and providers of event management in the UK. For more information on events management services or event management in the UK, follow this link to their site.
Photo: PaulSteinJC
